Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1871-11-17
The Great Plague Of BuenOs Ayres.


disease ragged from January to the 1st of
MAY of this year, during which period
% 600 bodies were buried in one cemetery.
OF the whole population of Buenos Ayrcs,
amounting to 1S0,000 upward of 100, 600
fled from the city, and at the time of the
publication of the Standard, on the Both
/, of April, II was estimated that but 10000
Z souls were left in Buenos Ayres T. fol'
lowing arc some of the part. ,.suIarsl
Some Paraguayan Prisoners of war, who
Z returned to Para Jay last year, on landing
NJ hscui.Cion, were found 10 bo suffering
NiroE yellow fever, and many of the cases
proved fatal The foul state Of that rity
and exhauscd condition Of tho Paraguay
ans after the sufferings Of the war were
peculiarly favorable for any epidemic, and
speedily fever broke out, which the ply
sicians declared to be bilious itcher0d,n
iiundrcsts of people perished, thousands
Hed ~ the country districts, but the disease
lid not prove of the malignant character
At afterward assumed in other places.
The Infection next spread to Corrientcs,
and here IL made fearful ravagcs, most of
the physicians and apothecaries being
among the victims, besides ono. fourth Of
the inhabitants. The hot season had al.
ready set in, and, although the epidemic
was within forty-eight hours of our city.
no Efforts had been made to guard against
IL. a nominal quarantine was ordered
similar to that of 1870. a passenger in
confinement at the Lazzaretta of Ensenada
borrowed horse rode into town, took to
his bed, recovered, but his family died
and then the people next door, and so il
spread, till involving the whole parish of
San iclmo, the dirtiest and most populous
in the city.
In the first week of January, the plague
entered the city by the Barrio dc San
Ielmo =; but at first Its existence was only
iielt by few Italians, who were utterly
ignorant of the real character of their
guest. Half dozen poems, or washer
women, were taken away daily from their
cares their faces were not missed others
followed the same Journey to the cemc-
tery, and at last a TumOr spread that the
IeVer ~as making ravages in San Temo.
In medical circles it was cautiously whis-
pered, We have yellow fever among
us, but not until the close of the month.
when nearly two hundred victims had fall
len, did any one dare publicly give the
alarm. DIR. Golfarina and others fastened
Indignantly to contradict the rumor and
comfort the public mind =" 1t is only the
iall OF the leaf-the unhealthy season,
when we must not be surprised to see the
mortality above the average"
Physicians of every calibcr discussed
the nature of the epidemic, some declar-
ing 1t yellow fever, others typhoid, others
lctheroid typhus, etc. Meantime the poor
Italians of San Telmo continued to die,
now dozen daily, and the plague was
scattering its seed, without fear of inter
ruption, in all the perlicus of the district.
All this time the smell of the Riachuclo
made every one in town sick About San
Telmo and the south end it was pestilen-
tial but the saladcros continued working.
and the river at BARRACKS literally ran
blood. The arrival of Italian immigrants
aDatcd nothing, averaging one hundred
uAlly and these poor people were packed
INTO the over-crowded tenement houses
and dens where lodging is given for/one
paper dollar (2d) per night
In the beginning of February the regis
tered deaths from the cpiy.emic did not ex-
ceed twenty daily. but the weather con-
tinued very hot. the smell of the Riachue-
10 grew worse, and speedily the mortality
was doublea Nevertheless, the prepara-
=sI1-s for ..ie Carnival, in the north end of
the town, engrossed public attention, and
people tried to ignore the pestilence. as if
thereby to avoid its effects. Flags. gar
lands, illuminations, and all the frippery
OF masks were strange contrast to the
piles OF collins at the South Cemetery.
The Carnival was not brilliant, there being
huahnCl vi ldlhllleS WHO OaQ Already
ned to the suburbs The theaters were
however, crowded On the first dav of the
Carnival the venerable Irish pastor, Fa-
ther Fahey died, having taken the con
taglon at the bedside of an Italian woman
IN san Telmo. About the same time we
experienced another serious loss in the old
ana respected DR.. Bosch Don Bernabe
Molina, rich native capitalist, and some
few Others also died about this period.
On the 22d of February the first case of
yellow fever outside the parish of San
Telmo occurred. 1t took place in tue
Gale Paraguay, and near to the Gale Flori-
da, This caused renewed alarm. The
following days other cases took place in
streets in the northern portion of the
: town, and it was observed by the Medical
Board that when the fever began to spread
e from San TelmO it first located itself in
streets through which the tereeros, or
street floods, ran.
The plague spread with such virulence
and fury that it was now manifest there
were worse times in store for u.s. The pa
pers tried to mitigate the bad news by
publishing less than the real returns thus.
on one day we knew of 10s interments. but
the published statement next day was
only forty-three. In the middle of March
the plague may be said to have become gen
eral. The mortality rate for the first week
OF March averaged sixty died daily, and
on the 8th of March it rose to one hundred
and fifteen. Physicians recommended ev-
cry one who could to leave the city Those
whose business required their presence in
town were advised to sleep in the suburbs
. The trains were crowded-all the towns
g and villages along the railways were
thronged, and at nighttime the city was
deserted. 1t was estimated in the middle
of March that over one hundred thous-
and persons had left Buenos Ayres, vet still
the mortality increased TO most gigantic
degree.
The panic had unhappily communica-
ted itself to all classes, and it was said
half the physicians had fed Those who
remained were overburdened with work :;
dozen of these brave men were destined
to succumb to their spirit of devotion.
The few English doctors stood their
ground manfully, and were at one time or
other stricken down on the bed of sick
ness, but fortunately recovered And
. here we must also pass high eulogium
on the Irish nuns French Sisters of Char
lty and the clergy of the English, Irish,
Scotch and American congregations
Nothing could exceed their herOism zeal
and philanthropy. Our narrow limits
would not suffice to recite even a portion
Oi'hCii lapoIs, Ut cnulncIdtc the WOnOef-
ful tales, sadder and stranger than any ro-
nance of fiction, that are in the mouths
of all suffice it to say that they fulfilled
their duty in a manner worthy of their sa-
cred office.
II was now remarked that still the cpl
+. demic followed the track of the Tercero
namely, those streets which had been
Hooded in March of last year, when some
people were drowned. The houses in
! these parts had been mostly left i'm filthy
condition, the inhabitants returning to
them after the floods had subsidized while
piles of cotton, clothing, etc, remained in
Testing the locality for some time after
No wonder the snnns of dispasn lin rnreh