From the diary of Samuel Pepys:
London, 16th October 1665
“But Lord, how empty the [city] street are, and melancholy, so many poor sick people in the streets, full of sores, and so many sad stories overheard as I walk, everybody talking of this dead, and that man sick, and so many in this place, and so many in that. And they tell me that in Westminster there is never a physitian, and but one apothecary left, all being dead – but there are great hopes of a great decrease this week: God send it.”
Originally Posted by: RobN