London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Paddington 1897
Report on vital statistics and sanitary work for the year 1897
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14
the percentage of such to the births being generally
from 1-2.
TABLE 6.
| England & Wales. | Metropolis. | Paddington. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| In the year | 1872 ... | 4.5 | 8.8 | |
| Averages for the Quinquennia | 1873—77 | 4.1 | 8.1 | |
| 1878—82 | 4.4 | 6.8 | ||
| 1883—87* | 5.7 | 7.4 | 7.7 | |
| 1888—92† | 11.2 | 14.1 | 11.9 | |
| In the year | 1891 ... | 12.9 | 16.4 | 17.7 |
| „ „ | 1892† ... | 14.3 | 18.4 | 12.6 |
| „ „ | 1893 ... | 15.7 | 18.2 | 10.0 |
| „ „ | 1894 ... | 19.0 | 20.6 | 8.2 |
| „ „ | 1895 ... | Not yet published | 8.8 | |
| „ „ | 1896‡ ... | Not yet published | 9.0 | |
* Royal Commission on Vaccination, appointed 1887.
† Fifth Report of Commission, issued in 1892.
‡ Final Report of Commission, issued in 1896.
To those at all familiar with the history of smallpox
prior to vaccination, the increasing neglect of this
valuable protection is a matter of profound regret.
It is fairly generally admitted that, when the
susceptible individuals constitute a certain proportion
of the community (the proportion varying for
each disease), the chances of an epidemic following
the introduction of infection are enormous. Consider
the case of Gloucester. The neglect of certain individuals
to warn the authorities of the existence of
smallpox among the members of their family gave
the opportunity requisite for the disease to spread
through a community containing a very large proportion
of unprotected children. If vaccination fall