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86
Professor de Chaumont, in his answer to a similar letter,
says: "I do not approve of the reception of infectious cases,
such as Scarlet Fever and the like, into the general wards of
Hospitals. I think it unadvisable on public grounds, and
distinctly unfair to the other patients."
The very remarkable occurrence of a death from true
yellow fever took place in the Parish during the month of
March 1878; it was registered as "contracted on board
Mail Steamer from Rio Janeiro." Notwithstanding the
fact that this fever has never been known to spread in this
country, except in very hot weather, I thought it advisable
to take all precautions, and had thorough disinfection
carried out.
Table VII contains a summary of the results of my
Analyses of the water supplied to the Parish by the Grand
Junction and Chelsea Companies, from which it will be
seen that the organic ammonia in the Grand Junction
Company's water was generally high, being only low in
the summer months, and towards the end of January 1878.
The Chelsea Company's water was fairly good during
the nine months of 1877 (the organic ammonia being, however,
rather high in the May sample), but it deteriorated in
quality during the three months of 1878.
The samples collected in March 1878 were both of them
so bad that I had fresh ones taken on March 22nd; these
showed a considerable improvement in the Grand Junction
Company's water (viz.—saline ammonia 0, organic 11 per
hundred millions), but only a very slight improvement in
that of the Chelsea Company (viz.—saline ammonia 2.6,
organic 13 6 per hundred millons).
I also wrote to the Secretary of each Company, drawing
his attention to the matter.
The Chelsea Company, with the view of obtaining water