흑사병 전염병시대의 논문집.The Book of A Journal of the Plague Year, by Daniel Defoe

흑사병 전염병시대의 논문집.The Book of A Journal of the Plague Year, by Daniel Defoe
by Daniel Defoe
being Observations or Memorials
of the most remarkable occurrences,
as well public as private, which happened in
London during the last great visitation in 1665.
Written by a CITIZEN who continued
all the while in London.
Never made publick before
It was about the beginning of September, 1664, that I, among the rest of my
neighbours, heard in ordinary discourse that the plague was returned again in
Holland; for it had been very violent there, and particularly at Amsterdam and
Rotterdam, in the year 1663, whither, they say, it was brought, some said from
Italy, others from the Levant, among some goods which were brought home by
their Turkey fleet; others said it was brought from Candia; others from Cyprus. It
mattered not from whence it came; but all agreed it was come into Holland again.
We had no such thing as printed newspapers in those 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 was
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 two men, said to be Frenchmen, died of the plague in Long
Acre, or rather at the upper end of Drury Lane.