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main grounds. In the first place, they claim that, other things being
equal, persons who have been vaccinated (especially within ten
years) are less liable to attack from small-pox. This is abundantly
established by the figures quoted above. In the second place, they
claim that persons who have been vaccinated, and yet, on account
of their greater number in the population, and, therefore, their
consequent greater probability of infection, are attacked by small-pox,
do not die so readily from the disease as those who have not
been vaccinated. This claim also is more than proved in the
returns quoted above. In the third place, they claim that persons
who have been vaccinated, and yet who have been attacked, do not
suffer so greatly from the disease as those who have not been
vaccinated. Now the only method we have of measuring the
severity of the disease in each case is by considering the number of
days for which each case was detained in hospital, because it is
evident that the more severe cases will be detained for treatment
longer than the less severe cases. Eliminating the 40 deaths
which occurred, as a rule, early in the attack, we have records
of 176 cases out of 235, as to the number of days they were
detained in hospital. The result at each age-period is as follows :—
No. of Days in Hospital.
Age Period.
Vaccinated. Unvaccinated.
0—10 years 19 days 49 days
10—20 „ 24 „ 42 „
20—30 „ 25 „ 61 „
30—40 „ 29 „ 60 „
40-50 „ 31 „ 48 „
50 and upwards 23 „ 35 „
Average Number of Days 25 days 49 days
I do not assert that vaccination is the only method of prevention
we have against small-pox. But I do assert that these returns are