r 3«s ] 
“ of other difeafes, which are all laid to the account 
“ of the plague j for there is no other mentioned at 
“ prelent, and there is a very great confirmation 
“ among the people. The Greeks and Armenians 
“ fuffer mod, next to them the Jews, The Turks 
“ fuffer lefs in proportion than other nations. The 
u Franks have hitherto efcaped, excepting one Jefuit 
“ prieft, who waited on the Chriftian flaves of the 
“ grand fignor’s bagnio, and died three days ago.’’ 
Dr. Mackenzie to Dr. Clephane, F. R. S. 
Dear Sir, Conftantinople, Nov. 23. 1751. 
Read March 5; ^RECEIVED yours of the 9 of Septem- 
I752, JL ber on the 23 of Odlober laft j and 
had it arrived 24 hours fooner, I had been very ex- 
peditious in anfwering : but as a courier goes to Vi- 
enna from Conftantinople but once in a month, the 
24 hours your letter came fhort, make almoft a 
month’s difference. 
You are pleafed to ask me, if we can account 
from any apparent caufes for the prefent violence of 
the plague ? To which I anfwer, that, during the 
twenty long years I have lived in this country, here 
and at Smyrna, there has fcarcely been a year, ex- 
cepting three, in which the plague did not threaten 
more or lefs ; and in all that interval I obferved no 
other difference in the feafons, than that the winters 
might begin more early, and continue fomewhat 
longer, and with greater rigour j tho’, by my ther- 
mometers, this difference never exceeded 5- or 6 
degrees ; which is no great difference here, where 
