℞Salis petrælib. j.Sulphuris℥iij.benzoin. Styracis simul liquati. ana q. s. ut formentur s. a. Trochisc. deb. exiccandi.
FINIS.
WITHREMARKSUpon theInfectionnow inFRANCE,And the most probable Means toprevent its Spreading here.ByJohn Quincy, M. D.
LONDON:Printed forE. Bell, at theCross KeysinCornhill; andJ. Osborn, at theOxford-ArmsinLombard-street, 1720.
Decoration.
THEREis hardly any one Subject more largely treated of by Physical Writers, than that ofPestilential Diseases; and the Reason of it I take to be, the Frequency in all Ages and Countries, of Alarms from such dreadful Destroyers; and the uncommon Impressions they are apt to make upon the Minds of those, whose Profession naturally leads them to enquire into their Causes. But in this it has fared as with all the other Branches of that noble Science. The Conjectures andOpinions of Persons have at all Times been too much influenced by the Philosophy in Vogue, insomuch that it is almost an endless as well as an unprofitable Task, to examine into them all: And as such an Enquiry is not consistent with the intended Brevity of these Pages, I shall pass them by, only just taking Notice of the most considerable Opinions, under which, most that has been advanced to any Purpose may be reduced.
ALLAuthors upon this Subject, may be reduced under these two Sorts: Such as ascribe them to the immediate Wrath of Heaven, and account them as Punishments inflicted by the immediate Exertion of a Supernatural Power; and such as assign for their Origin some natural Cause.
ALTHOUGHtoo great a Regard cannot be had to the Author of our Beings, yet Care should likewise be taken, not to ascribe every Calamity to the immediate Exertion of the Almighty Power; for it seems much more worthy of the Divine Being so to order it, that from the Course of second or natural Causes, Punishments shall pursue Offenders, than to imagine the frequent Exertion of his Power in a Waysupernatural to inflict such Punishments. But there is a great deal of Reason to suspect, that the Number of this Sect was very much increased by such, as either out of Ignorance in other Causes, or out of an affected Devotion, thought it their Interest to come into this Opinion, and pretend to do greater Cures by certain religious Performances, and their Intercession with Heaven, than was in the Power of Medicine, of which they knew but very little.
OFthose that assign some natural Cause, there are several Opinions: Some ascribe them to astral Influences, to malign Conjunctions and Radiations of the Heavenly Bodies. We find, from the most remote Antiquity, not onlyPestilential Diseases, but likewise a great many others, ascribed to the same Causes: But all the Reasonings about this Conjecture have been very obscure and perplexed until the present Age, when SirIsaac Newtonfirst taught Men to think justly, and talk intelligibly about the Motions and Influences of those remote Bodies upon ourAtmosphere: And upon his Theory Dr.Meadhas since further proceeded to determine their Efficacies upon humaneBodies. By which, as it does appear that they affect us no otherwise than as they occasion the several Variations of the Seasons, and different Constitutions of the Air, the Reader must be left to the Consideration of such Causes.
ANOTHERCause is charged upon Steams and Exhalations from putrefying Bodies. There are Abundance of Instances to support this Opinion, that manifestly discover very fatal Effects from such Causes. As Battels are generally fought in Summer-Time, when by the Heat of the Season Things are most disposed to Putrefaction, so it has often been observed, that the Plague has appeared after great Slaughters of Men in Fight, as appears by undoubted Testimony fromJulius Alexandrinus[1],Diodorus Siculus, and a great many others, too tedious to mention.Ambrose Parrey[2]gives a Relation of a Plague, that laid waste almost a whole Country, which had its Rise from the Stench of a great many human Carcases that were thrown into one Pit, and left Rotting uncover’d.Joannes Wolfius[3],Forestus[4], the above-mentionedParrey[5], andAgricola[6], all take Notice of Plagues arising from the Stench of putrifying Fish that were thrown dead upon the Shores.
OTHERSteams of the same Efficacy frequently arise from the Putrefactions of stagnant Waters, and other Bodies, which, in some particular Constitutions of Air, are apt to corrupt and emit very offensiveEffluvia. Dr.Mead[7]relates fromDiogenes Laertius[8], thatEmpedoclesobserved a pestilential Disease to afflict theSalinuntij, from the Putrefaction of a certain River; to remedy which, he contrived to have the Streams of two other neighbouring Rivers drained into it, which, by their Increase of the Current, with an additional Weight and Pressure of Water, brought the former to its usual Sweetness, and so put a Stop to the Plague.
TOthis Purpose Dr.Plot[9]observes, the Reasons whyOxfordis now much morehealthful than heretofore, to be the Enlargement of the City, whereby the Inhabitants, who are not proportionably increased, and not so close crowded together; and the Care of the Magistrates in keeping the Streets clear from Filth: For formerly (he says) they used to kill all Manner of Cattle within the Walls, and suffer their Dung and Offals to lie in the Streets. Moreover, about those Times theIsisandCherwell, thro’ the Carelessness of the Townsmen, being filled with Mud, and the Common-Shores by such Means stopped, did cause the Ascent of Malignant Vapours whenever there happened to be a Flood. But since that, by the Care and at the Charge ofRichard Fox, Bishop ofWinchester, in the Year 1517, those Rivers were cleansed, and more Trenches cut for the Water’s free Passage, the Town has continued in a very healthful Condition; and in a particular Manner so free from Pestilential Diseases, that the Sickness in 1665, which raged in most Parts of the Kingdom, never visited any Person there, although the Terms were there kept, and the Court and both Houses of Parliament did there reside.
TOthis Cause, ’tis very probable, is owing the Frequency of the Plague atGrand CairoinEgypt, and in the Island ofSardinia, asPæusaniasand others relate: Although indeedProsper Alpinus[10]charges a great deal of the Cause of that atCairo, upon their continual Commerce with such Nations as are seldom without such infectious Diseases. And for this Reason it is, that we find all those Countries, which most abound with Swamps and Standing-Waters, to be most unhealthful, especially in the hottest Seasons; except, as in several Parts ofItaly, such Lakes have any Communication with the Sea, or some large Rivers. To this purposePiso[11]frequently observes those Places to be most subject to such Calamities, where there are constant Heat and settled Calms, as such a Temperament of Air most disposes Bodies to Putrefaction and Corruption, as in St.Thomas Island, andGuinea: And, on the contrary, that notwithstanding the Intenseness of Heat, if the Fluids are but agitated by Winds, Tides, and Currents, there is little Danger of such Diseases; and the less still, the more regular and constant the Seasons areupon other Accounts: By which Means it is, that between theTropicks, and even under theEquator, it is very healthful.
