A narrative of a voyage to Surinam, of a residence there during 1805, 1806, and 1807, and of the author's return to Europe by the way of North America /

Translation of Beschreibung einer reise nach Surinam.

Mortality and morbidity in the city of Bern, Switzerland, 1805-1815 with special emphasis on infant, child and maternal deaths

This article contributes to the research on demographics and public health of urban populations of preindustrial Europe. The key source is a burial register that contains information on the deceased, such as age and sex, residence and cause of death. This register is one of the earliest compilations of data sets of individuals with this high degree of completeness and consistency. Critical assessment of the register's origin, formation and upkeep promises high validity and reliability. Between 1805 and 1815, 4,390 deceased inhabitants were registered. Information concerning these individuals provides the basis for this study. Life tables of Bern's population were created using different models. The causes of death were classified and their frequency calculated. Furthermore, the susceptibility of age groups to certain causes of death was established. Special attention was given to causes of death and mortality of newborns, infants and birth-giving women. In comparison to other cities and regions in Central Europe, Bern's mortality structure shows low rates for infants (q0=0.144) and children (q1-4=0.068). This could have simply indicated better living conditions. Life expectancy at birth was 43 years. Mortality was high in winter and spring, and decreased in summer to a low level with a short rise in August. The study of the causes of death was inhibited by difficulties in translating early 19th century nomenclature into the modern medical system. Nonetheless, death from metabolic disorders, illnesses of the respiratory system, and debilitation were the most prominent causes in Bern. Apparently, the worst killer of infants up to 12 months was the "gichteren", an obsolete German term for lethal spasmodic convulsions. The exact modern identification of this disease remains unclear. Possibilities such as infant tetanus or infant epilepsy are discussed. The maternal death rate of 0.72% is comparable with values calculated from contemporaneous sources. Relevance of childbed fever in the early 1800s was low. Bern's data indicate that the extent of deaths related to childbirth in this period is overrated. This research has an explicit interdisciplinary value for various fields including both the humanities and natural sciences, since information reported here represents the complete age and sex structure of a deceased population. Physical anthropologists can use these data as a true reference group for their palaeodemographic studies of preindustrial Central Europe of the late 18th and early 19th century. It is a call to both historians and anthropologists to use our resources to a better effect through combination of methods and exchange of knowledge.

Balkan Peninsula Region, ca. 1805 (Raster Image)

This layer is a georeferenced raster image of the historic paper map entitled: Carte de la Turquie d'Europe, en 15 feuilles : comprenant toute la côte orientale de la Mer Adriatique, l'archipel, la Morée, l'île de Candie, la Crimée et la partie occidentale de la mer Noire, par P.G. Chanlaire, directeur de l'Atlas national de France. It was published by Chez l'Auteur, Rue Geoffroy-Langevin No. 7, près celle St. Avoye, ca. 1805. Scale [ca. 1:830,000]. Covers the Balkan Peninsula region. Map in French.The image inside the map neatline is georeferenced to the surface of the earth and fit to the Europe Lambert Conformal Conic coordinate system. All map collar and inset information is also available as part of the raster image, including any inset maps, profiles, statistical tables, directories, text, illustrations, index maps, legends, or other information associated with the principal map. This map shows features such as drainage, cities and other human settlements, roads, territorial boundaries, shoreline features, and more. Relief shown by hachures. This layer is part of a selection of digitally scanned and georeferenced historic maps from the Harvard Map Collection. These maps typically portray both natural and manmade features. The selection represents a range of originators, ground condition dates, scales, and map purposes.

