Whenever there was an epidemic of smallpox, people who were suspected of having the disease, and their young children, were placed in a hut that was constructed outside the village. The hut was stocked with a supply of water and food, while any physical contact with the victims was forbidden. After a certain amount of time, if anybody in the hut had survived, they were allowed to come back to the village. When there were no more signs of life in the hut, it was burned, with the corpses in it.
