Title: An authentick account of the measures and precautions used at Venice
Author: Anonymous
Language: English
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MEASURES AND PRECAUTIONS USED AT VENICE ***



                              AN AUTHENTICK
                                 ACCOUNT
                                 OF THE
                        Measures and Precautions
                                 USED AT
                                _VENICE_,
                                 BY THE
                   MAGISTRATE of the Office of HEALTH,
                                 FOR THE
                   PRESERVATION of the PUBLICK HEALTH.

                                _LONDON_:
             Printed by EDWARD OWEN in _Warwick-Lane_. 1752.



[Illustration]



AN AUTHENTICK ACCOUNT OF

The MEASURES and PRECAUTIONS used at _VENICE_, by the MAGISTRATE of the
Office of HEALTH, for the PRESERVATION of the PUBLICK HEALTH.


It is now the Third Century since the following Regulation took its Rise.

The Office of Health is furnished with such ample Power and Authority,
as makes it at once useful and respectable; it is administered by the
Subjects of the Republick most eminent for their Prudence, Dignity and
Talents; it is furnished with Abundance of Officers, a few of whom are
employed in the Distribution of Orders, and the rest in their Execution.
In describing occasionally these different Branches, much Light will be
let in upon the Subject.

Experience has shewn, that in the _Ottoman_ Dominions the Plague is
never utterly extinct: Hence it is an immutable Law with the Magistrate
of the Office of Health, to consider the whole Extent of the _Ottoman_
Dominions, and every State dependent on it, as always to be suspected to
be in an infected Condition, to such a Degree, as not to receive, in any
Part of the Dominions of the Republick, either confining to or commercing
with them, any Persons, Merchandizes, Animals, or any other Thing coming
from thence, without the necessary Inspection of the Office of Health,
and the previous Purifications.

To explain myself, I will suppose that a suspected Ship, coming from some
Scale of the _Levant_, presents itself at the Mouth of these Ports, and,
by describing the Conduct that is observed towards it, I shall shew the
Rules that are practised with regard to every Vessel, coming from any
Part of the World, that is either infected, or suspected to be so.

No Vessel can enter these Ports, unless it touches at _Istria_, and takes
a Pilot on Board, or unless, on approaching to the Ports, it wait for the
Towers of the Admiral to tow it up. These Officers do not immediately
depend upon the Magistrate, but are obliged, however, not to neglect any
of his Rules, nor to mix with any Vessel, even free or cleared, unless
by the Magistrate’s Leave; to make use of tarred Cables, or Cables of
[Transcriber’s Note: an intentional blank space was left here in the
original] in the towing Vessels in, in order to avoid all Communication,
and to direct the Captain of every suspected Vessel to hoist up on the
Mizen Mast a particular Signal; so that, by Means of the Spies, who are
continually on the High Tower of St. _Mark_ to discover any Vessels that
approach, such Vessel is immediately known to be a Vessel subject to
perform Quarantine.

As soon as the Vessel is discovered, the Magistrate has Notice, and all
the Officers belonging to him; the Chief of whom instantly dispatches the
_Guardian_ (whose Turn it is) to meet it and go on Board, and guard it
during the Term of Quarantine.

The Magistrate has Sixty of these Guardians in his Service, whose Duty it
is, by Turns, either to go a-board any Ship, or to the _Lazarettos_, to
superintend the Purification of Merchandizes, or the proper Quarantine
of Persons. Their Duty, in general, is to see that all the Rules are
observed concerning the Precautions and Purifications: Their Office is
dangerous and delicate to the last Degree; they have a particular daily
Appointment, which they have also from those concerned in the Ship or
Cargo, besides their daily Provisions; and they answer with their Life
any Contravention to the Rules that they should suffer to take Place, or
dare to have any Hand in.

The Guardian then being dispatched to meet the Ship, he either meets her
and goes a-board her out at Sea with the Admiral’s own Boat, when there
is any Doubt that it may be come from infected Parts; or he waits for
her in those Waters where the Admiral, or his Towers, bring her to cast
Anchor; the Places being different according to the different Size of
the Ships, or the different Inspections under which they fall; as, for
Vessels that are very heavy, and sink deep in the Water, deeper Canals
are assigned; for those coming from Places which, their Passes shew, were
infected, or on Board of which there are any Appearances of the Plague,
Canals are assigned more remote, even twelve or fourteen Miles distant
from the City; and in that Case they are guarded by the publick Galleys,
or Barks armed with Militia in Proportion to the Number of Vessels at one
Time in that Quarantine, or according to the Quality of the Suspicions
had of them, in order to prevent any Person from entring into these
Canals, or any Thing being brought clandestinely out of them.

As soon as the Vessel is at Anchor, and has passed under the Observation
of the Guardian, an Officer of the Magistrate (called _Fante_) is
instantly sent on Board to bring the Captain, under the Precautions of
the Office of Health, to the Abode of the Magistrate on the Shore to be
examined.

The Magistrate has Seven of these Officers called _Fanti_; the Head of
them is the _Massaro_; and his Duty is to collect all the Letters coming
from suspected Countries, and to open and fumigate them; for at the Time
the Captain of the suspected Vessel is brought to be examined, he must
deliver all his Letters, and not only all such as were entrusted to
him, but also all others in Possession of any Passengers or others on
Board. And in this Point he is obliged to the strictest Vigilance, since,
besides the particular Care required that Paper be not suffered to pass
without undergoing the necessary Fumigations, there is Danger that in the
Letters be contained Samples for Cloaths, or other Things susceptible,
and consequently subject to Purification.

