法律视域下的清代疫灾奏报与防治

Report and Prevention of Epidemic Disasters in the Qing Dynasty from the Perspective of Law

清代因疫灾频发,因而形成一套由官府主导的从奏报到防治的应急机制,大的疫灾半月或旬日奏报一次。特别是道光元年(1821)的《救疫章程》为以后所援用,说明清朝已把对疫灾的防治初步纳入法制化体系,救治措施也向以医药为主要手段,以挽救病患者生命为目标转化。作为责任主体,因救灾不力或隐瞒欺饰而被处罚的封疆大吏不乏其人。但整体而言,清朝对疫灾的防治未能达到制度化水准。这也使得清朝的疫灾防控机制仍处于初步阶段。

Due to the frequent occurrence of epidemic disasters in Qing Dynasty,a set of emergency mechanism from report to prevention and control led by the government was formed.For example,a major epidemic was reported once every half month or ten days.In particular,the Regulations for the Rescue of Epidemic Diseases of the first year of Daoguang era(1821)was used in the later generations of monarchy,which showed thatthe prevention and control of epidemic disasters had initially incorporated into the regulatory system in the Qing Dynasty.The treatment measures also turned to medicine as the main means to save patients’lives.As the main body of responsibility,many commanders of provinces were punished for their poor relief or concealing and deceiving.But on the whole,the prevention and control of epidemic diseases in the Qing Dynasty failed to reach the institutionalized prevention and control level of natural disasters such as floods and droughts.In other words,the epidemic prevention and control mechanism of the Qing Dynasty was still in the initial stage.