Months.ABC
ONE INONE INONE IN
May, 178018½20½87
June1368½418
July17½80163
August1822780
September96188
October14250
November33½192265
December1667185
January, 17811460½316
February18413214
March15½30201
April1159169
May17188
June1240701
Mean Proportion15½93227

CHAP. II.

Account of the Health of the Fleet from August, 1780, till December following.——The Fleet divided—The principal Squadron goes to North America—Fluctuation between Fevers and Fluxes—The Alcide and Torbay the most sickly Ships—Health mended by the Climate and Diet in North America—Hurricane in the West Indies—Sufferings in consequence of it—Fevers the chief Disease.

The hurricane months approaching, the season for active operations in the West Indies was now over. The whole force of the enemy, consisting of thirty-fix French and Spanish ships of the line, having gone to St. Domingo in the end of July, ten sail of the line were detached after them from our station, for the protection of Jamaica. The Admiral sailed for North America in August, with eleven ships of the line, leaving six for the protection of the islands.

There was little alteration in the general state of the sick during the voyage to America, and indeed we found no diminution of the West-India heat, which at this season is at the greatest height, until we came to the 33° of N. latitude.

The only material alteration in point of health was in the Alcide and Torbay, which had arrived from England with a few men ill of fevers; but in the course of this voyage these two ships became as unhealthy as any that ever came under my observation. There was a greater number of sick on board of them than all the fleet besides, and it increased to such a degree, that upon their arrival at New York, which was in the middle of September, after a passage of three weeks, near one half of their men were unfit for duty. In the Alcide it was a fever that raged; in the Torbay it was a dysentery; and the unusual degree of sickness and mortality which appears in the Table for the month of September, was owing to the very sickly state of these two ships.

TABLE III.

Shewing the Number of Fevers and Fluxes on board on the First of each Month, and the Number sent to the Hospital in the Course of the Month.

Key: B On board. H Sent to the Hospital.

SHIPS’ NAMES,
AND
Date of their Arrival.
MAY, 1780.JUNE.JULY.
Fever.Flux.Fever.Flux.Fever.Flux.
BHBHBHBHBHBH
Sandwich, 16th March60161930120105163
Terrible, 16th March0040200386753256024
Triumph, 7th May000000003217
Russell, 18th June22000
Shrewsbury, 26th June5000
Alcide, 30th July
Torbay, 30th July
Monarch, 22d Nov.
Alfred, 22d November