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323 are accounted for, having died; and 75 are otherwise satisfactorily
accounted for in other columns of the return. The actual
cases not accounted for are 221, or between 5 and G per cent. on
the total births. It does not follow that all of even this moderate
number remain unvaccinated, or indeed that they are living in the
parish at the present time. They are children as described in
column 10, "removed to places unknown, or which cannot be
reached, and cases not having been found." It must be allowed,
therefore, that so far as vaccination is a preservative against smallpox—and
it is nearly perfect when properly performed—the
state of infant vaccination in this parish gives us reasonable
cause to hope that any future epidemic will iind us far better
prepared than the last.
I am glad also to notice that the Guardians of the poor have
shown every disposition to carry out the provisions of the Act
with vigour, by instructing their Clerk to take proceedings in the
Police Court, upon the information of the Vaccination officer,
against parties who infringed certain provisions. In all these
cases convictions were obtained. They were as follow:-
A.B. An accoucheuse vaccinated a child and filled up the official
certificate form, which should be used only by a "duly registered
medical practitioner." Having expressed contrition for an unintentional
breach of the law, and promised not to repeat the offence, a
nominal fine only was inflicted.
C.D. for the same offence, was fined ten pounds, the Justice feeling
satisfied that he wilfully claimed to be what he was not, a " duly
registered medical practitioner."
E.P. was fined a nominal sum under a very important clause (10 of
the Amending Act), for refusing to allow the public vaccinator to take
lymph (under section 17 of the Act of 1867) from the arm of her
child, which had been vaccinated at the public cost.
The success of vaccination depends upon skilful operation and
the observance of precautions which give rise to results which only
qualified persons are competent to recognize. It is proper, therefore,
that the practice should be confined to those who have had
special instruction, and possess due knowledge of the subject;
hence the importance of the convictions in the two cases first
referred to, which may be expected to have the desired effect of
restricting the practice to duly qualified practitioners.
The clauses of the Acts referred to in the third case are of less
importance in citieS and large centres of population than in
sparsely populated districts, where arm-to-arm vaccination might
be put a stop to, by the selfish refusal of a parent to allow the
operator to take lymph from the arm.
Upon the whole, there can be no doubt that, at the present time,
infant vaccination is being carried out with a success perhaps never
before attained in this metropolis, a result largely due to the
appointment of vaccination officers, whose several districts cover
the entire area, and to a resolution on the part of the Guardians