London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
London County Council 1907
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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| Week ended. | No. of cases notified. | Week ended. | No. of cases notified. | Week ended. | No. of cases notified. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 5 | 1 | May 11 | — | September 14 | — |
| ,, 12 | — | ,, 18 | — | ,, 21 | — |
| „ 19 | — | ,, 25 | — | ,, 28 | — |
| „ 26 | — | June 1 | — | October 5 | — |
| February 2 | — | ,, 8 | — | ,, 12 | — |
| ,, 9 | — | ,, 15 | — | ,, 19 | — |
| „ 16 | — | ,, 22 | — | ,, 26 | — |
| „ 23 | 1 | ,, 29 | — | November 2 | 1 |
| March 2 | — | July 6 | — | ,, 9 | — |
| ,, 9 | — | ,, 13 | — | ,, 16 | — |
| ,, 16 | — | ,, 20 | — | ,, 23 | — |
| ,, 23 | — | ,, 27 | — | ,, 30 | — |
| ,, 30 | — | August 3 | — | December 7 | — |
| April 6 | 1 | ,, 10 | 1 | ,, 14 | — |
| ,, 13 | — | ,, 17 | — | ,, 21 | 1 |
| ,, 20 | — | ,, 24 | — | ,, 28 | — |
| ,, 27 | 2 | ,, 31 | — | ||
| May 4 | — | September 7 | — |
Five of the persons certified to have smallpox were subsequently found not to be suffering
from this disease. The only cases of actual smallpox known to have occurred in London during the
year 1907 were the following:—
One case in Greenwich, in February. The patient was an officer on board a vessel from Brazil,
which had landed a case of smallpox at Liverpool, before the ship arrived in the Thames. The officer
in question was removed at Gravesend, first to the Seamen's Hospital in Greenwich, where the case
was notified, and afterwards to the Denton Hospital. An engineer on board the same vessel was at
the same time found to be suffering from smallpox. He was removed direct to the Denton Hospital
from Gravesend, and is, therefore, not included in the London cases.
One case in Hampstead, in April. The patient was the manager of a shipping company, who
had contracted the disease in Madeira, or on the voyage home.
One case in Poplar, in August. The patient was a seaman on board a British vessel from which
he was paid off in Rotterdam, on August 2nd. He travelled to Poplar and sickened on August 4th.
London vaccination returns.
The following table shows the proportion of children born in each year who were not finally
accounted for in respect of vaccination. It will be observed that this number has, since 1898, been
gradually decreasing:—
| Year | Children not finally accounted for (including cases postponed) per cent. of total births. | Year. | Children not finally accounted for (including cases postponed) per cent. of total births. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1872 | 8.8 | 1889 | 11.6 |
| 1873 | 8.7 | 1890 | 13.9 |
| 1874 | 8.8 | 1891 | 16.4 |
| 1875 | 9.3 | 1892 | 18.4 |
| 1876 | 6.5 | 1893 | 18.2 |
| 1877 | 7.1 | 1894 | 20.6 |
| 1878 | 7.1 | 1895 | 24.9 |
| 1879 | 7.8 | 1896 | 26.4 |
| 1880 | 7.0 | 1897 | 29.1 |
| 1881 | 5.7 | 1898 | 33.0 |
| 1882 | 6.6 | 1899 | 27.7 |
| 1883 | 6.5 | 1900 | 25.8 |
| 1884 | 6.8 | 1901 | 24.1 |
| 1885 | 7.0 | 1902 | 21.3 |
| 1886 | 7.8 | 1903 | 20.7 |
| 1887 | 9.0 | 1904 | 19.1 |
| 1888 | 10.3 | 1905 | 18.9 |
The percentage of children born who were exempted by "conscientious objection" certificates
since and including 1898 has been as follows:—1898, 1.4; 1899, 1.0; 1900, 1.0; 1901, 1.1; 1902,
0.8; 1903, 1.0; 1904, 1.1; 1905, 1.2.
During these years, the proportion of children exempted by certificate of conscientious objection,
together with the proportion of children not finally accounted for in the several Unions, has been as
follows:—