CHOLERA IN RUSSIA
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29 The question, therefore, for the present, must be con- sidered sub judice. It is one of great importance, and it would be desirable for a systematic investigation to be made under the direction of the Government. YELLOW FEVER IN BUENOS AYRES. OUR latest intelligence from Buenos Ayres is dated the 16th May. It brings the welcome intelligence of the vir- tual cessation of the epidemic of yellow fever. The recru- descence of the pestilence, reported in our impression of the 17th ultimo, extended from the 25th April to the 1st May. Since that date the mortality had steadily declined to the 10th May, the time of the last official returns. We are now enabled to present our readers with the official returns of the number of deaths from yellow fever in the city of Buenos Ayres from the 27th January to the 10th May inclusive. They show a total loss of life of 13,402-a total happily less than the least of the estimated numbers (18,000) given in a previous report (THE LANCET, 17th June), but, unhappily, too formidable to make us desire to enter into the contro- versy as to the trustworthiness of the official records. There would seem to be no question that at least the 13,402 persons entered on the burial lists as having died from yellow fever during the progress of the epidemic, did die from the malady; and it may be accepted that not a few individuals who lost their lives from its ravages were interred without record at the time, when the confusion from the spread and deadliness of the pestilence was at its highest, and when the urgency of the need to bury the corpses in- terfered with accuracy of entry in the burial registers. The mortality, as stated, is sufficiently large to sate the most rapacious appetite for horrors, without calling in the aid of the imagination to augment it. For (to show its magni- tude by way of comparison) if the deaths from cholera in London during the epidemic of that malady in 1866 had been at the same rate as the deaths from yellow fever in Buenos Ayres according to the official returns, the metro- polis, in place of losing 5500 lives, would have lost con- siderably above 200,000. The following is the official return of deaths from yellow fever in Buenos Ayres from the 27th January to the 10th May, 1871, inclusive:-Week ending February 3rd, 12; 10th, 26; 17th, 69 ; 24th, 101 ; March 3rd, 237 ; 10th, 671 ; 17th, 1151; 25th, 1151 ; 31st, 1900 ; April 7th, 2339 ; 14th, 2791 ; 21st, 1372; 28th, 851; May 5th, 540; 6th to 10th, 157. Total, 13,402. The daily mortality during the week when the pestilence was raging with greatest severity was as follows :-April 8th, 430; 9th, 501; 10th, 503; llth, 361; 12th, 427; 13th, 293 ; 14th, 276. Two deaths from ° cholera" were recorded in the course of the outbreak; one on the llth of February, the other on the 28th March. Apropos of this disease, we may remark that later reports from the interior to Buenos Ayres state that although cholera had been prevailing at Corrientes, it had not spread so widely or so fatally as the earliest news of the epidemic existing there asserted. Some correspondents, indeed, aver that the epidemic at Corrientes has not been cholera at all, but yellow fever. The compelled holiday in Buenos Ayres came to an end on the 16th May. The inhabitants were flocking back to the city at that date, and business was being resumed. It is hardly to be wondered at, having regard to the disastrous effect the pestilence has exercised upon the prosperity of the town and the means of the greater number of its in- habitants, that a fretful spirit appears to have possessed all parties. The local government, the press, and the public appear to be indulging largely in recriminations each of the other as to things done or left undone during the pesti- lence. With the opening of the port, and the resumption of trade, a better spirit no doubt will come ; and it is to be trusted that the city will then soberly devote itself to a process of thorough cleansing and to the construction of necessary works of water-supply and sewerage. The English community, it is reported, has suffered very severely during the pestilence, not less than 300 of the individuals constituting it when yellow fever broke out having been swept off. CHOLERA IN RUSSIA. THE Voix makes the following observations on the state of the epidemic in St. Petersburg. "We are at the end of the month of May [O.S.; llth June, N.S.], and still cholera persists, in a slighter and less deadly form it is true, but cholera nevertheless. A month ago, at noon on the 17th April :-29th, there were 71 cases of cholera under treatment at the five principal hospitals of the city. In the course of the week following 67 more cases were admitted, 31 cases were discharged recovered, and 8 cases died; 49 cases remaining under treatment at the end of the week. During the last week of April [6th- 12th May] the admissions were 19, the recoveries 27, and the deaths 7. On the 1st May [13th April] 34 cases re- mained under treatment. The returns for the first eight days of May [13th to 20th] were not less satisfactory, the admissions within this period numbering 10, the recoveries 16, and the deaths 6; the number of cases under treatment on the 8th [20th] having diminished to 22. But not unfre- quently, if cholera takes two steps backwards it will make one step forwards, and during the week from the 8th to the 15th [20th-27th May] there was a recrudescence of the epidemic, the number of admissions to the hospitals in- creasing to 21, double that of the preceding week. The recoveries in this week were 11, and the deaths 9. During the three following days [28th-30th] the admissions were 15, the recoveries 3, and the deaths 3. At noon on the 30th, there were 32 cases under treatment. Cases of foudroyant cholera, we may add, are rarer, and the disease yields more readily to treatment. But the epidemic continues, and although it is decreasing, it may at any moment, under favourable conditions, extend again. Among the conditions favourable to its spread must certainly be ranked the humidity of the last three weeks. The weather, however, has, at last, as we