3 02 POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



World; the other that it was imported to the West Indies from the 

 African coast, probably by vessels engaged in the slave trade, soon 

 after the occupation of the country by the Spaniards. It seems 

 necessary to look for an original endemic focus of the disease else- 

 where than in the West Indies, for the reason that, in the few places 

 where it is now endemic, there is historical evidence to show that the 

 disease was originally imported, and that prior to such importation 

 it was unknown. 



In Brazil, according to the best medical authorities in that coun- 

 try, yellow fever was not endemic at any of the seaport cities prior 

 to the year 1849. From Brazilian ports the disease has occasionally 

 been introduced to the cities at the mouth of the Bio de la Plata, and 

 has there caused great loss of life. 



According to Hinemann, yellow fever was unknown at Vera 

 Cruz prior to the year 1699, a year in which it was widely prevalent 

 in the West Indies. This city is now recognized as one of the en- 

 demic foci of the disease, and epidemics at other towns on the Mexi- 

 can coast have usually been traced to importation from Vera Cruz. 

 The Gulf coast of South America, and especially the Trench and 

 English settlements in Guiana, have been frequently visited by epi- 

 demics of yellow fever. In Venezuela the disease has occasionally 

 prevailed at Caracas and at the neighboring seaport, La Guayra. In 

 Central America epidemics have occurred at all the principal sea- 

 ports. Upon the Pacific coast of South America the disease was 

 imported to Callao in 1854, and extended from this port to the 

 Peruvian capital and to the principal towns on or near the seacoast. 

 It continued to prevail to some extent until 1869. 



The history of yellow fever in the United States shows that the 

 disease is an exotic which has not found the conditions favorable for 

 its continued development at any of our seaport cities. It is true 

 that for many years it prevailed almost annually at New Orleans, but 

 since efficient quarantine regulations have been enforced the disease 

 has been excluded, and no epidemic has occurred in this city since 

 1878, a period of eighteen years, until the present year. The epi- 

 demics in this city attended with the largest mortality occurred in 

 1819 (mortality, 2,190), in 1847 (2,259), 1853 (7,970), 1854 

 (2,423), 1855 (2,670), 1858 (3,889), 1867 (3,093). 



At Galveston, Mobile, and Pensacola on the Gulf coast, and at 

 Charleston and Savannah on the Atlantic, epidemics were formerly 

 of frequent occurrence, but these cities have also learned to protect 

 themselves by suitable quarantine regulations. The last epidemic 

 occurred in Galveston in 1867 (mortality, 1,150), in Mobile in 1878, 

 in Pensacola in 1882, in Savannah in 1876, in Charleston in 1871. 



During the latter part of the eighteenth and the early part of the 



