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Annual Report of the Medical Officer of Health,—1894. 29

The foregoing table discloses the fact that the greatest number of deaths from
diseases of the lungs has taken place in the London Road and Kent Road subdistricts,
and fewest in the Borough Road sub-districts during the past two years.
The reason for the unequal distribution of the mortality is at present speculative,
and the subject remains open for future enquiry.
As in the preceding three years, the deaths from pneumonia were again largely
in excess of the average, and it is probable that to this cause have been assigned
many deaths which were really due to influenza. This observation, it may be noted,
applies not only to St. George's but also to the whole of London.
Alcoholic Excess.
In my Report for 1892, I remarked that the deaths attributed directly to chronic
alcoholism and to delirium tremens did little to indicate the actual loss of life due
to the abuse of alcohol. I further pointed out that the natural wish to spare the
feelings of surviving relatives prevented the returns from mentioning the real cause
of death. Hence the offensive term " alcoholism" was often replaced by one of its
secondary results, such as disease of the liver, brain, kidneys, or stomach.
With this fact in view the following suggestion was made:—
" That a nearer approach to truth as regards alcoholism and certain other
diseases could, I think, be arrived at were it made obligatory, in future, for medical
practitioners to forward all death certificates, in confidence, direct to the Registrars,
instead of handing them to relatives, which is at present the usual procedure."
Since the above was written the Select Committee appointed by the House of
Commons to report on death certification, has recommended ■' that medical
practitioners should be required to send certificates of death to the Registrar, instead
of handing them to the representatives of the deceased.
Mortality of Infants and Children.
The number of infants dying within the first year of life was 462. These figures
give the high rate of 213 deaths to every 1,000 births in St. George's, as compared
with 164 deaths per 1,000 births for London. The highest rate in the metropolis
was 219 in the Strand, and the lowest in Hampstead, where it was 102—less than
one half of that in St. George's. Of a total of 1,657 deaths at all ages in St.
George's, 776 occurred in those under five years, which gives the large percentage of
46 8 to the total number of deaths, as compared with the percentage of 38'4 for
London.