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17
In order to give those members of the Vestry who are not
on the Sanitary Committee, some idea of the prevalence of
the disease in Mile End, I may state that for about a
fortnight previous to its appearance in the Hamlet your
officials had seen the gradual progress of the epidemic towards
this district, and preparation was made for its reception. On
the 22nd of July the first case occurred in Harford Street; the
man worked at Southwark, where the disease was rife. He
was promptly removed to the isolation hospital, and the
clothing disinfected; the walls of the room stripped of thiir
paper and disinfected also. The next case occurred on the
25th July in Mulberry Street, close to Whitechapel; this case
was removed and similar precautions taken. On July 26th
seven cases occurred in various parts of the Hamlet, on July
27th seven cases, on July 30th three cases, on July 31st two
cases, and so on in a desultory manner until August 30th,
when the epidemic may be said to have subsided, but it will be
seen from the Tabulated Statement (page 20) that several isolated
cases occurred after this date.
There is no doubt that the disease was imported from the
neighbouring parish of Whitechapel where it seems to have
originated to a large extent in the Salvation Army Shelter. In
fact, these organizations in other parts of London helped
materially to spread, if not propagate, the disease; this is no
more than could be expected since that large bodies of vagrants
are herded together without proper air space being allotted to
them.
So much for the origin of the disease in our district. The
means which were adopted in almost every case to prevent
the spread of the disease were the same—to remove each
patient as early as possible to the Asylums Board's Hospital.
Enquiries were made at each house where the outbreak
occurred as to the origin and source of the disease, the
previous employment of the patient, the address of the
employer (who was written to), and as to vaccination of the
patient and inmates of the house. Disinfection was carried
out, and where the clothes were very old and dirty they were