British Association for the Advancement of Science. 33 
years’ observation, that this disease, if it did not originate in lo- 
calities close to cemeteries, was greatly aggravated by the prox~- 
imity of burial-grounds, especially when the towns and villages 
stood on a lower level than the neighboring cemeteries. It was 
known, that the Turks, from religious prejudices, made their 
graves hollow, and placed a very shallow covering of earth over 
the dead. The mephitic vapors arising from the putrescent bodies, 
tainted and polluted the surrounding atmosphere: and that this 
disease was connected with atmospheric influences, was a fact 
known to the Turks themselves ; among whom it was commonly 
said, that birds abandoned the localities where plague prevailed, 
and fruits became more abundant. Mr. Urquhart declared, that 
these observations were confirmed by his own experience: he 
regretted that he had no statistical data to offer to the Section, 
and hoped that, attention being now directed ccipcchittaciatad it 
would lead to the prosecution of a more regular inquiry 
Mr. Wyse said, that his personal experience in ia: Turkey, 
and Egypt, enabled him to corroborate Mr. Urquhart’s statements : 
he had never passed the large cemetery, near the gate of Adri- 
anople, without a distinct perception of noisome effluvia, which 
in humid weather were peculiarly offensive. He trusted that the 
attention of government would be directed to the subject, and a 
series of questions addressed to the consular agents in the Levant. 
—Dr. Bryce said, that he had long directed his attention to the 
subject of plague, and made numerous observations during his resi- 
dence at Constantinople ; but searcely had he formed an hypothe- 
sis, when it was contradicted by some new facts. Mr. Urquhart’s 
remarks had first given him a ray of light to guide investigation, 
and from many circumstances which now occurred to his mind, 
he was led to»place considerable reliance on Mr. Urquhart’s ae- 
count.—Col. Briggs stated, that the plague was unknown in India, 
which he attributed to the custom of burning the dead. It was 
anciently unknown in Egypt, where the dead were embalmed ; 
among the Parsis, who expose their dead in a walled cemetery, 
to be devoured by the birds of the air, plague rarely or never 
occurs. In the countries which now constituted Turkey, pesti- 
Statistics of Crime in Liverpool. 'The report gave, as the re- 
sult of rigid inquiry, a criminal population to this town of 4,200 
females, and 4,520 males, 2,270 of the latter being professional 
Vou. XXXIV.—No. 1. 5 