The Duty of these _Fanti_, is to execute all the Orders issued by the
Magistrate, as none else can execute them, and to superintend every Thing
respecting the Duties and Precautions of the Office of Health, with this
Difference between them and the Guardians, that the latter are always
looked upon to be in the same Condition as the Ship, Passengers, or
Merchandizes which they guard; whereas the _Fanti_ keep themselves always
clear, and serve for an Escort upon all Occasions; without being in the
least contaminated.

As soon as ever the _Fante_ is arrived along-Side the suspected Vessel in
his own Boat, the Captain must get into his own Boat with his Sailors,
and keep behind the _Fante_’s, which precedes always at a due Distance,
in order to oblige to sheer off all Vessels they may meet by the Way, and
to take Care that the Ship-Boat itself do not approach any Vessel, or
put to Land at any Island in their Way to the Parts of the Magistrate’s
Abode on the Shore, which are so barricadoed, that, though Discourse
may be held at a Distance between the New-Comers, and those at Land, no
Communication of any Kind can happen; and as soon as the Captain is on
Shore, he is introduced, through a guarded Street, to the Spot destined
for him to be examined at, which is an Inclosure shut up on all Sides;
where, by the Clerk of the Magistrate, (an Officer particularly appointed
for that Business) he is, from a Window, examined, at a due Distance.

The Inquiry turns particularly upon, Whence the Vessel comes, and in
what Length of Time; If from a healthy or suspected Part; What Kind of a
Voyage she has had; What Places touched at; and Whether in them he had
been admitted to Communication or not; If he met any Ships at Sea, and
from whence, and Whether he had any Communication with them. The Number
is demanded of his Crew and Passengers; If they have been always well
in the Voyage, or if any of them are missing; What, and how much, is
the Cargo he brings; If all from one Place, or from many; and lastly,
Whether, in what regards the Health, he had observed in any Parts any
_Risings_; and intimating to him, that he must exhibit all the Papers and
Letters he has.

The first of these to be examined on the Spot, are the Patents or
Bills of Health, in order to compare with them the Facts delivered in
the Examination, and particularly the Number of Persons who are on
Board the Vessel. This is looked upon to be so essentially requisite,
and of such Consequence, that if any Vessel should arrive without it,
though it should be come from a Place absolutely free, and even in the
Neighbourhood, it would either not be admitted at all, or not have any
Communication granted it, unless after a most rigorous Quarantine.

If by chance the Patents should be defective, and should denote a greater
or less Number of Persons than are taken down in the Examination, the
Captain must prove, in the clearest Manner, either the Flight or Death,
and particularly the Condition of that Person who is wanting; and in the
same Manner he is to produce particular Patents; and with Evidence upon
Examination, and by other Proofs of the same Nature, he is to make it
appear from what Place he took up the Person who happens to be one more
than the Number set forth in the said Patents; since, in the first Case,
there may remain a Doubt, that the Deficiency may have been owing to
Death by Infection, or to Flight to Parts not named; and in the second
Case, it is to be considered, that it is possible, that the Person,
exceeding the Number mentioned in the Patent, may have been received from
some suspected Vessel, or from some infected Place.

Besides these Patents, the Captain is also to give a distinct Account of
all his Cargo, both of its Quality and Quantity; which is called giving
a _Manifest_; from whence is discovered, whether any of the Merchandizes
may have been brought from suspected Countries; in which Case the
Captain must prove, that in that Place they had undergone the necessary
Purification. By Means of the Manifest, Lights also are gathered as to
what Kind of Quarantine may be proper for infectious Ladings of different
Kinds, and Orders given for taking out such as are of a Nature not to
give Suspicion.

’Tis here proper to observe, that this Order for Examining and Comparing
is executed on every Vessel arriving in these Parts, they being all
treated upon the Foot of Suspicion, (tho’ they be not so) until, that by
the Concert produced by the aforesaid Enquiries, a Certainty is obtained
of their Condition: Nor can they before that have any Communication at
all; and as the very Essence of this momentous Concern depends upon
Integrity and Fidelity, every Captain is guilty of High Treason for any
Prevarication in his Depositions upon Examination, or any Falsification
of his fiduciary Papers; this Point being watched with the utmost
Attention and Care.

These Researches being over, if the Vessel really comes from a Place that
is free, it is declared free; if from a suspected one, the Captain is
reconducted on Board his Ship with the same Precautions used on his being
brought ashore.

And as the Guardian is already on Board it, he begins now to exercise
his Functions; _1st_, He forms a distinct List of the Number, Names and
Sirnames of all the Persons on Board; _2dly_, Another List of all the
Things belonging to each Person, distinguishing those which are simply
for their Use from such as may be traded with; it being lawful to keep
the first in the Ship, when any Person performs his Quarantine aboard
with the Crew; but they must be exposed to Air, and every Day handled;
the same not being allowed to Merchandize, which must all be purified at
the _Lazarettos_. Both these Rolls or Lists are sent to the Magistrate;
and, the Captain’s Assertions on his Examination being entirely proved,
Order is given for unlading the Ship, and for transporting the Goods to
the _Lazaretto_; it never being allowed, either that any Goods remain in
the Ship for Purification, or that the Time of Quarantine for the Ship
should begin till the Unlading is finished.

