The Sun.
London, England, 1804-07-26 00:00:00

THE PLAGUE. "
_.!

(front Wittnian's-Travels in Tu(kefa taa.)
the most Niolenrattacks of plague, thti vital
priaciple appears to be suddenly, in, a greauneasule,
extinguished ; or otherwise so na.ch enfeebled, :ti,,
to render .the systeth capable of resisting the first
shtick of the disease only for a very short time.
Examples of this kind occurred. Severalail the
sepoys of .the Indian army in Egypt, and other.,
appeared to sink' under the first impression of the
contagion, their attack .being sudden, instaatane_
ens; and violent. was infotmed that several
&opt down sahen -in the ranks,' and died within a •
few hours afterwards.
A civilartificer died after thirty.sixbours
A choarbadgi, qr colonel of Janissaries, died at
the expiration of two days, within out buildings at
Cairo. The death of shell two individuals was
instantaneous, and without a straggle.
The plague may be defined to be a disease rur
generic,. which can affect persons more than once in
their lives ; and, from.a'variety .of circumstances,
is evidently contagious. • .
',The most tiideet and leading symptoms which,
attend this dreadful analady, are head.ach ; more or
less fev.ea; thirst ; gen.erally.ao intense or burning'
internal heat .about the prsecordial. nausea,' and .oc.
casional vomiting; the vessels of the eyes are, tor.
gid, accompanied with diarrhoea (Which is often a
troublcsoma and dangerous symptom); hmatorritages;
delirium; petechire, and large livid spots cover the
body in different parts.; buboes in the groin, axillz,•
&c. ; carbuncles ; 'an early and great prostration .of
strength, &c. &c:
Sometimes the disease is ushered in suddenly and
violently, at others the symptoms commence more
slowly, and- withmoreMOderation. This variety
and manner in the mode of attack may probably de.
'pent! -upon some particular diSposition or conatitu.
lion of the subjed, or nature of the
epidemic.
Upon the decline of the plague season, several
patients are seen to recover the sytnotoms• of the
disease at
.flas period are more moderate, and fa.:
vourable to recovery. We had examples of this
kind while with the Ottoman army at Jaffa, &c. in
Syria. The same.fact is observed at Constanti.
nople. Although it has been noticed that th'e.
plague does not fre'quently attack the same person
more thaa once in the same pestiferous season, yet
there are 'instances where this has happened, and
- where the relapses w'hich have occurred have proved
fatal.
It is generally remarked, that a deviation Irons
a light diet under this disease, and after 'recent
disappearaoce, is freqUently,prodnOtive ofanischiel,
inasmuch as it favours a relapse, or protraas re.
coverya
The danger is proportioned to the diminution of
vital energy- and extent of fever. 'llc-th s happen
from the first to. the seventh,' and even eleventh
days of the disease,' the most frequent from' 'the
fourth to the eleventh dsy'e yet fatal terminations
occur often at the eapiratton of twelve 'or twenty.
four houirS. Among the youths. and middle-aged
there-is said to be the greatest 'number of deaths.
• From all that one has seen -and heard,' it Would.
appear either that the virus of plague does not al.
ways possess the 'same aa:iivity and force, •or that'
certain persons are occasionally insusceptinle of its:
anion : and also, that from the sudden avpearance
ae wed WI termination of the„disease, the necessity
of seine powerful agent is implied to put the con-
tagion. into nation, and give it its full force, us
well as to 'destroy its eft's-as wl,en present, leaving,
however,' a sufficiency of the contagious principle
latent within the country,' to propagate the disease,
whenever such circumstances shall favour its ac-
: tion, and call it forth, without having recourse
to the annual generatian of fresh matter, or virus,
as necessary to account for the te.appearance of
disease-at each plague season.
May it imagined that this agent resides in the
atmosphere? But whether this peculiar constitution
of mite air consists in a, stiperfibundancea or-in a di.
minution of the ordinary proportion of ()Oro in
the atmosphere, or in the combination of some pa.
culiar gas,. or gasses, diffused in it ; or whether site
whole may 'be brought al) my by variations of tem-
perature only; connected with moisture or dryness,
of the air, I most confess my inability to determine.
Time alone may untold this anyitery. Indeed,. a
series of eittlionietrical anti:other observationsacon.
tinued for several -years, at the different places in
the country., might possibly throW some, light upon
the Subjed.
I am much disappointed to find that so little light
has been thrown on, plague by the results of the
k rench pradtitioneri in Egypt.
I should -have been: happy if, after several years
.•resideneein a pestiferous country, where I constant-
ly searched for useful information, my labours had
been rewarded in the discovery of an improved, or
more successful treatment of plague. No such hap.
,riness has attended me ; and as my own experience
ftliitdc, too limited-to presume .to lay. down a
plan of cure, I must in preference content myself
in the•relation of the experiments and praltice of
others, which came to my knowledge while in the
country.
For my own part, -a promptond early use of re.
medics appears 'to me of the utmost importance: in_
deed, the interval between the seizure and death is
frequently so very short, that the trial for remedies
is very limited. 7 treated the several cases Wilk!'
fell under my care, as far as it was praCticable, iii
the tnanneradopteLt in fevers of the malignant kind;
with this difference,- that, in the second case .1- con-
joined the trial of oily fridions. Although i cannot
venture to speak generally of the treatment of this
disease, yet I'woold hazard an-opinion, that where
proper establishments ate formed for the reception
of 'pestiferous patients, with proper attendants; a
cautious and fair trial of mercury and the oxygea
nated remedies, would merit attention. •
The pradlice of a Venetian Doetor, who lately
died in Cairo,. and who was much celebrated for his
professional skill and prognosis in plague, was, first
to bleed, but never alter the expiration of thirty.
six hours from attack. He administered large
doses of camphor, and. gave the patient alump of it