View report page

30
favourable conditions that had prevailed during that period.
From October 31st to November 9th, inclusive, the conditions
of rainfall were very remarkable:—On October 31st there was
a heavy fall, on the following day the rainfall was nil, on the
next day there was another heavy downfall, followed by 24
hours of dryness, and so this daily fluctuation continued until
November 10th. Now this meant a marked fluctuation in the
level of sewage in the sewers and in consequence of this the
sewers were taking in, vitiating, and forcing out a large
quantity of air. The theory, however, did not harmonize with
the fact that evil smells from the ventilators had been markedly
in abeyance during the preceding fortnight, nor did it satisfy
the query as to why Hendon Lane should have been first
affected and should have suffered more than any other part
of the District.
It was impossible to accept the theory that any climatic
conditions could alone have been responsible for the outbreak,
although these had been sufficiently remarkable. In addition
to the excessive diurnal variations in rainfall the range in the
temperatures recorded during the preceding 3 weeks 2/3had been
36.9° F, the maximum daily range had been 1470 F, and the
humidity of the air had averaged 90.4% of complete saturation.
These atmospheric conditions, especially in the autumn of the
year and in a district naturally somewhat cold and damp by
reason of its clay soil, would be expected to give rise to sore
throat, and it undoubtedly did so—but the sore-throat under
investigation was something more than the sore-throat generally
brought about by those conditions and moreover it was at first
restricted to a small area of the District. For the latter reason
it was not judged likely that the excessive diurnal variations
in rainfall and the consequent fluctuations in the height of
the ground water, following upon a period of drought, could
have given rise to the outbreak by reason of the impure ground
air which was displaced by the rise and fall of such ground
water; and against this theory is the further fact that Hendon
Lane and its immediate environs forms a sloping area with a
clayey surface.