However, the Magistrate being desirous not to embarrass Commerce more
than the Publick Safety requires; those Goods are distinguished, which
are susceptible of Infection, from those which are not: Some of them
are allowed to be taken from on Board the Ship without passing through
any Purifications, with the Assistance however of the _Fante_ without,
as well as of the Guardian within; lest, under Pretence of Things being
uninfected, any Thing should be delivered out that requires Purification:
Some other Things may also be taken away, but not from the Ship, but
from the _Lazarettos_; the first Indulgence is granted to those Things
which are not liable to Infection; the second, to others that being free
themselves are wrapp’d in Covers that are not so; as these Covers must be
carefully taken off by Persons suspected, and are to be on the Footing of
other suspected Things.

Every Thing else, which may give Suspicion, must be purified according to
the Rules of the _Lazarettos_.

Precautions are used in changing Things from one Vessel to another,
and in transporting them; for which Reason, this being only to be done
by Boats destined for that Use, called _Peate_, they cannot go to the
Ship’s Side without Leave, and that is not given till the Information
aforesaid is obtained; and when they are come to the Side of the Ship, no
one meddles with the Cargo but the Ship’s Crew, the _Fante_ being always
present out of the Ship, and the Guardian within, who takes an exact
Note of all that is laden on them, to be transmitted to the Magistrate.
In their Way to the _Lazaretto_, the Fante escorts them with the due
Cautions, accompanied by the Clerk of the Ship, or some other of the
Persons concerned, and consigns them to the Prior of the _Lazaretto_, who
makes the _Bastazi_ answerable for them, who are appointed to have the
Handling of them, and the Guardian who is to superintend it, and sends
the Magistrate a distinct List of every Thing which is received, for a
fuller Check.

_Bastazi_ is the Name given to those, who open the Bales of Merchandize,
and handle them, and keep amongst them all the Time prescribed for
Quarantine. They are chosen by the Merchants concerned, that they may
be secure of their Regularity. But the Magistrate requires they should
be knowing Persons, and there is a Guardian appointed them, to take Care
that the Purifications are exact, and that Interest does not occasion any
Breach of the Rules. They have their Necessaries and daily Pay from the
Merchants, and they are the Persons who are most diligently examined;
for, from the Effects which are discovered on them, may be known what
there is to fear: ’Tis not however in the Breast of the Merchants to
appoint a greater or less Number of these; but the Laws have provided,
that each _Bastazo_ is to serve for so many Bales as he can manage
carefully in a Day.

The Transporting Goods to the _Lazaretti_ has been mentioned, the same is
to be understood of Persons, who are there with their Things to perform
the Quarantine, and prove their being in Health under the Care of another
Guardian; it being seldom allowed (and that only to some poor Wretch)
to perform Quarantine in the Ship, for fear the Things worn or wearable
should not be sufficiently purified. ’Tis to be observed, that every
Vessel having on Board Goods and Passengers, must have three Guardians;
one for the Ship, one for the Goods, and one for the Passengers, together
with the Help of so many other Officers as may seem a heavy Expence: But
if it be considered that this is borne by the Goods, and that they are
sold in the Country, it will appear how much Care is taken of the Publick
Safety, which is preferred to every other Consideration.

But all these Precautions are to be compleated in the _Lazarettos_, so
called from the original Intention of them for the Recovery of Persons
sick of the Plague, but worthy now a better Name, as they are the
Deposits of the Publick Safety, which therein exercises its Precautions.
These are of a double Use; for the Purification of Persons and
Merchandize, separately, in Times of Health; and for the Recovery of sick
infected Persons, and the Purification of dangerous Household Furniture,
in Times of the Plague; to which Use are also converted other Insular
Places which are scattered among the Marshes round us.

The first Thing to be considered in these _Lazarettos_ is their
Situation. They should not be so near the Town as to cause any Danger,
nor so far distant as not to be under the Eye of the Magistrate, and
within Reach of all proper Provision and Assistance.

