On the mode of communication of cholera — John Shaqi
On the mode of communication of choleraSnow, John
History
On the mode of communication of cholera
Snow, John
Cholera
The greatest number of attacks in any one day occurred on the 1st of
September, immediately after the outbreak commenced. The following day
the attacks fell from one hundred and forty-three to one hundred and
sixteen, and the day afterwards to fifty-four. A glance at the above
table will show that the fresh attacks continued to become less numerous
every day. On September the 8th—the day when the handle of the pump was
removed—there were twelve attacks; on the 9th, eleven; on the 10th,
five; on the 11th, five; on the 12th, only one; and after this time,
there were never more than four attacks on one day. During the decline
of the epidemic the deaths were more numerous than the attacks, owing to
the decease of many persons who had lingered for several days in
consecutive fever.
[Sidenote: THE PUMP-WELL IN BROAD STREET, GOLDEN SQUARE.]
There is no doubt that the mortality was much diminished, as I said
before, by the flight of the population, which commenced soon after the
outbreak; but the attacks had so far diminished before the use of the
water was stopped, that it is impossible to decide whether the well
still contained the cholera poison in an active state, or whether, from
some cause, the water had become free from it. The pump-well has been
opened, and I was informed by Mr. Farrell, the superintendent of the
works, that there was no hole or crevice in the brickwork of the well,
by which any impurity might enter; consequently in this respect the
contamination of the water is not made out by the kind of physical
evidence detailed in some of the instances previously related. I
understand that the well is from twenty-eight to thirty feet in depth,
and goes through the gravel to the surface of the clay beneath. The
sewer, which passes within a few yards of the well, is twenty-two feet
below the surface. The water at the time of the cholera contained
impurities of an organic nature, in the form of minute whitish flocculi,
visible on close inspection to the naked eye, as I before stated. Dr.
Hassall, who was good enough to examine some of this water with the
microscope, informed me that these particles had no organised structure,
and that he thought they probably resulted from decomposition of other
matter. He found a great number of very minute oval animalcules in the
water, which are of no importance, except as an additional proof that
the water contained organic matter on which they lived. The water also
contained a large quantity of chlorides, indicating, no doubt, the
impure sources from which the spring is supplied. Mr. Eley, the
percussion-cap manufacturer of 37 Broad Street, informed me that he had
long noticed that the water became offensive, both to the smell and
taste, after it had been kept about two days. This, as I noticed before,
is a character of water contaminated with sewage. Another person had
noticed for months that a film formed on the surface of the water when
it had been kept a few hours.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account