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the national figure of 15.3 per thousand population. The infantile
death rate in the year 1902 was 83.3 per thousand live births, which
compared favourably with other large towns of the period and that of
130 per thousand in London. In those days epidemic diarrhoea caused
a heavy toll on infant life and the medical officer of health referred then
to the risks of food contamination, particularly milk. He suggested
among other things that "all milk should be kept in covered vessels to
protect it from flies and dust; strict cleanliness (personal and otherwise)
is essential and the cleansing and watering of streets in hot dusty
weather is very important." This must be one of the earliest attempts
made in Hornsey to educate the public in food hygiene. On instructions
of the public health and hospital committee the medical officer of
health wrote a leaflet giving simple instructions as to the feeding of
infants arid precautions to be taken. These were distributed in the poorer
parts of the district by lady visitors associated with the churches in the
Borough. The infantile death rate in Hornsey today is 17.5 per thousand
births, a low record by comparison with that of fifty years ago and with
the present figure of 27.6 for England and Wales. The general death
rate in Hornsey fifty years ago was 8.4 per thousand inhabitants which
was low, not only by comparison with that of 17.2 then in London but
also with the figure of 11.6 in Hornsey today. The favourable circumstances
in Hornsey's death rate at the beginning of the century can be
at least partially explained by the rapid development and influx of a
relatively young population in the previous decade. Commenting on
this and other favourable vital statistics of the Borough the then medical
officer of health wrote "almost the only point to which one cannot
allude with feelings of satisfaction is the increased mortality from
tuberculosis." He estimated that between 250 and 300 persons in the
Borough were suffering from tuberculosis, probably a much underestimated
figure. (Tuberculosis was not a notifiable disease at that time.)
Eleven per cent, of the total deaths in this year were said to be caused
by "pulmonary consumption," and a report to the Health Committee
stressed the importance of preventive measures and the duty of a health
authority to raise the standard of living in its district in an endeavour
to stamp out this disease. Later a sub-committee was set up to consider
the provision of hospital treatment for the tuberculosis patient, as it
was felt that there was then little hope of a sanatorium being established
for the whole county. Emphasis was placed not only on the curative
value of such a sanatorium, but also on its educational and preventive
aspects. By 1910, after visits had been paid to various sanatoria, the
public health committee recommended to the Town Council that
similar provision should be made in Hornsey by combining with adjacent
Authorities. In the following year a conference of representatives
of the County, Borough and Urban District Councils in Middlesex
passed a resolution to the effect that local authorities individually or in
combination should establish (1) a tuberculosis dispensary, (2) make
local provision for the loan of open-air shelters to tuberculosis patients,
(3) sanatorium accommodation for the treatment of this disease. Further
that the Local Government Board be requested to introduce compulsory,
notification of all cases of tuberculosis. Since that day much has been
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