UNDERthis Head it may not be improper to observe, that too scanty and mean a Diet, and Feeding upon unripened and unsound Fruits, are frequently charged with a Share in Mischiefs of this kind.Josephus[12]andJulius Cæsar[13], amongst Historians;Forestus,[14]and several other physical Writers, give Accounts of Plagues from the like Causes.Galen[15]is very positive in this Matter; and in one Place[16]accuses his great MasterHippocrateswith Neglecting too much the Consequence of a bad Diet, and ascribing some Mischiefs arising from thence to a bad Air. And upon this is grounded the common Opinion of aPlague’s following aFamine; in which Circumstances, the poorer sort, who feed meanest, generally suffer most, as it frequently happens in long Sieges, and Armies ill supplied with Provisions. ThusTravellers report, thatSurratin theEast-Indiesis seldom or never free from a Plague, which is ascribed to the mean Diet of the Natives, who areBanians, and feed on little else than Herbs, Water, Rice, and such like pitiful Fare; for it is observed, that theEuropeanswho trade there, are in no Danger of being infected, because they feed well on Flesh, and drink Wine, which secures them against those malignant Diseases.
A Third Cause is ascribed to Mineral Eruptions and subterraneous Exhalations.Pestilencesfrom this Cause are more infrequent than from several others; because such Eruptions hardly ever happen but upon Earthquakes, or Breaking into the Bowels of the Earth by Mines, Pits, Wells, and the like; and then too, in Order to produce aPestilence, it is necessary that whatsoever exhales and mixes with the ambient Air, must be of such a Nature, as to render it unrespirable; or to communicate by it such Particles to the Animal Juices as will pervert their natural Crasis, and disturb their due Secretions; which does not often happen, for there are frequent Shocks of the Earth from intestine Fermentations, which are not followed by any such Mischiefs, asthey happen only from the Struggle of such Principles, as when they have got Vent, neither of themselves, or by any Thing emitted with them, are of that disagreeable Nature, as to give any Disturbance to the Animal OEconomy.
CAROLUSde la Font,[17]indeed, as well as several others, lays great Stress upon Causes of this kind, and chargesPestilential Diseaseschiefly to Mineral Exhalations of divers kinds; asArsenical,Mercurial,Sulphurous, &c. which he imagines the ambient Air often to be overcharged with, either from the Heat of the Sun, Earthquakes, or subterraneous Fires. To all this, Persons of different Opinion object, the Infrequency of Plagues inCalabria,Naples, and several Parts ofSicily, where there are manifestly very great subterraneous Fires, such as occasion violent Earthquakes, and many furious and plentiful Eruptions of metallick and mineral Fumes. A very distinct Relation of which, from his own Knowledge, may be met with from Dr.Bernard Connor,[18]who has been very curious in his Enquiries hereinto.
BUThowever Authors differ upon this Head, several very odd Relations are to be met with in History of malignant and deadly Sicknesses from these Causes. That Story is very strange which is related byAmmianus Marcellinus,[19]and taken Notice of byCardanandRiolanus, that a most grievous Pestilence broke out inSeleucia, which, from thence toParthia,Greece, andItaly, spread it self thro’ a great part of the World, from the Opening an ancient Vault in the Temple ofApollo, and that it raged with so much Fury, as to sweep away a third part of the Inhabitants of those Countries it visited.
ITis needless to trouble the Reader with many Relations of the sudden and strange Effects of some Steams arising from Mines and Pits, which are generally termed by our ColliersDamps, because almost every Body has already been acquainted with such Accounts.
DR.Plot[20]tells us, That about Twenty Years since, two Persons were employed to dig a Well in the Parish ofNorth-LeighinOxfordshire, but upon being taken ill, left off the Work: Whereupon it was undertaken by two others ofWoodstock; who, before they could do any thing considerable in it, sunk down, and died irrecoverably in the Well: Which being perceived by a Miller hard by, and he coming to their Assistance, fell down dead upon them. Another also venturing to do the same, with a Rope tied about him, fell from the Ladder just in the same Manner; and though presently drawn up by the People above, yet he was scarcely recover’d in an Hour or more. And since then, upon a Bucket’s falling into a Well in another Part of the Town, a Woman perswaded a strong lusty Man to go down a Ladder to fetch it, who, by that Time he had got half way down, fell from the Ladder into the Well; upon which, the Woman called another of her Neighbours to his Assistance, who, much about the same Place, met with the same Fate, without giving the least Sign of Change; so fatal (says the Doctor) are the Damps of that Place. Dr.Boot[21]tells a Story that happened atDublininIreland, just of the same Nature. Andin thePhilosophical Transactions[22], there are the like Relations of Damps in the Coal-Mines belonging to the LordSinclairinScotland.
THEmost surprizing Effect of these subterraneousEffluviathat I ever met with, is in a Relation of Dr.Bernard Connor, of certain Persons inParisdigging deep in a Vault or Cellar, who were so suddenly transfixed by some subtile Vapour, that when a Servant-Maid came down to speak with them, she found them in Postures as if at Work; one with his Pick-Ax advanced, another with his Shovel full of Earth, half lifted up, and a Woman sitting by with her Arm upon her Knee, her Head leaning upon that Hand, with manifest Expectations in her Countenance of what they were in Search after.
THEsame Author, from his own Knowledge, gives a very exact Account of aGrottainItaly, much talked of, and commonly calledla Grotta de cani, by this Author,CryptaΚυνιχυς; But Dr.Meadhathsince, from his own Knowledge also, given a very particular and rational Account of this Place, and the Manner of its killing; to whom therefore the Reader may turn for further Satisfaction.
ANOTHER, and more general Cause than any hitherto mentioned of these Maladies, is some bad and unwholsome Constitution of Air. Such Constitutions may arise from several Causes, which although they affect us in different Manners, yet as they are equally fatal, we call them allMalignantorPestilential: In Order therefore to understand the better how we are differently affected by those different Constitutions, it will be proper to consider them somewhat distinctly, under these general Heads,viz.A dry hot Air,hot and moist,cold and moist,and cold and dry; to which most Variations of Air may be reduced.
THATfrom the several Constitutions of Air, our Bodies are differently affected; and that most Diseases are in some Measure more or less influenced thereby, is quite out of Dispute.Hippocrates, in a great many Places declares himself of this Mind: His whole third section ofAphorismsis a Proofof it; and in several Places[23]he discovers his Opinion, thatPestilential Diseaseshave their Rise from hence.Galen, his best Interpreter, understood his το θειον, which some will have to be meant of somewhat Divine, or the immediate Hand of God, to be nothing else but a particular Constitution of Air arising from natural Causes; and that he was of the same Mind himself, is very plain from his own Writings[24].
ITis almost endless, as well as altogether needless, to cite all the Authorities for this Opinion, that might be collected from the most remote Antiquity down to the present Age. We shall therefore proceed to consider the different Constitutions of Air, according to the forementioned Distinction; premising only, that the TermsHot,Cold, &c. are used in a twofold Sense, the one isAbsolute, and the otherRelative; by the former,viz.Absolute Heat,Cold, &c. is understood one simple Property of the Air only, as it is different not in Degree, but in Quality from others: By the latter, that is,Relative Heat, &c. is meant certain Degrees of thoseProperties: As the same Air may at the same Time be said properly to be both Hot and Cold, or Dry and Moist, as it is compared with another Air, either Hotter or Colder, Dryer, or Moister; for with Regard to a hotter Air, it will be termed cold, when at the same Time if it be compared to a colder Air, it would be accounted hot: And so of the rest. To which Distinction, it is very necessary to have constant Regard to avoid Confusion.
