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mortality among aged people and among persons of all ages from
diseases of the respiratory system.
In the thirteenth and last period (49th-52nd weeks,
December 5th to January 1st, 1887) the rate of mortality was
again 16.3 per 1,000, being 1.9 below the decennial average, and
4.8 below the Metropolitan rate, this being 2.4 below the average.
The deaths from the principal diseases of the zymotic class were
16 (nine below the average), including 9 and 5 from measles and
whooping cough respectively. Scarlet fever was shewing symptoms
of decline at this period, the cases in hospitals at the end of the
year being 496, against 543 on November 6th, and 571 on
December 4th; whilst the admissions in the four weeks were 162
only, against 278 and 288 in the two previous four-weekly periods.
Neither in respect of cases or of deaths in Kensington was there
any excess recorded in my several monthly reports. The mean
temperature was 36°.4 and 2°.4 below the average, but notwithstanding
the increased severity of the weather, the deaths from
diseases of the respiratory organs (68) were not so numerous as
in the previous month, when they were 70, including 50 from
bronchitis.
THE ZYMOTIC DISEASES.
Before entering into details with respect to population, births,
deaths, etc., I propose to consider the sickness and mortality from
the principal diseases of the zymotic class, and subjects naturally
arising out of this topic.
The "Class" of diseases called Zymotic comprises, in the
Registrar's-General's arrangement of the "causes of death," six
"Orders." The first and second Orders ("Miasmatic" and
"Diarrhœa"), include the diseases which the Registrar-General
describes as "the seven principal diseases of the zymotic class,"
grouping, as he does, under the generic term "Fever," the three
distinct fevers, "Typhus," "Enteric," and "Simple Continued."
These zymotic diseases have a high interest for sanitarians, arising
out of the fact that they are admittedly of a more or less