hey were known
to belong to such and such infected houses.

It is true, that, as the several physicians told my lord mayor, the fury
of the contagion was such at some particular times, and people sickened
so fast and died so soon, that it was impossible, and indeed to no
purpose, to go about to inquire who was sick and who was well, or to
shut them up with such exactness as the thing required, almost every
house in a whole street being infected, and in many places every person
in some of the houses. And, that which was still worse, by the time that
the houses were known to be infected, most of the persons infected would
be stone dead, and the rest run away for fear of being shut up; so that
it was to very small purpose to call them infected houses and shut them
up, the infection having ravaged and taken its leave of the house before
it was really known that the family was any way touched.

This might be sufficient to convince any reasonable person, that as it
was not in the power of the magistrates, or of any human methods or
policy, to prevent the spreading the infection, so that this way of
shutting up of houses was perfectly insufficient for that end. Indeed,
it seemed to have no manner of public good in it equal or proportionable
to the grievous burthen that it was to the particular families that were
so shut up; and, as far as I was employed by the public in directing
that severity, I frequently found occasion to see that it was incapable
of answering the end. For example, as I was desired as a visitor or
examiner to inquire into the particulars of several families which were
infected, we scarce came to any house where the plague had visibly
appeared in the family but that some of the family were fled and gone.
The magistrates would resent this, and charge the examiners with being
remiss in their examination or inspection; but by that means houses were
long infected before it was known. Now, as I was in this dangerous
office but half the appointed time, which was two months, it was long
enough to inform myself that we were no way capable of coming at the
knowledge of the true state of any family but by inquiring at the door
or of the neighbors. As for going into every house to search, that was a
part no authority would offer to impose on the inhabitants, or any
citizen would undertake; for it would have been exposing us to certain
infection and death, and to the ruin of our own families as well as of
ourselves. No