which, except the parents, have been born and reared, and have died of consumption, in that place. The childless parents have now moved away, in their old age, only to let another younger couple beget another puny set of children, as those already born are now becoming. Dr. T: mentioned this house to me, in answer to my question whether any household in his town was peculiarly troubled by consumption; and I judged from his remark, that, although he, doubtless, would not have chosen the place as a healthy location, he did not put the location and consumption as cause and effect - which I verily did. Dr. Marrett, of Saccarappa, near Portland, gives the following statistics, on his own and Dr. Stone's practice. Dr. Marrett says, "The whole town, with few exceptions, possesses a cold, wet and clayey loam soil." The "plain district has more of a dry, gravelly soil." Dr. M.'s statistics of his own practice in the whole town, for eight years, 1842 to 1851, were as follows: All deaths, 66; by consumption, 21-or 31.81 per cent. Dr. Stone's statistics of his own practice, during the same period, for the whole town, were as follows: All deaths, 104 by consumption, 32- or 30.76 per cent. In the "plain district" he had: All deaths, 68; by consumption, 11-or 16.17 per cent. These data are in complete analogy with the statistics of Townsend, West Newbury, &c., in Massachusetts. Dr. Allen, of Saco, Maine, than whom there lives no more intelligent witness a practitioner of long standing -assures me that, in his own practice, for fifteen years past, he has noticed that, on two ridges of land, whose only difference consists of this characteristic of moisture of the soil, almost every family has been decimated on the wet part, while almost all upon the dry portion have escaped. This statement is a most striking exemplification of the views already given. It seems likewise to show that it is not elevation or exposure, or a certain amount of cultivation or woodland, nor any peculiar trade, &c., that is the cause of the malady; for, in all these respects, the two localities seem alike. One ridge is quite dry, the other is literally filled with springs. Nowhere can a spade be driven a few feet into the ground, without meeting water. In fact, in former times, the superstitious frequently had their friends, who had died of consumption, disinterred, and Dr. Allen invariably found the coffins filled with water, however shallow may have been the graves. Dr. Sanborn, of Hampton Falls, N. H., gives statistics of that town and of old Hampton, which, at first sight, seem to give little support to my views. But I find, on accurate analysis of the returns, that in Hampton, two thirds of all the cases of consumption occurred on a ridge of land, nearer to the marshes, and where one fifth only of the inhabitants live. So, at Hampton Falls: the inhabited part, that is, the dampest, has twice as many consumptive cases, in proportion to the population, as the driest and highest. At Newport, N. H., Dr. Richardson speaks of two houses near a mill pond, and around which runs a river, the entire soil being thus made very moist. The parents, three children and a stranger lady, resident in the family, have died of consumption within four years. A remaining son and daughter moved away to a drier location, remained cachectic for some time, and have finally recovered an example wholly analogous to what we have noticed at Franklin, Mass. How long will How long will you shut your eyes to these facts, and your intellects to their importance, in your daily practice? Drs. Hartwell and Tuttle, report from Farmington, N.H. Dr. Tuttle says the town is on low, moist land. He and Dr. Hartwell have both noticed that consumption is much more prevalent there than on the surrounding hills. Dr. H., from eighteen months statistics, gives as the number of deaths by all diseases, 43; of which 13 were by consumption-or 30.23 per cent. Dr. Clough, of Greenland, has a town singularly but very distinctly marked by three classes of soil, viz., 1st, a higher, drier, sandy plain; 2d, a medium, fertile, rather moist portion; 3d, extensive low marshes. I asked for statistics, and he returns these: Population, 715, about equally divided in the districts; families, 150. During 10 years, 1847 to 1857, 3 persons died in the dry district, 5 in the medium, and 10 in the wet. Small statistics, but significant! Dr. Hovey, of Atkinson, N. H. It is a dry, welldrained township, sloping very gradually to those adjacent to it. The first thought of Dr. Hovey was, |