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(III.) Bounds Green Brook.—Owing to the generally
polluted condition of this brook, some suspicion at first fell
upon it, and the fact that of the first 15 cases which occurred
in the first fortnight of September 6 were children who had
been in the habit of paddling and bathing in the brook,
seemed to lend weight to this suspicion.
It was also borne in mind that on one or two occasions in
previous years this brook was suspected of being the cause of
the occurrence of cases of Typhoid Fever amongst children in
this neighbourhood. Then in 1901, out of 9 cases notified
from the whole district of Southgate, 7 occurred in New
Southgate; and, of these, 5 were children who were reported
to have paddled and bathed in, and, in one or two cases, also
drunk of the water of this brook.
Again in 1902, of 8 cases notified from the whole district,
4 occurred in New Southgate amongst children living in
Albert Street and Palmers Road, both close to the brook,
which, as previously stated, is a common playground of
the children in this neighbourhood.
It is possible that some of these 6 children of this present
outbreak may have derived the infection from this source, but
there is no evidence to show that it was the main or original
source of the outbreak. These 6 children, although early
cases, were not the first cases notified. The first 4 cases
notified, 2 of whom were adults, had not been near the brook
at all. Of the first 15 cases notified, these 6 children were the
5th, 6th, 8th, 11th, 14th, and 15th.
(IV.) Flies.— For the last 2 years the lower part of
New Southgate, in the hollow of the valley, has been infested
in the summer and autumn by swarms of flies, more especially
this year, when they constituted a great nuisance. Their
breeding ground is the previously mentioned dust-shoot.
Of the 44 infected houses, 40 were found to be swarming
with flies, and 33 of the houses were described as being
"dirty" or "in want of cleansing," thus encouraging the
nuisance.
Above the infected area, on the higher ground, the flies
were much less numerous.
Now these are the features which, in the history of this
outbreak, stand out very prominently before all others; they
are by far the most common factor shared by nearly all the
houses, over 90 per cent, of the infected houses being infested
with flies and 75 per cent, of them being dirty. The inference
that some very close connection exists between them and the
occurrence of the outbreak is very strong.