THOSECountries where the Air is hot and dry for the greatest Part, are related to be healthful, and free fromPestilential Diseases, except where there are great Swamps and stagnant Waters, or by any accidental Causes Bodies are exposed there to Putrefaction, the Steams of which render Persons Diseased. In such Countries, for the most Part of the Year, there is but very little Rain, and the Nights are comparatively colder than elsewhere, from the great Dews which then fall. AsPiso[25]informs us, that the colder the Nights are inBrasil, and the more plentifully the Dewsfall, the Inhabitants account it most agreeable to their Soil, and conducive to Vegetation; and Physicians reckon it much the most healthful for the Inhabitants.
THEHeat of the Air alone, where it is constant and uniform, does not appear to render Persons born in it, or long accustomed to it, any more unhealthful, than that which is more temperate.Aristotle[26]indeed says, a hot and drySoutherlyWind will bring aPestilence; but of such we have very few Instances, especially on this Part of the Globe. There is inLivy[27]an Account of aPlagueatRome, from a great Drought; andNicephorus[28]relates such another: But these generally come from some other manifest Causes besides Heat, and in Places not accustomed to a dry Air.
BUTa hot and moist Air is very different. ByMoist, is meant what arises from sudden or long Rains. This is the Constitution of Air that most Authors charge with being the greatest Instrument inPestilentialDistempers.Hippocrates[29]ascribes a great deal to such an Air, and relates aPestilencethat had its Rise from great Heat, joined withSoutherlyWinds and much Rain.Galenis of the same Mind, as appears from several of his Writings[30], with many others too tedious to mention. The Truth of this is likewise manifest from the Histories of those Countries, where there are long settled Heats, and afterwards much Rain, as in several Parts of theEast-Indies, which are known at such Times to be most grievously afflicted with Fevers and Diseases of a very malignant Kind. The same we are informed of from some Places inAfrica,[31],viz.That if Showers fall soon upon the sultry Heats ofJulyandAugust, pestilential Distempers certainly ensue. It may be generally observed here too in our own Climate, that the most unhealthful Times are after warm Rains, and the more if the Air is then agitated but little with Winds.
FROMa cold and moist Air, we have little complained of, as to their occasioning these Diseases, unless such a Constitution sets in immediately upon a contrary Extream; for all sudden Changes of Weather are more or less unhealthful, as well as in other Respects of living; for which Reason particularly,Corn. Celsusadvises to be very slow in all Alterations of Moment: AndSanctoriusfrequently inculcates the same in hisAphorisms, and tells us[32]how it is hurtful, both to go suddenly out of a hot Air into a cold one, and out of a cold Air into a hot one; and is also very particular[33]in the Inconveniencies of such a Constitution of Air we are now speaking of, setting in after the Heat of Summer.Hippocrates[34]does tell us of aPestilencefrom long continued cold Rains, as likewise doesFernelius[35], but such Instances are not common.
THElast Constitution of Air we are to take Notice of, is that which is cold and dry, against which there are a greatmany very heavy Complaints.Galenwrites of a most Raging Pestilence aboutAquileiainItaly, that began in the very Middle of Winter, and had its manifest Cause in extream Cold.Fernelius[36]asserts the Rise of several Pestilences from the same Causes: As also doesMorellus[37]observe great Malignities to proceed from someNortherlycold Winds.Titus Livy[38]likewise mentions aPestilential Constitutionarising from intense Cold, butPhysical Historiesabound with such Relations.
OFthe strange and sudden Effects of intense Cold and dry Winds, we have very surprizing Accounts from those who have travelled into Countries where they are the most frequent. Dr.Bernard Connor[39]beforementioned, relates, That when he was inPoland, it was asserted to him by very creditable Testimonies, that it frequently happens inLithuania, and some of theNorthernTracts ofMuscovyandTartary; that if sometimes, through the Neglect of the Shepherds, their small Cattle, asSheep,Goats, and thelike, be left exposed in the Night-time to theNortherly Winds, they are frequently found next Morning perfectly stiff and dead, in the same Posture as they are wont to be in at their Stalls and Cribs: And there are divers Accounts of Persons in those Countries, who have been so suddenly transfixed, stiffened, and killed by thoseBlasts, as to have continued on Horseback in the same Posture as when Living, till the Horse, acquainted with the Road, has brought them to their Journey’s End: And the above-mentioned Physician[40]tells us, that when he was atBrussels, he was informed by aSpanishCaptain, that of a Party of Horse that was sent out for Booty in a very cold Season, one by Accident lost the rest of the Body; and Riding about some time, before he could find his Way, or any Refreshment, he was so transfixed with the Cold as to be quite killed, but continued on Horseback in the Posture of a Live Person, until his Horse at last happened to find the Way back to his Quarters, whither his Company had before got, and missing him, feared he had fallen into the Enemies Hands; but when theycame to congratulate him upon his safe Return, they went so near as to speak to him, and take hold of him, before they perceived him to be dead.
TOBlastsof this kind it undoubtedly is, that Fruit Trees and Plants do so frequently suffer, especially after a warm early Spring, after the vegetable Juices have began to rise and shoot into Buds and Leaves. Instances of this Nature we frequently find in our own Countrey; and I have had Opportunity to observe, more than once, that upon suchBlasts, the Trees have, on that side towards the Wind, been in one Night’s Time quite changed in the Colour of the Leaves; and some, of the most tender sort, almost stripped bare, their Leaves falling off dry, as inAutumn.
BUTthere is something yet further, besides particular Constitutions of Air, that is taken Notice of by Physicians, as a general Cause of Maladies of this kind; and that is what is commonly calledContagionorInfection; by this TermContagion, is understood a Disease arising from the Contact of such Bodies or Particles as have in them a Power of Altering the due Crasis of a healthfulPerson, and inducing still one common Disease; these Particles are generally called by Physical Writers μιασματα,Contagiosa, orContagij Seminia; and the Difference of Pestilences arising from these Causes seems much to differ from what have been hitherto taken Notice of, as the former cannot be shunned but by quite leaving the diseased Climate, or by such a Strength, or Turn of Constitution, as resists, or yeilds not to the general Disorder; whereas in this last Case, a Person seems to be equally safe in any Air that is not impregnated with these contagiousEffluvia, and the greatest Danger arises from the Nearness to diseased Persons, or whatsoever else is capable of harbouring those mischievous and secret Messengers, as the Poet[41]takes Notice.
