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98
Upon receipt of this information, I visited Corporal
Dillon, and found him to be in good health.
Plague which has been so prevalent in India, might
readily be introduced by merchandise into this country, if
due precautions were not taken by the several Port
Sanitary Authorities to prevent its introduction.
In reference to the great Plague of London in 1665 I
have read that this District suffered severely from the
disease, and that there were 3,216 interments from it in the
burial grounds of St. Giles-in-the-Fields alone.
Influenza.
There were six deaths as compared with 23, 34, and
one, in the preceding three years respectively.
The deaths in 1897 were all adults between 25 and 65
years of age.
According to the Registrar-General's weekly returns,
Influenza mortality prevailed in London throughout the
year, and that no less than 671 deaths were attributed
to it.
The progress of influenza seems irresistible, and there
appears to be no known method of escaping from its
infection.
It is stated that horses and probably most other
animals, including cats, which probably often serve as
channels of infection, are liable to the disease.
The disease is no doubt carried through the air by the
prevailing winds to long distances, for it is heard of in all
directions.