With my son, Edward. [1]
Sarah, I should be mad at you for replying to my August email in December! I, on the other hand, have a good excuse for not having written back promptly. Traveling on land is so tiresome. But I am happier than you think I am and I am not lonely. Many Greek, French, English and Italians under our protection visit me often from morning till night.
There's barely any truth to the dreadful stories you've heard about the plague. There’s really little more to it than a fever; we passed trough two or three towns that are violently infected, but many people escape the plague and the air is never contaminated!
What I am about to tell you will make you wish you were here. The smallpox is so fatal and common in England, but it is entirely harmless in Turkey because of the invention of engrafting. Every September, a group of old women inoculate anyone who might have smallpox. An old woman asks you which vein you prefer to have opened and she inserts a large needle into the vein allowing as much venom as possible in. This seriously hurts just as much as a common scratch would. She then repeats this four or five times using other veins. Then children or young patients play together the rest of the day and are in perfect health. Then the fever seizes them and they are in bed for two days, or three (although rarely). In eight days time, they’re back to normal!
Thousands undergo this operation every year and no one has died from it. I am a strong advocate for the experiment and I intend to try it on my little son. I will work really hard to get make this operation a common procedure in England. Also, if I know any doctors who are willing to branch out of their common practice for the good of mankind, then I will also write them. If I live to return to England, I might have the courage to wage war with them! Anyway, I'll leave you to admire how heroic I am! [2]
There's barely any truth to the dreadful stories you've heard about the plague. There’s really little more to it than a fever; we passed trough two or three towns that are violently infected, but many people escape the plague and the air is never contaminated!
What I am about to tell you will make you wish you were here. The smallpox is so fatal and common in England, but it is entirely harmless in Turkey because of the invention of engrafting. Every September, a group of old women inoculate anyone who might have smallpox. An old woman asks you which vein you prefer to have opened and she inserts a large needle into the vein allowing as much venom as possible in. This seriously hurts just as much as a common scratch would. She then repeats this four or five times using other veins. Then children or young patients play together the rest of the day and are in perfect health. Then the fever seizes them and they are in bed for two days, or three (although rarely). In eight days time, they’re back to normal!
Thousands undergo this operation every year and no one has died from it. I am a strong advocate for the experiment and I intend to try it on my little son. I will work really hard to get make this operation a common procedure in England. Also, if I know any doctors who are willing to branch out of their common practice for the good of mankind, then I will also write them. If I live to return to England, I might have the courage to wage war with them! Anyway, I'll leave you to admire how heroic I am! [2]
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