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frequent house-to-house inspection has revealed the fact that the
majority of the houses are nearly always in a dirty condition, a
state of affairs which favours this disease.
Our investigations elicited the fact that all the cases in
the two roads mentioned occurred in the practice of two unregistered
midwives, each having three cases during the year.
It is unfortunate, in my opinion, that these women are allowed
to attend confinement cases. From the knowledge which I
possess of the women, I consider their practice must be a danger.
Bearing this in mind, one is reminded that we have an
Act of Parliament in force for securing the better training of
midwives and to regulate their practice, entitled the Midwives
Act, 1902. We have also a Central Midwives Board, formed
under this Act, who have power to regulate the issue of certificates,
the course of training for midwives, the admission of
women to the roll of midwives, and to regulate within due limits
the practice of midwives, and the conditions under which they
may be suspended. Then we have the local supervision of
midwives. In London this duty is deputed to the London
County Council, who have the power, which up to the present
they have not used, of delegating to the Local Authority the
powers and duties imposed upon them by the Act. One is
forced to admire the very stringent regulations made in regard
to registered midwives, but a great omission is made, in respect
of persons who do not apply for registration. The women
referred to in this report are never likely to apply to be registered,
nor, under any condition, would they be accepted. Therefore
they are enabled to continue their work without any interruption
or interference until the expiration of the period of grace fixed
by the Act, viz., April 1st, 1910. The Act states that "From
and after April 1st, 1910, no women shall habitually and for
gain attend women in child-birth unless she is certified under