Page:Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile - In the Years 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772, and 1773 volume 3.djvu/744

 7 i8 TRAVELS TO DISCOVER

Saint John's day; every perfon, though fhut up from fociety for months before, buys, fells, and communicates with his neighbour without any fort of apprehenfion ; and it was ne- ver known, as far as I could learn upon fair inquiry, that one fell fick of the plague after this anniverfary : it will be obferved I don't fay died; there are, I know, examples of that, though I believe but few; the plague is not always a difeafe that fuddenly terminates, it often takes a confider- able time to come to a head, appearing only by fymptoms ; fo that people taken ill, under the moft putrid influence of the air, linger on, ilruggling .with the difeafe which has already got fuch hold that they cannot recover ; but what I fay, and mean is, that no perfon is taken ill of the plague fo as to die after the dew has fallen in June ; and no fymp- toms of the plague are ever commonly feen in Egypt but in thofe fpring months already mentioned, the greater part of which are totally deftitute of moiiture.

I think the inflance I am going to give, which is univer- fally known, and cannot be denied, brings this fo home that no doubt can remain of the origin of this dew, and its powerful effects upon the plague.

The Turks and Moors are known to be predeflinarians ; they believe the hour of man's death is fo immutably fixed that nothing can either advance or defer it an inftant. Se- cure in this principle, they expofe in the market-place, im- mediately after Saint John's day, the clothes of the many thoufands that have died during the late continuance of the plague, all which imbibe the moid air of the evening and the morning, are handled, bought, put on, and worn without any apprehenfion of danger; and though thefe i coufiA