Quo proprior quisq; est, servitq; fidelius agroIn partem Lethi citius venit.——
Quo proprior quisq; est, servitq; fidelius agroIn partem Lethi citius venit.——
THEHistories of Physick abound with Relations of Pestilences from no other Cause than what arises from the Importation of the Disease, if it may be so termed, fromdistant Countries; and sometimes not by Persons themselves distempered, but by the Conveyance of thesePestilential Miasmasin their Cloaths or Wares imported in the Way of Trade.Fracastorius,[42]an eminentItalianPhysician, tells us, That in the Year Fifteen Hundred and Eleven, when theGermanswere in Possession ofVerona, there arose a deadly Disease amongst the Soldiers from the Wearing only a Coat purchased for a small Value; for it was observed, that every Owner of it soon sickened and died; until, at last, the Cause was so manifestly from some Infection in the Coat, that it was ordered to be burned. Ten Thousand Persons, he says, were computed to fall by this Plague before it ceased.
FROMthe same Cause, that is, infected Garments, and Merchandize,Mercurialistakes Notice of a Plague in his Time atVenice; andAppianus Alexandrinus[43]assures us, that theCeltæ, after a Conquest over theIllyrici, and in Possession of their Plunder, were infected with a grievous Plague, which theIllyricithen laboured under.Thycididesalso, in his Relation of the Plague atAthens, intimates, That it was brought from some Part ofEthiopiaby the like Means. AndProsper Alpinus[44], before mentioned, seems to lay the greatest Stress for the Frequency of the Plague atGrand Cairo, to the Traffick with those Countries as are hardly ever free fromPestilential Diseases. A great many Physicians have charged the Plague in Sixteen hundred and sixty three atAmsterdam, to the Infection of somePestilential Miasmswhich were transported fromSmyrnaandAlgiers, then much infected with such Diseases, with some Merchandize; by which Means likewise it was conjectured soon afterwards to reachLondon, and several other Parts ofEngland, as it appears from the preceding Account of Dr.Hodges. To this Purpose I remember to have read a strange Story, somewhere inBaker’s Chronicle, of a great Rot amongst Sheep, which was not quite rooted out until about Fourteen Years Time, that was brought intoEnglandby a Sheep bought for its uncommon Largeness, in a Country then infected with the same Distemper: And upon this Account it is that the Prudenceof those Nations and States are to be justified, who enjoin all Persons and Merchandize from infected Countries, to stay a certain Time upon their Coasts and Borders before they are suffered to intermix with a healthful People; having by such Instances as here mentioned been justly alarmed at the Incroachment of such dreadful Destroyers.
THESEHistorical Fragments are put together, in Order to apprize those Readers who have not been very conversant with Things of this Kind, with the various Ways by which the most dangerous Diseases, and even sudden Death, may be introduced into our Constitutions, by the Agency of very minute and unheeded Causes; and likewise the better to support the Distinction necessary to be made betweenEpidemicDiseases, and aContagion; as well as to illustrate the Manner whereby the latter subsists, spreads, and proves fatal, when the Causes producing the former are absent.
EpidemicDiseases of all Kinds and Degrees of Exacerbation, have their Rise from some common Cause, that affects all within its Extent more or less, in Proportion to the particular Fitness of different Constitutionsto be affected by it: And by theBellinianDoctrine we are taught, how all those Changes are made in the Blood, when thrown into a Fever by these Causes, even from the most simpleEphemera, to the most complicated and malignant Cases whatsoever; to which therefore the Reader must be referred, for a clear Understanding of such Matters; it being sufficient to our Purpose here to observe, that he demonstrates all Fevers to be attended with some Fault in the Blood’s Motion, Quantity, or Quality, or in some or all of them together; and that its chief Fault in Quality, (which is most to the present Case) consists in an unequable Fluidity, some Parts of it being rendered thinner, and others thicker at the same Time, than in a natural State; not unlike what happens to all coagulated Liquors.
FROMthis Condition of Blood, this great and wonderful Man goes on to shew, through the whole Course of his Propositions, that the coagulated Part, which he commonly distinguishes by the Name ofLentor, does accumulate in the capillary Vessels until their Endeavours of Restitution, as in all Elastick Bodies, are greaterthan the protruding Force, when by the Arteries Re-action upon it, theLentoris shook, dislodged, and washed away into the Veins, and ordinary Course of Circulation, there continuing its Progress till it is either fitted for some Secretion and Evacuation, or again lodged in the Capillaries, to bring on a new Paroxysm.
THISunequable Fluxility of the Blood arises from two general Causes, either from such Means as diminish its Motion, or from the Mixture of such Particles, as cannot only of themselves be reduced by the digestive Powers into homogeneous Dispositions therewith; or as have a Faculty to put in Fusion some Parts of the Mass, and leave the other thicker than before; these are particularly enumerated, and their Ways of Operation distinctly demonstrated byBellini.
CONFORMABLEto this Change in the Blood, which is the common Promptuary of all the other animal Fluids, every Thing separated from it hath some correspondent Affections; and the nervous Fluid in particular, which is separated from a Mass so unequally fluid, cannot but in itself have some Parts too fine, and others too gross, besides the Inequalities in the Times and Quantities of its Separation; from all which the same Author accounts for those Affections, termed nervous, which are theConcomitantsof Fevers: And in the Prosecution hereof he frequently takes Occasion to speak of this Fluid to be thin, sharp, hot, fiery, dry,&c.as the saline and rigid Parts in its Composition are by the Distemper more or less subtilized, or more or less defrauded of its humid Parts by Exhalation.
FURTHERMORE, in this great Disorder of the Constitution, and inordinate Hurry and Colluctation of the Fluids, sometimes the Solids are maintained in their Contractions and Motions, until the Particles either introduced from Abroad, or generated in the Body, which cannot be assimulated into homogeneous Qualities, are thrown out of the Course of Circulation by the natural Discharges, by Transpiration, or by Abcesces; and the animal Fluids restored to their natural State. But when Matters are brought to this pass, it happens that the very Means of saving one Person, may prove the Destruction of manyothers; because what is thus critically thrown off by one, hath a Faculty of exciting the like Disorders in the Fluids of another, when it is insinuated into them; as a very small Quantity of some fermenting Substances will communicate its Efficacies a very great Way, and put very great Parcels of Fluid into the like Agitation. And this is the Way by which a malignant Fever comes to be infectious, and aPestilencechanges into aContagion; asBellinimore largely explains it in his XXVIIIth Propositionof Fevers; from the whole of which it is manifest, as Dr.Meadhath expressed it in his fifthEssay of Poisons, thatthe Effects of theoneare the Cause and Beginning of theother.
TObring then this nearer to the Matter under Examination, the Plague which is described in the foregoing Pages, was strictly and properly aContagion, and by all Accounts of the best Authority, That which hath made such vast Devastations in some Parts ofFrance, and now continues to rage amongst them, to the great Terror of their Neighbours, is also of the same Kind; and was brought to them in Merchandize, and by a Ship’s Crew, who were sick of a pestilentialDisease all their Voyage Home from some Parts ofTurkey; in neither of these there being any Manner of Fault chargeable upon the Air, or to any other Causes before enumerated in producing aPestilence.
