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105
of the medical man so called in are payable by the Council (in accordance with a scale
fixed by the Local Government Board and amended by the Ministry of Health),
which has power to recover them from the patient, her husband, or other person
liable to maintain her, unless it can be shown that such person is unable to pay the
fees. Owing to the difficulty of assessing the sums to be recovered, the Council, in
1921, adopted a scale of assessments graduated according to net income, after
allowing a deduction in respect of each maintainable child or other dependant.
From 1st April, 1922, to 31st March, 1923, the Council's expenditure under this head
was about £4,500, of which about £1,000 was recovered. The scale of assessments
was revised in 1922 in view of the fall in the cost of living.
Under section 5 of the Act of 1902, as amended by section 2 of the Act of 1918,
any adverse balance in the accounts of the Central Midwives Board is apportioned
between the councils of the several counties and county boroughs in proportion to
population at the last census, and the Council's proportion for the year 1922 was £625.
Notifications by midwives of intention to practise during the year numbered
796 ; of intention to practise for specific periods less than a year, 19; and of having
acted in specific cases, 14. There were 311 cases of puerperal fever and 838 of
ophthalmia neonatorum. Eleven inquests were held on women, and 73 on children.
Four prima facie cases of negligence or misconduct were reported to the Central
Midwives Board. In one of these the Board found that charges had been established
and removed the name of the midwife from the roll; in one case the Board found
the charges not proved; in one case the Board found certain charges to be proved,
but postponed sentence and requested the Council to report, at the expiration of
periods of three and six months, as to the practice of the midwife, and after the
receipt of such reports, decided to take no further action. In the remaining case,
the Board, being unable to get the essential witnesses to make statutory declarations or
to promise to be present at the hearing of the charges, adjourned the hearing sine die.
One midwife, whose name had been removed from the Midwives Roll by the
Central Midwives Board, applied for a certificate of the Council in support of statements
contained in an application for the restoration of her name to the Roll, and a
certificate was granted.
Early in 1920 model by-laws under section 26 of the Housing, Town Planning, etc.,
Act, 1919, with regard to houses divided into separate tenements were issued by the
Minister of Health, and on 27th July, 1920, the Council made by-laws based on the
model by-laws, and applied for confirmation of the same. Suggestions made by the
Mnister of Health as to the application of the by-laws are under consideration.
Houses
divided into
separate
tenements.
Censuses were taken by the medical officer, in continuation of those in previous
years, of homeless persons in order to ascertain the use made of common lodginghouses,
and the provision existing for the accommodation of persons of the poorest
class. The censuses were taken on a winter night, and the total number of homeless
persons found in the streets, on staircases and under arches were: February, 1915,
178; 1916, 44; 1917, 28; 1918, 9; 1919, 8; 1920, 51; 1921, 56; and 1922, 112.
Census of
homeless
persons.

Common
lodging
houses.

Seamen's
lodging
houses.
• One case was adjourned sine die, but defendant was cautioned against a repetition of the offence.
t The case was adjourned sine die, but if defendant did not carry out the necessary work at the
premises in due course the summons was to be reinstated.
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