But, to proceed, the celebrated Doctor smells a Rat; that unless the Air is allowed a greater Share of shedding Destruction than he has hitherto allotted it, Matters may go very hard with the whole Doctrine of _Contagion_; and therefore, notwithstanding its being a Medium for propagating _Contagion_ only, the Doctor is now willing to pronounce, with full Power, and for Fear of great Inconveniencies that follow close at the Heels of the former Doctrine, that _a corrupted State of Air is _WITHOUT DOUBT NECESSARY_ to give these contagious Atoms their full Force; for otherwise it is not easy to conceive how the Plague should ever cease, but with the Destruction_ of all the Inhabitants. Here is a Devil raised indeed, and he will not be in the least quieted, unless Dr. _Mead_ will contradict himself, and renounce the half of his Defence, for the _Pureness_ and _Uncorruptedness_ of Air. And what will not a Man do for a quiet Life. And even the _English_ Air, that could formerly kill the greatest Plague, is now without doubt under a State of Corruption: For if that is not admitted, God have Mercy on all _English_ Men. This is very kind in the Doctor, to take shame to himself for the Good of his Country. Conveniency is a pretty Argument, but not very cogent, as we now see; for this corrupted State of Air is only an Expedient to get rid of a Pestilence; because by SUPPOSING _an Emendation of the Qualities of the Air, and restoring of it to a healthy State, capable of dissipating and suppressing the Malignity_, we put an end to the Plague in an instant. Mighty fine, and _Meadish_; tho’ he might have put a stop to a Plague at an easier rate, than the Loss of his Hypothesis; for as the stress of the Expedient rests upon another fine Word, _supposing_; why, he needed only to suppose that the whole Magazine of Poison is stopped at once, it matters not whether that be by an Army, by making it serve a _Quarantine_, by an _Amulet_, or that the raw Damp is again attracted by the Sea. I hope due Consideration will be had to this Expedient, in a new Edition of _the short Discourse_; if so be it has one. This would do much better than to make another Drawback, which we find is done in the very next Paragraph; for there, _Infection is not received from the Air it self, however predisposed, without the Concurrence of something emitted from infected Persons_. Now if Infection is never receiv’d from the Air upon any Account whatsoever, it is manifest, that the Air is a _Medium_, that can neither do Good nor Hurt, and so to the right about, and the former Allowance is recalled; so that the former Difficulty still remains, and consequently a Plague once begun in a Country, never comes to an end, as long as there is a Man alive.