Lynchburg Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1829-185?, 1848-12-18
From the Baltimore American.
THE CHOLERA.

/ THE CHOLERA
| The following official paper this subject prepar-
ed on behalf of the Medical Faculty of Maryland has
additional interest and value from the fact OF the APP
| pearance of this epidemic at New York:
The following report of the Committee appointed by
the Medical and Chirurgica Faculty of Maryland, ha
wing been read and adopted by the Faculty. is now, in
pursuance of resolution of said body, presented to
the authorities Of each city, town and village in the
State of Maryland:
| In the opinion Of the Committee, so clearly has it
been ascertaned that humidity with impurty of the
atmosphere, powerfully predisposes to the extension
OF the poison Of Cholera that it is almost needless for
them to adduce facts to prove it. The Committee
have concluded however, that it would not be alto
gether inappropriate to mention few circumstances
connected with the ect and have selected for their
purpose some of the conclusions arrived at by the
Sanitary Commissioners of London.
After an investigation Of the facts connected with
the introduction and spread of Asiatic Cholera over
Europe in 1882 they make the following statement -
"That under proper circumstances of cleannesss and
ventilation, this disease seldom spreads in families,
and rarely passes to those aboutthe sick under such
favora lie circumstances unless they happen to be par
ticuariy predisposed 1t will not, therefore, be
cessary where there is space and where due attention
is paid to cleanliness and purity of air, to separate
members Of families actually affected by the disease
After this statement the Commissioners proceed to
say that their Investigations have conducted them to
certain important conclusions of which bear d.
recty upon the matter under consideration, and will
| therefore be embodied in this report.
The first conclusion is, that the mode Of invasion Of
Cholera in the various cities of Europe has BEEN every
where strikngly uniform. 1t has almost always made
its first outbreak in the lowest and dampest portion
tho city attacked They verify this statement BY ref
erences to St Petersburg, Dantzc, Berlin Moscow
| Breslau, Warsaw, Paris, Sunderland Carlisle, Man
chester, London, and England generally.
The commissioners remark that is the combination
of with immunity of the atmoSnhern which
powerfully predisposes to Cholera cleanliness
to be capable of counteractng the effect of mere hui
Nudity the scrupulous cleanliness of the Inhabitants
of Holland probably the of the comparative
exemption from Cholera which that country enjoyed.
These statements are sustained by our observation
Of the introduction and spread Of Cholera in own
city, and the cities generally of the United States
In Boston, where very extraordinary sanitary meas
ures adopted the disease did not spread to the
same extent it any thing like so fatal the
other cities OF our country where such precaution
| ary steps were taken.
| 1t has also been well established, that wherever
Cholera finds the conditions of increase, very small
amount Of the poison is sufficient cause its rapid eX
tension. No better example of this fact be pre-
sented than that Of certain regiments in India, which
were attacked at certain place, continued to be
tackled during their march through unaffected dis
trict, and at period of time too remote to allow
attribute it merely to ncubative period unusually
prolonged. An able writer gives the following expla
nation of these circumstances Wherever the poison
of Cholera meets with its conditions it will propagate
itself these conditions to be furnished in high
degree by the efuvia and emanaons of camps or bod
les OF men the poison introduced amongst sucf
| body, finds in the moving camp the necessary con
dtions easily and abundantly in the statlona
ry city.
| In this latter statement the Committee cannot alto
gether agree with the author may be when ap
piled to cities but it certainly cannot be true
many Others and especially of at this partic
lar time.
The Sanitary Commissioners remark further tina
certain physical conditions promote both the intensity
and the extension Of Cholera. These conditions ma,
be comprised in impure and humid ar,nnutrtious food
excess in ardent spirits, tobacco and fermented liquors
unsuitable or insufficient clothing times i'll con
trved dwellings, and defective appliances for the regu
lation of warmth or protection against cold.
In another report, the Commissioners make the fol
lowing statement the cholera districts the tvphu
districts and the influenza district are the same AM
the local conditions which favor the spread and ncreas
the intensity of these and all kindred malades are ey
erywhere similar.
The proof Of this is found in thefact that in the dis
tricts in which we have already shown that choler
principally prevailed and from which typhus rarely
ever absent influenza was twice and in some instan
ces four times fatal in the more salubrious part
of London.
Without troubling the authorities any longer will
these details, the Committee would respectfully sug
gest the following the most expedien and eectua
sanitary which can Tin their opinion) be in
stuted to mitigate the violence Of cholera in cities AM
towns.
They would recommend that steps be immediatel
taken by the proper authorities of every city, town AM
village in the State Of Maryland, to cleanse and keel