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32
On account of these changes the population of the area has been diminished,
and at a census taken by this department in the early part of the year 1905, the
population was found to be 947, of which 168 were under 10 years of age.
The death-rate of the area during 1905 was 26.5 per 1,000 in comparison with
16'9 for the whole Borough; the zymotic death-rate was 3.17 per 1,000 in
comparison with 1.06 for the whole Borough; the death-rate from phthisis was 3.17
in comparison with 2.65 for the whole Borough, and the infantile death-rate was
167 per 1,000 births in comparison with 126 for the whole Borough.
I estimated the average death-rate of the area for the previous five years, 19001904
inclusive, at 25.7 in comparison with 19.9 for the whole Borough. These
death-rates would be still higher if corrections were made for sex and age distribution.
During the same five years the zymotic death-rate in the area was 4.15 in
comparison with 1.92 for ttie Holborn Borough, on the other hand, the phthisis deathrate
was only 1.32 in comparison with 2.86 for the Holborn Borough. In connection
with the low death-rate from phthisis it must be remembered that the Italians are
principally employed in out-door occupations, and that when they are suffering from
such a chronic disease as consumption they often return home to Italy and die there, in
fact, doctors practising in the neighbourhood have frequently given medical certificates
for Italians so suffering, in order that their return fares may be paid or partly paid by
the Italian Consul.
Moreover, all the death-rates of the Italian Colony are probably higher than the
above high rates, because in many of the returns received from the Registrar-General
of deaths in outlying Public Institutions, no exact address is given but only "of
Holborn" or "St. Andrew, Holborn." In more recent years the Registrar-General's
Department has also furnished the names of such deceased persons and some of them
are Italians.
On the other hand, the death-rates of the Holborn Borough are too high, because
the Holborn Union also includes almost the whole of the Metropolitan Borough of
Finsbury, with a population about double that of the Holborn part of the Union; and
in recent years, from enquiries made of the Poor Law Authorities, I have been able to
ascertain that many of these deaths were of persons not resident in the Holborn
Borough. The deaths of all persons removed from the Casual Wards to the workhouse
or infirmaries are returned as belonging to Holborn because the Casual Wards are in
the Holborn Sub-Division of the Union.
There is a very large number of common lodging houses in the Holborn Borough,
there were as many as 42 such houses in the Borough in 1901, and the death-rate of
persons residing in common lodging houses, especially from consumption, is exceedingly
high as was shown by the Medical Officer of Health for the London County Council
in his last Annual Report for 1904.
I may also give the following additional statistics.