The necessity of close attention to vac cination as a preventive against small pox is not a very attractive subject for discussion; but under present circum stances it becomes our duty to impress upon our country readers a religious observance of the precaution. It is a matter of notoriety that in the out settlements vaccination is almost en tirely neglected. This state of things arises from a variety of causes—the difficulty in obtaining the services of a qualified medical man, and the indiffer ence of parents who, living perhaps in localities of great salubrity, and whose occupations conduce to robust health, are apt to consider themselves and their children removed from all fear of infec tion. But it has been demonstrated that even under the most favorable con ditions as to climate, occupation, and domestic cleanliness and order, vaccina tion is the only absolute safeguard against the ravages of small pox; and every parent who neglects this tion is guilty of exposing his children f to the terrible effects of the disease, j There is no doubt whatever that this disorder like cholera or the " plague" of older times has cycles. Just now it prevails with greater or less virulency all over civilised Europe, has broken out in America, and has been brought to our own shores. For the greater part of a century small pox has almost ceased to be regarded as an epidemic disease on account of the preventive efficacy of vaccination ; but the im munity begat neglect, and during the last eighteen months the ravages of small pox in England alone have been fearful, chiefly owing to the non

observance of vaccination. During the year 1870 the deaths from small pox in seventeen of the principal towns in England numbered only 1259, whilst in 1871 no less than thirteen thousand one hundred and seventy-four persons died from this disease. The evidence gathered by various authorities goes to prove that in but very few cases where vaccination had been observed had small pox resulted fatally, and that very few persons effectually vaccinated had been attacked at all. We dis claim any idea of creating anything approaching to a panic ; all we desire is to impress upon our readers in the country and everywhere, that to neglect the precaution of vaccinating their chil dren is to seriously endanger their lives. 