The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1883-07-27
CHOLERAIC FEVER.
The Character OF the Present Epidemic in
Egypt.

From Correspondent Of the LoEdon Neacs
observe that the native Egyptian author
titles and some of the English officers in tht
khedive's service are in doubt as to the req
nature of the epidemic which, having broker
out at Damietta, has appeared In Mansourai
and some of the intervening villages. BY
some the disease is called Asiatic cholera, BY
.o,hegs "gsstric fever" The published de
tails Of the symptoms are rather meagre, but
from particulars already made known I am
inclined to believe that the Damietts out
break il not one of cholera, but of vlrulen,
form of fever which in some Of its stages
! bears dose resemblance to it. 1t Is worthy
of note hat the Egyptian epidemic cannot
be accounted for by transfer or contagion
from Bombay or Calcutta, the nurseries OF
cholera. 1t is true that sporadic cases occur
in both cities all the year round, but in
neither 5 there at present anything like an
abnormal prevalence of the mslady. If, as
suspect, the Egyptian cholera is nothing
else bu ''choleraic fever" the necessity for
quarantine regulations will be removed,
There IS no reason whatever for sapposing
that tbs fever Is contagious. The name
'cholGaic fever" was, for want of better,
inverted in the Punjab two years
ago, On the occasion of a frightful outbreak
which in four months killed thousands of
peopb in the native town of Lahore, and
very iearly $4,000 of the 0,0Oo Inhabitants
of Anritsar. l was in the thick Of it, and
retail an unpleasantly vivid memory of the
appearance and progress of the epidemic. In
August and September, when the fever,
which broke out in the middle of June, was
nearE reaching its height, the city of Amrlt-
sar r,sembled city Of the dead. The hot,
damp, heavy air smelled of disease and
deati; and the same description would ap-
ply 10 the provincial capital, Lahore. In
Lahtre city the mosques resounded with
prayers for the Divine intervention, and the
Hintu priests were repeating their mantras
for the same desirable object; while in Am
ritsa-the holy city Of the Sikhs-the gurus
were reading the sacred "Granth" day and
might, without intermission, one grurub be-
ing always ready to take up the holy text at
the point where his exhausted brother left
of. Yet the Sikh ritual failed to accomplish
its end; the epidemic increased rapidly in
spite of all the prayers and all the incanta-
tions, and the cases, which in June were
counted only by the score, rose to thousands
IN September and October. At the rate at
which the people were dying, the largest city
in the Puniab would have been depopulated
in some three years time. Cholera ragged
simultaneously with the fever. The cholera
mortality was far less than the number Of
deaths from virulent fever. In Amrltsar
only 612 cholera cases occurred, as against
the 49, 900 fever cases. In Lahore the total
cholera deaths were in round numbers, l,l0O
out of population of 900. To the Egypt
ians, doubtless, 1t would be small comfort to
know that in place of the dreaded cholera
they had among them q disease even more
deadly, or, at all events, more "idespread.
There would be little satisfaction in their
having choice Of ropes to be hanged with.
But as regards the world outside Of Egypt,
there would be vast relief In the assurance
that, after all, 1t was not to be threatened
with one of the most appalling scourges
which have afflicted mankind. Indeed, even
the Egyptians themselves might derive some
consolation from the fact. For the history
of the "choieraic fever" visitation in the Pun
jah proves clearly that the malady is COM
pletely preventible by sanitation. And, as
have already said, there was nothing to
show that the PunJab outbreak was conta-
gious. For the matter of that, it has not been
yet proved that cholera is contagious. Per-
haps the Siamese theory of the origin of chol-
era may be as practically useful as any other.
Cholera, according to this hypothesis, ispro
duced by an exhalation from fungus which
springs from the poison of a snake, and the
exhalation is "blown over the world by the
snake wind" However, The fact remains
that everybody accepts the contagion theory
Of cholera.