New England Population vs. Virginia Population.

In the establishment of New England, the climate definitely helped the colony to prosper. The cooler climate limited the diseases that are characteristicly borne in tropical climates. This led to more women surviving childbirth to bear more children, and the children themselves surviving longer. Virginia, on the other hand, suffered from more diseases, leading to more deaths. As mentioned by Brinkley, the physicians of that time weren't very qualified, and the patients themselves were often just as qualified at curing themselves as the physicians. To connect this book to the Scarlet Letter, I wonder how adept the natives before were at curing their own diseases.