Of the many contemporary accounts, there is not one which is sufficient by itself to convey a distinct and connected idea of it; as there is not, perhaps, one which may not give us some assistance in forming that idea. In every one, not excepting that of Ripamonti,1 which considerably6 exceeds all the rest, both in copiousness7 and in its selection of facts, and still more in its method of viewing them, essential facts are omitted which are recorded in others; in every one there are errors of material importance, which may be detected and rectified8 with the help of some other, or of the few printed or manuscript acts of public authority which still remain; and we may often discover in one, those causes, the effects of which were found partially9 developed in another. In all, too, a strange confusion of times and things prevailed, and a perpetual wandering backward and forward, as it were at random10, without design, special or general: the character, by the by, of books of all classes in those days, chiefly among such as were written in the vulgar tongue, at least in Italy; whether, also, in the rest of Europe, the learned will know, and we shrewdly suspect it so to have been. No writer of later date has attempted to examine and compare these memoirs11, with the view of extracting thence a connected series of events, a history of this plague; so that the idea generally formed of it must necessarily be very uncertain and somewhat confused, a vague idea of great evils and great errors, (and assuredly there were both one and the other beyond what can possibly be imagined,)— an idea composed more of opinions than of facts, mingled13, indeed, with a few scattered14 events, but unconnected, sometimes, with their most characteristic circumstances, and without distinction of time, that is to say, without perception of cause and effect, of course and progress. We, having examined and compared, with at least much diligence, all the printed accounts, more than one unpublished one, and (in comparison of the few that remain on the subject) many official documents, have endeavoured to do, not, perhaps, all that is needed, but something which has not hitherto been done. We do not purpose relating every public act, nor all the results worthy15, in some degree, of remembrance. Still less do we pretend to render needless to such as would gain a more complete acquaintance with the subject, the perusal16 of the original writings: we are too well aware what lively, peculiar17, and, so to say, incommunicable force invariably belongs to works of that kind, in whatever manner designed and executed. We have merely endeavoured to distinguish and ascertain19 the most general and important facts, to arrange them in their real order of succession, so far as the matter and the nature of them will allow, to observe their reciprocal effect, and thus to give, for the present, and until some one else shall do better, a succinct20, but plain and continuous, account of this calamity.
Throughout the whole track, then, of the territory traversed by the army, corpses22 might be found either in the houses, or lying upon the highway. Very shortly, single individuals, or whole families, began to sicken and die of violent and strange complaints, with symptoms unknown to the greater part of those who were then alive. There were only a few who had ever seen them before: the few, that is, who could remember the plague which, fifty-three years previously23, had desolated24 a great part of Italy indeed, but especially the Milanese, where it was then, and is still, called the plague of San Carlo. So powerful is Charity! Among the various and awful recollections of a general calamity, she could cause that of one individual to predominate; because she had inspired him with feelings and actions more memorable27 even than the evils themselves; she could set him up in men’s minds as a symbol of all these events, because in all she had urged him onward28, and held him up to view as guide, and helper, example, and voluntary victim; and could frame for him, as it were, an emblematical29 device out of a public calamity, and name it after him as though it had been a conquest or discovery.
The oldest physician of his time, Lodovico Settala, who had not only seen that plague, but had been one of its most active intrepid30, and, though then very young, most celebrated successful opponents; and who now, in strong suspicion of this, was on the alert, and busily collecting information, reported, on the 20th of October, in the Council of the Board of Health, that the contagion31 had undoubtedly32 broken out in the village of Chiuso, the last in the territory of Lecco, and on the confines of the Bergamascan district. No resolution, however, was taken on this intelligence, as appears from the ‘Narrative’ of Tadino.2
Similar tidings arrived from Lecco and Bellano. The Board then decided33 upon, and contended themselves with, despatching a commissioner35, who should take a physician from Como by the way, and accompany him on a visit to the places which had been signified. ‘Both of them, either from ignorance or some other reason, suffered themselves to be persuaded by an old ignorant barber of Bellano that this sort of disease was not the pestilence36;’ 3 but in some places the ordinary effect of the autumnal exhalations from the marshes37, and elsewhere, of the privations and sufferings undergone during the passage of the German troops. This affirmation was reported to the Board, who seem to have been perfectly38 satisfied with it.
But additional reports of the mortality in every quarter pouring in without intermission, two deputies were despatched to see and provide against it — the above-named Tadino, and an auditor39 of the committee. When these arrived, the evil had spread so widely, that proofs offered themselves to their view without being sought for. They passed through the territory of Lecco, the Valsassina, the shores of the Lake of Como, and the districts denominated Il Monte di Brianza and La Gera d’Adda; and everywhere found the towns barricaded40, others almost deserted41, and the inhabitants escaped and encamped in the fields, or scattered throughout the country; ‘who seemed,’ says Tadino, ‘like so many wild savages42, carrying in their hands, one a sprig of mint, another of rue43, another of rosemary, another, a bottle of vinegar.’3 They made inquiries44 as to the number of deaths, which was really fearful; they visited the sick and dead, and everywhere recognized the dark and terrible marks of the pestilence. They then speedily conveyed the disastrous45 intelligence by letter to the Board of Health, who, on receiving it, on the 30th of October, ‘prepared,’ says Tadino, ‘to issue warrants to shut out of the city any persons coming from the countries where the plague had shown itself; and while preparing the decree,’4 they gave some summary orders beforehand to the custom-house officers.
In the mean while, the commissioners46, in great haste and precipitation, made what provisions they knew, or could think of, for the best, and returned with the melancholy47 consciousness of their insufficiency to remedy or arrest an evil already so far advanced, and so widely disseminated49.