THESymptoms of That now Abroad are reported by the best Physicians amongst them to besudden Pains in the Head,great Loathing at Stomach,Reaching to Vomit,Consternation,wild Looks,trembling Voice,Coldness in the extreme Parts,low unequal Pulse,Paleness,Delirium,Convulsions,Carbuncles,Buboes,livid Vesications,purple Spots,and Hemorrhages;the last are certain Forerunners of Death. All which, more or less, are the constant Attendants of all pestilential Fevers.
BECAUSEthen there is such a vast Difference between aPestilencearising from assignable Causes in the Air,&c.and aPestilencefrom aContagion, as to the preservative Means especially against them; and that what we are now in most Apprehension of, is of the latter Kind; it most concerns us to be well acquainted with the Manner of Infection, as far as we can reason about Agents so extreamly minute and subtle. How all otherAntecedentsto aPestilenceexertthemselves in their Influences over the animal OEconomy,Bellinihas brought even to a Demonstration; but as to aContagion, he says little; which therefore, as introductory to some following Remarks, we shall here insert.
‘As this Coagulation and Fusion may go on so far as to set at Liberty, and perspire through the Surface of the Body, or with the Breath in Respiration, many noxious Particles, which may be so subtil and active, as to enter the cutaneous Pores of other Persons, or mix with that Air which they draw in Respiration, and when got into the Body, be able to make the same Change in the Blood, both as to its Coagulation and Fusion; hence it comes that such a Fever provescontagious, which is an inseparable Requisite to apestilentialFever.‘But this is not only thus brought about; but also the dissolved, and dispersed Particles may longer adhere to some inanimate Bodies than others, as to Woollen and Linen Cloaths, Papers,&c.and these Particles may, by the Steam of a living Body, or by the Means of any other Heat,be put into Motion, so as to breath out of those Lodgments, where they quietly resided, and obtain so much Liberty, and Action on all sides, as will carry them into the cutaneous Pores of any Persons within their Reach, and infect them; and on this Account aPestilencemay be brought from very distant Countries, lying a long Time in such Manner concealed, and then suddenly breaking out; with many other Circumstances of like Nature.‘BUTif these subtile and active Particles be of that Nature, that they can penetrate the Pores of other Animals, and occasion a like Coagulation of their Blood, not only Men, but Brutes also, will be seized with aPestilence; but this does not always very necessarily happen; because the Blood of Animals is different from humane Blood, so that although these Particles are supposed to get into it, it does not therefore necessarily follow that they must vitiate it, any more than willAqua Regiadissolve all kinds of Metals; but yet Brutes of all kinds, or some of them only, will be seized equally with Men, when this subtile and active Ferment, which penetrates the Surface, is of thatNature, as will taint the Blood of other Animals with thosepestilentialRequisites.‘ASthis kind of Contagion then can easily proceed from an infected Person at a great Distance, as often as the noxious Particles can reach another Person, and give that Degree of Coagulation and Fusion, as is necessary to aPestilence; the more aggravated then will be this Calamity, and more easily spread, when a healthful Person is near to one already infected; and yet much more worse, if it is in Contact with those Parts, which more plentifully, and with a greaterImpetus, breath out infected Steams, as if the Air arising from the Mouth and Lungs, which must be extreamly hot, or the Perspiration of a Carbuncle when it is greatly inflamed; for in this Case the exhaling Particles will be in their greatest Activity when nearest the recipient Body, and likewise more dense, that is, more numerous, and consequently of greatest Efficacy.‘BUTit is not every one that is seized with aPestilencefrom Contagion, by Means of Steams exhaling from any particular Parts of the Body; but only when these Steams, and the Air it self, hath joinedwith, and interspersed through it Particles of vitiated Faculties; and then this Kind of Fever will easily be communicated, and necessarily ensue, not only on Account of what gets into the Body with the inspired Air, but because also the whole Body is surrounded with such an Infection, wherein the noxious Particles floating about on all Sides, will endeavour to penetrate through the Pores upon the Surface, and get that Way into the Blood; for although the Skin is thicker upon the Surface of the Body, than that Pellicle covering the Vessels in the Lungs, and for that Reason it requires longer Time for such Particles to get that Way into the Blood, and the Habit of the Body, yet it is no Argument that they cannot get that Way at all, and be admitted into the Juices.’
‘As this Coagulation and Fusion may go on so far as to set at Liberty, and perspire through the Surface of the Body, or with the Breath in Respiration, many noxious Particles, which may be so subtil and active, as to enter the cutaneous Pores of other Persons, or mix with that Air which they draw in Respiration, and when got into the Body, be able to make the same Change in the Blood, both as to its Coagulation and Fusion; hence it comes that such a Fever provescontagious, which is an inseparable Requisite to apestilentialFever.
‘But this is not only thus brought about; but also the dissolved, and dispersed Particles may longer adhere to some inanimate Bodies than others, as to Woollen and Linen Cloaths, Papers,&c.and these Particles may, by the Steam of a living Body, or by the Means of any other Heat,be put into Motion, so as to breath out of those Lodgments, where they quietly resided, and obtain so much Liberty, and Action on all sides, as will carry them into the cutaneous Pores of any Persons within their Reach, and infect them; and on this Account aPestilencemay be brought from very distant Countries, lying a long Time in such Manner concealed, and then suddenly breaking out; with many other Circumstances of like Nature.
‘BUTif these subtile and active Particles be of that Nature, that they can penetrate the Pores of other Animals, and occasion a like Coagulation of their Blood, not only Men, but Brutes also, will be seized with aPestilence; but this does not always very necessarily happen; because the Blood of Animals is different from humane Blood, so that although these Particles are supposed to get into it, it does not therefore necessarily follow that they must vitiate it, any more than willAqua Regiadissolve all kinds of Metals; but yet Brutes of all kinds, or some of them only, will be seized equally with Men, when this subtile and active Ferment, which penetrates the Surface, is of thatNature, as will taint the Blood of other Animals with thosepestilentialRequisites.
‘ASthis kind of Contagion then can easily proceed from an infected Person at a great Distance, as often as the noxious Particles can reach another Person, and give that Degree of Coagulation and Fusion, as is necessary to aPestilence; the more aggravated then will be this Calamity, and more easily spread, when a healthful Person is near to one already infected; and yet much more worse, if it is in Contact with those Parts, which more plentifully, and with a greaterImpetus, breath out infected Steams, as if the Air arising from the Mouth and Lungs, which must be extreamly hot, or the Perspiration of a Carbuncle when it is greatly inflamed; for in this Case the exhaling Particles will be in their greatest Activity when nearest the recipient Body, and likewise more dense, that is, more numerous, and consequently of greatest Efficacy.
