but through the rat's fleas. "Rat fleas suck the blood of rats. If they suck the blood of an infected rat, the plague bacilli carried in the rat's bloodstream are picked up by the flea," (Ziegler 45) which then bites any human or any animal spreading the disease. If there are other rats around, the fleas will suck their blood. If there are no rats around, however, the fleas will go to other living creatures such as humans. !
             By the 14th century, many of the rats had died out from the disease, and humans were plentiful, creating a perfect environment for a plague.
             The plague was spread two ways. The first way was by the blood stream infection which caused buboes and internal bleeding. The second way it was spread was by the breath when the lungs got infected with the plague. The disease is then called the pneumonic plague. Pneumonic plague is spread by respiratory infection and it is the most contagious type ( "Ancient History"). Pneumonic plague is the reason that historians believed that so many people died very quickly in the 14th century.
             The signs that a person had the plague was that the victim was very weak and delirious. Many parts of the body ached and the victim was in great pain because the lymph glands became infected and then hardened. The victim also had 104 degree temperature, illness, disorientation, vomiting, muscular pain, an intolerance to light, pain in the back and limbs, a white coating on the tongue, and dried blood turned black. Within 24 hours, coughing started and the victim started spitting up blood. The bacteria traveled to the liver, spleen, kidneys, lungs, and brain, attacking the whole body at once. Because the whole body was under attack, death came shortly after, usually in three days. If one was to survive the disease however, they were immune for the rest of his/her life ("England During the Plague").
             The aftermath of the plague affected Europe for centuries. The scenery of Europe had be...