Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1885-02-12
THE DREADED sCoURGE.
Pestilence.

l.
When a disease. which is not CON
mon among mankind, suddenly arise
like an offands d God in his wrath, an
slays its thousands and tens of thous
ands, declmates the largest cities, an,
drapes world in mourning, it is call
ed pestilence.
| There are only three diseases which
are so wide reaching i, their fatal in
huence as to be entitled to this drea,
name with all its terrible import: Vel
low Fever, the Plague or Pest, and tn
Cholera.
| The preponderance OF evidence seem
to favor the idea that the first of thes
is OF American origin, and that it frs
became known 20 the outside worlt
through the misfortures of the discov
erers of this continent, Columbus hay
ing lost large portion of his crew.
with this disease after landing at Sar
| Domingo, i'm 1888. Yellow Fever raw
aged, with terrible malignity, the Yves
| Indies and United States in 1884
and since those years has in numerou:
| instances occurred in our own country
and has only comparatively lately sem
out it's cry from the str.eken South fol
relief. New Orleans and Memphis
bearing true bat sorrUwful. testimony
to its dread power;and by the way when
Northern men, even at tie risk and
sacrifice of life, sent floating down the
Father of Waters their offering to their
suffering brethren of the South it did
more to ob1iterate all unkind memories
of Il darkened past and unite the great
family of the American Union IN the
bonds of enduring peace and filial ami
ty, than all the windy suspiration OF
forced breath" which has been indulg-
ed in by all the so-called politicians of
the country, ever has done or ever can
do. Among the more notable instances
of the visitation of Yellow Fever may
be mentioned that at Gibraltar in 1928.
when out of q population of 1900 but
IS escaped infection, and of these,
twelve had formerly had the disease
If the opinion is correct which pre-
sumes the epidemic of 1920 to have
been this fever, it reduced several of
the aboriginal tribes, of New England,
from $4,000 to 500. Such instances
prove the claim of this evil to be en-
rolled under the title of this article.
The Plague has been known as far
back as the records of history extend;
in fact some of the descriptions given
in the Old Testament more nearly ac-
cord to this pest as witnessed in later
ages than to any other known disease.
AT different times ithas swept Europe,
Asia, and Africa. The deaths at Con-
stantinople are reported at one time to
have been 5000 daily. The most terri
the middle of the 14th century. 1t was
then known under the name of the
black death, and in 1888 deprived China
of one quarter of its population; thence
it extended to Asia, to Arabia, Syria
and Egypt. thence to Southern Europe,
then to France, Germany, Eng land,
Denmark, and about 1850 reached Rus
sia. This is the epidemic that under
the name of the"The Great Mortality"
broke out at Florence i'm 134S;and which
furnished the occasion for the "Deca-
meron of Boccaccio." OF the same ma
ture was the "Great Plague of London"
in 1865, during the prevalence of which
l00,O 600 persons perished. The latest
account of the existence of this form OF
pestilence is from the province of AS
trakhan in Russia, in 1878, and its re-
ported presence in Persian Kurdistan.
This disease occurs occasionally (spo-
radio cases) in the counties Of the
Levant, without becoming epidemic.
and this porter of the Orient still
nurses in Its bosom the sleeping viper.
The third and last of the above trio,
'The Cholera" has more than ordi-
nary claim on our attention at this
time because of its threatened approach
10 our own land in its slow but resist
ess march, and according to the opin-
ons of those best qualified to judge we
have reasons to expect its presence ere
ong in our midst. While we hope this |
opinion is in error, still the better judg- |
nent dictates that we should glance at
he history, inquire into the nature and
'auses lf this terror, and then seek out !
md put in execution the best methods |
# preventing its advance. Eugene
Sue in "The Wandering Jew" has con-
lected the march of this curse with |
he travels of that individual. The
lew has arrived at the gates of Paris
IN cold, moonlight night and from
he heights of Montmartre is surveying
he huge, silent city at his feet. He is
compelled by the voice of the Almighty
o move ever "onward," but for one
moment as he stands there he pleads
against his own fate and for humanity,
n part, in these words: so Lord! since
hine almighty hand hath brought me
,ither, for some end unknown to me,
lisarm thyself, implore thee, of thine
niger, aud let not me be the instru-
nent of thy vengeance! There is
enough of mourning in the earth these
wo years past-thy creatures have
allen by millions in my footsteps. The
world Is decimated. A veil of mourn
ng extends from one end of the globe
r l.. fg1.I