The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1888-10-17
CONTAGIOUS DISEASES.
Small Pox, Cholera and Yellow Fever
In New England.
Early Opposition to the Safeguard
Of Vaccination.
PortIand's First Visitation of the
Small Pox.
[Hon. lllIam GOold.l

[Hon. v illiam Goold.l
The present prevailing scourge in Florida
suggests my subject. At the mention of
contagious diseases the horrors of the great
plague in London rise up before us. 1t be-
gun in the spring of 1865; the infection
having been brought from Amsterdam by
the way of Calais. When the disease was at
its height in London, from 1000 TO 10000 died
weekly. The diary of Samuel Pepys gives
vivid description Of its horrors. He held the
Office of "Clerk Of the acts" at the time, and
continued to live in the city and attended to
the duties of his Office during the prevalence
Of the epidemic. He says that many of the
infected houses were marked with red
cross, and the pious ejaculation Lord have
mercy upon u.s." but there was no attempt
at isolation. The plague had not entirely
died out at the beginning Of the great fire Of
September, 1866 This expensive but effect
ual publication drew public attention from
the snfferings by the plague.
The earliest epidemic scourge Of New
England was small pox. Hutchinson says in
1921 after its absence for twenty years the
small pox broke out; and out of $3.50 who
eooh ~ III DOotous ON utCds III cChulOu
delivered in Boston in 1908 Cotton Matthew
said:
The small pox has especially in poor times been
a great plague unto u.s. How often have there
been bills desiring prayers for more than one sick
on one day IN our assemblies? and yet we are
more than seven thousand souls OF us now living
on the spot.
In 1752 the small pox prevailed to an alarm
ing extent in the large towns of New Eng
land. Parson Smith arrived in Boston on
the 10th Of April. He records his operations
thus:
All business is laid aside In the town. The
streets desolate; many of the shops shut up, and
the people universally spend their time to attend
the Sick. All the talk IN all companies is about
inOcculation the town Is sadly divided about Ii.
II is said that 5000 are now inocculated-a har-
vest for the doctors.
incubation for the disease had been intro
duced some years before amid great opposi-
tion. Rev. Cotton Mather first recommended
it to the physicians. Judge Freeman in a
note says .all declined it but DIR. Zabdiel
Boylston, who adyentured to begin with his
own family and afterwards continued the
practice amidst violent opposition. Many
pous people were struck with horror, and
were of opinion that If any of his patients
should die, he ought to be treated as muir
derer. The populace was so enraged that
his family was hardly safe in his house; and
he was aften insulted in the streets"
Holmes says of 2109 who were inocculated,
81 died. OF 5544 who had it in the natural
way 5l4 died. For his advocating the adop-
tion of incubation Cotton Mather had a
bomb thrown into his parlor in the evening
but 1t did not explode. We have supposed
kA.A
poses was new thing.
In 1852 the small pox and the diversity OF
opinion about its treatment was communi-
Gated from Boston to Falmouth, as the town
records abundantly testify. The first vote
Of the town was this: 'Voted that it be
left to the selectmen to take care and pro-
vide house for any person who may have a
contagious disease. and to air any imported
goods" At the next meeting 1t was voted
that pest house be built on an island, If at
all. The next vote was that pest house be
erected on the east end of Hog Island. Then
1t was voted that no pest house be built. The
next year pest house was commenced, and
the town voted that the frame Of the pest
house be sold by the selectmen at vendue.
There were at least four persons who had
the disease ON the Neck, one of whom was
the wife Of Capt. John Cox. His house is
yet standing at the west corner of High and
York streets. 1t was the homestead Of the
late capt. CrocKetr. James Mflks's BIZ '-ror
particular services in the time of the small
pox" was allowed and Alice Greele and two
others were paid. The future landlady of
the famous tavern was paid four dollars per
week. She afterwards petitioned for pay
for her mothers bed that was used in the
time of the small pox, and the town meeting
voted to pay her for it. This would indicate
that Mrs. Goodwin, mother Of Mrs. Greele,
died of the disease at the temporary pest
house. There was pest house in 177S.
Under date June of that year VIM. Moody,
of Falmouth says in his journal: "Town
meeting voted that incubation be granted
at the pest house." incubation finally be-
came common practice, and in June, 177S,
the town of Portland in town meeting assem-
bled, "voted that the town win admit any OF
the inhabitants, or other persons, to be inoc-
ulated for the small p0x under such restrlc-
tions as the town may advise" Also voted
that they be restricted to Cow Island. At
terward voted that ipoculati0n may be car
ried on at Bangs Island, provided the owner
consents. "The selectmen to take all practi-
cal measures to prevent the spread Of the
small pox." think there was no hospital
nor incubation at Cow Island, nor House
Island. At this time Duncan Mcintosh, a
Scotchman, occupied the old farmhouse on
Bangs Island as tenant Of Brigadier Preble,
Eastern Argus Of September, 1892, has the
following brief mention. "0n Sunday
Sept. oath, between forty and fifty ladies and
gentlemen repaired to Bangs Island, and
were inoculated for the small pox. Doctors
Thomas and Erying are to have the sole care
Of them"
In September, 1872, committee reported
to town meeting that they had "hired a
house of Mr.. Vaughan-he to make it tight,
provide suitable doors, new floors, and re-
pair the chimney; make wooden shutters,
and new sill the house The rent to be
twelve pounds in four payments" This was
probably the house built by Nicholas Bram-
hall, blacksmith, son Of George, the tan
ner, who first settled there. Mcclellan of
Gorham deposed that there was such a
mast business. The house stood on the fiat
land at the;foot Of the hill, where the rail-
road tracks now are. / am able to fix the
location from the description given me by
two lady relatives who went, into the
hospital with the first class, and were in
oculated These incubation parties were
made up the same as pleasure parties
now are. They were composed OF the same
social set, and then permission was obtained
TO enter the hospital. Polly Price, and
Charles Hossack we're the nurses. A COOK
was provided who occupied small cook
house In the yard; but the families OF the
inmates who were all young people, Wed
with each other in sending baskets OF nice
things to the gate for those confined there.
Not many Of those inoculated were confined
to their looms. Only one died think at
the Vaughan hospital, that was Sarah Cam
NETT, aged II. She was sister to the late
Captain Cammett. She had an eruption Of a
rash which DIR. Erving feared was small pox,
and he sent her 70 the Vaughan hospital.
The rash soon left her, but she took the
small pox there in the natural way, and died.
This hospital was kept full all the time, 1t
being very popular, and was favored by the
physicians OF the ''goings on" there / have
heard graphic accounts, matches were made.
and matches were broken there. In 1900
there was a private hospital established by
DIR. Shirly Erying on the Waldo farm-now
the Reform School farm. DIR. William San
horn of New Casco, (Falmouth) set up pri-
vate hospital for incubation and at least
two classes entered.
DR.. Jenner of England discovered that the
COW pox was a preventive Of the small pox
in 1796. The experiment was first tried in
this country by DR.. Waterhouse Of Harvard
College in 1893. Cow pox vaccination met
with the same opposition as did incubation