View report page

32
Vaccination.— During the year under report the
Register of Public Vaccination for the Eastern division of
the Parish of Battersea gives the following as the numbers
of persons successfully vaccinated or re-vaccinated:—
Successfully vaccinated 1462
„ revaccinated 464
Total 1926
The ignorant prejudice formerly existing against
vaccination seems to be disappearing in proportion as the
people are better taught, and consequently more capable
of comprehending the real protection afforded by vaccination,
and the chimerical nature of the imputations cast
upon the operation. Evidence of very decided character
is afforded by the Medical Superintendent of the Homerton
Small Pox Hospital, who, in his report upon the cases of
Small Pox admitted during the years 1876-77, shows the
following mortality: —
Unvaccinated mortality 53 per cent.
Badly vaccinated „ 26 „
Fairly vaccinated „ 2.3 „
in addition to which the odds are in favour of an unvaccinated
person taking the disease whenever exposed to the
infection, and are very much against a properly vaccinated
person becoming affected under similar circumstances. It
may be added that the reports of the other Small Pox
Hospitals afford similar results.
It should not be forgotten that a child or other
person may have been vaccinated, but the operation may
not have been successful, in which case it is obvious that
no protection can accrue. There are, unfortunately, a very
large number of persons inefficiently vaccinated, one or
two small vesicles only having resulted from the operation,
and it is from this class that cases of Small Pox in socalled
vaccinated persons are derived in an enormous
majority of cases. The other persons who are liable to