On the 14th of November, having made their report, both by word of mouth and afresh in writing, to the Board, they received from this committee a commission to present themselves to the governor, and to lay before him the state of things. They went accordingly, and brought back word, that he was exceedingly sorry to hear such news, and had shown a great deal of feeling about it; but the thoughts of war were more pressing: ‘Sed belli graviores esse curas.’ So says Ripamonti,5 after having ransacked50 the records of the Board of Health, and compared them with Tadino, who had been specially26 charged with this mission: it was the second, if the reader remembers, for this purpose, and with this result. Two or three days afterwards, the 18th of November, the governor issued a proclamation, in which he prescribed public rejoicings for the birth of the Prince Charles, the first-born son of the king, Philip IV., without thinking of, or without caring for, the danger of suffering a large concourse of people under such circumstances: everything as in common times, just as if he had never been spoken to about anything.
This person was, as we have elsewhere said, the celebrated Ambrogio Spinola, sent for the very purpose of adjusting this war, to repair the errors of Don Gonzalo, and, incidentally, to govern; and we may here incidentally mention, that he died a few months later in that very war which he had so much at heart; not wounded in the field of battle, but on his bed, of grief and anxiety occasioned by reproaches, affronts51, and ill-treatment of every kind, received from those whom he had served. History has bewailed his fate, and remarked upon the ingratitude52 of others; it has described with much diligence his military and political enterprises, and extolled54 his foresight55, activity, and perseverance56; it might also have inquired what he did with all these, when pestilence threatened and actually invaded a population committed to his care, or rather entirely57 given up to his authority.
But that which, leaving censure58, diminishes our wonder at his behaviour, which even creates another and greater feeling of wonder, is the behaviour of the people themselves; of those, I mean, who, unreached as yet by the contagion, had so much reason to fear it. On the arrival of the intelligence from the territories which were so grievously infected with it, territories which formed almost a semi-circular line round the city, in some places not more than twenty, or even eighteen, miles distant from it, who would not have thought that a general stir would have been created, that they would have been diligent59 in taking precautions, whether well or ill selected, or at least have felt a barren disquietude? Nevertheless, if in anything the records of the times agree, it is in attesting60 that there were none of these. The scarcity61 of the antecedent year, the violence of the soldiery, and their sufferings of mind, seemed to them more than enough to account for the mortality: and if any one had attempted, in the streets, shops, and houses, to throw out a hint of danger, and mention the plague, it would have been received with incredulous scoffs62, or angry contempt. The same incredulity, or, to speak more correctly, the same blindness and perversity63, prevailed in the senate, in the Council of the Decurioni, and in all the magistrates64.
I find that Cardinal65 Federigo, immediately on learning the first cases of a contagious66 sickness, enjoined67 his priests, in a pastoral letter, among other things, to impress upon the people the importance and obligation of making known every similar case, and delivering up any infected or suspected goods:6 and this, too, may be reckoned among his praiseworthy peculiarities68.
The Board of Health solicited69 precautions and co-operation: it was all but in vain. And in the Board itself their solicitude70 was far from equaling the urgency of the case; it was the two physicians, as Tadino frequently affirms, and as appears still better from the whole context of his narrative, who, persuaded and deeply sensible of the gravity and imminence71 of the danger, urged forward that body, which was then to urge forward others.
We have already seen how, on the first tidings of the plague, there had been indifference72 and remissness73 in acting12, and even in obtaining information: we now give another instance of dilatoriness74 not less portentous75, if indeed it were not compelled by obstacles interposed by the superior magistrates. That proclamation in the form of warrants, resolved upon on the 30th of October, was not completed till the 23rd of the following month, nor published till the 29th. The plague had already entered Milan.
Tadino and Ripamonti would record the name of the individual who first brought it thither76, together with other circumstances of the person and the fact: and, in truth, in observing the beginnings of a wide-spread destruction, in which the victims not only cannot be distinguished77 by name, but their numbers can scarcely be expressed with any degree of exactness, even by the thousand, one feels a certain kind of interest in ascertaining78 those first and few names which could be noted79 and preserved: it seems as if this sort of distinction, a precedence in extermination80, invests them, and all the other minuti?, which would otherwise be most indifferent, with something fatal and memorable.
But one and the other historian say that it was an Italian soldier in the Spanish service; but in nothing else do they agree, not even in the name. According to Tadino, it was a person of the name of Pietro Antonio Lovato, quartered in the territory of Lecco: according to Ripamonti, a certain Pier81 Paolo Locati, quartered at Chiavenna. They differ also as to the day of his entrance into Milan; the first placing it on the 22nd of October, the second, on the same day in the following month; yet it cannot be on either one or the other. Both the dates contradict others which are far better authenticated82, Yet Ripamonti, writing by order of the General Council of the Decurioni, ought to have had many means at his command of gaining the necessary information; and Tadino, in consideration of his office, might have been better informed than any one else on a subject of this nature. In short, comparing other dates, which, as we have said, appear to us more authentic83, it would seem that it was prior to the publication of the warrants; and if it were worth while, it might even be proved, or nearly so, that it must have been very early in that month: but the reader will, doubtless, excuse us the task.
However it may be, this soldier, unfortunate himself, and the bearer of misfortune to others, entered the city with a large bundle of clothes purchased or stolen from the German troops: he went to stay at the house of one of his relatives in the suburbs of the Porta Orientale, near to the Capuchin Convent. Scarcely had he arrived there, when he was taken ill; he was conveyed to the hospital; here, a spot, discovered under one of the armpits, excited some suspicion in the mind of the person who tended him, of what was in truth the fact; and on the fourth day he died.
The Board of Health immediately ordered his family to be kept separate, and confined within their own house; and his clothes, and the bed on which he had lain at the hospital, were burned. Two attendants, who had there nursed him, and a good friar, who had rendered him his assistance, were all three, within a few days, seized with the plague. The suspicions which had here been felt, from the beginning, of the nature of the disease, and the precautions taken in consequence, prevented the further spread of the contagion from this source.
But the soldier had left seed outside, which delayed not to spring up, and shoot forth84. The first person in whom it broke out was the master of the house where he had lodged85, one Carlo Colonna, a lute-player. All the inmates86 of the dwelling87 were then, by order of the Board, conveyed to the Lazzaretto; where the greater number took to their beds, and many shortly died of evident infection.
