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Peckham, and 17 in St. George's. Only 5 occurred during
the third quarter of the year.
Judged of by the death-rate alone the health of the
parish was fairly good. Nevertheless, the mortality was, as
is usual among young children, very heavy; there was
serious cause for alarm with respect to an epidemic of smallpox,
though, nevertheless, there was no large prevalence of
the disease in the parish and only a small mortality; and
there were threats of an invasion of Asiatic cholera, with a
few small outbreaks here and there in the sea-port towns
and one or two doubtful cases in London, but there were
none in this parish. Probably the most serious fact revealed
by the mortuary returns is the continuous increase in the
prevalence and mortality from diphtheria.
Table XIII. gives a summary of the sanitary work
done by your sanitary inspectors. It is difficult, indeed
impossible, to compare this year's work with that of former
years; partly because up to the end of 1891 the returns
were from the 26th March of one year to the 25th March
of the next year (inclusive); but mainly because in my last
report (acting under the directions of the Local Government
Board) my returns included those of 3 months already
given in the report of the previous year and those of the
remaining 9 months of the year 1892. Moreover, owing to
various circumstances during the last 2 or 3 years or more,
important changes were being made in the sanitary staff.
I am glad to say that during the year 1893 the
completed changes have been in continuous operation. We
have now, as I informed you in my last report, 14 sanitary
inspectors. In addition to Mr. Griffiths, whose time is