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The Medical Officer of Health and the Inspectors, who must
often have come in contact with Smallpox.infected persons and
goods, have also escaped, being efficiently protected against Small.
pox by re.vaccination.
These statistics, when compared with those for certain other
Metropolitan Boroughs, where similar precautions as to re.vaccina.
tion were not taken, are most satisfactory. A Sanitary Authority,
which does not protect by re.vaccination its officials against con.
tracting Smallpox, is blameworthy, and the Lambeth Borough
Council is, in this respect, fortunately blameless—a statement that
cannot be made with respect to other neighbouring Boroughs.
The end justifies the means adopted, no case of Smallpox
occurring amongst the staff.
Efficient Re.vaccination.
At the time of the large increase in vaccinations and re.vaccina.
tions, some difficulty was experienced by medical practitioners
in obtaining calf lymph of sufficient activity to give satisfactory
results both in primary vaccinations and re.vaccinations. The
Local Government Board was appealed to with a view to the
Board supplying registered medical practitioners, as well as (at
present) Public Vaccinators, with a supply of active glycerinated
calf lymph. The Board, however, declined to accede to this
appeal, in an official letter sent to the Kensington Borough Coun.
cil, dated February 6th, 1902. It has also been suggested that
all registered medical practitioners residing or practising in Lam.
beth, and in other Metropolitan Districts, should act as Public
Vaccinators at a uniform fee for efficient vaccination or re.vaccin.
ation,
Transfer of Vaccination Powers.
The question was raised at the end of 1901 by the Kensington
and Stoke Newington Borough Councils and by the Paddington
and Wandsworth and Clapham Guardians, as to the advisability
of placing such important preventive measures as vaccination and
re.vaccination under the direct control of the Sanitary Authority.
Theoretically, such a change is desirable, as it is certainly an
anomoly that vaccination and re.vaccination alone, of all the well.
known preventive measures in connection with the stamping out
of Smallpox, should rest with an outside Authority (the Guardians)
—the Sanitary Authorities being responsible for all the other pre.
ventive measures. From a point of view of efficient administra.
tion, all such measures should be under one responsible Authority,
as it might happen, for instance, that friction or difference of