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148
Ophthalmia Neonatorum (or Ophthalmia of the newly-born)
was made a disease compulsorily notifiable by an Order of the
Local Government Board, which took effect in April.
The Elementary Education (Provision of Meals) Act, 1914,
amended the Act of 1906 by legalising the provision of meals by
Education Authorities during holidays, and by removing the
limitation of expenditure on meals to a halfpenny rate; part of the
expenditure is now repayable through Government grants.
Other legislation during the year included a short amending
Housing Act and New Milk and Dairies Acts for England and
Scotland. It is not certain when the new legislation on milk will
be put into operation.
FOOD AND DRUGS.
Under the Sale of Food and Drugs Act, 156 samples of food
and drugs were taken and analysed. The results are shown in
Table IX.
13 of the samples purchased in the Borough in 1914 were not
satisfactory; and, therefore, the percentage of non-genuine
samples amounted to 8.3 per cent., a figure which, is above that
of the preceding year, when it was 7.1 per cent. The figure
for the whole country was 8.4 per cent. during the year 1912, and
that for London for the same year was 8.8.
13.6 per cent. of the 81 Milk samples were unsatisfactory, as
against 7.7 per cent. during the preceding year; but in some cases
the deficiency below the legal limits was very slight. 22 per cent.
of the milk samples were purchased on Sundays. The percentage
of adulteration of milk for the whole country during 1912 was 11.9.
In London the percentage of Milk samples reported against
was 9.3 during 1912, as compared with 11.2 during 1911.
It should be added that many of the samples purchased were
below the quality of the average milk supply of London, although
they were a trifle above the low legal limits which have been fixed.