Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1853-09-16
Pestllences aid their Enect..:

The awful mortality produced by the epidemic at
New Orleans has given occasion to the remark in
various quarters, that its raTages are Unparalleled
The history Of the past, however furnishes many in
stances of more terrible destruction of human life by
various pestilences. The Philadelphia, Ledger not-
ces the following, among the many that in neasurs
have desolated the cities of the earth
The first of which we have a detailed account is
that recordedby Thucyddes, and which visited Athens
about four hundred and thirty years before the Chris
tan 1t appears TO have been identical in kind
with the great plague OF London in 1866, the accounts
written of the one applying almost exactly to the
other. The mortality which attended il seems almost
incredible 1t was followed, at Uneven periods, by
other visitations of pestence. which swept off mil
lions of the human race, at Rome. Egypt Syria, and
finally Constantinopie Gibbon relates that in the
reign of Justinan, A. D. 527 plague devastated the
empire for ifty.two years. During portion of this
time. tshen Consianlnople visited by the epidef-
ic ten thousand persons died daily. Two centuries
later two hundred thousand persons were carried off
in that capital by another visitation of the plague
In the earlier visitation many smaller cities were de-
populated by it, Whole districts, devoted TO agrcN1.
ture, were abandoned, the harvest being lett 10 wths
er on the ground. Gibbon computes the entire NOR
tality during the ffty-two years of plague, at one
hundred millions.
During the dark ages the plague swept over Eu-
rope several times with frghtful VIOLENCE. Boccac-
clio has left vivid narrative of its appearance at Flor!
ence, about the middle of the fourteenth century. 1t
bore the name OF the Black Death' and closely
semhed the old plague Of Athens. Visiting England,
it swept of fifty thousand inhabitants of London
alone, though the British capitol had not al that time
probably than two hundred thousand inhabitants
Fifty years later the plague appeared again in Lon:
don, when thirty thousand persons pershed of it with
in twelvemonth. In 1917, epidemic called the
Sweating Sickness :" broke out in Europe and exten
ding 10 England deprived the principal towns,
ding TO Stowe, of half their inhabitants. In 1908;
nearly forty thousand persons died of plague in Lon
DON About the me period, Consahtihople is said
to have lost two hundred thousand OF its inhabitants
by the disease. AS the age of official statistics
had not yet arisen these numbers may have been
casionaly exaggerated but the very vastness of the
estimates even if but approximations, proves the
rightfu rate of mortality 1t is TO be regretted that
we have not exact accounts of these epdemics;
soas TO be able to determine whether they were den-
ca in character, the best medical writer's conlec
ture. really different, as their names imply.
We come now TO the pestiIence which devastated
london in 1865, and which is commonly known as
{" The Great Plague" It does moi appear, after at
to have been as fatal many whichpreceded and
really its 10 the vivid descriptions
left Of it. This epidemic appeared in September, 1864
and after lingering all winter, began to rage violently
as early as May. The summer set in unusually hot
In the week ending the l 9Th June, 112 had died Of
the disease the next week the number rose 10 1863;
the next TO 207 and the next to 470. Macauley
computes the population of London at th time at
about half million. By the middle of July how
ever, two hundred thousand bad fled 10 the country.
The pestilence now began to increase with appal-
ing rapdity. The deaths for the week ending with
The lst OF August SOLO, and they rose steadily
in numbers ill the fifth Of September having reach
ed, for the week ending with that date, $3.50. The
week following there 6544 the week after that
7165; and the next week $3.50. The pesence
rapidly abated. The mortality for the ensuing FIVE
weeks was, respectively, 1929, 1927 1865, 142I,
and 1881. By the 5,h of December, the weekly deaths
from the plague had fallen 10 2lO. This, after the
awful mortality which had preceded it, was consd-
cred trlfe the fugitves consequently returned TO
town, and business generally resumed.
Other pestences, since the London one. have been
very fatal In 1920, $4,000 persons perished at Mar
selIies, or quite half of the population. In Egypt,
Syria and Barbary, the mortality from The plague has
frequently trebled, and even quadruped the present
NOR ,aity at New Orleans. In the {" Great Plague
London lost 100000 Of her inhabitants one-thrd
Of those who stayed to encounter the pes,ilence.-
New Orleans must lose p. 900 to attain like NOR
talitY, but God forbid that she should