The Lancaster gazette. (Lancaster, Ohio) 1846-1852, 1850-08-16
why Epidemics Rage a, NiCh,.


Why EpidemICs Rage ut Night.
It was one night thu, 1000 persisted Of
the plague in Lon,luu in 1865. 1T was
at night the army fSrnnacherb was de.
.siroyed. Both in England and on the
confident large proportion Of cholera
cases 10 its several films have been .ob.
served To have occurred between une and
two O'Clock in The morning. The danger
OF exposure To tle,biebt air" has beeu a
lheme of physicians from time immemo
rial, but il is remarks5e that they have
never yet called in the aid uf chemistry
10 account for The fscl.
II is at night that the streams Of air
nearest the ground must always be the
most charged with the porticIesd aui.
mallzed natter given ont from lhe skin,
and deieieTlDus gases. such as carbonic
acid gas. the moduct uf respirslinn, aud
sulphuraled hydpgen. tie product of The
sewers. ln the day gases aud vaporous
substances rise inihe al by the rare
fiction Of beat, at night Wien the rarefac-
Ilon leaves lhfmibry fdl 10y aD increase
Of gravity, il imperledly mixed with the
atmosphere. While ;he gases evolved du.
ring the night Instead # ascending re-
main al penrly the same level It is
known that carlionic acid gas at low
temperature paitakes 50 nearly Tie same
nature Of a fluid, that il may be poured
out OF one vessel into auolber; it rises al
the Temperature at phirh, II is exhaled
from the lungs, bH! i!s tendency is 10.
wards the foor or bed Of the sleeper, in
cold and unyehlilated rooms,
AT Hambug The alarm Of cliolera a,
night, in some parts Of the ciIy, was so
great that on sUme occasions many re.
fused 10 goto bed. lest they should be at.
tackled unawares in their sleep. Sitting
up they probably kept their stoves or
open fires burning far the sake o.
warmth, and ihat warmth giving the ex
pansiOE TO any deleterious gases present
which would best promote their escape
and promote their dilulion in the at
mosphere. the means nF safety were thu
uncOnsci0usiy assured At Sierra Leone
the natives have ractice. in The sickl
season, of keeping fires constantly burn
ing IN their huls atnighi, assigning tha
the fires kept away the evil spirits. {
which in their ign0rapce. they attributed
| the fever and ague. Lalerly, European
have begun TO adopt the same practice
and those who have tried il assert iha
they have entire immunity from the trnp
ic!l feyers 10 which they were former,
subject -.--
Ia the epidemics Of the middle age
fires used 10 he lighted in the street fol
The purifaction oflhe air; and the plague
in London, of 1865, fires 10 the street
were at once kept burning necessarily
ill extinguisbed by violent storm Of rain
Lauerlyi trains of guupowder have beel
fired, and cannon discharged for the sam
object. but it Is obvious that these meas
ures, although sound in principle, mu:
necessarily, out Of doors. be TN TOO sma
, a scale. az measured against an ocean {
atmospheric air, TO produce any sensibl
effect. Within doors, the case is ditiel
ent. 1t is quite possible to heat roor
to produce rarefaction and consequeu
dilution of any maIifiuaui cases il ma
contain; and it is Of course the air Of III
) room, and that alone. "a, night. whic
comes into immediate contact with tn
+, lungs Of person sleeping TVestni'
! ister Rcrier.