In the city, that which had been already disseminated there by intercourse88 with the above-mentioned family, and by clothes and furniture belonging to them preserved by relations, lodgers89, or servants, from the searches and flames prescribed by the Board, as well as that which was afresh introduced by defectiveness90 in the regulations, by negligence91 in executing them, and by dexterity92 in eluding93 them, continued lurking94 about, and slowly insinuating95 itself among the inhabitants, all the rest of the year, and in the earlier months of 1630, the year which followed. From time to time, now in this, now in that quarter, some one was seized with the contagion, some one was carried off with it: and the very infrequency of the cases contributed to lull96 all suspicions of pestilence, and confirmed the generality more and more in the senseless and murderous assurance that plague it was not, and never had been, for a moment. Many physicians, too, echoing the voice of the people, (was it, in this instance also, the voice of Heaven?) derided97 the ominous98 predictions and threatening warnings of the few; and always had at hand the names of common diseases to qualify every case of pestilence which they were summoned to cure, with what symptom or token soever it evinced itself.
The reports of these instances, when they reached the Board of Health at all, reached it, for the most part, tardily99 and uncertainly. Dread100 of sequestration and the Lazzaretto sharpened every one’s wits; they concealed101 the sick, they corrupted102 the grave-diggers and elders, and obtained false certificates, by means of bribes103, from subalterns of the Board itself, deputed by it to visit and inspect the dead bodies.
As, however, on every discovery they succeeded in making, the Board ordered the wearing apparel to be committed to the flames, put the houses under sequestration, and sent the inmates to the Lazzaretto, it is easy to imagine what must have been the anger and dissatisfaction of the generality ‘of the nobility, merchants, and lower orders,’7 persuaded, as they all were, that they were mere18 causeless vexations without any advantage. The principal odium fell upon the two doctors, our frequently mentioned Tadino and Senatore Settala, son of the senior physician, and reached such a height, that thenceforward they could not publicly appear without being assailed104 with opprobrious105 language, if not with stones. And, certainly, the situation in which these individuals were placed for several months, is remarkable106, and worthy of being recorded, seeing a horrible scourge107 advancing towards them, labouring, by every method, to repulse108 it, yet meeting with obstacles, not only in the arduousness110 of the task, but from every quarter, in the unwillingness112 of the people, and being made the general object of execration113, and regarded as the enemies of their country: ‘Pro patri? hostibus,’ says Ripamonti.8
Sharers, also, in the hatred114 were the other physicians, who, convinced like them of the reality of the contagion, suggested precautions, and sought to communicate to others their melancholy convictions. The most knowing taxed them with credulity and obstinacy115; while, with the many, it was evidently an imposture116, a planned combination, to make a profit by the public fears.
The aged2 physician, Lodovico Settala, who had almost attained117 his eightieth year, who had been Professor of Medicine in the University of Pavia, and afterwards of Moral Philosophy at Milan, the author of many works at that time in very high repute, eminent118 for the invitations he had received to occupy the chairs of other universities, Ingolstadt, Pisa, Bologna, and Padua, and for his refusal of all these honours, was certainly one of the most influential119 men of his time. To his reputation for learning was added that of his life; and to admiration120 of his character, a feeling of good-will for his great kindness in curing and benefiting the poor. Yet there is one circumstance, which, in our minds, disturbs and overclouds the sentiment of esteem121 inspired by these merits, but which at that time must have rendered it stronger and more general: the poor man participated in the commonest and most fatal prejudices of his contemporaries: he was in advance of them, but not distinguished from the multitude; a station which only invites trouble, and often causes the loss of an authority acquired by other means. Nevertheless, that which he enjoyed in so great a degree, was not only insufficient122 to overcome the general opinion on this subject of the pestilence, but it could not even protect him from the animosity and the insults of that part of the populace, which most readily steps from opinions to their exhibition by actual deeds.
One day, as he was going in a litter to visit his patients, crowds began to assemble round him, crying out that he was the head of those who were determined123, in spite of everything, to make out that there was a plague; that it was he who put the city in alarm, with his gloomy brow, and shaggy beard; and all to give employment to the doctors! The multitude and their fury went on increasing; so that the bearers, seeing their danger, took refuge with their master in the house of a friend, which fortunately happened to be at hand. All this occurred to him for having foreseen clearly, stated what was really the fact, and wished to save thousands of his fellow-creatures from the pestilence: when having, by his deplorable advice, co-operated in causing a poor unhappy wretch124 to be put to the torture, racked, and burnt as a witch, because one of her masters had suffered extraordinary pains in his stomach, and another, some time before, had been desperately125 enamoured of her,9 he had received from the popular voice additional reputation for wisdom, and, what is intolerable to think of, the additional title of the well-deserving.
Towards the latter end of March, however, sickness and deaths began rapidly to multiply, first in the suburbs of the Porta Orientale, and then in all the other quarters of the city, with the unusual accompaniments of spasms126, palpitation, lethargy, delirium127, and those fatal symptoms, livid spots and sores; and these deaths were, for the most part, rapid, violent, and not unfrequently sudden, without any previous tokens of illness. Those physicians who were opposed to the belief of contagion, unwilling111 now to admit what they had hitherto derided, yet obliged to give a generical name to the new malady128, which had become too common and too evident to go with-out one, adopted that of malignant129 or pestilential fevers; — a miserable130 expedient131, a mere play upon words, which was productive of much harm; because, while it appeared to acknowledge the truth, it only contributed to the disbelief of what it was most important to believe and discern, viz., that the infection was conveyed by means of the touch. The magistrates, like one awakening132 from a deep sleep, began to lend a little more ear to the appeals and proposals of the Board of Health, to support its proclamations, and second the sequestrations prescribed, and the quarantines enjoined by this tribunal. The Board was also constantly demanding money to provide for the daily expenses of the Lazzaretto, now augmented133 by so many additional services; and for this they applied135 to the Decurioni, while it was being decided (which was never done, I believe, except by practice) whether such expenses should be charged to the city, or to the royal exchequer136. The high chancellor137 also applied importunately138 to the Decurioni, by order, too, of the governor, who had again returned to lay siege to the unfortunate Casale; the senate likewise applied to them, imploring139 them to see to the best method of victualing the city, before they should be forbidden, in case of the unhappy dissemination140 of the contagion, to have any intercourse with other countries; and to find means of maintaining a large proportion of the population which was now deprived of employment. The Decurioni endeavoured to raise money by loans and taxes; and of what they thus accumulated they gave a little to the Board of Health, a little to the poor, purchased a little corn, and thus, in some degree, supplied the existing necessity. The severest sufferings had not yet arrived.
