Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1900-05-14
RAVAGES OF PLAGUE,
Historical Mortality List Of the
Dread Disease.
The Scourge of India Dates from the
Second and Third Centuries,
b. C.-HOrrOrs Of the
Epidemic.

idea OF the fearful ravages of the bu-
bonic plague from the time of the
first historical record of its existence:
The history of bubonic plague dates
from the second and third centuries
before Christ, and two Alexandrian
physicians, Dioscorides and Posido-
MUS, who were contemporaries of
Christ, have left a description of the
disease which leaves no doubt that it
was the same as that of modern
times. The plague never died out,
but it was not until the middle of the
fourteenth century that the horrible
epidemic known as the "black plague"
visited Europe and caused the death
of more than $4,000, 600 people. The
disease was epidemic in London in
134s, 1861 and 1868. In 1852 two-thirds
of the academic population of Oxford
died of it. 1t was again epidemic in
London in 1400, 1905, 1923, 1472 and
1899. In 1896 over AZ, OO0 persons died
of it in Paris. In 1863 it broke out
again in London, and the mortality
was more than 1000 per week. In
1872 Lyons lost $4,000 Of its popula-
ton from the plague. In 1878 it Wis
tied Venice and carried off 10000 per-
IN In 1903 the mortality of an
other epidemic in London reached
$4,000. In 1903 IN epidemic in Egypt
is said to have resulted in the death
of 100000 people. An epidemic in
London, in 1928, caused a mortality of
$4,000, and in 1886 more than 10000
Londoners were carried off. In 1856
there was a terrific epidemic which
carried off 10000 in Naples, 10000 in
Genoa and $4,000 in Rome. In 1865
a fresh epidemic in London resulted
in the death of 6s,5O0 people. This is
the first absolutely accurate estimate
on record. In 1879 Vienna lost rs, 900
ny plague and in 1851 Prague lost 3d.
600. In 17O4 Stockholm had an epidem-
ic, with about 10000 fatal cases. In
1870 an epidemic in Marseilles carried
off from 10000 to $4,000 people. In
ITO and 1771 the plague killed 3O0,-
900 people in Moldovia, Wallachia,
Pennsylvania, Hungary and Poland,
and in the same year one-fourth of
the population of Moscow died Of
plague. Since that time there have
been frequent outbreaks of the dis
ease, and it has constantly existed in
Lower Hindostan and about Constan-
tinople, but there have been no
really great epidemics. Coming to
recent times, Bombay suffered an
epidemic in 1896. In January the
mortality was nearly 5000, and in
February, 1900. The tota mortality
in the presidency of Bombay has been
164,Os3. In Puma, last August, there
was an average of 100 deaths a day,
in a population Of 10000.
It is a remarkable fact that Euro
peans seem scarcely susceptible to the
disease nowadays and are able to
Withstand it's ravages when infected.
During the recent outbreak in Hong
Kong only II Europeans were at
tackled, and the mortality in their
cases was but 1872 per cent. Among
japanese 40 cases) the mortality wa
go per cent, among Portuguese resi-
dents Us cases) the mortality was
e6 per cent, and among Chinese 1853
cases) the mortality vas 1914 per
cent
DR.. George M. sternberg, L. L. D.,
in an interesting article in the Geo
graphic Magazine, says:
II shall have the satisfaction Of
stating that preventive medicine has
made such progress during the past
so years that there is very little dan.
ger that bubonic plague will ever
again commit serious ravages in the
more enlightened countries of Europe,
or that it is a serious menace to the
lives and prosperity Of citizens of the
United States"