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72
The letter I addressed to the right hon. gentleman, in October,
was as follows:-
"Sir,—The Post Office has a salutary rule that no employe is to
be allowed on duty when infectious disease prevails in his family.
"I beg respectfully to submit for your consideration that it would
be for the public advantage that Medical Officers of Health should
receive immediate information of the occurrence of infectious illness
in the families of Post Office employes—for this reason, among
others, that in many instances the Sanitary Authority would be
able to remove the sick to hospital, and then, after disinfection of
the house, etc., the employe would be able to return to duty at a
much earlier period than is practicable when the illness is treated
at home.
"Notification of infectious disease would often operate to the
advantage of the employe himself, and I think, Sir, you will
agree with me, it would have done so in the following case:—
"John D-. residing at No.—, I field Road, is an auxiliary
letter carrier, who has been off duty since his daughter Agnes,
aged 7, was attacked with scarlet fever, on, or about, Sept. 8th.* A
second daughter, Laura, aged 5, fell ill September 12, a son, George,
aged 3, fell ill October 19, and a third daughter, Harriet, aged 15
months, fell ill Oct. 21. The son George and the daughter Harriet
died Oct. 23 and 28 respectively. I may mention that a daughter,
aged 7, of a lodger in the house, also fell ill Oct. 21, and died
Oct. 24.
"Had the existence of infectious illness in this house been reported
to me at any time during the month of September, the two children
first attacked might, and probably would, have been removed to
hospital, and three lives would have been saved. I will only add
(1) that the first intimation I had of the presence of scarlet fever
at No.—, I field Road, was on the registration of the first of the
three deaths, last week, and (2) that if a death had not occurred,
we might never have heard of the illness, and the house might have
remained infective for an indefinite period.
"I respectfully submit further, for your consideration, Sir, that
pressure should be put on the employes to send their sick to hospital
(it can be done free of charge), when, as in the above instance,
there is not 'proper lodging or accommodation 'to enable them to be
isolated and safely treated at home.
*I was afterwards informed that the nature of the illness in this first case was not
recognised, and that it was not until the second child fell ill that, a doctor having been called
In the illness was pronounced to be scarlet fever, and the father reported the occurrence to
his official superiors. The inaccuracy in my letter to the Postmaster General, however, does
not aflfect the argument, for if the two first cases had been removed within the first ten days
of October even, all would have been well.