Note 197 — OF QUARANTINE, LAZARETTOS, AND OTHER ESTABLISHMENTS OF PLAGUE POLICE.

The most remarkable of these Epidemics on record, are, that of 1647 in Barbadoes; that of 1686 in Martinique; that in the Spanish Main, in 1729, and 1740; and the most general and destructive of all, which broke out at Grenada in the month of March, in 1793, which spread rapidly to the whole Carribean Archipelago, and from thence to North America, and the shores of Europe. The most remarkable, and perhaps the only instances on record of its existence in North America, are that of Boston in 1693, on the arrival of a squadron of English ships of war from the West Indies; that in Carolina, in the years 1732, 1739, 1745, and 1748, all which, by the account of the physicians who describe it, could be traced to importations from the sugar colonies; that of Philadelphia, in 1751 and 1762; and that above-mentioned in 1793. It now remains to give the history of it as it appeared in Europe. It may be chronologically stated as follows: at Lisbon, in 1723; at Cadiz, in 1732, 1733, 1744, 1746, 1764, 1800; at Malaga, in 1741 and 1803; at Gibralter, in 1804. It has since appeared at different times in these cities, as well as at Carthagena, Alicant, and Leghorn. Extracted from Sir Gilbert Blane’s work.