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37
PUTNEY AND ROEHAMPTON.
Of the several duties attached to the position of a Medical
Officer of Health, that of periodically reporting on the
hygienic resources, &c., of his locality, is one of the most
important; and it may be remarked that the investigation
necessary for the due fulfilment of this duty, will generally
acquire an additional interest, when in the results
disclosed there is found — as it is hoped is the case in this
report—some evidence of real and unmistakable progress.
The year 1867, unlike that of the preceding one, happily
passed over without the occurrence of any serious epidemic,
and, moreover, did not necessitate the adoption of any
special or extraordinary measures of precaution. It will
be quite unnecessary, therefore, to occupy so much space
as ha some former reports, in commenting upon the sanitary
experiences and events of the period. The statistics embodied
in the appended tables may indeed, to a greater
extent than usual, be suffered to speak for themselves, and
if duly compared with those in previous reports, will, it is
believed, alone afford no slight evidence of the steady
advancement that is being made in this Sub-district in
everything that is calculated to promote both the social
interests and the sanitary welfare of its inhabitants.
Increase of Population—Death-rate—Birth-rate. — The
increase of population, calculated upon a due consideration
of the excess of births over deaths, and especially of that
addition which may be fairly attributed to immigration,
is found to be much greater in 1867 than during any
similar period within the past 12 years.