The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-02-17
HISTORY OF THE PLAGUE.
Surgeon General Stcrnbcrg Nd
dresses the Geographic Socief,.

Surgeon General stcrnbcrH Al
drcsse. the Geographic societs.
Surgeon General Sternberg delivered
lecture before the National Geographic So
ciety at the First Congregational Church
last night. on the History and Geographic
Distribution of the Bubonic Plague The
lecture was illustrated with stereopticon
views made from photographs recently
taken in Honolulu where the plague has
been raging
General Sternberg said in part: Al
though bubonic plague has never pre-
vailed within the limits of the United
States. its recent appearance in our island
possessions in the Pacific has aroused great
interest in the disease and considerable ap-
prehension as TO its epidemic extension in
the future II has effected Judgment in
Portugal aud in Brazil during the past
year. and at least one vessel has arrived
al the port of New York with cases of the
disease on board from the last mentioned
country The question is, therefore a very
practical one as TO whether there is any
real danger of the introduction and eN
tension OF this pestileutial malady of East
ern countries in our own territory
While / shall have to present to you q
dark picture with reference 10 the past
history Of the disease. and some disagree
able facts as to its recent extension from
its endemic foci in the Far East, will have
the satisfaction OF telling you that pre-
ventive medicine has made such progress
during the past fifty years that there is
really very little danger that bubonic
MIA will commit serious
ravages in the more enlightened countries
of Europe or that it is serious menace
TO the lives and prosperity of citizens OF
the United States
The speaker said the plague could be
traced back to the second or third cen
fury before the Christian era. when II was
mentioned by Greek physicians. and is
also believed to have prevailed in Syria
and Egypt. From the first TO the sixth
century OF the Christian era there was no
record of il but in the sixth century it
/ appeared il the Roman Empire. He said.
/ further. that in the middle Of the four
I tenth century the black plague took of
I IS 900 600 inhabitants of Europe. In the
! fifteenth century ii again prevailed in Eu-
| rope over 40 900 persons dying of Ii in
! Paris in 1866. In the sixteenth century the
| plague devastated China. and London had
a death rate OF over 1000 a week in 1885,
I 81. ID 1851 hOsCDN. RUSSIA. udu ONtA
200 OC9 deaths from the plague. In 1915
Venice lost over $1,000 of its inhabitants.
and in 1909 London had $4,000 deaths, and
| Egypt over ,000. 900 deaths In 1856 Italy
| was visited by the plague Naples having
$4,000 deaths: Genoa $4,000. and Rome.
l4,c0e. The great plague of London" in
1865. caused ss,596 deaths in a population
of 10000. while many deaths. of which
| there is no record occurred among the
al ~t. al,
Continuing. General Sternberg said:
The epidemic in Vienna in 1879 caused
a mortality Of 5000; in 1851 the city OF
| Prague lost s300a. At the beginning OF
| the eighteenth century the bubouic plague
prevailed in Constantinople and at varioui
| points along the Danube: from here il ex-
| tended in 1904 to Poland. and soon after e
Silesia. Lithuania, Germany, and the Sean
dinavian countries. The mortality II
| Stockholm was about 10000. In 1870 Mar
| settles suffered a severe epidemic. probably
as a result of the introduction of cases OF
a ship from Leghorn. The mortality was
| estimated as being between 10000 and
SO 900. In 1I43 a severe outbreak, undoubt-
eddy due to Importation. occurred on the
| island of Sicily. A destructive but brief
| epidemic. which is estimated TO have
caused a mortality of 100000. occurred
during the years 1870 and 177l in Moldavia
| Wallachia. Pennsylvania, Hungary. ana Po-
land At the same time the disease pre-
vailed in Russia. and in t7Il caused The
death OF about one-fourth of the popula-
| ton OF the city of Moscow.
| I'm 1908 to 1918 il extended from Con-
4 stantinople to Odessa. to Smyrna, and 10
Pennsylvania. 1t also prevailed about the
same time in Bosnia and Dalmatia. In
1872 TO 1914 it prevailed in Egypt, and, as
usual was conveyed from there TO Euro
pean countries Its last appearance In
Italy was al the seaport Noja, on the east
ern coast of that country. in 1875 a lin
tied epidemic occurred in Greece in 1922
as result of Importation from Egypt
During the same year it prevailed extern
siyely in MolGavia. Wallachia. and Bess-
arabia. In 1881 it again prevailed as N
epidemic in Constantinople and in various
parts of Roumelia and again 1t appeared
In Dalmatia in 1870 and In Constantinopl'
in 1871. Egypt. which for centuries haC
been the principal focus from which plagu,
had been introduced into Europe, con
, tinued to suffer from the disease until 1875
when it disappeared from that country
. The last appearance of Oriental plague II
Europe, until its recent Introduction int
, Portugal. was the outbreak on the bank!
, of the Nolga in ls1S-79."