On the local origin of the Yellow Fever epidemic of British Guiana : in a letter from Daniel Blair ... to John Davy ... with appended documents.

Date:
[1851?]
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: On the local origin of the Yellow Fever epidemic of British Guiana : in a letter from Daniel Blair ... to John Davy ... with appended documents. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. The original may be consulted at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh.

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    X. On the Local Origin of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of British Guiana; in a letter from Daniel Blair, M.D,, Surgeon General of British Guiana, to John Davy, M.D.^F.B.S., Inspector General of Army Hospitals, fyc., with Appended Documents. Georgetown, 23d December, 1850, My dear Sir, I have not seen Dr. M‘William’s “Notes on the Boa Vista Feverbut I have read the article in the “British and Foreign Medico-Chirurgical Review.” I find by it, as well as a notice of our monograph in the “Lancet,” that the subject of contagion of our late epidemic was not handled with sufficient detail. The fact is, that the idea of contagion in yellow-fever had become here so totally obsolete, that I felt reluc- tant to do more on that subject than make a declaratory statement of the universal opinion. When through you I was informed that a commission of military medical offioers was sitting in London to in- vestigate and decide on the subject of the alleged contagion of yellow-fever, I did not suppose it possible that there would have been the slightest difficulty in coming to a speedy conclusion in the nega- tive. I find that I have mistaken the professional opinion at home, and that it will be necessary to supply some additional matter on the subject. For this purpose I enclose you copies of some papers, which, with the contents of this letter, be pleased to use in any way you think best. At the same time I must observe, that the fact of the opinion of contagion in yellow-fever here being abandoned by the unanimous consent of the entire community, professional and non-professional, who had countless opportunities of observing the disease, spread over # [As indicated in the opening paragraph, this letter was written in consequence of some remarks contained in a critique on Dr. Blair’s “ Mo- nograph on Yellow Fever,” which appeared in the 6th vol. of the “British and Foreign Medico-Chirurgical Review.” As an answer to these remarks, the Editor of that review has permitted it to appear in a late number (vol. vii. p. 554.) with the candid admission, — “That Dr. Fraser’s communica- tion to the ‘Medical Gazette’ is worthless as evidence on the question of contagion, and should not be used by any one.” The additional and ample evidence now adduced, it is to be hoped, will have a more important issue, especially the appended documents, a selection from which was submitted to the reviewer, and noticed by him, but not published.] —Ed. R 55318