write, cleared up." From Moscow, the latest returns of the progress of the epidemic are as follows :-May 31st, 19 cases, 8 deaths; June lst, 68 cases under treatment; 4th, 18 cases, 11 deaths ; y 5th, 17 cases, 6 deaths; 9th, 9 cases, 11 deaths; 10th, 71 cases under treatment. According to the latest returns from St. Petersburg, the number of cases of cholera in the city from May 29th to- June llth was 79; of these, 32 recovered and 38 were fatal. Number of cases under treatment June llth : males 77, females 66. Total 143. Total returns from August 29th, 1870, to June llth, 1871,. inclusive :- THE SMALL-POX EPIDEMIC. THE general mortality from small-pox has declined some- what, but the death-rate is fearfully high in Sunderland, where, of 76 deaths, no less than 43 were due to small-pox ; 15 deaths in one district were of persons not vaccinated. In Great Grimsby the small-pox caused 14 deaths, raising the total since April 1st to 162, or at an annual rate of 24 per 1000 of the recently enumerated population. The Re- gistrar-General reports that the fatal cases of small-pox in London, which in the two previous weeks had been 245 and 240, declined last week to 232. In seven permanent and temporary hospitals for this disease 106 deaths were re- corded last week, of which 49, 23, and 25 respectively occurred in the institutions at Hampstead," Homerton, and Stockwell. After distributing these deaths, it appears that 30 belonged to the West group of districts, 53 to the North, 20 to the Central, 38 to the East, and 91 to the South. The fatal cases showed an increase in the West and South of London, while they had declined in each of the other groups of districts. The greatest fatality from small-pox was shown last week in Battersea, Clapham, and Southwark. The report of Dr. Bridges shows that the number of fresh cases in the metropolis has declined everywhere except in Marylebone and Paddington. It is satisfactory to find that
Transcript of CHOLERA IN RUSSIA
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The question, therefore, for the present, must be con-sidered sub judice. It is one of great importance, and itwould be desirable for a systematic investigation to be madeunder the direction of the Government.
YELLOW FEVER IN BUENOS AYRES.
OUR latest intelligence from Buenos Ayres is dated the16th May. It brings the welcome intelligence of the vir-tual cessation of the epidemic of yellow fever. The recru-
descence of the pestilence, reported in our impression of the17th ultimo, extended from the 25th April to the 1st May.Since that date the mortality had steadily declined to the10th May, the time of the last official returns. We are now
enabled to present our readers with the official returns of thenumber of deaths from yellow fever in the city of BuenosAyres from the 27th January to the 10th May inclusive.They show a total loss of life of 13,402-a total happily lessthan the least of the estimated numbers (18,000) given in aprevious report (THE LANCET, 17th June), but, unhappily,too formidable to make us desire to enter into the contro-versy as to the trustworthiness of the official records.There would seem to be no question that at least the 13,402persons entered on the burial lists as having died from yellowfever during the progress of the epidemic, did die from themalady; and it may be accepted that not a few individualswho lost their lives from its ravages were interred withoutrecord at the time, when the confusion from the spreadand deadliness of the pestilence was at its highest, andwhen the urgency of the need to bury the corpses in-terfered with accuracy of entry in the burial registers. Themortality, as stated, is sufficiently large to sate the mostrapacious appetite for horrors, without calling in the aidof the imagination to augment it. For (to show its magni-tude by way of comparison) if the deaths from cholerain London during the epidemic of that malady in 1866 hadbeen at the same rate as the deaths from yellow fever inBuenos Ayres according to the official returns, the metro-polis, in place of losing 5500 lives, would have lost con-siderably above 200,000.The following is the official return of deaths from yellow
fever in Buenos Ayres from the 27th January to the 10thMay, 1871, inclusive:-Week ending February 3rd, 12;10th, 26; 17th, 69 ; 24th, 101 ; March 3rd, 237 ; 10th, 671 ;17th, 1151; 25th, 1151 ; 31st, 1900 ; April 7th, 2339 ; 14th,2791 ; 21st, 1372; 28th, 851; May 5th, 540; 6th to 10th,157. Total, 13,402.The daily mortality during the week when the pestilence
was raging with greatest severity was as follows :-April8th, 430; 9th, 501; 10th, 503; llth, 361; 12th, 427; 13th,293 ; 14th, 276.Two deaths from ° cholera" were recorded in the course of
the outbreak; one on the llth of February, the other on the28th March. Apropos of this disease, we may remark thatlater reports from the interior to Buenos Ayres state thatalthough cholera had been prevailing at Corrientes, it hadnot spread so widely or so fatally as the earliest news of theepidemic existing there asserted. Some correspondents,indeed, aver that the epidemic at Corrientes has not beencholera at all, but yellow fever.The compelled holiday in Buenos Ayres came to an end
on the 16th May. The inhabitants were flocking back tothe city at that date, and business was being resumed. Itis hardly to be wondered at, having regard to the disastrouseffect the pestilence has exercised upon the prosperity ofthe town and the means of the greater number of its in-habitants, that a fretful spirit appears to have possessed allparties. The local government, the press, and the publicappear to be indulging largely in recriminations each ofthe other as to things done or left undone during the pesti-lence. With the opening of the port, and the resumptionof trade, a better spirit no doubt will come ; and it is to betrusted that the city will then soberly devote itself to a
process of thorough cleansing and to the construction ofnecessary works of water-supply and sewerage.The English community, it is reported, has suffered very
severely during the pestilence, not less than 300 of theindividuals constituting it when yellow fever broke outhaving been swept off.
