The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1869-09-10

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Passage, 2 sick, l DEATH Porto Rico-Passsge,
death; quarantine, sick. st. Domingo-Passage,
8 sick, 8 DEATHS Key Wess-Passage, | death.
Spanish Main-in port, death; passage. SICK.
death; In quarantine, sick. Rio Janero-Passage,
deaths. Agpinwall, passage death; in quaran
tine, sick.
1t Is interesting In this connection to review the
statistics of yellow fever at this port since the e.
tablishment Of quarantine IN 1879, and to see the
relative mortality al the several ports from which
the fever IL brought TO this country. In period
Of sxty-Mx years $50 yellow fever vessels have
arrived at this port The following shows the ratio
OF infection at each yellow fever port and the po,s
oned vessels theref:om during that time:-Havana
80 years, oil vessels ST. Domingo, Is years. 10 yes
sells; Matanzas, Charleston and New Orleans. each
IL years with aggregate OF "a vessels Vera Cruz
0 years, % vessels; Sagua Ia Grande, Cienfuegos
Kingston aud St. Thomas each years, with an Az
gregate Of 90 vessels Central America, years.
vessels; santiago de Cuba. 6years vessels; Coast OF
Africa, years, 81 vessels; Trinidad, years. YES
sels Rio IanieTo, years, vessels; Iauiamala Car
demos Guadalupe. Savannah, Key West aud .lObile,
each years; Gouaives, Guayaquil aud Martinique,
each years; Nassau, Nuevitas, Ponce Norfolk, New
burn, Demerara anu Bahia each years and
Manzanla- st. Johns, Curacon. TorIuga, Pensacola
Spanish Main and Pernamouco each l year. Our
latitude OF north 40 deg. ~ min. seems to be nearly
the northern limit OF the disease. 1t 10 entirely un-
70 deg, though her West India and other tropical
trade IL at least equal to ours. But Il has been
known to prevail in seapors on the coast OF Spain
aud Portugal from Gibraltar to Oporto, whose lat-
tude Ii north Il deg ~ mn or nearly as high north
az ours That it has not been reported In CHINA or
the Indian ocean, nor at Calcutta Bombay and
other ports OF the tropical East, is prOba-
bly, due to the absence OF trade with the African
coast fever somewhat modified both by latitude ana
longitude, is not now doubted as from every place
both in this country ana Europe where 1t originally
first appeared IL has been traced directly 10 tina
coast OF africa: it was brought thence to MART
to Philadelphia In 1899 to Charleston in 1892 to vir
pnia In 1871 and to New York In 1888 Since the
earliest OF these dates II has reappeared spontane-
and ports OF Mexico like q botanical product ind-
genous to their soil.
$4,000 inhabitants, between 400 and 2, 500 died OF
yellow fever. Again, in 1903 out Of 1861 reported
cases, 600 died OF malignant lever. In 1901 the
number Of deaths IN the city from yellow fever was
70a. In 1905 there were 800 cases, OF which 275 re-
suited fatally; aud IN ls22 there were $40 deaths in
ported cases. In 1926 732 died AZ Philadelphia, Pa.
IN 1898 $500 died IN the same city. In 1893 4,oi1
winch nearly depopulaIei Portsmouth, Va. and
vicinity, with POPULATION OF about 1000, 1000 died:
About 1000 OF these were whites and about 300 Of
whom died, while OF the 1900 blacks only 100 died.
At no period in the history OF this country were the
wide spread as during the year 1894. In other yell
low fever ep,denics. although many OF our seaport
cities ana towns suffered severely e disease s never
ever, it oversteppei all former boundaries ami,
carried by panic-stgicken fngltyes, spread far mo
the interior. From New Orleans 1t extended up the
Mississippi as far as Memphis, while the whole Gulf
front OF lexas embracing an area OF more than 200
mikes in length by nearly $50 In breadth, was fear
fully visited New Orleans suffered more severely
than In any former epidemic, excepting that OF 1851.
Galveston lndanola, Houston, Corpus Christi and
many other towns, were almost depopuated Pen.
sacola Key West and Mobile also suffered TO con-
siderable extent, while IN the West indies yellow
fever was unusually prevalent. The ports OF Ha-
vana, Port ad-Prince, MiragOane, Kingston and
ST. Thomas were also seriously infected.
Since the lst OF January twelve vessels have mr.
rived at this port with cases OF ship fever board.
the disease 1858 OF which eighty three were sick
arriving In port aud twenty-n died on the pas.
rage aud In quarantine. OvercrowllnR imperfect
ventilation improper aud insufficient food and I'M
cleanliness. formerly so commonly met with upon
vessels bringing Immigrants. are now happily the
exception aud IN the absence OF these active agents
In tho production OF ship fever this disease ID fast
disappearing fron the marine. In exceptional cases
however, when vessel makes long passage, or
when through the prevalence VI bad weather, the
passengers are shut up for any length OF time be-
occur; but III these Instances the character Of tho
causes mitigate the intensity OF the disease and IN
most ,s cases develop ~ a @na FORM
Notwithstanding the prevalence Of cholera during
the summer IN Cuba vessels arriving at this pOrt
few cases arrived ut Quarantine, and noae OF them
were OF the mangnaut type SO frequently met WIN
on West india vessels.
The smallpox report for the year shows 20 vess
sells, with i&0 sick persons out or over 10000 en-
posed to the disease board ship. and IL, 900 vac
cnations at Quarantine This disease has been more
preysent the past summer than In any previous
season for several years. The average number Of
deaths In New York rom smallpox from 1908 to lsAS
was 100 per annum and from 1Sas to 1856 the aver.
age annual mortality was 400, while In 1865 the total
number Of deaths from this disease was only ~.
IN 1867 10. ana 1868 the mortality had fallen to 49,
These figures include all the cases sent from
vessels In quarantine to the Smallpox Hospt-
tai on Blackwes Island. LaA year smsllpox
prevailed In an epidemic form throughout
the Pacific states ana Territories. From sixty to
seventy deaths per day occurred at San Francisco
out Of population OF 100000, while In many places
In the interior OF the state the scourge was even
more severe The disease travelled by every stage
carried TO almost every port on the North Pacific
coast Crossing the SIerras II reached virginia CITY
and otner towns east OF the mountains, extenain9
It's ravages with fearful mortality among some 81
the Indian tribes. It also appeared iQ mali0nane