View report page

64
Health of the District during the June Quarter.
The three months of exceptionally cool damp summer
weather has been far more favourable to health than a
more normal dry hot season. The death and sickness rates
have both been unusually low. Scarlet fever threatened to
rise in the second week of June, but rapidly subsided and
the curve opposite page 66 shows a general course below
the average of the previous ten years.
Returns of Births.
The Council, on the recommendation of the Public
Health Committee, have resolved to obtain from the
Registrars, not only the bare numbers of births, but also the
details of residence and occupation. The new departure
will enable the officers of the Local Authority to reduce
still further infant mortality. In relation to this subject,
the "Infant Consultations," inaugurated by the St. Marylebone
Health Society in conjunction with the public
dispensaries in St. John's Wood and Welbeck Street, are
now in full operation.
Sale of Food and Drugs Acts.
(See Table II.)
241 samples, under the Sale of Food and Drugs Act,
were submitted for analysis. The full list is tabulated
(Table II.) page 66.
Of 60 samples of milk 11 were adulterated, either being
deficient in milk fat or diluted with water or both. There
were no preservatives found or colouring matter. In 27
cases there was more dirt in the milk than ought to occur
with clean methods of dairying. From a public health
point of view, dirty milk is more serious than skimmed or
diluted milk.
In 3 samples of butter small quantities of boric acid
were found. In one case margarine was sold as butter.
Owing to an investigation by the Local Government
Board on the presence of lead and arsenic in commercial
tartaric acid, seven samples of the acid were obtained locally,
lead was found to be present from .0018 to .0035 per cent,
quantities too small to affect health. The samples did not
contain any arsenic or copper.