In the Lazzaretto, where the population, although decimated daily, continued daily on the increase, there was another arduous109 undertaking141, to insure attendance and subordination, to preserve the enjoined separations, to maintain, in short, or rather to establish, the government prescribed by the Board of Health: for, from the very first, everything had been in confusion, from the ungovernableness of many of the inmates, and the negligence or connivance142 of the officials. The Board and the Decurioni, not knowing which way to turn, bethought themselves of applying to the Capuchins, and besought143 the Father Commissary, as he was called, of the province, who occupied the place of the Father Provincial144, lately deceased, to give them a competent person to govern this desolate25 kingdom. The commissary proposed to them as their governor, one Father Felice Casati, a man of advanced age, who enjoyed great reputation for charity, activity, and gentleness of disposition145, combined with a strong mind — a character which, as the sequel will show, was well deserved; and as his coadjutor and assistant, one Father Michele Pozzobonelli, still a young man, but grave and stern in mind as in countenance146. Gladly enough were they accepted; and on the 30th of March they entered the Lazzaretto. The President of the Board of Health conducted them round, as it were, to put them in possession; and having assembled the servants and officials of every rank, proclaimed Father Felice, in their presence, governor of the place, with primary and unlimited147 authority. In proportion as the wretched multitude there assembled increased, other Capuchins resorted thither; and here were superintendents148, confessors, administrators149, nurses, cooks, overlookers of the wardrobes, washerwomen, in short, everything that was required. Father Felice, ever diligent, ever watchful150, went about day and night, through the porticoes151, chambers152, and open spaces, sometimes carrying a spear, sometimes armed only with hair-cloth; he animated153 and regulated every duty, pacified154 tumults155, settled disputes, threatened, punished, reproved, comforted, dried and shed tears. At the very outset he took the plague; recovered, and with fresh alacrity156 resumed his first duties. Most of his brethren here sacrificed their lives, and all joyfully157.
Such a dictatorship was certainly a strange expedient; strange as was the calamity, strange as were the times; and even did we know no more about it, this alone would suffice as an argument, as a specimen158, indeed, of a rude and ill-regulated state of society. But the spirit, the deeds, the self-sacrifice, of these friars, deserve no less than they should be mentioned with respect and tenderness, and with that species of gratitude53 which one feels, en masse as it were, for great services rendered by men to their fellows. To die in a good cause is a wise and beautiful action, at any time, under any state of things whatsoever159. ‘For had not yse Fathers repayred hither,’ says Tadino, ‘assuredly ye whole Citie would have been annihilated160; for it was a miraculous161 thing that yse Fathers effected so much for ye publick Benefit in so short a space of Time, and, receiving no Assistance, or at least, very little, from ye Citie, contrived162, by their Industrie and Prudence163, to maintain so many thousands of Poore, in y10 Lazzaretto.’10
Among the public, also, this obstinacy in denying the pestilence gave way naturally, and gradually disappeared, in proportion as the contagion extended itself, and extended itself, too, before their own eyes, by means of contact and intercourse; and still more when, after having been for some time confined to the lower orders, it began to take effect upon the higher. And among these, as he was then the most eminent, so by us now, the senior physician Settala, deserves express mention. People must at least have said: The poor old man was right! But who knows? He, with his wife, two sons, and seven persons in his service, all took the plague. One of these sons and himself recovered; the rest died. ‘These Cases,’ says Tadino, ‘occurring in the Citie in the first families, disposed the Nobilitie and common People to think; and the incredulous Physicians, and the ignorant and rash lower Orders, began to bite their Lips, grind their Teeth, and arch their Eyebrows164 in Amazement165.’11
But the revolutions, the reprisals166, the vengeance167, so to say, of convinced obstinacy, are sometimes such as to raise a wish that it had continued unshaken and unconquered, even to the last, against reason and evidence: and this was truly one of these occasions. They who had so resolutely168 and perseveringly169 impugned170 the existence of a germ of evil near them, or among them, which might propagate itself by natural means, and make much havoc171, unable now to deny its propagation, and unwilling to attribute it to those means (for this would have been to confess at once a great delusion172 and a great error), were so much the more inclined to find some other cause for it, and make good any that might happen to present itself. Unhappily, there was one in readiness in the ideas and traditions common at that time, not only here, but in every part of Europe, of magical arts, diabolical173 practices, people sworn to disseminate48 the plague by means of contagious poisons and witchcraft174. These and similar things had already been supposed and believed during many other plagues; and at Milan, especially, in that of half a century before. It may be added, that, even during the preceding year, a despatch34, signed by King Philip IV., had been forwarded to the governor, in which he was informed that four Frenchmen had escaped from Madrid, who were sought upon suspicion of spreading poisonous and pestilential ointments175; and requiring him to be on the watch, perchance they should arrive at Milan. The governor communicated the despatch to the Senate and the Board of Health; and thenceforward, it seems, they thought no more about it. When, however, the plague broke forth, and was recognized by all, the return of this intelligence to memory may have served to confirm and support the vague suspicion of an iniquitous177 fraud; it may even have been the first occasion of creating it.
