The degree in which the Smallpox epidemic of the last seven years has been localised in London is very remarkable. The _Lancet_ points out that during the week ending 25th May, 51 fatal cases were registered in London and its suburban districts, whereas not one was recorded in any of the nineteen large provincial towns having an aggregate population about equal to that of London. Since the beginning of the year the fatal cases of Smallpox within fifteen miles of Charing Cross have been 1,134, while but 8 have occurred in the nineteen other large towns. We find similar illustrations of the sporadic character of smallpox wherever we can get at the facts. In 1874 there died in London 735 of smallpox, but not one in Birmingham; 386 in Liverpool, but not one in Plymouth; 347 in Salford, but not one in Nottingham; 190 in Manchester, and but 1 in Sheffield; 24 in Bristol and 4 in Leeds; and so on. What reason is there to believe that what is true of smallpox within our own experience was otherwise in the experience of our forefathers? I said that few would hesitate to include Dr. Lettsom’s 36,000 and Sir Gilbert Blane’s 45,000 among the extravagances of 1802, but I forgot myself. We have a National Health Society with the Duke of Westminster for President and all manner of notables, aristocratic, philanthropic, scientific, and literary, among its committee and members. Now this Society issues a hand-bill of advices and warnings relating to smallpox, approved too by the Local Government Board, and there we find set forth as unquestionable matter of fact-- “_Before the introduction of Vaccination Smallpox killed 40,000 persons yearly in this country._” We thus see how hard it is for a convenient fable to die, even when known to be false, and how respectable people will keep repeating it as long as they fancy it is for good.