‘BUTit is not every one that is seized with aPestilencefrom Contagion, by Means of Steams exhaling from any particular Parts of the Body; but only when these Steams, and the Air it self, hath joinedwith, and interspersed through it Particles of vitiated Faculties; and then this Kind of Fever will easily be communicated, and necessarily ensue, not only on Account of what gets into the Body with the inspired Air, but because also the whole Body is surrounded with such an Infection, wherein the noxious Particles floating about on all Sides, will endeavour to penetrate through the Pores upon the Surface, and get that Way into the Blood; for although the Skin is thicker upon the Surface of the Body, than that Pellicle covering the Vessels in the Lungs, and for that Reason it requires longer Time for such Particles to get that Way into the Blood, and the Habit of the Body, yet it is no Argument that they cannot get that Way at all, and be admitted into the Juices.’
BYthis we are able to gather, that when a Fever from some Faults in theNon-naturalscomes to the highest Degree of Malignity, it makes such a Change in the animal Fluids as renders some Parts of them poisonous, and capable of exciting the like fermentative Motions, wheresoever they come into a proper Subject, without any of those procatarctic Causes as gave Rise to the Fever of the first Person seized.
OFwhat Nature then this Poison is we may conjecture from the Circumstances of its Production. All animal Bodies do more or less generate a Salt; or rather, in Proportion to the Strength of their digestive Powers, do they more or less subtilize the saline Particles which are taken in with their necessary Nourishment. This is abundantly manifest in the Distillation of many animal Substances, which plentifully yield a volatile Salt. But indeed in the Composition of this, in a natural and healthful State, there is joined a very subtilized Sulphur or Oil; which contempers and softens it into a Fitness for the Purposes of the OEconomy: And under this Modification, it becomes the Principle of Vitality, and the chief Instrument of animal Action; not unlike what this is conceived to be, is the commonSal volatile oleosum, or any other Spirits drawn from odorous Bodies.
ITmatters not what Names Persons please to distinguish this by, in an humane Body; but that somewhat of this Kind is naturally the Produce of its digestive Powers, in the highest Degree of Comminution or Subtilization they are capable of bringingany Thing to, no one will question; and that those minute Threads or Fibres, of which the whole is a Composition, are animated by it; or, to speak more strictly, owe to it their Elasticity and motive Faculties.
ITis hoped, that no one who hath been accustomed to Reasonings of this Nature, will find any Difficulty in conceiving such a Difference of Principles, so finely blended together, as here suggested of a saline, and an oleous, or humid Substance: And whosoever readsBellini, or any others who have wrote in the same Manner, will find continual Regard had to those two Principles, even in the animal Spirits; for without it there can be no Notion had of what is so frequently mentioned, and which by their Effects we find must be true of them, that they are too dry, hot, active, fiery, and the like; or too humid, vapid, sluggish, viscid,&c.And it is further equally manifest, that in Proportion to the greater or lesser Degrees of Motion in those Fluids, from whence this subtile Composition is generated, and the Concussions of those fine Threads into which it is separated, will it err in one or other of the foregoing Extremes.
INa Fever therefore, where the animal Fluids are in the highest Degree of Agitation, and from Causes too of a coagulating Nature, it ought to be no Wonder that even this subtile Union should be in some Measure dissolved, and the softer and more humid Parts broke and exhaled, so much as to leave the more rigid and saline ones not only unfit to lubricate those Elastick Threads, wherein they reside, but sharp and pointed enough to stimulate, contract, and harden them into all Loss of Motion.
ASthe Destruction likewise of thisNexusin so subtile a Fluid leaves the saline Parts capable of injuring even that OEconomy which gave it Existence, so may its Volatility favour its Escape in a great Measure by Transpiration, so as to affect also other Persons within its Reach; and These with all other Particles of like Nature, which, by an Over-Agitation, and fermentative Motion of the animal Fluids, are separated from the softer and lubricating Compositions with which they were naturally joined, and which by their Volatility transpire and float in the Air, we take to be the truecontagious Miasmata, that convey, propagate, and continue aPestilence, after the Cause first raising it ceases.
NORwill this seem strange to any who are accustomed to reflect, how many Substances are changeable into a poisonous Nature, which before were not only inoffensive, but useful to the Purposes of Life. Some Minerals, whose saline Parts in their Production are naturally blended with good Quantities of Sulphur, are harmless, and goodAlterants; but when by any Means those Principles are separated, the saline Parts become strongEmeticksandCatharticks, even to the Degree of a Poison. Who does not know thatAntimonymay be taken crude in large Quantities without any manifest Effect, but that the Chymist can take somewhat from it, that in few Grains shall operate beyond the Power of a strong Constitution to bear?
THOSEArrows of Death therefore that make such dreadful Slaughter in aContagion, are the animal Salts of infected Persons, set loose from their natural Combinations, and subtilized into the highest Degree of Volatility, by the Agitation and fermentative Motion of a Fever. And the Buboes, Carbuncles,&c.in aPestilence, are nothing else but Collections of Particles, orCoalescences, formed in such irregular Motions, and thrown out of the Course of Circulation by those necessary Laws whereby every Thing is rejected, that cannot be assimilated into homogeneous and like Properties: The Matter of which Excretions is likewise of so subtile and fermenting a Nature, that if introduced into the Fluids of another well Person, it excites there the same Motion and Disorder.
THISchange of animal Substances into a Poison, is too common a Truth to want any Attestation to those who have been but indifferently conversant in Natural Enquiries. And it is greatly to our Purpose, that even those Creatures, which are generally deemed poisonous, do require certain Degrees of Heat, and animal Action, to exalt their Juices to so high a Degree of Volatility, as to put on the Properties of a Poison, and act as such upon other living Creatures; insomuch that it is not only a common Observation that these Animals lose their poisonous Nature when remov’d into Climes colder than what is natural to them, but that also they are not so venomous in their own Climates, at the cooler Seasons of the Year, as in the most sultry.
BUTthe Case of a mad Dog entirely comes up to that of aContagionfrom a Fever. When the hotter Seasons of the Year throw that Creature into Madness, it is manifestly from a great Increase of Velocity and Motion in the Fluids, which brings on what is equivalent to aDelirium, by an additionalImpetusupon the Brain, and for want of so much Room through the Skin for Transpiration, as in other Animals; the chief Evacuation is by the Glands of the Mouth: That is, in short, the Dog hath a Fever, which breaks the natural Texture of the Juices, disengages and subtilizes the more rigid or saline Parts, and critically discharges them by the most convenient Outlets the Creature is furnished with, changed into such a poisonous Nature, that wheresoever they come to mix with the Juices of others, they excite in them the like inordinate and mischievous Alterations.
THISTheory likewise might be further illustrated by many Instances from inanimated Fluids, which are capable of being put into Fermentation by a very small Portion of Matter, and which shall by such an Agitation from new Particles, orMoleculæhaving Properties of communicating thesame Effects to another quiescent Fluid; not much unlike what we see in the Communication and Propagation of Fire, which is excited and carried on in proper Subjects from the minutest Beginnings, and increasing also in its own Force as it spreads.
