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according to the statement of another child living in the same
house, scarlet fever. The Inspector went to the house and
found that the boy's skin was " peeling." He asked a doctor,
whom he saw passing the house, to examine the boy, who was
Pronounced to be suffering from scarlet fever in the desquamative
stage. The other children in the family having been
examined, two of them were also found to be suffering from the
disease. The three cases were notified forthwith by the doctor,
and the patients were without loss of time removed to hospital.
Medical advice had not been obtained by the parents (notwithstanding
a disproved statement by the father to the contrary),
but there was little, if any, doubt, from admissions made, that
the parents knew what was the matter with the children. In
his report on the case, the Inspector stated that " the father is
a carpenter who had been continuously employed in the
exercise of his trade in private houses, during the prevalence
of the illness in his family." He added that the boy "had
been, on repeated occasions, exposed in public places whilst
suffering from the disease." The father had not notified the
cases to me as the law directs, and the facts having been reported
to the Sanitary Committee, they directed proceedings to be taken
against him for this offence, and also for the offence of exposing
the boy in public places—which exposure, I may mention,
included visitations to a milk shop and a post-office, as well as
frequent meetings with play-fellows in the public streets. But
as it was impossible to prove guilty knowledge on the part of the
father the procedings fell through.
The following tables shew certain particulars of interest
with respect to scarlet fever prevalence, &c., during 1895, and
the decennium, 1885-94 :—