But two actions, one of blind and undisciplined fear, the other of I know not what malicious178 mischief179, were what converted this vague suspicion of a possible attempt, into more than suspicion (and, with many, a certain conviction) of a real plot. Some persons who fancied they had seen people, on the evening of the 17th of May, in the cathedral, anointing a partition which was used to separate the spaces assigned to the two sexes, had this partition, and a number of benches enclosed within it, brought out during the night; although the President of the Board of Health, having repaired thither with four members of the committee, and having inspected the screen, the benches, and the stoups of holy water, and found nothing that could confirm the ignorant suspicion of a poisonous attempt, had declared, to humour other people’s fancies, and rather to exceed in caution, than from any conviction of necessity, that it would be sufficient to have the partition washed. This mass of piled-up furniture produced a strong impression of consternation180 among the multitude, to whom any object so readily became an argument. It was said, and generally believed, that all the benches, walls, and even the bell-ropes in the cathedral, had been rubbed over with unctuous181 matter. Nor was this affirmed only at the time: all the records of contemporaries (some of them written after a lapse182 of many years) which allude183 to this incident, speak of it with equal certainty of asseveration: and we should be obliged to conjecture184 its true history, did we not find it in a letter from the Board of Health to the governor, preserved in the archives of San Fedele, from which we have extracted it, and whence we have quoted the words we have written in italics.
Next morning, a new, stranger, and more significant spectacle, struck the eyes and minds of the citizens. In every part of the city they saw the doors and walls of the houses stained and daubed with long streaks185 of I know not what filthiness186, something yellow wish and whitish, spread over them as if with a sponge. Whether it were a base inclination187 to witness a more clamorous188 and more general consternation, or a still more wicked design to augment134 the public confusion, or whatever else it may have been, the fact is attested189 in such a manner, that it seems to us less rational to attribute it to a dream of the imagination, than to a wickedly malicious trick, not entirely new, indeed, to the wit of man — not, alas190, deficient191 in corresponding effects, in every place, so to say, and every age. Ripamonti, who frequently on this subject of the anointing, ridicules192, and still more frequently deplores193, the popular credulity, here affirms that he had seen this plastering, and then describes it.12 In the above-quoted letter, the gentlemen of the Board of Health relate the circumstance in the same terms; they speak of inspections194, of experiments made with this matter upon dogs, without any injurious effect; and add, that they believe such temerity195 proceeded rather from insolence196 than from any guilty design: an opinion which evinces that, up to this time, they retained sufficient tranquillity197 of mind not to see what really did not exist. Other contemporary records, not to reckon their testimony198 as to the truth of the fact, signify, at the same time, that it was at first the opinion of many, that this beplastering had been done in joke, in a mere frolic; none of them speak of any one who denied it; and had there been any, they certainly would have mentioned them, were it only to call them irrational199. I have deemed it not out of place to relate and put together these particulars, in part little known, in part entirely unknown, of a celebrated popular delirium; because in errors, and especially in the errors of a multitude, what seems to me most interesting and most useful to observe, is, the course they have taken, their appearances, and the ways by which they could enter men’s minds, and hold sway there.
The city, already tumultuously inclined, was now turned upside down: the owners of the houses, with lighted straw, burned the besmeared spots; and passers-by stopped, gazed, shuddered200, murmured. Strangers, suspected of this alone, and at that time easily recognized by their dress, were arrested by the people in the streets, and consigned202 to prison. Here interrogations and examinations were made of captured, captors, and witnesses; no one was found guilty: men’s minds were still capable of doubting, weighing, understanding. The Board of Health issued a proclamation, in which they promised reward and impunity203 to any one who would bring to light the author or authors of the deed. ‘In any wise, not thinking it expedient,’ say these gentlemen in the letter we have quoted, which bears date the 21st of May, but which was evidently written on the 19th, the day signified in the printed proclamation, ‘that this crime should by any means remain unpunished, speciallie in times so perilous204 and suspicious, we have, for the consolation205 and peace of the people, this daie published an edicte,’ &c. In the edict, however, there is no mention, at least no distinct one, of that rational and tranquillizing conjecture they had suggested to the governor: a reservation which indicates at once a fierce prejudice in the people, and in themselves a degree of obsequiousness206, so much the more blamable as the consequences might prove more pernicious.
While the Board was thus making inquiries, many of the public, as is usually the case, had already found the answer. Among those who believed this to be a poisonous ointment176, some were sure it was an act of revenge of Don Gonzalo Fernandez de Cordova, for the insults received at his departure; some, that it was an idea of Cardinal Richelieu’s to desolate Milan, and make himself master of it without trouble; others, again — it is not known with what motives207 — would have that the Count Collalto was the author of the plot, or Wallenstein, or this or that Milanese nobleman. There wanted not too, as we have said, those who saw nothing in this occurrence but a mischievous208 jest, and attributed it to students, to gentlemen, to officers who were weary of the siege of Casale. It did not appear, however, as had been dreaded209, that infection and universal slaughter210 immediately ensued: and this was probably the cause that this first fear began by degrees to subside211, and the matter was, or seemed to be, forgotten.
There was, after all, a certain number of persons not yet convinced that it was indeed the plague; and because, both in the Lazzaretto and in the city, some were restored to health, ‘it was affirmed,’ (the final arguments for an opinion contradicted by evidence are always curious enough), ‘it was affirmed by the common people, and even yet by many partial physicians, that it was not really the plague, or all would have died.’13 To remove every doubt, the Board of Health employed an expedient conformable to the necessity of the case, a means of speaking to the eye, such as the times may have required or suggested. On one of the festal days of Whitsuntide, the citizens were in the habit of flocking to the cemetery212 of San Gregorio, outside the Porta Orientale, to pray for the souls of those who had died in the former contagion, and whose bodies were there interred213; and borrowing from devotion an opportunity of amusement and sightseeing, every one went thither in his best and gayest clothing. One whole family, amongst others, had this day died of the plague. At the hour of the thickest concourse, in the midst of carriages, riders on horseback, and foot-passengers, the corpses of this family were, by order of the Board, drawn214 naked on a car to the above-named burying-ground; in order that the crowd might behold215 in them the manifest token, the revolting seal and symptom, of the pestilence. A cry of horror and consternation arose wherever the car was passing; a prolonged murmur201 was predominant where it had passed, another murmur preceded it. The real existence of the plague was more believed: besides, every day it continued to gain more belief by itself; and that very concourse would contribute not a little to propagate it.
