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13
to 45 minutes, they are then taken out on the non-infected side
of the building. Six men are employed in the disinfecting
station. Two men draw the truck containing the infected
articles; two men are employed to return the goods in a noninfected
truck; one man is employed to strip the paper from
rooms that have been fumigated; one man—the foreman disinfector—attends
to the apparatus. The foreman (who is a fitter
by trade) is able to take the apparatus to pieces when necessary,
and refit it. He did this when the Inspector from the Insurance
Company was sent down to inspect it. When the number of
premises to be disinfected is below the average, the Inspectors
find occupation for the men in testing drains, etc. They thus
assist the Inspectors to make more progress with their houseto-house
inspection.
Sulphur has been in use to fumigate rooms for several years.
Towards the latter part of the year I recommended the Board
to use Formalin in some cases. There are two conditions in which
Formalin seems to have an advantage over sulphur.
(1). In rooms containing brass bedsteads, gilded panels and
sewing machines, as these articles are tarnished by the sulphur.
(2). In rare cases, where it is found impossible to spread out
the clothing in such a manner that all its surface is exposed to
the action of the gas, Formalin is more penetrating and under
such circumstances, will probably be found more effectual than
sulphur. With these exceptions sulphur is still used.
The following articles were burnt in the Incinerator during
the year: 15 beds, 45 mattresses, 10 pillows, 394 sundries, 250
sacks of paper stripped from walls of infected rooms, 347 cases
of eggs, 6-lbs of bacon.