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No diagnostic tests were available, other than a suggested breath test that almost no one was willing to conduct. The bubonic plague was far more deadly than our pandemic, and symptoms progressed rapidly after infection. The charlatans themselves often died from the disease or else sped away with their profits. None worked, but many of the poorer residents were customers, some of whom died after taking the potions. For example, once the bubonic plague had begun to take its toll, London was filling with “quacks” (Defoe’s own term), posting notices at street corners promising cures and preventives. Throughout the book, I found unfamiliar phrasing but many familiar happenings. Also evident is his deep concern and empathy for fellow citizens, even some of his flakiest characters. One of the hallmarks of his tale is a painstaking effort to avoid recounting rumor, gossip, and exaggeration. Had Google and (anti-) social media been available, he might have finished much sooner, but what a mess that would have been. Defoe spent intervening years collecting information from informal and formal sources, including records of weekly deaths posted across London.
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