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63 [1914
INFLUENZA.
Influenza, a highly infectious disease, caused 30 deaths, which is a decrease
of 28 on the return for the preceding year, and of 24 on the average of the
ten years 1904-1913 (vide Table LI.).
Since 1891 there has been a steady decrease in the number of deaths from
it, which may be seen in the statement given below, which shows the number
of deaths since 1900 in quinquennial periods. In the quinquennium, 1891-1895,
they averaged something over 143 per annum, in the following five years they
averaged 84; this number fell to 54 in the succeeding quinquennium, but rose
again to nearly 66 in the five years, 1906-1910; in the next five years,
1911-1914, there was a decline of nearly 50 per cent., for the average amounted
to only 38, which is satisfactory, and if continued for a few years would bring
us to the happy days that obtained from 1871 to 1885, when they did not reach
an average of 1 per annum.

This infection is in itself rarely the cause of death, but has always some
other disease as a secondary cause. This is to be noted in Table LII., which
records that 13 of the cases resulting in death were complicated with Pneumonia,
6 with Bronchitis, 4 with Heart Disease, 1 with Pleurisy, 1 with Laryngitis,
2 with Enteritis, 1 with Gastritis, and 1 with Paralysis, leaving only 1
death to be ascribed to Influenza alone,