Population  and.  Difeafes  of  Chefter.  14L 
linen,  airy  rooms,  careful  attendance,  and  wholefome 
diet. 
Towards  the  latter  end  of  Auguft  there  appeared  a 
fever  which  from  its  frequency  might  be  called  epidemi- 
cal. It  was  preceded  by  fultry  weather,  and  commenced 
immediately  after  a flrong  gale  of  wind  from  the  weft 
on  the  17  th,  fucceeded  by  eight  fair  days.  It  has  been 
remarked,  by  Dr.  stedman,  that  ftorms  prevent  epi- 
demics. I would  not  alledge  this  as  an  inftance  to  refute 
the  ingenious  obfervation:  but  the  want  of  rain  during, 
and  eight  days  after,  the  high  winds,  was  perhaps  the 
caufe  why  they  produced  a pernicious  rather  than  a falu*- 
tary  effect.  The  admirable  difcovery  of  Dr.  Priestley, 
that  water  corrects  and  purifies  air  rendered  noxious  by 
refpiration  and  putrefaction,  makes  this  conjecture  ex- 
tremely probable. 
From  the  fifth  table  it  appears,  that  this  fever  attacked 
285,  and  was  fatal  to  28,  that  is,  to  1 in  10.  It  had  the 
common  fymptoms  of  malignant  fevers  produced  by 
human  effluvia,  and  particularly  affeCted  the  head  with' 
pain,  giddinefs,  and  delirium.  This  fever  attacked  in 
general  the  loweft,  few  of  the  middle,  and  none  (or  only 
one)  of  the  higheft  rank.  Among  the  poor,  when 
one  was  feized,  the  reft  of  the  family  buffered  more  or' 
fefs  with  like  fymptoms ; but  in  no  inftance  did  any 
marks-- 
