The Canton advocate. [volume] (Canton, D.T. [S.D.]) 1877-1897, 1881-06-23
The Black Death.

Wonderful in its origin, in it's charac-
teristics, in its consequences, was the great
pestilence known us Black Death, which
swept half the people ont of England in
l34s For two years previously there had
been gradually spreading over the eastern
parts of Europe yirulent disease, import
ed from Asia, which made havoc of the
people in some of the finest portions of the
world. So dreadful indeed had been its
ravages that, according to the most respect
able monkish writer of the time, many
Saracens, convicted that the pestilence was
assign Of Gods wrath on account of their
unbelief, became Christians, till, finding
the Christians to be likewise afflicted, they
returned to their old faith. A series of
earthquakes, which shook the whole of
eastern Europe, ushered in the year of 134S;
mems hearts quailed for fear, and many
were the steps taken-short of draining
the towns and providing better ventilation
with a view of propitiating the divine
wrath. In vain. The plague which had
scourged Asia and the Greek empire crept
slowly but surely westward, seemingly un-
influenced by the GOODNESS Of climate or
Intervention of sea. BoccacciO has written
in the preface to his "Decameron" an ac-
count Of the plague as it operated in Flor
ence, which no one who has ever read it
can forget. Within a few months of it's
slaughter Of the Florentines, it had swept
through Spain, France, and Germany, and
had crossed the straits of Dover.
From June to December, 134s, there had
fallen in England an almost incessant
downpour of rain; the ground was damp,
and the streams became polluted with sur
face-drainage, which was washed like COM
post all over the country, in default Of a
proper outlet into proper receptacle. In
August the first case was reported; by No
vember the capital was reached, and from
London the plague spread all over the
kingdom, and, says Stowe, so wasted and
spoyled the people, that scarcely the tenth
person of all sorts was left alive" This is
not an exaggeration of what happened in
some places; "there died an innumerable
sort, for no man but God only knew how
many" Between the first of January and
July, 1349, there died in the city Of Nor
witch 57,1O4 persons; Yarmouth buried T.
O52 in the year; and other towns in the
eastern countries suffered nearly as much.
In the thirteen acres of Spittle Croft 1.-THE
site of the existing Charterhouse), which
was given by Sir Walter Nanny for the
burial Of the dead, because London church
yards were choke full, were buried fifty
thousand persons. The plague was swift
in execution those seized by it often dy-
ing within six hours, and none lasting over
three days. The ties Of nature seemed
loosened; parents forsook their children.
the dead remaining in many instances
without burial, and were allowed to take
their revenge upon the living by adding
fearfully to the pestilential character Of
the atmosphere. Cattle became infected,
| with the disease, and their bodies lay rot
ting on the fields untouched even by the
birds Of prey. How many of the people
died it is impossible to say with certainty;
but the meet reliable accounts state that,