Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1879-02-14
Tho HIirtnrx OF the BInrme.

The growing uneasiness in Europe over the
ravugcs Of the plague III the Nolga district Of
Russia and its rapid advance from the sec
tions first affected is taking the form of an
attempt at IA rigid and concerted quarantine
Austria Germany, Turkey and Roumana
have determined TO close their ports against
Russian vessels, and to restrict communica-
ton with Russia by rail so far AS possible.
The knowledge that similar excrtons to check
the progress Of the terrible invader have more
than once proved futile in the past only lends
increased energy to the action of the Govern
ments occupying contiguous territory in the
present instance. In some parts Of Russia it is
intimated that something like a state of panic
prevails, as the powcrlessness of the authori-
ties to cope with the problem reveals itself
In view of the possibility that Europe may
soon be visited again by the scourgc which
has wrought such havoc in the past it may
not be uninteresting to review briefly the his
tory of previous yisitations, and TO state the
the eOries which are entertained with regard 20
the transmission Of the disease The history
of the plague dates back nearly as far as We
have historical records. In 7G7 B. c., accord
ing to Petayius it spread over the then known
world In 53i B. c.. il made such havoc in
Carthage that the despairing population Of
fered up their children as sacrices to the
gods to allay its fury. About century later
it ragged with great destructiveposs at Athens,
and Thucydides has left us a graphic descrip-
tion of it. At the same time it extended over
Egypt and Ethiopia. In the eighteenth year
of our ERA the plague swept of the population
of Rome at the rate of 10000 daily. In the
fourth century it ragged with violence in
Britain and the mortality is reported to have
been so great that the living were scarcely
able to bury the dead. William Of Malmes-
bury wrote that in 772 an epidemic carried off
$1,000 persons in Chichester. In 134S, dur
ing the epidemic which prevailed very gener-
ally throughout Europe, 200 persons perished
daily in London. In 1873 moro persons died
Of pestilence in England than had died in ff-
teen years Of continued war. At various 9th
er periods, London has suffered I, rribly from
the scourge In lGO3i more than 20, 900
persons persisted in London, and III 1925 more
than 81, 900. But it was in 1868 that what
has passed into history as ''the Great Plague"
occurred. Estimates Of the deaths in London
during that visitation range from Gs, 900 to
100, ,OOO. John Eyelyn's diary contains some
brief but very graphic memoranda of its raw.
ages. For example: There persisted this
week Of the plague in London 5000 :" Game
home there persling nearly 10000 poor
creatures weekly :" ''To London, and went
through the whole city. The shops uniyer-
sally shut up a dreadful prospect" This WAS
the last visitation OF the plague in England,
but Other portions of Europe have suffered
from it in modern times notably Marseillts
in l7.O, Moscow in l77l and l772, and the
Noapoli,an States III lsl1 and lolG. Its last
appearance IN Europe was i'll lsli.
The disease derives its name from the Greek
word Signifying "a blow 1t is an aggravat-
ed malignant fever, with very varied symp-
toms and manifestations, and sometimes car
rirs a patient of within - hours from the
,,f .tfa.l A ,tl.i,.l. a. 20
the French Academy in 1876 arrives at four
general conclusions First, that the countries
whore the plague original, S are Egypt, Syria
and the two Turkeys. but it is probable that
it may be developed without importation in
the rcgcncies Of Tripoli and Tunis and the en-
pirc of Morocco second, in those countries
the conditions which favor its d,yelopment
are the habtation Of alluyiHl or marshy
grounds, a hot, moist atmosphere, low, bad
ly aired and crowded houses, the accumula-
ton of n great quantity of animal and vegeta-
bic matters in "A state Of putrrfaction, scanty
and unwhoesome diet great moral and physi
cal dcstitution and the negligence of the laws
Of public and private hygiene third, spOrnd-
ic plague does not seem TO be trsnSmissiblr,
but epidemic plague is ;ransIussihlc, both in
the localities where it is raging aud without
them; fourth, it is transmitted 10y means Of
miasmata given out by the bodies of the sick
THESE niluhihah III clo@e Auu hi-Nehulhteu
places, constituting centres of pcstilential in
fection. No rigorous observation has shown
the transmissibilty of the plague by simple
contact with the infected, but new expert
Inents are necessary to dct,rlniue that il is |
not transmissibla by the goods and wearing
apparel of the infected. The symptoms of
the plague nrc so various and its nature is 50
imperfcctly understood that other diseases are
frequently mistaken for it, and on the other |
hand the real plague, as in the present case,
is often at first treated only as ordinary fever,
until its rapid spread and terrible mortality |
reveal its true character. - BOstOa JOUrHdI