Greene's medical examination for life insurance and its associated clinical methods : with chapters on the insurance of substandard lives and accident insurance.

  • Greene, Charles Lyman, 1862-1929.
Date:
1905
Catalogue details

Licence: In copyright

Credit: Greene's medical examination for life insurance and its associated clinical methods : with chapters on the insurance of substandard lives and accident insurance. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    Ninet eenth century. Cleanliness becomes “ the mode.” Cess-pools un- der Windsor Castle. “ Merrie Eng- land ” a mis- nomer. Evelyn’s diary. eign countries or the camps. What wonder that life was cheap and unstable and death ever abroad in the land! Even the companies organized in the eighteenth century had to deal with the greater part of such unfavorable conditions, for, strange to say, nearly one-quarter of the nineteenth century had slipped past before these matters underwent a radical change. Early Nineteenth Century Sanitation.—In an interesting and recent work* it is written that in the earlier years of this century “the diminishing of the window tax made light and ven- tilation possible. Personal cleanliness became fashionable, and the means of attaining it were cultivated.” After the death of the Prince Consort 48 cess-pools “full of putrid refuse” were removed from the wards of Windsor Castle. The whole art or science of domestic sanitation, rudimentary enough in its beginnings, belongs to this century. Such being the condition of the better class in the early part of the nineteenth century, it is not difficult to understand how deplorable must have been the environment of those living in the earlier days. The Ravages of the Black Death.—A writer says of life in the Elizabethan era: “The most dreadful and destructive epidemics, the brood of this insanitation, devastated the land and swept unchecked across continents and over seas.” In the “Merrie England” of romance and history ague was endemic and cholera a frequent visitor, while again and again the “plague” repeated its unwelcome visitations. The Great Plague.—None read unmoved the horrible tale of Defoe, so true to essential facts as to deceive his contempor- aries and lead them to believe it a veritable account of the “Great Plague.” The actual chronicles are quite as ghastly. That gallant gentleman, John Evelyn, writing under date of July 16, 1665, says: “There died of the plague in London this week, 1100, and in the week following above 2000.” On August 15th appears the terrible statement: “There perished this week 5000.” Two weeks later he reports it increasing, and says that he has sent away his family, being himself resolved to stay and watch over his charge, “Trusting in the providence and goodnesse of * “Collections and Recollections,” p. 71, Harper Bros., N- Y., 1899.