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"aspect like the colonies of B. Gaertner or typhosus, but were cylindrical, very
"motile bacilli that gave more or less distinct indication of agglutination. Sub"cultures
in the different media was then made, with the following results":—
"Five could be discarded because they failed in one or the other test : A
"neutral red broth culture, Lactose peptone culture, litmus milk culture,
"gelatine streak and gelatine shake culture, MacConkey fluid culture, phenol
"broth culture.
"The sixth gave positive test in all of these until the fourth day, when
"slight liquefaction of the gelatine set in.
"The seventh lias so far complied with all tests characterising B. Gaertner.
"This Sample VI. contained, therefore, the B. Gaertner, or at any rate a
"microbe indistinguishable from it.
"From the above analyses it follows that none of the six samples have been
"sufficiently heated, and are therefore unsafe, inasmuch as the interior of the
"cockles contained abundance of microbes in a living state, which, like B. typhosus,
"are killed by temperatures far below the temperature of boiling water. In this
"respect, Samples I., III., IV., V. and VI. are particularly to be condemned as
"unsafe.
"E. KLEIN."
This is by no means the first time that Leigh cockles have been unfavourably
commented upon. They have been for years, and still are, a continued
menace to the public health, but in the absence of any adequate legislative
powers, the only thing that can be done is to exercise a constant supervision
of the methods of the men engaged in the local industry.
In my Annual Report for 1902 will be found an article dealing with this
question, and in which I strongly condemned the disgusting practice of
relaying cockles in Leigh Creek, which directly receives the effluent from the
local sewage works in addition to the discharge from drains at the waterside of
the town.
That enquiry had been instituted owing to some cases of Enteric Fever in
Wandsworth, where there was strong evidence that implicated cockles from
this place.
In June of the succeeding year (1903) there was a recurrence of this evil,
and four samples examined by Dr. Klein showed evidence of sewage contamination,
and that in the process of cooking the temperature had not been
raised sufficiently to ensure destruction of sewage bacilli. This showed
clearly the impossibility of relying upon any arrangement with irresponsible
fishermen to carry out precautions necessary to protect the public health.
That this view was correct is evidenced by the foregoing report of Dr. Klein
on the samples taken in June last in connection with the Enteric Fever cases
reported from West Ham-