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The year under review was notable for the coming into
force of several important measures. Those which mainly
concern this County Borough are the Shops (Sunday Trading
Restrictions) Act 1936, which came into force on May 1st, 1937;
the Retail Meat Dealers' Shops (Sunday Closing) Act, 1936, which
came into force on the 1st January, 1937; the Housing Act, 1936,
which came into force on the 1st January, 1937; the Public Health
Act, 1936, which came into force on the 1st January, 1937; and
the West Ham Corporation Act, 1937, which came into force on
9th November, 1937
It is a matter for general regret that I have to mention the
deaths of two gentlemen who were most closely associated with
the health of the area. My predecessor, Dr. F. Garland Collins,
died on the 30th March, and the Council were thereby bereft of
the services of an officer who had served them in the capacity of
Medical Officer of Health for thirteen years. It would be invidious
of me to comment further on an event which is of such recent
date. I have also to mention the death on the 18th December,
1937, of Dr. Charles Sanders, who was Medical Officer of Health
of the borough for the long period of thirty-seven years. On his
retirement in 1924, Dr. Sanders received many testimonials of
the esteem and affection, not only of his colleagues, but also of
the members of the Council, of his staff, and of the public in
general. It may be said that Dr. Sanders was one of the ''Grand
Old Men" of public health, and his election to the Presidency of
the Society of Medical Officers of Health in 1917 was an expression
of the high regard in which his colleagues held his ability.
In a famous essay Walter Savage Landor once wrote:
"The present, like a note in music, is nothing but as it
appertains to what is past and what is to come." In this
report I have endeavoured to give comparative statistics for a
number of years, and I have explained in another place the
difficulties met with in acquiring this information. Copies of
reports of the Medical Officer of Health previous to the year
1900 are very scarce, and I have not yet been able to acquire
copies for the years 1887 to 1892 inclusive. From the monetary
aspect these copies are worth little, but from the standpoint of
anyone who is interested in vital statistics they are invaluable. If
any reader of this volume should happen to possess copies of
these early reports, I should be most grateful if he would communicate
with me.
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