WHENa Person therefore falls into a Fever from any epidemic, or other more private Cause, and that Fever rises to such a Degree of Malignity as is always supposed in aPestilence, as far as anyEffluviado exhale from that Person, so far may he be said to have round him a contagious and poisonousAtmosphere; because there transpires from him such Particles as will excite in other Animals of like Constitution, the same fermentative Motions as those to which they owe their own Origin.
ALTHOUGHtherefore, in the Beginning of epidemical Diseases, and during the Subsistence of their common Causes, particular Regard is to be had to these Causes, and the Manner whereby they affect the People; yet when it is come to this pass, that the Fever it self is productive of a Poison, or somewhat intirely disagreeable, that communicates the same Impressions upon others,without any Concurrence of the first Cause, then such a Fever is truly a Pestilence by Contagion, and all precautionary Regards ought peculiarly to be suited, to prevent its Infection or Spreading; either by keeping the well Subjects clear from the sick, or destroying the Influence of the poisonous Exhalations, or fortifying the sound against it. But to these Ends, it is necessary to have some tolerable Notion of the Manner how these secret Destroyers are continued, and conveyed to great Distances.
THEmost common Manner of conveying and spreading a Contagion, observable in the preceding historical Collections, and which also is the Case of our present Apprehensions from Abroad, is by infected Persons, and Merchandize; it being attested by too many Facts to admit of the least Doubt, that even Packs and Bails of Goods carry the poisonousMiasmataabout with them; and from the Nature that we here suppose this Poison to be of, nothing is more likely to preserve it than animal Substances, as Hair, Wool, Leather, Skins,&c.because the very Manner of its Production, and the Nature of its Origin, seems to give it a greater Affinity with such Substances than anyother, and to dispose it to rest therein until by Warmth, or any other Means of Dislodgement, it is put into Motion, and raised again into the ambient Air.
TOknow how theseEffluviacome to have such fatal Influences over Mankind, and to understand their Progression from the first Seizure, to the End of that Distemper they gave Birth to, requires too manyPrecognitafrom the Mechanism of the animal OEconomy, and the Agency of such minute Instruments, to be particular about, in the Compass here limited. And a Reader who is duly fitted for such Enquiries, will find the utmost Satisfaction fromBelliniofFevers, and Dr.MeadofPoisons; how the Blood, and all the Secretions therefrom, are affected, and changed by such Causes.
WEshall here therefore only suggest some Hints concerning the Suddenness of their Seizure, and their Energy of Operation. And this will not be difficult to conceive by those who are acquainted with that universal Property of Matter, whereby it is more or less determined to draw, and unite again, when separated into Parcels, according to the greater or lesser Affinities of their Figures, Solidities, and Quantities of Motion.As nothing therefore in Nature is supposed to bear a greater Similitude, than in this Case the natural animal Salts do with what hath been subtilized and set on Float in the Air, it can be no Wonder that when the Ambient is sated with the latter, they readily join with the former, as soon as they are received into the Body. And this is supported by the Authority even ofBellini, who allows, in the Beginning of his XXVIIIth Proposition, that theAntecedentsto a pestilential Fever do sometimes vitiate the Spirits immediately in Quality.
ASthe ordinary Course therefore of producing Fevers is by disordering the Blood first in Quality, with such Mixtures as coagulate it, that is, as make it unequally fluid, some Parts being thinner, and others thicker than natural; so by these extreamly subtileEffluvia, in aContagion, the Spirits are destroyed in their natural Texture, and the more rigid and saline Parts, by a Combination with the venomousSpicula, changed into Dispositions destructive of that Constitution they were before destined to preserve. Whosoever then considers what must be the necessary Consequences of such an immediate Depravation and Change in that Fluid, whichis an absolute Requisite to all animal Action, will not at all wonder at any of the Affections which are commonly enumerated as theConcomitantsof a Contagion; and a tolerable Acquaintance with the OEconomy, by the Help especially of the Authors before referred to onFeversandPoisons, will enable any one to account severally for their Production.
THISthen being the Case of aContagion, that a Person having a Fever, critically throws off poisonousEffluvia, which were generated during such irregular Motions of the animal Fluids, insomuch as to diffuse for some Distance round, what will infect other Persons within their reach; and that so many have got this Infection, that no Part of the Air, for some Tract of the Country together, is free from them; the poisonousAtmospheres, if they may be so termed, of the infected, extending and mixing into one universal, commonContagion; this, I say, being the Case here under Examination, why any at all survive, must be owing either to the Goodness of their Constitution, or to proper Means to defend against its Infection, or to conquer it when received; which naturally brings us to consider these two important Ends, ofPreservationandCure.
ASfor theFirstof these, the common Experience, of meaner People being mostly carried off, admonishes all to live upon as nutritive and generous a Diet as can be procured; and such Things as not only yeild due Nourishment, but Plenty of Spirits, and what easily perspires. For there are many Things of good Nourishment, that are not easily perspired; such as all light and viscid Substances, as Pork, Fish, and the like, which therefore are very apt to go into Fermentation, and generate Corruption; in short, whatever even the common People have Notions of, as apt to bring Surfeits, ought to be avoided, and such Means of Subsistance complied with, as generate a warm, rich Blood; and in Proportion to the Ways of Living at other Times, should every one, except those who accustom themselves to Riot and Excess, indulge himself at a higher Rate.
ROASTEDMeats are by all preferred to boiled, and if Pickles and high Sauces are ever to be encouraged, it is on these Occasions; andGarlick,Shallot,Onions, &c. are extreamly serviceable, and preferable to the hot, dry, spicy Seasonings, because their pungent Volatility seems naturally coveredwith a Softness, or balsamick Quality, more agreeable to the Nature of animal Spirits. To which Purpose it is very remarkable, that in the Histories of many Pestilences, Notice is frequently taken of the Exemption ofJews, and People who deal much in such Fare, from Infection. And it is customary with some experienced Sailors, to lay in great Stores of such Things against their Arrival at infected, and unwholsome Countries.
THEREis also a very strict Regard to be had to the Firmness and Strength of the Solids, which is greatly assisted by moderate Exercises, but carefully avoiding too much, and every Thing that occasions too great an Expence of Spirits at a Time, and particularly by over-Warmth. But to this Purpose I cannot conceive any Thing more serviceable than frequent Immersion in cold Water, so that the Times of staying in are as short as possible, the Good received hereby being chiefly in the first Shudder and Constriction; and it is particularly to be remembred, tho’ the preceding Author hath omitted it, that Watermen, and others, whose Occasions imployed them much upon the River, and in the Cold, suffered least in the late Sickness. The Use ofVinegar, and otherAcids, are also of Service for the like Intention.
