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which was all afterwards received with the single exception of a sum of
£4, the payment of which was excused by the Committee on account of the
poverty of the person liable. The destruction of infected beds, bedding,
and other articles has been continued with the sanction of the Committee,
when, from the condition of the things, it has been found impossible to disinfect
them. In each case compensation is given, and although this becomes
a charge upon the Yestry, it is certainly money well spent, as the result is
of the most beneficial character in effectually preventing the spread of
disease. While on this subject, I may mention that during the time that
the old workhouse was being used by the Metropolitan District Asylum
Board as a Convalescent Hospital for Small Pox patients, it was found
necessary to secure the destruction there of a quantity of infected beds, &c.,
and the thorough disinfection of the rooms in which the articles had been
stored. Subsequently, when the workhouse was handed over to the Guardians
of the parish, they requested the Sanitary Committee to provide, at
the cost of the Guardians, for the burning of a further quantity of bedding,
and for the thorough disinfection of the whole of the premises. I was then
consulted by the Committee as to the best means of securing a complete
disinfection; and, after inspecting the premises, I prepared a specification,
detailing the steps that would, in my opinion, be the most likely to accomplish
the end in view. The work was carried out most thoroughly during
the month of November last, at a cost to the Guardians of £107, and the
propriety of this wise precaution cannot be better shown than by reminding
you that the building has since been pulled down, and the materials 6old, a
proceeding that would have been highly dangerous and reprehensible without
previous disinfection.
Two new disinfectant preparations have been lately brought
under my notice, viz.: Chloralum, and a solution of Sulphurous Acid in
Alcohol. I have not, however, thought it necessary to advise the Sanitary
Committee to make any change in the method of disinfection heretofore
adopted.
I deem it desirable, on this occasion, to draw your attention to one
branch of our sanitary work, which is of the utmost importance in tho prevention
of disease, and upon which neither pains nor expense should be
spared; I mean the efficient performance of a statutory obligation so
essential to public health as the frequent and regular removal of dust and