View report page

5
Pauper Illness in the District.
The Medical Officers of the Union have attended during the last quarter
1428 new cases of illness out of the "Workhouse ; including 28 of small-pox,
27 of measles, 6 of scarlet-fever, 42 of hooping-cough, 27 of diarrhoea, 6 of
fever, 94 of febricula, and 13 of erysipelas. In the corresponding quarter of
the previous year the number of pauper cases of illness was 3688; including
352 of small-pox, 15 of measles, 4 of scarlet-fever, 50 of hooping-cough, 97
of diarrhoea, 82 of fever, and 24 of erysipelas.
In order to obtain a more accurate return of the cases of sickness, it is
desirable that the Medical Officers should revise their weekly returns of cases,
for I can state, from my own experience as a Medical Officer of the "Union,
that there is sometimes great difficulty in distinguishing cases, where only
febrile symptoms are present when the patient is first seen by the medical
officer. The alterations, if any, might be made in red ink. From personal
inquiry of the Medical Officers, relative to the general accuracy of their
weekly returns of sickness, Mr. Vallance informs me that they may be
considered reliable.
Meteorology of Greenwich.
The returns of the Registrar-General show that the rain-fall in the
Metropolis during the quarter has been 5.66 inches. During the corresponding
quarter of last year the rain-fall was 4.21 inches. The mean temperature
of the air was 43.3°. In the corresponding quarter of last year the mean
temperature was 40.0°. The coldest days during the quarter were Sunday,
the 10th March, Monday, the 11th, and Thursday, the 21st March, when the
thermometer indicated respectively 28.5°, 28.3°, and 26.2°. The coldest day
during the corresponding quarter of last year was on Friday, January 13th,
when the thermometer indicated 18.3°, or 13.7° below the freezing point.

Public Pumps in the District.
All the public pumps in the District have now been taken away, and,
by direction of the Board, the surface wells have been filled up. I believe