A Duel to the Death Over "Bilious Fever" On this date in 1750, two doctors who lived in Jamaica shot each other dead in a duel. The conflict leading to the deaths of John Williams and Parker Bennet involved bilious fever. Williams wrote that bilious fever, or yellow fever as we know it today, is different from malaria. Bennet strongly disagreed with him, contending that the two were one and the same. It's true that, in its early stages, yellow fever can often be mistaken for malaria and other diseases. A viral ailment, yellow fever can cause epidemics, and 400 years ago it did in the Americas and Africa. Having served as surgeon on slave ships in Africa and the West Indies, Williams witnessed yellow fever first-hand and knew its symptoms and progression. Several different strains of mosquito transmit the virus to humans when they bite. Symptoms range from mild to catastrophic, including death. The "yellow" in the name comes from the jaundice that sometimes accompanies the disease. Other symptoms include abdominal pain, vomiting, bleeding from the mouth, nose, eyes and/or stomach, and kidney malfunction.
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