Miscellanea. 181 
Dropsy is most prevalent in West Africa, Great Britain, and Guiana. 
Among the different countries the most striking contrasts are 
sometimes exhibited: thus, the west of Africa is to Europeans the 
most fatal; while the south-east is the most healthy country in the 
lobe. 
2 Although many causes besides that of climate contribute to pro- 
duce these results, yet generally, both in countries and in cities, the 
chances of longevity are greatly in favour of northern latitudes. 
Of the former we find near the bottom of the scale, Java, as indi- 
cated by Batavia; some of the West India Islands, Sicily, Naples, 
&c.; and near the top, Norway and Sweden, and portions of England. 
In all cases cities are less healthy than rural districts. Of these the 
lowest is Vienna, and the highest London. From these results it 
appears that a cool or cold climate near the sea is the most favour- 
able situation for health and longevity. Among the causes of 
mortality not dependent on climate may be noted :—1. Poverty and 
want among the lower classes of a community; 2. Close and ill- 
ventilated lodgings, whether in hospitals, prisons, or private dwel- 
lings; 3. Unhealthy or excessive labour, especially in youth; 4. 
Intemperance and dissolute habits; and, 5. War. 
The proportion of deaths from consumption in different countries 
indicates how little mere climate has to do with the extent of this 
disease; since, while it is almost unknown in the Madras Presi- 
dency of India, it is more frequent at the Cape of Good Hope than 
in the northern States of America, nearly even in Britain and in 
British North America, nearly the same at Gibraltar as in the West 
Indies generally, and more fatal among European troops in Jamaica. 
RKemittent fever shows an almost regularly progressive increase 
with the increase of temperature from the North States of America 
to Jamaica, where the deaths among Europeans amount to 102, 
and among the black troops, only 8 per 1000. Of diseases in the 
digestive organs, in the United States the number of cases is 526, 
and deaths 14 per 1000; while in Britain the cases are 95 per 1000, 
and the deaths only | in 2000 of the population. 
Rheumatism is most prominent in Britain, and least in Malta. 
In Asia it is least among Europeans in the Tenasserim provinces, 
and greatest in the Madras. 4 
The influence of climate is most powerfully evinced in the mental 
and physical degradation produced by malaria on the inhabitants of 
the moor and marshy districts of tropical regions; but, even in 
Europe, its effect on the amount of mortality is much greater than 
is generally understood. Thus in the smiling plains of southern 
Italy the rate of mortality is nearly twice as great asin the cold 
region of Scandinavia; and this proportion appears to be held in 
all countries. 
Temperature alone has a great effect on the production of disease ; 
the Registrar-General calculates that a fall of the mean temperature 
of the air from 45° to 4 or 5° below zero, destroys from 300 to 500 
of the population of London. 
In order to judge of the effects of the climate it is necessary to 
compare the amount of sickness and mortality among the indi- 
genous population of a country with that of strangers to the soil. 
Now, we find that in all India the average amount of mortality 
