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SECTION 6.
Bacteriology.
The bacteriological work of the Borough was carried out at
the bacteriological department, St. Giles' Hospital, Brunswick
Square, Camberwell, and during the year the number of
specimens examined was 4,177, as follows: —
Swabs for examination for Diphtheria—
Positive 230
Negative 1,448
Examination of Sputa for T.B. —
Positive 352
Negative 2,079
Widal Reactions—
Positive 2
Negative 9
Examinations of Miscellaneous Material 57
Food and Drugs.
The report of the Food and Drugs Inspector will be found on
pages 68-78.
It will be seen that samples were not submitted to the Public
Analyst to discover the presence of preservatives.
It was felt that as a Royal Commission was sitting on this
question it would be desirable for the matter to be held over
until Eegulations, which may be expected as the result of the
deliberations of this Commission, came into force.
Many samples of cream were taken under the Public Health
(Milk and Cream) Eegulations, 1912-17, and a full report in
respect of these is given under Table G.
It is a matter of regret that there is no standard fixed for the
fat content in cream, as it was found that the fat content of
samples of cream purchased from bulk during the year showed a
variation from 49 to 62 per cent.
A sample of tinned cream that was labelled suitable for
infants was found to contain a fat content of only 26 per cent.