London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
City of London 1872
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London, City of]
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14
The mortality of infants of less than a year old is
excessive, for it amounts to 17.52 per cent. of the
births. In the Western district it averages 19 per
cent., in the Eastern 18, and in the City proper only
15.5. In the whole of the Metropolis it is 15.71 per
cent., and in all England 15.37. The death-rate,
therefore, of the infant population of the Eastern and
Western divisions of the City is remarkably high,
and so it has been for the last thirty years, as will be
seen from the following table:—
Death-rate per 1,000 of the Population.
| In Quinquennial Periods. | In the City. | In London |
|---|---|---|
| 1844 to 1848 inclusive | 26.57 | 24.66 |
| 1849 „ 1853 „ | 24.01 | 24.30 |
| 1854 „ 1858 „ | 25.25 | 24.42 |
| 1859 „ 1863 „ | 24.63 | 23.30 |
| 1864 „ 1868 „ | 25.81 | . 24.86 |
| 1869 „ 1873 | 24.41 | 23.42 |
As measured, therefore, by the first and the last
decades of this period, it would seem that the average
death-rate of infants in the City during the 10 years,
from 1844 to 1853, was only 163.2 per 1,000, whereas
in the last 10 years it has been 175.2 per 1,000. In
all London the relative proportions for these periods