First, then, it was not the plague, absolutely not — by no means: the very utterance216 of the term was prohibited. Then, it was pestilential fevers: the idea was indirectly217 admitted in an adjective. Then, it was not the true nor real plague; that is to say, it was the plague, but only in a certain sense; not positively218 and undoubtedly the plague, but something to which no other name could be affixed219. Lastly, it was the plague without doubt, without dispute: but even then another idea was appended to it, the idea of poison and witchcraft, which altered and confounded that conveyed in the word they could no longer repress.
There is no necessity, I imagine, to be well versed21 in the history of words and ideas, to perceive that many others have followed a similar course. Heaven be praised that there have not been many of such a nature, and of so vast importance, which contradict their evidence at such a price, and to which accessories of such a character may be annexed220! It is possible, however, both in great and trifling221 concerns, to avoid, in great measure, so lengthened222 and crooked223 a path, by following the method which has been so long laid down, of observing, listening, comparing, and thinking, before speaking.
But speaking — this one thing by itself — is so much easier than all the others put together, that even we, I say, we men in general, are somewhat to be pitied.
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1
ravaged
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| 毁坏( ravage的过去式和过去分词 )； 蹂躏； 劫掠； 抢劫 | |
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aged
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| adj.年老的，陈年的 | |
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calamity
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| n.灾害，祸患，不幸事件 | |
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narrative
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| n.叙述，故事；adj.叙事的，故事体的 | |
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celebrated
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| adj.有名的，声誉卓著的 | |
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considerably
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| adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上 | |
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copiousness
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| n.丰裕，旺盛 | |
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rectified
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| [医]矫正的，调整的 | |
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partially
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| adv.部分地，从某些方面讲 | |
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random
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| adj.随机的；任意的；n.偶然的(或随便的)行动 | |
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memoirs
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| n.回忆录；回忆录传( mem,自oir的名词复数) | |
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acting
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| n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的 | |
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mingled
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| 混合，混入( mingle的过去式和过去分词 )； 混进，与…交往[联系] | |
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14
scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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worthy
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| adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的 | |
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perusal
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| n.细读，熟读；目测 | |
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peculiar
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| adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的 | |
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mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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ascertain
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| vt.发现，确定，查明，弄清 | |
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succinct
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| adj.简明的，简洁的 | |
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versed
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| adj. 精通，熟练 | |
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corpses
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| n.死尸，尸体( corpse的名词复数 ) | |
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previously
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| adv.以前，先前（地） | |
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desolated
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| adj.荒凉的，荒废的 | |
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desolate
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| adj.荒凉的，荒芜的；孤独的，凄凉的；v.使荒芜，使孤寂 | |
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specially
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| adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地 | |
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memorable
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| adj.值得回忆的，难忘的，特别的，显著的 | |
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onward
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| adj.向前的，前进的；adv.向前，前进，在先 | |
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emblematical
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| adj.标志的，象征的，典型的 | |
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intrepid
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| adj.无畏的，刚毅的 | |
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contagion
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| n.(通过接触的疾病)传染；蔓延 | |
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undoubtedly
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| adv.确实地，无疑地 | |
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decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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despatch
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| n./v.(dispatch)派遣；发送；n.急件；新闻报道 | |
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commissioner
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| n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员 | |
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pestilence
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| n.瘟疫 | |
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marshes
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| n.沼泽，湿地( marsh的名词复数 ) | |
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perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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auditor
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| n.审计员，旁听着 | |
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barricaded
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| 设路障于，以障碍物阻塞( barricade的过去式和过去分词 )； 设路障[防御工事]保卫或固守 | |
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41
deserted
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| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
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savages
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| 未开化的人，野蛮人( savage的名词复数 ) | |
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rue
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| n.懊悔，芸香，后悔；v.后悔，悲伤，懊悔 | |
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inquiries
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| n.调查( inquiry的名词复数 )；疑问；探究；打听 | |
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45
disastrous
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| adj.灾难性的，造成灾害的；极坏的，很糟的 | |
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46
commissioners
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| n.专员( commissioner的名词复数 )；长官；委员；政府部门的长官 | |
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47
melancholy
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| n.忧郁，愁思；adj.令人感伤（沮丧）的，忧郁的 | |
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48
disseminate
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| v.散布；传播 | |
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49
disseminated
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| 散布，传播( disseminate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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50
ransacked
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| v.彻底搜查( ransack的过去式和过去分词 )；抢劫，掠夺 | |
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51
affronts
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| n.（当众）侮辱，（故意）冒犯( affront的名词复数 )v.勇敢地面对( affront的第三人称单数 )；相遇 | |
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52
ingratitude
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| n.忘恩负义 | |
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53
gratitude
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| adj.感激，感谢 | |
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54
extolled
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| v.赞颂，赞扬，赞美( extol的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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55
foresight
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| n.先见之明，深谋远虑 | |
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56
perseverance
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| n.坚持不懈，不屈不挠 | |
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57
entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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58
censure
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| v./n.责备；非难；责难 | |
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59
diligent
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| adj.勤勉的，勤奋的 | |
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60
attesting
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| v.证明( attest的现在分词 )；证实；声称…属实；使宣誓 | |
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61
scarcity
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| n.缺乏，不足，萧条 | |
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62
scoffs
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| 嘲笑，嘲弄( scoff的第三人称单数 ) | |
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63
perversity
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| n.任性；刚愎自用 | |
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64
magistrates
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| 地方法官，治安官( magistrate的名词复数 ) | |
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cardinal
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| n.(天主教的)红衣主教；adj.首要的，基本的 | |
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66
contagious
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| adj.传染性的，有感染力的 | |
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67
enjoined
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| v.命令( enjoin的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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peculiarities
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| n. 特质, 特性, 怪癖, 古怪 | |
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69
solicited
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| v.恳求( solicit的过去式和过去分词 )；（指娼妇）拉客；索求；征求 | |
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70
