, 1866-05-03
EdIt6f5 E1ItaRb 1Fsbune:
ANTIQUITY OF CHOLERA.


There is no disease to which mankind are
subject, that for the Inst thirty .dre years has
so largely drawn upon the thought and obscr-
vatson Of The medical profession as Agide
cholera, and far be 1t from me to say ! think
1t disease Of modern origin. Here we may
properly inquire from whence tho word chol-
era Is derived. Alexander Tralltau, who was
born at Trallcs In Lydia, and dourIsLed at
Rome under the Emperor Justinian, ahoQt the
middle Of the sixth century, who was one Of
the ripe scholars OF hla age, derives the word
ChoIera from tho Greek eholas, IN intestine,
aud REQ to flow, or be in continual movement
an intestinal flowing up and down which Is
expressive Of the disease.
Scoutettcn Is Of opinion that Wang Chou
ko, u Chinese who lived before Hlppocrates,
has written Of 1t under the name oi Ho-ton.
an. Mr.. Scott, m English surgeon in Madras,
whote works were published In 1874, tlInk,
by Dhanwantalf, NEUROLOGICAL parsonage
corresponding to The Greek IEsculapIus.
uippocEn,es, q descendant Of Esculapius,
who WIS bonn at the Island Of Cos, four hun
drvd aud sixty years tefore the birth Of
Christ, and whose writings have descended
was and is styled the :" Father OF Medi-
cinc.'' Arctrus' (of Cnppadocta) ffth head
Of his second book Of Acute Diseases,
has this significant caption: Peri CAo9e-
ra, which, translated, is simply this:
"conccrning cholera" and IN 1t be describes
tnus Is believed to have written during the
reign OF Vespaslan. Several others OF the
ancient Greek physicians have written OF II.
CELSIUS, a Roman physician in the time of IT,
b1ius, In his eight books D. Iedielnd written
In Latin, which have been handed down to us,
<.{r n oil 3rffr rf rbn1n
titus. who was born at leEden and studied
medicine there, then went to India and prac-
ticctI some years, returning prior to the mid
die Of The seventeenth century, aud wrote
scme medical works which were published,
gives therein Lis observations Of the disease
o! nu epidemic Of cholera which prevailed In
London in 1869 and 1876, Paisley, In 1874,
Eivcs us Its history us IL prevailed In pnrls In
li30. Morton, in his Pyrtto'o5td, 1Gv2 and l69a.
y. n. 1G, 10, 81, describes It under the title Of
a malignant fever. DR.. johnson calls 1t cpl
demlc choleraic fever. sonnerat writes Of Its
appearances from 1774 to 17s1. He tolls us 1t
Is called In lndia nordiym which Is believed
to be a-corEuption Of the Arabic nordekfe,
which Significantly, imports "death blow"
has always existed in Hindoostan, and that an
epidemic Of IT. In 176e prevailed in Upper
llipdostan, and destroyed thirty thousand
natives and eight hundred Europeans. Mr.
W. Scott, before alluded to, Informs Us that
m spidee q-PP5 P5erasd 1 at Arcot and
was entered in The proceedings of the Madras.
Medical Board, and that simiar epidemic
ragged among the natives about PaYcondra, In
the Ambore Valley, in 17t9-177d. In an
Jaadafy, ha dfEd 1RPee4ssAd spsn e
single dar; that it vas called BY the natives
morltxym, aud was Intended with vomiting
and purging Of water, q blue skin, sudden and
terrible pEostration, great thirst, spasns Of
the toes, inEerE, nrms and legs, then Of the
p1Tcordia, and that death occurred not un-
frequently In four hours, sometimes sooner.
i He adverts also to tie occurrence Of cholera
in ths Slaurltius in ITS, and again in 1919;
ut MADRAS in 1782; ut Vellore ii 1857 at Ar
cot In the same year; In the northern Clrcas
in 1700, aud in the vicinity Of Trincomalec.
Al Jaulnah he reports come fatal cases In
1914. -.
PROGRESS OF THE CHOLERA n INDIA.
It WINS from India and the adjoining conn-
tries that the first clear and faithful dcscrjp-
Lions Of Asintic cholera came. Prof. Cruyel-
hicr Of Pnsis (Anat. Pathol. Pasts) says that
the observations ofmedlcal gentlemen at CAL
:tfons collected subsequently, Mt; Moscow,
Warsaw, Vienna, Berlin, London; and Par1s,
lHpd that the disorder was imported into
Er1ropc BY the Russian army In Its Invasion OF
h;Ausust 1877 It commenced In its most
d1ed yIIes, northeast nf Ca1cnttn snreadinr
from vaare to % vi11arr " rcechinn 1:aicnt4a ~ 3 +
Scptcm6S From f:6lcnttn Il Vert 10 Re1sn
BenaIes, A..hnhaii Gornck knorc fnclnnw
Cawnpore, ushi ARA: Sntfra and RarcI1,y'
all suffered n sSccssion. Tic pcstiicnee d}i
not di0use itseh a.apce, but ttayellcd bv a
chain Of posts, talking second district
nitet-H Aau rasaTco la>trst.
On reaching the army nnder the MARQUIS
OF Hastings, tke dthusson o. The disease bctur'
confined to dlssI1ets, was sttiAngly easmpli-
hed as sla1eo " Df. Aamllten Dell, IN nAs
Tust n,lse on Gioa ;lia e ~ SPREAD nronsh the
on1 saca aisos assn 1r sno @ as;yt ~ Mn9deiah
aS hnq ana aSenr te1e The
Dccean. 1t I7pssingabad rs havoc was
ar..aH,, 1or 1eysel days; when, following
the tunks Of tls Nsz5lddah. 1t alighted II
Tannah: IIaytg visited the cities ri ;t1uuga-
bad md Ahrsahugger, Il spF~sa to toonah,
and toWo.' "1 us @ coast TO Pa1TS1 then ram-
fed n Ra[ un1 sontb erqsssa qnS Sasette @ I'D ar
r1rcnr. 1s1o ~ tnn stiona q Week OF seP-
t4ce - f7,a,,. tMe4's AnoHtn0 a'let Us appear
While Ii u1I Ill Tsa roino on :, +,;a u,,4 ~.
epidemic made ike n16err., Il Fas, sde M m st ths
thsnp nu sp1eMaa M 1vSI me Wnole Goromaudelc coast;