CHOLERA IN RUSSIA.
THE Voix makes the following observations on the stateof the epidemic in St. Petersburg."We are at the end of the month of May [O.S.; llth
June, N.S.], and still cholera persists, in a slighter and lessdeadly form it is true, but cholera nevertheless. A month
ago, at noon on the 17th April :-29th, there were 71 cases ofcholera under treatment at the five principal hospitals ofthe city. In the course of the week following 67 morecases were admitted, 31 cases were discharged recovered,and 8 cases died; 49 cases remaining under treatment atthe end of the week. During the last week of April [6th-12th May] the admissions were 19, the recoveries 27, andthe deaths 7. On the 1st May [13th April] 34 cases re-mained under treatment. The returns for the first eightdays of May [13th to 20th] were not less satisfactory, theadmissions within this period numbering 10, the recoveries16, and the deaths 6; the number of cases under treatmenton the 8th [20th] having diminished to 22. But not unfre-quently, if cholera takes two steps backwards it will makeone step forwards, and during the week from the 8th to the15th [20th-27th May] there was a recrudescence of theepidemic, the number of admissions to the hospitals in-creasing to 21, double that of the preceding week. Therecoveries in this week were 11, and the deaths 9. Duringthe three following days [28th-30th] the admissions were15, the recoveries 3, and the deaths 3. At noon on the 30th,there were 32 cases under treatment. Cases of foudroyantcholera, we may add, are rarer, and the disease yields morereadily to treatment. But the epidemic continues, andalthough it is decreasing, it may at any moment, underfavourable conditions, extend again. Among the conditionsfavourable to its spread must certainly be ranked the
humidity of the last three weeks. The weather, however,has, at last, as we write, cleared up."From Moscow, the latest returns of the progress of the
epidemic are as follows :-May 31st, 19 cases, 8 deaths; Junelst, 68 cases under treatment; 4th, 18 cases, 11 deaths ; y5th, 17 cases, 6 deaths; 9th, 9 cases, 11 deaths; 10th, 71cases under treatment.
According to the latest returns from St. Petersburg, thenumber of cases of cholera in the city from May 29th to-June llth was 79; of these, 32 recovered and 38 were fatal.Number of cases under treatment June llth : males 77,females 66. Total 143.
Total returns from August 29th, 1870, to June llth, 1871,.inclusive :-
THE SMALL-POX EPIDEMIC.
THE general mortality from small-pox has declined some-what, but the death-rate is fearfully high in Sunderland,where, of 76 deaths, no less than 43 were due to small-pox ;15 deaths in one district were of persons not vaccinated.In Great Grimsby the small-pox caused 14 deaths, raisingthe total since April 1st to 162, or at an annual rate of 24per 1000 of the recently enumerated population. The Re-
gistrar-General reports that the fatal cases of small-pox inLondon, which in the two previous weeks had been 245 and240, declined last week to 232. In seven permanent andtemporary hospitals for this disease 106 deaths were re-corded last week, of which 49, 23, and 25 respectivelyoccurred in the institutions at Hampstead," Homerton, andStockwell. After distributing these deaths, it appears that30 belonged to the West group of districts, 53 to the North,20 to the Central, 38 to the East, and 91 to the South.The fatal cases showed an increase in the West and Southof London, while they had declined in each of the othergroups of districts. The greatest fatality from small-poxwas shown last week in Battersea, Clapham, and Southwark.The report of Dr. Bridges shows that the number of freshcases in the metropolis has declined everywhere except inMarylebone and Paddington. It is satisfactory to find that