There are two _Lazarettos_ at _Venice_, the Old and the New; the first
distant two Miles and more, the other a little above Three from the City.
Each forms a separate Island, which has nothing contiguous to it, and cut
off from all Communication. Each takes up a large Space of Ground, shut
in all round by Buildings washed by the Waters, which serve for a Wall
and Guard: They have no Openings outward for any Thing to go out at, for
every Thing must go out at the same Gate at which it entred. The Length
of the Ground the first stands on is one hundred and five Geometrical
Paces of five Feet each; the Breadth eighty-five; the whole Circumference
three hundred and eighty. The second is somewhat larger, _viz._ one
hundred and twelve long, ninety-two broad, and four hundred and
fourteen in Circumference. The Structure of each is remarkable for its
Capaciousness, but much more so for the Contrivances of Convenience and
Security. At the Entrance is the _Prior’s_ House, which is always free,
disjoined from every Place belonging to the Quarantine, but so contrived,
as to command the greater Part of them. All the rest of the Ground is
taken up, either by Buildings to lodge Passengers, or in large Courts
all surrounded with open Sheds, under which the Merchandizes are exposed
to the Air, and preserved from the Weather; or else with great Sheds
all round walled in, but with Holes in the Top to let in the Air; which
serve for the same Use. What is most to be admired in the Contrivance
of them is, that they are divided and subdivided into many Offices for
Quarantines, and of different Kinds, in such a Manner, that each has its
peculiar Ingress, without giving or receiving any Inconvenience from the
other, in order to prevent the Danger of any Communications; in which
the very Essence of the Regulations consists. As to the Places destined
for the Reception of Persons; in the first Place, they are separated
from every other, which serves for the Purification of Goods; and with
great Reason; for if the Proprietor had Leave to visit his Cargo, whilst
under Purification, his Coming might put a Constraint upon, or interrupt
the Course of Management, through his Concern for preventing any Injury
to the Merchandize. _2dly_, They are also separated from each other,
though there are a greater or less Number of Rooms contiguous, for the
Convenience of a greater or less Number of Passengers, who may arrive at
one Time from the same Parts, all having different Ingresses, different
Stairs, and no Communication. The Sheds, which inclose the Court Yards,
are so disposed, that you cannot pass from one Court to another, all the
Gates being kept shut. Each of these Sheds is terminated by a particular
Building for the Abode of the Guardian and of the _Bastazi_, who have
the Care of the Merchandize exposed under it. The great Sheds have also
their Convenience, their Use, and Security.

Ample Room is to be given to the Merchandizes, that they may, without
being damaged by Weather, be penetrated by the Air; and become at, to be
handled; and the Persons are also to be lodged, at Large, conveniently,
without occasioning Mixture in the great Numbers of them, or in the
Variety of their Quarantines: An Idea of which may perhaps best be had,
by considering that the old _Lazaretto_, with only Eight Places for
the Purification of Goods (each of them subdivisible into many more)
can give Reception to 6730 Bales of Merchandize at once, coming from
various Parts. And if one confines only to six different Quarantines,
the Quarters appointed for Persons (each of which is subdivided into 13
Rooms) above 294 Persons may be easily and commodiously lodged there at
once.

The New one, is more capacious; takes in an equal Number of Bales, but
has somewhat under 200 Rooms for Passengers, and has sometimes furnished
Accommodations for the Quarantine of 4000 Soldiers and 200 Horse, at
Times when it was not incumbered with Merchandize.

As I need not be more diffuse upon the Description of them, I come now to
the Forms observed in them.

An Officer called a _Prior_ superintends in each. Great Care is taken
in Choice of him, always taking Subjects of the Order of Citizens, and
changing him every Fourth Year; and no one can be ever qualified for
this Officer, who has either Consanguinity or Connexion with any of
the Magistrate’s Officers, or that is interested in any Vessel, or has
any Concern in Trade of any Sort. He has a House within the Inclosure
of the _Lazaretto_, as has been said, in which he is obliged to reside
constantly; never being to leave it, except in the sole Case of attending
the Magistrate’s Orders; then leaving a Subaltern in his Room, called the
_Sub-Prior_, who is also his Assistant.

They have an annual handsome Allowance to subsist well upon; the Laws
being rigorous, that, as they are so well provided for, they shall not
have any Kind of Emolument imaginable, under any Pretence which might
tempt their Avidity to mitigate, or dispense, with any of the Delicacies
of the Purifications; and they cannot quit that Employment, which they
enter into, in Times of no greater Exigency than the common legal
Precautions, even in Case any Plague should happen in the City.

These are the sole Officers who receive all the Orders of the Magistrate,
who (when necessary) require them, and then distribute them to the
inferior Officers, for the Conduct of the _Lazarettos_ that are under
their Care and Direction.

At the Time of Election they give Security for their good Conduct, and
another Security of a Thousand Ducats for the Interest of the Merchants
who trust their Merchandize in their Hands.

Though the utmost Vigilance and Diligence is required of them, that all
the Regulations be observed; their Hands are tied up in every Respect,
not having the Privilege to give Employment to any one of their Family
in the _Lazarettos_; nor are they to suffer Fishing in the neighbouring
Canals, lest, under that Pretence, little Boats should approach, and some
dangerous Transportation of any one be attempted; nor can they traffick
in any Shape, or in any Thing, that is brought into the _Lazarettos_,
or with any one there; nor must they suffer any Bargains to be driven
between Persons in Quarantine, nor between them and those Officers that
visit them; for which Reason no Broker can be admitted, even though he
should have a particular Order; it being to be considered, that it is an
unalterable Maxim, that no Person or Goods of any Kind, can be brought
into the _Lazarettos_, or on Board suspected Vessels, without express
Orders of the Magistrate: For this Reason, the _Priors_ depend solely on
the Authority of the Magistrate, insomuch that they are dispensed with
obeying any other Orders whatsoever; the Publick Faith proceeding with
such Delicacy on this important Head, that no Execution can be served
upon any Kind of Goods, &c. brought and deposited in the _Lazarettos_ for
the Regards of Health; and even in Case a _Banditto_ should clandestinely
get in there, and be discovered, he is secure from such Time as he has
taken his Refuge there, no Distinction being made of Persons, where the
Safety of the State is at Stake.

