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(26)
and answered the purpose. In my Report for last
year, I drew attention to the fact that schools were
the centres of propagation, and I would again emphasize
those remarks with regard to these three
diseases. I consider it essential that every head
teacher in a school, whether public or private, should
be required to give notice of every child who is
away from the school on account of measles; with
regard to scarlet fever and diphtheria, notice is sent
to the school from the Sanitary Department, but at
the same time if a teacher does not receive notice
of a case that has come to his knowledge he should
at once forward a report. If such notices were forwarded.
much might be done in checking the progress
of measles. Those schools where children
from three to five years of age are attending are of
the utmost importance. There is, however, another
class of schools which urgently require to be brought
under more sanitary observation, I allude to Sunday
schools. Here there are a totally distinct set of
teachers without any official knowledge if any disease
of an infectious nature is affecting a family, the
children may consequently attend, and all the good
that has been effected at the day schools during the
week may be quietly undone on the Sunday. I do
not wish to imply that the heads of these schools
are not as anxious as anyone to check the spread of
disease, but they have not the information.
Typhoid Fever.—There have been fewer cases
of this disease, the death-rate being about the same;