Page:A Journal of the Plague Year (1722).djvu/202

 publick: But when the Examiner order’d the Conſtable to ſhut up the Houſes, there was no Body left in them but three People, two in one Houſe, and one in the other juſt dying, and a Nurſe in each Houſe, who acknowledg’d that they had buried five before, that the Houſes had been infected nine or ten Days, and that for all the reſt of the two Families, which were many, they were gone, ſome ſick, ſome well, or whether ſick or well could not be known.

In like manner, at another Houſe in the ſame Lane, a Man having his Family infected, but very unwilling to be ſhut up, when he could conceal it no longer, ſhut up himſelf; that is to ſay, he ſet the great red Croſs upon his Door with the words Examiner, who ſuppos’d it had been done by the Conſtable, by Order of the other Examiner, for there were two Examiners to every Diſtrict or Precinct; by this means he had free egreſs and regreſs into his Houſe again, and out of it, as he pleas’d notwithſtanding it was infected; till at length his Stratagem was found out, and then he, with the ſound part of his Servants and Family, made off and eſcaped; ſo they were not
 * and ſo deluded the

Theſe things made it very hard, if not impoſſible, as I have ſaid, to prevent the ſpreading of an Infection by the ſhutting up of Houſes, unleſs the People would think the ſhutting up of their Houſes no Grievance, and be ſo willing to have it done, as that they wou’d give Notice duly and faithfully to the Magiſtrates of their being infected, as ſoon as it was known by themſelves: But as that can not be expected from them, and the Examiners can not be ſuppoſed, as above, to go into their Houſes to viſit and ſearch, all the good of ſhutting up Houſes, will be defeated, and few Houſes will be ſhut up in time, except thoſe of the Poor, who can not conceal it, and of ſome People who will be diſcover’d by