YETbesides the Helps for this End from common Diet, and Way of Living, Assistances may also be had from Medicinal Preservatives, such as those commonly termedAntidotes, consisting of spicy volatile Particles, which afford a naturalPabulumto the animal Spirits, and by carrying into the whole Habit a fine subtle Oil, the better secure them against those ContagionsSpiculawhich are in Readiness to mix with them; and for this Purpose, we are furnished with a most elegant and useful Medicine, since many Authors of Note have wrote on this Subject, which is theSal Volatile Oleosum, if it be well loaded with the essential Oils of Spicy Ingredients; although indeed with some Constitutions more fetid Compositions are very suitable; but they all agree in carrying into the Habit somewhat that both recruits, and guards the Spirits against any foreign Mixture, or from unnatural Separations of their saline and humid Parts. And to the same End, in robust Constitutions, who have been accustomed to fare hard, the Spirit or Oil of Turpentine frequently drank in small Doses might be a great Means to preserve the poorer Sort from Infection.
BECAUSEformer Writers on these Occasions have givenFormulæof things of this kind, much more prolix and inelegant than the present Practice is accustomed to, it may not perhaps be unacceptable to give two or three Examples more conformable to the latter. But because I judge such general Prescriptions rather of Prejudice than Service, when they come hastily and inadvertently to be required by the common People, I cannot but think it much better to leave such to be ordered and regulated according to particular Persons Constitutions and Exigencies.
ASto those preservative Means which a Government only have the Power to provide, they must likewise be left to those who have that Power, but, with due Submission to such, it is conceived that removing infected Persons is a much easier and safer Care, than shutting them up in great Towns: And it was certainly the greatest Error committed in the latePlaguehere, as our Author above grievously complains, to confine the sick and well together.
ITseems a Point yet in Dispute, whether great Fires at such a Time are of Service or hurtful, which to me is somewhat wonderful, because whosoever considers the Necessityfor Air in Respiration, and by what Quality it becomes of such real Service to the Preservation of Life, cannot think such Fires proper, because they destroy that very Property in the Air, which is demonstrable by innumerable Experiments. As to the Dissipation indeed of pestilential Vapours, or their Destruction in any Manner, they undoubtedly may do Service, but then that ought to be done at vast Distances only from where People inhabit. And what Fires common Occasions require at such Times, are rather to be made with such Substances as abound with, and yield a nitrous Salt, because that seems to be the chief Support of the vital Property in the Air, and such are our common Coals; for every one knows how much more all Wood-Fires are suffocating, and give a Languor, and Flatness to the Spirits.
PRESERVATIVEFumigations are largely talked of by all, on these Occasions, and they with good Reason deserve to be practised, because while the Poison is on Float in the Air, it may undoubtedly be entangled so as to lose its Power of acting as such; but then for this Purpose such Things ought to be used as exhale very subtile Sulphurs, as the spicy Drugs and Gums. And on thisAccount I suspect Wood-Fires to be bad, because they raise into the Air a very gross and viscid Humidity, which is not only very unfit to lay hold on, and unite with, the extreamly minute Agents that are to be provided against, but also carry into the Lungs with the Air in Respiration, such Particles, as dispose of themselves to Viscidities, and such Changes in the Blood, as are the Production of the worst Fevers, without any other co-operating Cause; for the Fire only forces out that Moisture, which, while a Tree is in its Growth, naturally perspires from it; and how an Air so impregnated is like to be of Service against a Pestilence, any one may soon be a Judge, who considers those Kinds of Fevers which are most commonly epidemical in wood-land Countries.
SUCHDrugs however as are from a vegetable Production, and abound with subtile, volatile Parts, are of Service to be exhaled into the Air this way, both by their Fitness to join with, and cover those venomousSpiculathat are on float; and to mix with the Animal Fluids by Respiration and Insinuation into the Pores, whereby they convey, as it were, anAntidote, wheresoever the Poison is able to penetrate, and which grosser Vapours can by no means do.
OFthis kind are chieflyStorax,Benjamin,Frankincense, and all the Aromatick Roots and Woods; and amongst them all, I cannot think the Smell ofTar,Pitch, &c. is inferior in any Respects, where its Scent is not particularly offensive. And these Things should be burnt at such Distances of Time from each other, that the Air may be always sensibly impregnated with them.
BUTas some have sad Apprehensions from the Air being still, and as it were stagnant at such Times, and not without good Reason, as it favours the Collection of poisonousEffluvia, and aggravates an Infection; for the Prevention of which, it is proposed at certain Intervals to fire off great Guns, and the like: I cannot but imagine, that for this End, it would be much more effectual to let off small Parcels of the commonPulvis Fulminans, in such Openings of a large Town, as Squares and Market-Places; for whosoever hath been accustomed to any Experiments with this Composition, must have perceived a much greater Shock given to the Air by its Explosion, than by the largest Pieces of Ordnance; insomuch that if any Objection can lie against the Practice of this inLondon,should there be Occasion, it is the crasie Condition of the City Buildings, which perhaps may not well stand its Shocks, were they to be made with good Quantities of it at a time.
THEMatter likewise of this Composition in some Measure bespeaks its Usefulness for these Purposes on other Accounts, besides itsElastickForce, because it diffuses into the Air great Quantities of that nitrous Salt, which is known to add much to its Serviceableness in Life: And whosoever considers how much cheaper this is to be procured, and how much easier practised than the firing off Guns, especially in the Middle of great Towns, cannot but be desirous to try it, in Case of such Calamities as are now with too much Reason feared; it may not therefore be unacceptable to give its Composition here.
℞Sal. Nitri Partesiij.Sal. Tartari P.ij.Sulphuris P.j.optime misceantur in Mortario, parùm tepefacto, & servetur ad usuum vase bene obturato.
THISis order’d in a warm Mortar, and to be kept close, because theSalt of Tartaris apt to imbibe a Moisture from the Air, which hinders its Explosion. A Drachm or two put in as close a Heap as possible upon anIron Plate over any Fire, will in a little Time go off with a Report and Concussion beyond that of any Gun whatsoever; so that in a calm Season, and an infected Air, great Services may undoubtedly be had from its frequent Practice.
ASto the curative Part in such a terrible Visitation, it cannot be expected that Rules can be given suitable to every one’s Case but by such as attend upon them; and the most that can be in general laid down to this Purpose, may be collected from the preceding Treatise of Dr.Hodges. Although as to the Choice ofAlexipharmicks, they are certainly best that are most subtile, and capable of being carried by the Course of Circulation into the finest Recesses of the Constitution, whereinto it is manifest the extream Subtilty of the pestilential Poison is capable to enter: And amongst all of this Class, I takeCamphireto be much the more preferable; which therefore I would propose not only to be repeated in proper Doses to an infected Person, till a dueCrisisis obtained, but also now and then given to those who are well, by way of Prevention. And because some Persons, notwithstanding what has been before said, will be pleased with some generalFormulæto thesePurposes, the following are offered to be complied with, or varied, at every one’s Discretion, who is a Judge of such Matters.