64 [CHAP. I., ?T. VII.
Taking now the largest cities in the Presidency, the results are as follows :-
(b) Duration of plague and intervals of freedom in large cities.

Bombay City.
Poona City.
Surat City.
Karachi City.
819,00
161,390
109,229
98,195
Constantly
infected since
September
1896. Longest
period of cessa-
tion, two days.
Continuously affect-
ed except for
one week in
June 1897; one
in April 1898; 2
in May 1898; 3
in June 1898;
3 in July 1898;
2 in Nov. 1898;
one in January
in February 1899.
Free for one week in Decem-
ber 1896; 2 weeks in May
1897; 3 in July, 1 in Aug.
1897; 3 weeks in May
1898, two in July, two in
August, 3 in September,
3 in November and 4 in
December, 1898; one week
in January 1899, 3 in
February, 1 in March, 2 in
April, 2 in May, 1 in June
1899, and for the months
of June 1897 and June
Oct. 1898.
Free for 3 weeks in
March 1898; one
in December 1898;
and for the
months of Aug-
ust, September,
October, Novem-
ber and Decem-
ber 1897, and
January and Feb-
ruary 1898.
Total aggregate freedom.
Nil.
14 weeks.
46 weeks.
35 weeks.
It will be seen that the Bombay Presidency, as a whole, and Bombay City alone since first
infection, have never been free from plague. The first follows as a natural consequence of the
second. But the explanation of the second is not easy, although several plausible reasons
might be adduced. This City is, as it were, the heart and brain of the Presidency. Radiation,
whether of people or goods, is from, and aggregation is to, it: in it, therefore, some of
the germs of a disease so widespread as plague-germs-scattered broadcast over the Presidency-
might at any and every time be reasonably expected to be found (either present or imported),
A difficulty now arises in the further subdivision of places. There is no town in the Presi-
dency with a population between 62,000 (Sholapur) and 100,000 (Karachi). On the other hand
there is a large number of towns with populations varying from 60,000 to 20,000 : and these
have been massed together in the next category. It is in the case of these towns both useless
and unprofitable to dwell on their periods of freedom; the duration and number of their
epidemics are therefore alone considered below:-
(c) Duration of plague in towns with a population of between 60,000 and 20,000.

Approximate durations of
Town.
Population.
1st Epidemic.
2nd Epidemic.
3rd Epidemic.
Sholapur *
62,329
22 weeks.
Hyderabad
58,048
13

Hubli
52,194
30

Broach
40,137
16

Mandvi
38,155
20
25 weeks.
18 weeks.
Ahmednagar *
36,031
15

Dharwar
32,533
15


Sukkur
29,302
10

Belgaum
28,342
13
24 weeks.

Miraj
26,060
13


Satara
25,748
16

Nasik
24,406
14
18 weeks.
Gadag
23,821
15


Palanpur
21,092
10
13 weeks.

* Epidemic shortened by evacuation. Phenomenal.
No measures : epidemic exceedingly severe.