aed [ 472 J 
MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS. 
On ihe Influence of Cold upon the 
Healik of the Inhabitants of Lon. 
ton. From the Philosophical Trans. 
acdions. 
THE extraordinary mildness of 
last January, ceimpared with the 
unusual severity of the January pre- 
ceding, affords a peculiarly favour. 
able opportunity of observing the 
effet of each of these seasons, con- 
trasted with each other. For of 
these two successive winters, one 
has been the coldest, and the other 
the warmest, of which any regular 
account has ever been kept in this 
country. Nor is this by any means 
an idle speculation, or matter of 
mere curiosity ; for one of the first 
steps towards preserving the health 
of cur fellow-creatures, is to point 
out the sources from which diseases 
are to be apprehended, And what 
may make the present inquiry more 
particularly useful, is, that the re. 
sult, as I hope clearly to make ap- 
pear by the following statements, 
is entirely contrary to the preju- 
dices usually entertained upon this 
subject. 
During last January, nothing was 
more common than to hear expres. 
sions of the unseasonableness of 
the weather; and fears least the 
want of the usual degree of cold, 
should be productive of putrid dis. 
eases, and I know not what other 
eauses of mortality, ‘On the other 
hand, ‘a bracing cold,”? and ‘‘a 
clear frost,’’ are familiarin the mouth 
ofevery Englishman; and what heis 
taught to wish for, as among th 
greatest promoters of health ant 
vigour. 
Whetever deference be due to 
received opinions, it appears to me 
however {rom the sirongest evi- 
dence, that the prejudices of the 
world are upon this point at least 
unfounded. ‘Lhe average degrees 
of heat upon Fahrenheit’s thermo- 
meter kept in London during the 
month of January 1795, was 23% 
in the morning, and 29°.4 in the 
afternoon. The average in January 
1796, was 43°.5 in the morning, 
and s0°%.1 in the afternoon, A 
difference of above twenty degrees! 
And if we turn our attention from 
the comparative coldness of these 
months to the corresponding health- 
iness of each, collected from the- 
weekly bills of mortality, we 
shall find the result no less remark- 
able. For in five weeks between 
the 31st of December 1794, and 
the 3d of February 1795, the whole 
number of burials ameunted to 
2823; and in an equal period of 
five weeks between the goth of 
December 1795 and the ad of Fe- 
bruary 1796,t01471. So that the 
excess of the mortality in January 
1795 above that of January 1796, 
was not less than of 1352 persons. 
A number sufficient surely to awak~ 
, en 
