days, to spread rumours and reports of things; * and to improve them by the invention of men, as I have lived to see practised since. But such things as these were gathered from the letters of merchants and others, who corresponded abroad, and from them were handed about by word of mouth only; so that things did not spread instantly over the whole nation, as they do now. But it seems that the Government had a true account of it, and several councils were held about ways to prevent its coming over; but all was kept very private. Hence it was, that this rumour died off again, and people began to forget it as a thing we were very little concerned in, and that we hoped was not true; till the latter end of November, or the beginning of December, 1664, when with the French fleet, near Messina. Many, however, died of the Plague in De Ruyter's fleet, about the above time. Dr. Hodges (author of "Loimologia," &c., who, after practising with great success in London, during the time of the Plague, died poor in Ludgate, about 1684) speaks thus of the origin the Infection in his "Letter to a Person of Quality, on the Rise, Progress, Symptoms, and Cure of the Plague:"- "After the most strict and serious inquiry, by undoubted testimonies, I find that this Pest was communicated to us from the Netherlands by way of contagion; and if the most probable relations deceive me not, it came from Smyrna to Holland, in a parcel of infected goods." See "Collection of very scarce and valuable pieces relating to the last Plague in the year 1665." 2nd edit. 1721. 8vo, p. 14. was *This is not strictly accurate. Newspapers had been published occasionally in the reign of Queen Elizabeth; and also, periodically, during the Civil War in Charles the First's time, and during the subsequent Protectorate or Interregnum. The "Intelligencer commenced by Sir Roger L'Estrange, in December, 1664; and the "Newes," also by him, on the third day afterwards; and those papers were continued to be published, in alternate succession, twice a week for some years. The "Gazette," No. I. "Published by authority," at Oxford, where the Court then resided, appeared in November 1665. It has no proper date; but the first article in it, dated Oxon. Nov. 7, is the announcement of the election of the Rev. Dr. Walter Blandford, Warden of Wadham Coll., to the Bishopric, vacant by the death of Dr. Paul. At the end of this Gazette, we are told The account of the Weekly Bill at London runs thus:-Total 1359. Plague 1050. Decreased 418." The Oxford Gazette, No. 24, was the first "London Gazette," and bears the dates of February 1-5, 1665-6. two men, said to be Frenchmen, died of the Plague in Long-acre, or rather at the upper end of Drury-lane. The family they were in endeavoured to conceal it as much as possible; but as it had gotten some vent in the discourse of the neighbourhood, the Secretaries of State got knowledge of it; and concerning themselves to inquire about it, in order to be certain of the truth, two physicians and a surgeon were ordered to go to the house and make inspection. This they did; and finding evident tokens of the sickness upon both the bodies that were dead, they gave their opinions publicly, that they died of the plague: whereupon it was given in to the parish clerk, and he also returned them to the hall, and it was printed in the weekly Bill of Mortality in the usual manner, thus: Plague 2.-Parishes infected, 1.* The people showed a great concern at this, and began *It will be seen from the following dates and numbers taken from the Bills of Mortality, that London had never been free from Infection since the year 1647, when 3597 persons died of the Plague : In the latter year, viz. 1664, there were four parishes infected. One person died in St. Botolph's, Aldgate; one in St. Giles's, Cripplegate, three in St. Mary's, Whitechapel; and one in St. Giles's-in-the-Fields. The unwonted alarm, therefore, which existed at this time, must have arisen not so much from the knowledge that the Plague was already in London, as from the mortality occasioned by it in Holland; where at Amsterdam alone, in the above year, more than 24,000 persons are said to have fallen victims to its ravages. In fact, there had scarcely been a single twelvemonth from the commencement of the century, during which London had been entirely free from this infection. In 1603, no fewer than 36,269 persons are recorded to have died in the metropolis of the Plague; in 1625, there perished here 35,417; and in 1636, full 10,400. In many of the intermediate years, the deaths from Pestilence amounted to two, three, and even four thousand and upwards. to be alarmed all over the town, and the more, because, in the last week in December 1664, another man died in the same house, and of the same distemper: and then we were easy again for about six weeks, when, none having died with any marks of infection, it was said the distemper was gone; but after that, I think it was about the 12th of February, another died in another house, but in the same parish, and in the same manner. This turned the people's eyes pretty much towards that end of the town; and the Weekly Bills showing an increase of burials in St. Giles's parish more than usual, it began to be suspected that the Plague was among the people at that end of the town, and that many had died of it, though they had taken care to keep it as much from the knowledge of the public as possible. This possessed the heads of the people very much, and few cared to go through Drury-lane, or the other streets suspected, unless they had extraordinary business, that obliged them to it. This increase of the Bills stood thus:-The usual number of burials in a week, in the parishes of St. Gilesin-the-Fields, and St. Andrew, Holborn, were from twelve to seventeen or nineteen each, few more or less; but from the time that the Plague first began in St. Giles's parish, it was observed, that the ordinary burials increased in number considerably. For example: From Dec. 27 to Jan. 3-St. Giles's 16 St. Andrew's 17 Jan. 3 to Jan. 10-St. Giles's 12 St. Andrew's 25 Jan. 10 to Jan. 17-St. Giles's 18 St. Andrew's 18 Jan. 17 to Jan. 24-St. Giles's 23 St. Andrew's 16 Jan. 24 to Jan. 31-St. Giles's 24 St. Andrew's 15 Jan. 31 to Feb. 7-St. Giles's 21 The like increase of the Bills was observed in the parish of St. Bride, adjoining on one side of Holborn parish, and in the parish of St. James, Clerkenwell, adjoining on the other side of Holborn: in both which parishes, the usual numbers that died weekly, were from four to six or eight: whereas at that time they were increased, as follows: From Dec. 20 to Dec. 27-St. Bride's 0 : Besides this, it was observed with great uneasiness by the people, that the Weekly Bills in general increased very much during these weeks, although it was at a time of the year when usually the Bills are very moderate. The usual number of burials within the Bills of Mortality for a week, was from about 240 or thereabouts, to 300. The last was esteemed a pretty high Bill; but after this we found the Bills successively increasing as follows: This last Bill was really frightful, being a higher number than had been known to have been buried in one week, since the preceding Visitation of 1636.* However, all this went off again, and the weather proving cold, and the frost, which began in December, still continuing very severe, even till near the end of February,† attended with sharp though moderate winds, the Bills decreased again, and the city [town] grew healthy, and every body began to look upon the danger as good as over; only that still the burials in St. Giles's continued high from the beginning of April especially, they stood at twenty-five each week, till the week from the 18th to the 25th, when there was buried in St. Giles's parish thirty, whereof two of the Plague, and eight of the spotted fever, which was looked upon as the same thing; likewise the number that died of the spotted fever in the whole increased, being eight the week before, and twelve the week above-named. *In March, 1665, the importation of English Manufactures, even to Beer, was prohibited in Holland (on account of the Plague), under a penalty of 1000 guilders, besides confiscation of the property. This, probably, was in retaliation for the Government measure of the preceding year, when the King (Charles II.) excused his prohibition of merchandise from Holland, "on account of the Plague having been introduced into that Country." In Evelyn's "Diary," vol. i. p. 370, is the following entry, under the date December 22-"It was now exceeding cold, and a hard long frosty season, and the Comet was very visible." Under January 4th, 1665, he says, "excessive sharp frost and snow." Pepys also, on the 6th of February, in the same year, made the following entry in his "Diary:"-" One of the coldest days, all say, they ever felt in England." The comet was also noticed in a letter from Erfurt, bearing date December 27th, 1664-5, together with other appearances, which were then regarded as indications of forthcoming calamities: "We have had our part here of the Comet, as well as other places, besides which here have been other terrible apparitions and noises in the ayre, as fires and sounds of cannon and musket shot; and here has likewise appeared several times the resemblance of a Black Man, which has made our Sentinels to quit their posts; and one of them was lately thrown down by him from the top of the wall." Vide "The Newes," published for the Satisfaction and Information of the People: (with Privilege) Numb. 2. |