To say something of the more general Duties to which the _Priors_ are
obliged: They keep all the Keys, as well of every Gate which gives
Entrance into the _Lazarettos_, (which is more than one, besides all
those that are upon the Canal, disposed in the best Manner to receive
Goods, and pass them to the Place destined for their Purification,
without passing by Places already occupied by others, lest there should
be any Mistake) as of every other Gate that secures the Quarantine of
Persons and Goods; all which are to be shut when Night comes on, and
opened only after the Sun rising; themselves always assisting, yet with
such Precautions, that they themselves are always to be kept clear and
free from Mixture.

They are responsible for whatever is sent to the _Lazarettos_, under
Sanction, however, of the Magistrate’s Order, with which they must
be furnished; and with no other are they to be satisfied, not even
with that of his Officers that bring them. They inspect the Guardians
and the _Bastazi_, that they do their Duty each Day, in the Services
render’d Persons and Goods, not permitting them to serve in more than
one Quarantine; and that they are assiduous in exposing every Day to
the Air, upon Ropes, the Passengers Things, taken out of their Trunks,
_&c._ and in the necessary Management they are to observe of suspected
Merchandize, with every Form required: For which Reason, and to provide
for any Necessities of the Passengers, the _Prior_ is every Day to make
two Visits at least, one in the Morning, and the other in the Afternoon,
to every Place of Quarantine.

This Care of keeping the Passengers supplied with all Necessaries,
brings me to describe another Sort of Officers, in the Service of the
Magistrate, called _Victuallers_.

These furnish the Passengers in the _Lazarettos_, and the Crew performing
Quarantine on Board, with all Things necessary. There is a fixed Number
of them, and they twice a Day visit the _Lazarettos_ and Vessels; but
they keep at due Distance, and always the _Prior_ must be present at the
first, and the Guardian in the last, (which is an immutable Rule, if
any Visit is ever made) and all that they present, passes through the
Hands of those Officers to the Persons, making use of a Basket for that
Purpose, fastened to a Cane of three or four Fathom long, in which they
put what they furnish them with, and receive their Money the same Way;
which before they touch, they pass it through Vinegar or Salt-Water.

They are forbid by Law all Extortion, and all the Profit they have is
only one Penny more in the Pound than the ordinary _Tariffes_ allow, as
settled from Time to Time by the Officers of the City.

It is not however prohibited to others, and such as are concerned with
the Passengers to furnish them Victuals, provided all passes through
the _Prior_’s Hands, and none of the Rules of Precaution are eluded:
The _Prior’s_ superintend these Victuallers, to prevent Fraud; and if
such Exactness is observed, that Passengers suffer no Inconvenience or
Uneasiness, still a greater Attention is exerted, if by Chance any one
of them should be sick: For the _Prior_ must forthwith declare the Case;
and the First Physician of the Magistrate is immediately sent to, and
the most scrupulous Observation is made of any Disorder, whose Symptoms
should be doubtful. The same Rule is observed towards any Sick in the
Ships; the Patient growing worse, nothing is with-held for preparing
him to die well; there being a Church in the _Lazaretto_, &c. If the
Sick would dispose of any of their Effects, the Priest that serves for
Chaplain, acts as a Notary in Default of the _Prior_; but he cannot be
appointed either Executor, or Heir, no more than any other Officer of
the _Lazaretto_; and they only can serve as Witnesses: But if the dying
Person should desire a Publick Notary, it is granted by the Magistrate,
whenever the Times and Conjunctures will allow of it.

Every Death must be immediately communicated, though it be of a known
Distemper; nor can the Corpse be moved, until (even after Death) it has
been visited by the Chief Physician, to see if any Pestilential Marks
were come out upon it: It is buried in a Church-yard belonging to the
_Lazaretto_: And in Burying, no Hands are employed, but those in the same
Quarantine he died in, digging a Hole at least two Fathom deep.

Such Circumspection is used, if the Distemper and the Death proceed
from natural Causes: But the least Appearance of any Thing infectious,
makes it much greater; for as soon as ever it is known, the sick Person
is separated from the others in Quarantine with him, who are obliged to
begin again a more rigorous Quarantine; dividing them as much as possible
one from the other; which, in Case of another Accident, is to become a
Third Quarantine for every one. And the sick Person being assisted with
the utmost Caution and Care, the Corpse is buried in Lime. Those that
die in the Ship are buried in the same Manner. Of all that belongs to
the Deceased, the _Prior_ takes an exact Inventory in Presence of the
Guardian, and two or three Witnesses; which is adjudged by the Magistrate
to the lawful Heirs. On Board the Ships, the Guardians do those Parts.

Having succinctly related the Duties of the _Prior_, which principally
consist in seeing the Rules kept up to, and good Order observed; in
which is comprehended the Care of keeping the Peace in the _Lazarettos_;
of taking all Arms from Passengers, and having them separated from what
they were lapt up in, and kept to be restored them at their going out; in
forbidding all noisy Sports, and especially such as might occasion any
Mixture amongst the People in Quarantine; in seeing that the Guardians,
_Bastazis_, and Victuallers, do their Duty, without using Extortion,
_&c._ That all Animals, whether Quadrupeds or Fowls, be shut up, which
might straggle, and occasion Disorder. It remains to say something of the
Quality of the Purifications used in the _Lazarettos_; that being a Point
not to be by any Means omitted, and may not be a little tedious, as the
Detail of them cannot be concise.