Central Europe, 1808 (Image 1 of 4) (Raster Image)

This layer is a georeferenced raster image of the historic paper map entitled: Karte von Deutschland : in IV Blättern entworfen im Jahre 1805, und nach den, durch die Bundesacte der Reinschen Conföderation, datirt Paris vom 12ten Julius 1806, ingleichen nach den, durch die verschiedenen Tausch- und Pacifications Verträge ; besonders aber nach den, durch den Frieden zu Tilsit am 9ten July 1807 bestimmten Besitzungen, berichtiget, zu Anfange des Jahres 1808, von D. F. Sotzman. It was published by A.G. Schneider und Weigels in 1808. Scale [ca 1:875,000]. This layer is image 1 of 4 total images of the four sheet source map, representing the northwest portion of the map. Covers primarily Central Europe and adjacent portions of Europe. Map in German.The image inside the map neatline is georeferenced to the surface of the earth and fit to the Europe Lambert Conformal Conic coordinate system. All map collar and inset information is also available as part of the raster image, including any inset maps, profiles, statistical tables, directories, text, illustrations, index maps, legends, or other information associated with the principal map. This map shows features such as drainage, cities and other human settlements, roads, territorial and administrative boundaries, shoreline features, and more. Relief shown by hachures.This layer is part of a selection of digitally scanned and georeferenced historic maps from the Harvard Map Collection. These maps typically portray both natural and manmade features. The selection represents a range of originators, ground condition dates, scales, and map purposes.

Central Europe, 1808 (Image 2 of 4) (Raster Image)

This layer is a georeferenced raster image of the historic paper map entitled: Karte von Deutschland : in IV Blättern entworfen im Jahre 1805, und nach den, durch die Bundesacte der Reinschen Conföderation, datirt Paris vom 12ten Julius 1806, ingleichen nach den, durch die verschiedenen Tausch- und Pacifications Verträge ; besonders aber nach den, durch den Frieden zu Tilsit am 9ten July 1807 bestimmten Besitzungen, berichtiget, zu Anfange des Jahres 1808, von D. F. Sotzman. It was published by A.G. Schneider und Weigels in 1808. Scale [ca 1:875,000]. This layer is image 2 of 4 total images of the four sheet source map, representing the southwest portion of the map. Covers primarily Central Europe and adjacent portions of Europe. Map in German.The image inside the map neatline is georeferenced to the surface of the earth and fit to the Europe Lambert Conformal Conic coordinate system. All map collar and inset information is also available as part of the raster image, including any inset maps, profiles, statistical tables, directories, text, illustrations, index maps, legends, or other information associated with the principal map. This map shows features such as drainage, cities and other human settlements, roads, territorial and administrative boundaries, shoreline features, and more. Relief shown by hachures.This layer is part of a selection of digitally scanned and georeferenced historic maps from the Harvard Map Collection. These maps typically portray both natural and manmade features. The selection represents a range of originators, ground condition dates, scales, and map purposes.

Central Europe, 1808 (Image 3 of 4) (Raster Image)

This layer is a georeferenced raster image of the historic paper map entitled: Karte von Deutschland : in IV Blättern entworfen im Jahre 1805, und nach den, durch die Bundesacte der Reinschen Conföderation, datirt Paris vom 12ten Julius 1806, ingleichen nach den, durch die verschiedenen Tausch- und Pacifications Verträge ; besonders aber nach den, durch den Frieden zu Tilsit am 9ten July 1807 bestimmten Besitzungen, berichtiget, zu Anfange des Jahres 1808, von D. F. Sotzman. It was published by A.G. Schneider und Weigels in 1808. Scale [ca 1:875,000]. This layer is image 3 of 4 total images of the four sheet source map, representing the northeast portion of the map. Covers primarily Central Europe and adjacent portions of Europe. Map in German.The image inside the map neatline is georeferenced to the surface of the earth and fit to the Europe Lambert Conformal Conic coordinate system. All map collar and inset information is also available as part of the raster image, including any inset maps, profiles, statistical tables, directories, text, illustrations, index maps, legends, or other information associated with the principal map. This map shows features such as drainage, cities and other human settlements, roads, territorial and administrative boundaries, shoreline features, and more. Relief shown by hachures.This layer is part of a selection of digitally scanned and georeferenced historic maps from the Harvard Map Collection. These maps typically portray both natural and manmade features. The selection represents a range of originators, ground condition dates, scales, and map purposes.