View report page

This estimate is based on what is known of the movements of the population, as
well as on data derived from the three last censuses.
APPENDIX No. VIII.
Extract from the Third Report of the Medical Officer of the Privy Council, 1860.
"In the district of South St. Giles's, soon after this inquiry commenced, the
small-pox mortality increased at such a rate, as showed the full force of epidemic
influence. The deaths, which in the quarter ending September, 1859, had been
but two, amounted in the succeeding quarter to 13, and in the first two weeks of
January to 6: inquiries of the registrar showed, that, besides these deaths, three
others had been registered as occurring before the 15th January: and it was
ascertained by the medical officer of health and his sanitary inspector that many
unvaccinated persons were suffering at that time from the disease, and that in
these infected localities, often in the very infected houses, there were, notwithstanding
the activity with which, since the commencement of the year, vaccination
had been carried on, unvaccinated persons and children. The disease was so
evidently gaining power, and was so thoroughly in-rooted in many localities, that
Dr. Buchanan and I were quite satisfied the ordinary means of repression would
be found inadequate, and that a thorough visitation of the infected spots was imperatively
required. Strong representations made on this point to the chairman
of the directors of the poor, and other members of the Board, led to the determination
that this should be done in the most complete manner, 'from nouse to
house, room to room, and child to child;' the parish being quite prepared, as
stated by the vestry clerk, to put on any amount of force which might be required
for attaining this necessary object. Messrs. Bennett and Knaggs, the medical
officers and public vaccinators of the parish, undertook this work; and so completely
and with such energy was it carried out, that in a few days all the worst
localities had been thoroughly visited, and the vaccinations, which in the fortnight
ending January 4, had been 61, and in the succeeding fortnight 143, rose during
the next fortnight—the period of this visitation—to 472: 169 of the entire number
operated on in January being wholly unprotected, yet living in, or closely
contiguous to, the most infected spots. And from the time this step was taken
to the end of the epidemic in London in September, (if we except the cases which
were known when it was begun, or were ascertained in its progress, to be already
suffering from the disease), the deaths from small-pox in the whole of South St.
Giles's were but three, only one of which was in parochial practice, and this did
not occur till four months afterwards. Now that this result was wholly due to
the measures employed, and not to the sudden cessation of epidemic influence,
there was the most conclusive proof: for the number of modified cases of smallpox
in vaccinated individuals continued as great for many weeks after this exten-