Resuming therefore the Idea already mentioned, of deducing the general
Conduct from a particular one, and returning to where the Merchandize
was left, when brought out of the suspected Ship, _viz._ to the Gates
of the _Lazarettos_, with all the Precautions aforesaid; they are by
the _Fante_, who escorts them, delivered up to the _Prior_ of the
_Lazaretto_, with the Order that directs him to receive them. He directs
a Place for their Purification; directs the _Bastazi_, appointed for that
Work, to take them out of the Boat, and the Guardian to keep them in his
Custody; then causing the _Peata_ that brings them, to carry them to the
Shore most convenient for their Landing at the Place where they are to
be purified; they are unloaded by the _Bastazi_, who, from that Moment,
together with the Guardian, are looked upon as unclean, and can have no
Communication of any Sort. As many as are unloaded, a Note is taken of,
and so successively till the Ship is quite cleared.

It has been said, that generally the Clerk of the Ship, or the
Super-Cargo, or always one of the Ship, passes with the Merchandize to
the _Lazaretto_, to make the Delivery of them; and the Reason of it is,
to take back a Receipt from the _Bastazi_ for all that was delivered to
them, that the Whole may be restored, out of Regard to the Rules of the
Health-Office, and for the Sake of Punctuality.

The Ship being entirely unloaded, they proceed to dispose the Goods in
proper Places, with the necessary Distinctions: The Wool, (which is to
be purified with the Forms called _à Monte_) in one Place, and what it
is lapt up in, in another; the Cottons all in one Line; these made with
Thread (or Linnens) in another; the Skins for Leather in another Part;
and so every Head of Merchandize, separated from others, of different
Sorts; and when all is thus disposed, every Thing is opened, and from
that Day commences the Time of Quarantine; which always consists
regularly of Forty entire Days, for Merchandizes coming from the
_Levant_, and so for any others coming from Places much suspected; which
is increased upon the Death, or Sickness, of any one of the _Bastazis_,
which should give any Suspicion of Infection; or if any Thing of that
Kind appeared on the Ship, which had transported them. Thus from the very
Day that the Unloading of the Ship terminates, the Quarantine of the
Ship, and of the Crew, commences, and not otherwise.

That of the Passengers being sooner brought to a Conclusion, who, at
first, pass into the _Lazarettos_ with their own Wearing Apparel, as they
by so doing gain the Time the Unloading of the Ship requires.

There are the most solid Reasons for this Proceeding; since, that as the
Office of Health is to be secure, that every Thing liable to Expurgation
passes through those Tryals which Reason and Experience, for so long a
Space of Time have established; so this Point is not to be confounded.

The Evil manifests itself more easily in Persons than Things; so that
they might be subjected to less rigorous Rules than the Goods: Yet as
there is no Person, but what brings with him some Things that are for
his own Use; or is at least mixed with those that do; so the Suspicions
becoming equal on this Head, the Purification required must be equal too.

These different Terms are therefore to be diligently considered: That in
which the Unloading of the Ships ends; and that in which is compleated
the Transportation of the Goods to the _Lazaretto_. Since it is not
sufficient that they are gone through, if it is not manifested that they
are so.

For this Reason, as soon as the Passengers are brought ashore, the
Guardian appointed for the Charge of them, causes to be opened all their
Chests, strong Boxes, Envelops, and whatever they have with them; of all
which he takes a Note, which is called _making the Roll_. He then orders
all to be exposed to the Air, if Wearing Apparel, and not Merchandize.

This being done, he gives an Account of it to the _Prior_, who is always
present; and the first registers in a Book, as well the Persons come
into Quarantine, as their Things; as also the Names of the Guardians
appointed to have them in Charge. He then writes to the Magistrate,
specifying the Day of their Debarkation, the very Moment in which
they began to open the Chests and expose the Things to the Air; and
he transmits the Roll or List aforesaid, in which is contained every
Thing that requires Expurgation. If any Merchandizes are discovered
in them, the Quarantine of the Passengers cannot commence, till those
Merchandizes have been transported to another Place; there to go through
all the Precautions and Tryals proper for them: And if no Merchandize has
been found, their Quarantine commences from the Time of the Search as
aforesaid. The same Person sends also another List of all the Merchandize
received separately for Expurgation, nothing excepted; which denotes
the Arrival of such Goods; their Quality; the Place they come from; the
Vessel they were landed out of; the _Fante_ who conducted them; the
Time when the Unloading was begun and ended; and precisely that of the
Merchandize being opened; and from thence is calculated the Term for
Quarantine. In this Roll he is also obliged expresly to add, that he has
had them lightly singed, or sprinkled, and entirely cleansed; and that
he has afterwards diligently made the proper Examination about all the
_Peatas_, which served for the Transportation of the Goods; that no Doubt
may remain, that any Thing may have been left: And he is obliged to make
it appear, whether the _Peatas_ arrived towards Night at the _Lazarettos_
(at which Time it is rigorously forbid, as is before said, to open any
one of the Gates of them;) and if the Guardian and _Bastazi_ have exerted
the proper Vigilance about them, as they are obliged by the Laws to do.