solicitude
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| n.焦虑 | |
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71
imminence
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| n.急迫，危急 | |
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72
indifference
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| n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎 | |
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73
remissness
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| n.玩忽职守；马虎；怠慢；不小心 | |
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74
dilatoriness
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| n.迟缓，拖延 | |
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portentous
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| adj.不祥的，可怕的，装腔作势的 | |
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76
thither
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| adv.向那里；adj.在那边的，对岸的 | |
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distinguished
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| adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的 | |
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ascertaining
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| v.弄清，确定，查明( ascertain的现在分词 ) | |
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noted
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| adj.著名的，知名的 | |
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80
extermination
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| n.消灭，根绝 | |
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81
pier
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| n.码头；桥墩，桥柱；[建]窗间壁，支柱 | |
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82
authenticated
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| v.证明是真实的、可靠的或有效的( authenticate的过去式和过去分词 )；鉴定，使生效 | |
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83
authentic
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| a.真的，真正的；可靠的，可信的，有根据的 | |
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84
forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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85
lodged
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| v.存放( lodge的过去式和过去分词 )；暂住；埋入；（权利、权威等）归属 | |
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86
inmates
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| n.囚犯( inmate的名词复数 ) | |
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87
dwelling
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| n.住宅，住所，寓所 | |
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88
intercourse
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| n.性交；交流，交往，交际 | |
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lodgers
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| n.房客，租住者( lodger的名词复数 ) | |
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90
defectiveness
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| n.有缺陷，缺乏 | |
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91
negligence
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| n.疏忽，玩忽，粗心大意 | |
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92
dexterity
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| n.(手的)灵巧，灵活 | |
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93
eluding
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| v.（尤指机敏地）避开( elude的现在分词 )；逃避；躲避；使达不到 | |
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94
lurking
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| 潜在 | |
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95
insinuating
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| adj.曲意巴结的，暗示的v.暗示( insinuate的现在分词 )；巧妙或迂回地潜入；（使）缓慢进入；慢慢伸入 | |
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96
lull
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| v.使安静，使入睡，缓和，哄骗；n.暂停，间歇 | |
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97
derided
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| v.取笑，嘲笑( deride的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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98
ominous
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| adj.不祥的，不吉的，预兆的，预示的 | |
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tardily
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| adv.缓慢 | |
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100
dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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101
concealed
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| a.隐藏的，隐蔽的 | |
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102
corrupted
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| （使）败坏( corrupt的过去式和过去分词 )； （使）腐化； 引起（计算机文件等的）错误； 破坏 | |
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103
bribes
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| n.贿赂( bribe的名词复数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂v.贿赂( bribe的第三人称单数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂 | |
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104
assailed
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| v.攻击( assail的过去式和过去分词 )；困扰；质问；毅然应对 | |
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105
opprobrious
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| adj.可耻的，辱骂的 | |
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106
remarkable
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| adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的 | |
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107
scourge
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| n.灾难，祸害；v.蹂躏 | |
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108
repulse
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| n.击退，拒绝；vt.逐退，击退，拒绝 | |
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109
arduous
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| adj.艰苦的，费力的，陡峭的 | |
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110
arduousness
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| 艰难，艰苦，奋斗 | |
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111
unwilling
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| adj.不情愿的 | |
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112
unwillingness
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| n. 不愿意，不情愿 | |
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113
execration
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| n.诅咒，念咒，憎恶 | |
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114
hatred
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| n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨 | |
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115
obstinacy
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| n.顽固；（病痛等）难治 | |
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116
imposture
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| n.冒名顶替，欺骗 | |
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117
attained
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| （通常经过努力）实现( attain的过去式和过去分词 )； 达到； 获得； 达到（某年龄、水平、状况） | |
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118
eminent
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| adj.显赫的，杰出的，有名的，优良的 | |
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119
influential
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| adj.有影响的，有权势的 | |
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120
admiration
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| n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕 | |
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121
esteem
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| n.尊敬，尊重；vt.尊重，敬重；把…看作 | |
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122
insufficient
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| adj.(for，of)不足的，不够的 | |
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123
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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124
wretch
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| n.可怜的人，不幸的人；卑鄙的人 | |
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125
desperately
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| adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地 | |
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126
spasms
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| n.痉挛( spasm的名词复数 )；抽搐；（能量、行为等的）突发；发作 | |
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127
delirium
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| n. 神智昏迷,说胡话;极度兴奋 | |
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128
malady
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| n.病，疾病(通常做比喻) | |
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129
malignant
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| adj.恶性的，致命的；恶意的，恶毒的 | |
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130
miserable
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| adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的 | |
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131
expedient
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| adj.有用的，有利的；n.紧急的办法，权宜之计 | |
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132
awakening
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| n.觉醒，醒悟 adj.觉醒中的；唤醒的 | |
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133
Augmented
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| adj.增音的 动词augment的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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134
augment
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| vt.(使)增大，增加，增长，扩张 | |
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135
applied
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| adj.应用的；v.应用，适用 | |
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136
exchequer
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| n.财政部；国库 | |
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137
chancellor
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| n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长 | |
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138
importunately
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139
imploring
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| 恳求的，哀求的 | |
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140
dissemination
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| 传播,宣传,传染(病毒) | |
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141
undertaking
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| n.保证，许诺，事业 | |
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142
connivance
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| n.纵容；默许 | |
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143
besought
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| v.恳求，乞求（某事物）( beseech的过去式和过去分词 )；(beseech的过去式与过去分词) | |
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144
provincial
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| adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人 | |
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145
disposition
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| n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署 | |
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146
countenance
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| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
