Epidemics

[Tom]

I have often thought about what types of events would have led to such an evacuation of the areas that the Yesah people would have lived.
The first epidemics that hit our people must have been like nothing else that they knew. The only way to stay safe was to flee, in all directions, north and west, especially to the hills where, perhaps only the "Ghost Men" lived, I think that, that term "the Ghost Men" is so very appropriate for so many of our families, consider the latest thread on the long hunters after ready the time line.
Anyway here is a time line link, pretty scarey stuff when you imagine your self back-there, back-then.!

http://www.kporterfield.com/aicttw/articles/disease.html

[Tom]

Her's another check the date of inoculations;
http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/library/niceandcurious/virginiasepidemics.htm

[dovelady]

Makes me shudder Tom. And it is said that the smallpox was carried in blankets that they gave the Indians. Some say the white man did it on purpose to try to kill them off. How awful! You know, looking at those statistics it's a wonder there are any Indian people left at all.

[Linda]

That is documented to have happened at least once. I think most of it was a force of nature, catching up on 12,000 years of immunities in a generation or two. What I am sure was a widespread issue was the feeling among the alien population that "God" was blessing their encroachments by wiping out these 'less worthy' people.

[tarcarion]

Linda,
Ah yes, the "God" explanation! I've always wondered how people could explain the wholesale killing of people with that excuse. That's NOT the supreme being that I care to venerate. It's sad to look at history and see that the world's "three major religions" have so often (and still do today) used this excuse to wipe out people who didn't believe the way they do. "If we can't convert them, we have to kill them!" What a philosophy! It's part of the "my religion is the one true religion and everybody else's are false religions" way of thinking. This is why I've never been much on "organized" religion!

Tom,
Excellent link and quite scarey! Hopefully "bird flu" won't be the world's next scourge! Thanks.

Jim