Besides, the Roll that the Guardian himself sends, (who remains aboard
the Ship after the Unloading is compleated) consists of many Articles;
one is, to discover, if the Captain has deposed, at his Examination, and
given, in his Manifest, every Thing contained in the Ship. Another is, to
have certain Knowledge, that every Thing, that was contained in it, has
passed to the Place of Purification; which appears by its being compared
with that of the _Prior_.

It besides serves for a Security to the Persons concerned, for the
rendring them a just Account, as the Merchandizes pass through so many
Hands. A Fourth, and the most material of all, is the Certainty obtained
from it, that, in the Ship itself, nothing has remained that should
undergo Purification: To this End, the said Guardian certifies in that
Roll, and attests (any Failure in which Point he would answer with
his Life) that at such a Time the Unloading was begun, and at such a
Time ended: That he has omitted no Search or Caution, and that nothing
remained: And that he has exposed to the Air every Thing either belonging
to the Mariners or to the Ship.

If upon these Authorities the Quarantine has commenced, and there appears
afterwards any Thing on Board subject to Purification, that had been hid,
this also is sent to the _Lazaretto_, with such other Merchandizes that
for that End are condemned by the Rules to recommence their Quarantine;
when they have not had the Indulgence of performing it separately, but
collectively; and this, both because it is required by the Office, and
also for a Punishment for such Roguery having been carried on; which
does not stop there, but renders subject to Chastisement, whoever was the
Concealer.

For what regards the Quarantine of Passengers, and of the Vessel, when
they have begun it in this Method, and it continues without any Accident
intervening; I need not add, that it is regularly brought to an End. But
if any Sickness happens, I have already given an Account of the Conduct
that is in that Case observed.

Something must be added about Goods. I have already observed, when I said
they are disposed differently upon their Receipt into the _Lazarettos_,
that they are also differently treated.

Therefore ’tis necessary to say somewhat of that. Wooll and Woollen Goods
are the chief Things, of which two Sorts arrive: One Sort is called _Lane
Succide_, because they come just as they were taken from the Animals when
shorn: The others are called _Lane Pelate_, i. e. such as are taken from
the Hide of the Animal when dead, by the Means of Lime. Both of them
are put _à Monte_, which is a Form mentioned before. Putting Things _à
Monte_, is as much as to say, taking them out of the Bags or Cases they
were in, and laying them in Heaps of about Four Feet high, with some
Distance between each Heap, that they may the better be come at to be
handled: And the handling of them, consists in removing them from one
Place to another every Day; in often stirring them, and heaping them up
again in the same Manner; so that at the End of the Forty Days, there
be a Certainty that no Lock of the Wooll has been untouched. All the
Wooll may be treated in the same Manner; but the first Sort is usually
examined with the greater Care; for as they consist of the Fleece, that
is, of the entire Wooll as taken from the Body of the Animal, they
are most carefully searched, Thread by Thread; and thus, at the same
Time that they are purified, they are also cleaned. By which Care, the
Proprietors of them save the Pains and Trouble they must afterwards have
been at to cleanse them. And this Care is also sufficient, and especially
as at the Time of putting them again in the Bags, another Tryal is made.

The same Form is observed for all Silks, Linnens, Raw Silks, Ferret,
Ribond, and such like, emptying them in a scattered Manner in Heaps, and
then Bale by Bale separately, handling them twice a Day, and every Week
removing them to another Place.

Other Goods, such as Cottons, Thread, Camels Hair, and Castor, which come
in Bags, are differently purified; for the Bags are unsowed from one End
to another in the Middle, and so they are left open for Half the Time
of Quarantine, that is, for the Space of Twenty Days, being every Day
handled by the _Bastazi_, who put in their naked Arms in all Parts of
them, as they are moved daily, so that no Part of them can be unhandled.
The Twenty Days being expired, in which is not included the Day they were
opened, the Sacks are turned, and unsowed on the other Side, and they are
handled in the same Manner, till the Expiration of the Forty Days, in
which is not reckoned the Day they were turn’d; for which Ceremony, there
are required a Notice from the _Prior_, and a particular Order from the
Magistrate; and this being done, they set about sowing them up again, and
they are accounted clean.

All other Goods, _viz._ Camblets, Mohairs, Cloaths, and every Thing
else that comes folded in Pieces, are first loosened and undone; that
Fold by Fold the naked Arms of the _Bastazi_ may rummage them, and then
they are moved about from Place to Place; and those that are uppermost
one Day, are the next Day moved to the Bottom: The same Thing is done
to Woollen Cloaths. But when any of the above Things come from infected
Parts, over and above the aforesaid Precautions, they are also stretched
out upon Ropes, in the open Air, turning and handling them every Day.
The Sorts of Stuff called Felt, Quilts for Beds, Rugs, Thick Coverlids;
those made of Lambs Wooll, Carpets, Capots, and, in general, every Thing
made of Wooll and Silk, Books and Flax, Parchment, all Kinds of Paper,
Hair Sacks, or Linnen Bags, and such Things, remain continually exposed
to the Air, and are continually handled; and the _Bastazi’s_ are even
obliged to sleep amongst some of them. Skins, being the most dangerous,
are purified with a most exact Attention, exposing them to the Air, and
continually handling them; so also Hair for Wigs, and Pens, or Fans of
Feathers; which, Bundle by Bundle, are also exposed, and are twice a Day
handled and rummaged, as being looked upon to be the most difficult to be
fully purified. Tobacco, _Morocco_ Leather, Damasks, _&c._ and all Sorts
of dry Skins, which have been properly dressed and cured, are sent all
_à Monte_, and are all handled: But being thought to be Things rather
less susceptible, such Kind of Merchandize generally are allowed the
Indulgence of but Half Quarantine.

