384 March 1749. 



killed incredible numbers of them. For though 

 they can heal wounds and other external hurts, 

 yet they know not how to proceed with fevers, 

 or in general with internal difeafes. One can 

 imagine, how ill they would fucceed with the 

 cure of the fmall-poX, when, as foon as the puf- 

 tules appeared, they leaped, naked, into the cold 

 water of the rivers, lakes, or fountains, and either 

 dived over head into it, or poured it over their 

 body in great abundance, in order to cool the 

 heat of the fever. In the fame manner they 

 carry their children, when they have the fmall- 

 pox, into the water and duck them*. But brandy 

 has killed moft of the Indians. This liquor was 

 likewife entirely unknown to them, before the 

 Europeans came hither ; but after they had tafted 

 it, they could never get enough of it. A man 

 can hardly have a greater defire of a thing, than 

 the Indians have of brandy. I have heard them 

 fay, that to die by drinking brandy, was a deii- 



* ProfelTor Kalm wrote this, when the truly laudable method of 

 treating the frnall-pox with a cold regimen, was not yet adopted ; 

 and he thought therefore, the way in which the Americans treated 

 this difeafe, was the caufe of its being fo deleterious. But when 

 the Khalmucks, in the Rujfian dominions, get the fmall-pox, it has 

 been obferved, that very few efcape. Of this 1 believe no other 

 reafon can bealledged, than that the fmall-pox is always dangerous^ 

 either when the open pores of the human (kin are too numerous, 

 which is caufed by opening them in a warm-w r ater bath ; or when 

 they are too much clofed, which is the cafe with all the nations 

 that are dirty and greafy. All the American Indians rub their body 

 with oils, the Khalmucks never wafli themfelves, and rub their bo- 

 dies and their fur coats with greafe ; the Hottentots are I believe 

 known to be patterns of filthinefs, their bodies being richly 

 -anointed with their ornamental greafy iheep guts ; this fhuts up 

 all the pores, hinders perfpiration entirely, and makes the fmall- 

 pox always lethal among thefe nations ; to which we may yet add 

 the too frequent ufe of fpirituous inflammatory liquor?, fmce their 

 acquaintance with the Europeans. F. 



rable 



