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65
contact with cases outside, was no light task. From January 3rd
to September 19th between seven and eight hundred contacts
were kept under daily observation at their homes. As a result
the early discovery and removal of certain secondary cases
followed.
The Council's Cottage Hospital was most useful for the
housing of certain contacts, and also for the detention of cases
requiring further observation before the nature of the suspected
illness could be decided.
One cannot close this section of the report without
stating that the admirable arrangements made by the
Metropolitan Asylums Board were of the greatest value. The
despatch with which removals were carried out at any hour
deserves the highest commendation. I venture to predict, however,
that unless the Board are prepared to make special
arrangements for the classification of their patients it will be
difficult to obtain the hospital isolation of all Small Pox patients
in the future.
It is, I know, impossible to show any distinction in a
general ward, but the provision of special wards for paying
patients would, I believe, be a solution of the difficulty.
If the more wealthy patients leave the luxury and comfort
of their homes in order to protect their neighbours, they
should be entitled to the benefits afforded by private wards when
they are prepared to pay for their use.
The examination of the Street List showing the incidence
of certain infectious diseases is most interesting in regard to
Small Pox. It shows that during the outbreak there were 59
houses attacked, or 59 centres of infection, from any one of
which the disease would have spread if not promptly dealt with.