There is another Kind of Quarantine for Wax and Spunges, being thrown
into Running Water, and left to soak there 48 Hours, and then they are
clear, there being a particular Guardian and Water near the Place
for that Use: However, Wax and Tallow Candles must go through a full
Quarantine, because of the Cotton in them. But if it is agreed to have
them soaked in Water, they are cleared. All Woolly Animals perform the
full Quarantine of Merchandizes. Those that have short Hair are passed
through Water, and so purified. Feathered Animals must be sprinkled often
with Vinegar, so as to be quite wet through, and are then free.

Having now described the Kinds of Goods that by their own Nature are
subject to very exact Expurgation, there remains to mention another
Kind, which, though not so of itself, becomes so from Circumstances: Of
this Sort are salted Buffalo’s Hides, which come from _Constantinople_,
_Alexandria_, &c. which, when salted, and very moist, may be delivered
out; but when dry, and ill soaked, they go through the full Quarantine of
Goods. The Wild Safran, which is in itself looked upon as free, might be
also delivered out; yet, as it is apt to grow mealy, the Consideration of
its being lapt up in Cases, subjects it to a Quarantine; and consequently
every Thing in general incurs Expurgation, which cannot, or must not be
separated from its Envelop.

It has been said, that there are many Things that may be taken away from
the Ships, or out of the _Lazarettos_, i. e. all Things of a Nature not
susceptible, and that come loose, or else come inclosed in such Things
as are free, being probably purified by the volatile Nature of what they
contain.

Of the first Kind are all Corn, Vallonia, Salt, Flax-Seed, and other
Seeds, Marble, Minerals, Wood, Earth for Looking-Glasses, Gold Dust, Rock
Alum, Vitriol, Elephants Teeth, _&c._ Of the second Kind are, Sugars,
Cheeses, Fruits green and dry, Kernels of Pine Apples, Salt Fish and
Flesh, or Fish and Flesh Smoak dried, _&c._ Potargo, Drugs, Colours, and
every Thing of that Kind, which can be separated from their Envelops.
Of the third Sort are all Kind of Liquors, Brandies, Oils, Wines, which
may be taken out; and when it is acknowledged that they are so, they are
secured with Rosin over the Corks, which serves to certify that they are
free. Raisins, Ashes, and Rosin or Pitch itself, though they come in
Envelops or in Vessels, yet in the Hope that the Spirits within destroys
all Suspicions, or repels any bad Effluvia, or the Effects of Contact, it
is only required to rip the Bags and Envelops, and to tar the Seams of
them, and they may be taken out.

Such Things may be taken out, if the Merchant’s Necessity requires it;
or else every Thing coming in Envelops performs Quarantine; the Envelops
performing it, though emptied of their Contents; though the most refined
Precautions are not required, if they are but a little handled, and
exposed to Air. Yet most of the Deliveries of such Things are performed
at the _Lazarettos_, that it may be done with the greater Circumspection,
considering that Things, very free of themselves, may however be put
up and mixed with something subject to Quarantine: As for Instance,
Pistacchio-Nuts, and Coffee, amongst which Cotton is frequently found;
so that when such Things happen, they cannot be cleared.

Such are the Precautions used in the _Lazarettos_, towards all Persons
and Things which come from suspected Countries; proportioned to the
greater or less Cause of Suspicion: Since, in the most dangerous Cases,
the Method is the same, the Term only longer.

The ordinary Term being ended without any Accident of any Sort, the
_Prior_ concludes his Incumbences with sending separate Testimonials,
wherein he certifies, That on such a Day commenced the Quarantine of the
Persons, and such a Day that of the Goods: That the proper Precautions
have been used in opening them, emptying them out, _&c._ And that the
Term of Forty Days expires on such a Day, no Accident having happened.
The Guardian on Ship-board sends a like Testimonial; and on the Day free
Communication is to be given to the Ship, Persons, or Merchandizes, it
is granted them: Which Testimonial the Magistrate subscribes, and the
_Fante_ is Bearer of it; taking Care, that it tallies exactly with all
the Steps and Rules of the _Lazarettos_, and especially with the Order
issued to the Clerk of the Office of Health.

In Case any Sickness or Disorders have happened; though they have been
already communicated from Time to Time, the _Prior_ and the Guardian must
in that Testimonial repeat the Mention of them; that it may tally with
the Reports made by the First Physician, who registers all his Visits,
and makes himself Master of the Cases that have happened, without waiting
for the Time of the Patient’s being at Liberty, to apply what is proper
for the Cure of the most grievous Complaints.

Such is the Conduct held in the _Lazarettos_, the Effects of which have
been found so beneficial; but the good Management of which depends upon
the Concert being kept up between so many different Precautions. I hope I
have now discharged what my Orders required, _viz._ To describe, or give
an Idea of the Functions of the Health Office, taken from the constant
Practice here.


_FINIS._

[Illustration]



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