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28
Dr. E. Seaton, Medical Officer of Health, County of Surrey.
The following micro-organisms were found:—
1. Several moulds.
2. Numerous spore-bearing bacilli.
3. A few colonies of streptococci, staphylococci, sarcinæ and proteus vulgaris.
4. A few bacilli morphologically resembling the bacillus coli communis.
Lord Milner, Governor of the Transvaal,
writing on the subject of the consignment of infected army blankets to Pretoria,
says:—
"Bacteriological examination, to which a number of blankets were subjected, has
"failed to disclose the presence in them of any of the recognised faecal bacteria,
"though they were stained with starchy patches, probably due to vomited matter.
"All the blankets have now been destroyed."
Chas. Powell White, M.D.
The following extract from a letter received from the Medical Officer of
Health of a northern county town illustrated the condition of some of these
blankets when received by purchasers in the country:—
"Those obtained by the-Blind Schools were handed over to me by them
"to be destroyed, for they were all more or less soiled. Fortunately they had not
"been brought into use, but had been reserved for possible camp use during the
"summer. Two or three were suspicious of excremental soiling ... We
"offered to steam disinfect them, but their condition was so repulsive that the
" Superintendent preferred to have them destroyed. The other batch of blankets
" had been sold to the-Asylum in the Rural District. I passed your
"communication on to the Medical Officer of Health of that District. I believe
"he found that the blankets had only been recently obtained, and when opened up
"had been found so filthy that they were at once destroyed.
"I myself saw blankets exhibiting unmistakable signs of hospital use. The
"very food—arrowroot-used by patients being identified."
In another case the Medical Officer of Health for one of the home counties
found marks of faeces and sago stains. It was further ascertained that in
many instances dealers in the country who purchased from sample declined to
accept delivery when the goods arrived, owing to their disgusting condition.
The Medical Officer of Health for a town in Kent wrote: "I have recovered
"them all, except one, which had been sold and cannot be traced. The rest
" I have had burnt, many of them being in a filthy condition.''
It should be mentioned, on the other hand, that in numerous instances the
goods when unpacked were found to be perfectly new, and had evidently
never been used, showing that the consignment was a mixed one.