“Mad dogs and Englishmen…” 11 Saturday May 2013 Posted by asdjfdlkf in Historical context ≈ Leave a comment 13th Dec 1906, Providence… a deadly insanity-causing disease stalks Providence, in the form of rabid mad dogs. Lovecraft then 16 years old. Poe may, perhaps, have died of rabies. But that may just be a scholar attempting to grab some headlines.