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147
unlimited
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| adj.无限的，不受控制的，无条件的 | |
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148
superintendents
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| 警长( superintendent的名词复数 )； （大楼的）管理人； 监管人； （美国）警察局长 | |
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149
administrators
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| n.管理者( administrator的名词复数 )；有管理（或行政）才能的人；（由遗嘱检验法庭指定的）遗产管理人；奉派暂管主教教区的牧师 | |
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150
watchful
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| adj.注意的，警惕的 | |
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151
porticoes
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| n.柱廊，（有圆柱的）门廊( portico的名词复数 ) | |
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152
chambers
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| n.房间( chamber的名词复数 )；（议会的）议院；卧室；会议厅 | |
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153
animated
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| adj.生气勃勃的，活跃的，愉快的 | |
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154
pacified
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| 使（某人）安静( pacify的过去式和过去分词 )； 息怒； 抚慰； 在（有战争的地区、国家等）实现和平 | |
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155
tumults
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| 吵闹( tumult的名词复数 )； 喧哗； 激动的吵闹声； 心烦意乱 | |
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156
alacrity
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| n.敏捷，轻快，乐意 | |
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157
joyfully
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| adv. 喜悦地, 高兴地 | |
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158
specimen
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| n.样本，标本 | |
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159
whatsoever
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| adv.（用于否定句中以加强语气）任何；pron.无论什么 | |
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160
annihilated
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| v.（彻底）消灭( annihilate的过去式和过去分词 )；使无效；废止；彻底击溃 | |
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161
miraculous
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| adj.像奇迹一样的，不可思议的 | |
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162
contrived
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| adj.不自然的，做作的；虚构的 | |
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163
prudence
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| n.谨慎，精明，节俭 | |
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164
eyebrows
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| 眉毛( eyebrow的名词复数 ) | |
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165
amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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166
reprisals
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| n.报复（行为）( reprisal的名词复数 ) | |
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167
vengeance
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| n.报复，报仇，复仇 | |
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168
resolutely
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| adj.坚决地，果断地 | |
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169
perseveringly
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| 坚定地 | |
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170
impugned
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| v.非难，指谪( impugn的过去式和过去分词 )；对…有怀疑 | |
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171
havoc
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| n.大破坏，浩劫，大混乱，大杂乱 | |
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172
delusion
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| n.谬见，欺骗，幻觉，迷惑 | |
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173
diabolical
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| adj.恶魔似的，凶暴的 | |
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174
witchcraft
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| n.魔法，巫术 | |
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175
ointments
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| n.软膏( ointment的名词复数 )；扫兴的人；煞风景的事物；药膏 | |
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176
ointment
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| n.药膏，油膏，软膏 | |
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177
iniquitous
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| adj.不公正的；邪恶的；高得出奇的 | |
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178
malicious
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| adj.有恶意的，心怀恶意的 | |
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179
mischief
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| n.损害，伤害，危害；恶作剧，捣蛋，胡闹 | |
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180
consternation
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| n.大为吃惊，惊骇 | |
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181
unctuous
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| adj.油腔滑调的，大胆的 | |
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182
lapse
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| n.过失，流逝，失效，抛弃信仰，间隔；vi.堕落，停止，失效，流逝；vt.使失效 | |
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183
allude
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| v.提及，暗指 | |
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184
conjecture
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| n./v.推测，猜测 | |
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185
streaks
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| n.（与周围有所不同的）条纹( streak的名词复数 )；（通常指不好的）特征（倾向）；（不断经历成功或失败的）一段时期v.快速移动( streak的第三人称单数 )；使布满条纹 | |
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186
filthiness
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187
inclination
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| n.倾斜；点头；弯腰；斜坡；倾度；倾向；爱好 | |
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188
clamorous
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| adj.吵闹的，喧哗的 | |
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189
attested
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| adj.经检验证明无病的，经检验证明无菌的v.证明( attest的过去式和过去分词 )；证实；声称…属实；使宣誓 | |
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190
alas
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| int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等) | |
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191
deficient
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| adj.不足的，不充份的，有缺陷的 | |
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192
ridicules
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| n.嘲笑( ridicule的名词复数 )；奚落；嘲弄；戏弄v.嘲笑，嘲弄，奚落( ridicule的第三人称单数 ) | |
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193
deplores
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| v.悲叹，痛惜，强烈反对( deplore的第三人称单数 ) | |
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194
inspections
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| n.检查( inspection的名词复数 )；检验；视察；检阅 | |
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195
temerity
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| n.鲁莽，冒失 | |
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196
insolence
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| n.傲慢；无礼；厚颜；傲慢的态度 | |
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197
tranquillity
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| n. 平静, 安静 | |
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198
testimony
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| n.证词；见证，证明 | |
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199
irrational
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| adj.无理性的，失去理性的 | |
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200
shuddered
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| v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 )；发抖；（机器、车辆等）突然震动；颤动 | |
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201
murmur
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| n.低语，低声的怨言；v.低语，低声而言 | |
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202
consigned
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| v.把…置于（令人不快的境地）( consign的过去式和过去分词 )；把…托付给；把…托人代售；丟弃 | |
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203
impunity
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| n.(惩罚、损失、伤害等的)免除 | |
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204
perilous
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| adj.危险的，冒险的 | |
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205
consolation
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| n.安慰，慰问 | |
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206
obsequiousness
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| 媚骨 | |
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207
motives
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| n.动机，目的( motive的名词复数 ) | |
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208
mischievous
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| adj.调皮的，恶作剧的，有害的，伤人的 | |
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209
dreaded
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| adj.令人畏惧的；害怕的v.害怕，恐惧，担心( dread的过去式和过去分词) | |
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210
slaughter
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| n.屠杀，屠宰；vt.屠杀，宰杀 | |
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211
subside
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| vi.平静，平息；下沉，塌陷，沉降 | |
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212
cemetery
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| n.坟墓，墓地，坟场 | |
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213
interred
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| v.埋，葬( inter的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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214
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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215
behold
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| v.看，注视，看到 | |
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216
utterance
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| n.用言语表达，话语，言语 | |
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217
indirectly
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| adv.间接地，不直接了当地 | |
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218
positively
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| adv.明确地，断然，坚决地；实在，确实 | |
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219
affixed
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| adj.[医]附着的，附着的v.附加( affix的过去式和过去分词 )；粘贴；加以；盖（印章） | |
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220
annexed
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| [法] 附加的，附属的 | |
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221
trifling
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| adj.微不足道的；没什么价值的 | |
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222
lengthened
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| （时间或空间）延长，伸长( lengthen的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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223
crooked
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| adj.弯曲的；不诚实的，狡猾的，不正当的 | |
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