CURES FOR SPECIFIC DISEASES: AGUE
Ague is the disease now known as malaria. It is caused by several closely related forms of protozoa, microscopic parasites that are transmitted to the human bloodstream by female mosquitoes. In some forms of the disease, patients suffer recurring bouts of fever for years after the initial infection.
We tend to think of malaria as a disease of the tropics, but in the 1800s, it was common in many parts of Canada.
From looking at the front of this card, what can you deduce about the public's understanding of malaria and how it spread?
The illustration shows a swampy, sub-tropical area, perhaps in the southern U.S. People had known since ancient times that those who lived in or near wet, swampy areas were more likely to contract this type of fever than those who lived in drier places.
You might think that the advertiser chose frogs to offer the bottle of Ayer's Ague Cure in this illustration because frogs eat malaria-carrying mosquitoes. But, in fact, the back of this card offers a different explanation of how the disease is spread.
