Production, mid Propagation of Malaria, 107 



uncommon prevalence of East winds, and to such a degree 

 indeed, that we can find no meteorological records at all to 

 be compared with the history of these years. And while the 

 history of the intermittent and remittent, in London at least, 

 from the time of Morton and Sydenham downwards, shows 

 that all its periods of such diseases have been periods of 

 Eiast winds, it is not difficult to see how it acts as to both 

 classes of marsh fever. To London, in particular, it is the 

 best conductor, propagating the malaria from all the moist 

 lands to the eastward. To the East coast, if our author's 

 theory is valid, it brings the malaria from Holland ; and, 

 moreover, as it forms our hottest summers, it causes our own 

 climate to approximate more to the southern ones, and thus 

 enables our lands to produce a greater quantity of malaria 

 than in ordinary summers. 



To pass from the eighth chapter, the ninth is a partial 

 sketch of the geography of malaria ; a chapter for which the 

 author apologises, but which is nevertheless a very interest- 

 ing collection of facts on a subject where a volume is, doubt- 

 less, a desideratum. And it would require a volume; while, 

 in spite of our author's fears, we can really see no reason 

 why such a statistical account of health should not be drawn 

 up for England, when the utility of it is unquestionable. It 

 is true that people cannot abandon their homes or change 

 their residences, because their lots happen to be cast in an 

 insalubrious country. But it is not less important to know 

 what and where these dangers are ; because, though the 

 inhabitants may be compelled to abide, they can still correct 

 much of the evil by the various modes pointed out, or avoid 

 much of the hazard by resorting to the obvious precautions. 

 To be ignorant, is to be exposed to the full evil : to know 

 where it lies, is to know how and where to avoid it in nume- 

 rous ways ; since it will be found that by far the greater 

 number of diseases occurring, were not necessary or una- 

 voidable, but have been the result of ignorance as to the 

 precise fact or spot which did produce the effect in question. 

 And this we conceive to be the great use of the book before 

 us ; and that if ever it, or a code of rules founded on it, 

 shall become popular, or form a vade mecum, particularly 

 in the country, the effect will be to reduce most materially 

 the quantity of disease, and very particularly that which is 

 by far the most serious, the summer and autumnal fevers. 

 On this ground, we should be glad to see a geography of 

 malaria for England ; and we do hope that it will be under- 

 taken hy some person of sufficient industry, and of mor^ 



