Williams, An Essay on the Bilious, or Yellow Fever of Jamaica

Williams, An Essay on the Bilious, or Yellow Fever of Jamaica

An early example of printing in Jamaica, this 1750 essay was intended to "explain to the public the nature and causes of this fatal bilious, or yellow Fever of Jamaica." It contains outdated but illuminating insights such as "this disorder is generally brought on by suddenly cooling the body and checking perspiration after hard exercise in the sun." The author described observed symptoms of the fever, from its effect on the pulse (full and frequent "to the very last") to "stagnation of the blood." It is demonstrative of a medicinal and anatomical understanding of disease and treatments that shaped yellow fever treatment from Jamaica to Pennsylvania.

John Williams

Kingston, Jamaica, 1750