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8. To report to the Marine Department of the Board of Trade, without delay, any defect in cubic
space for the accommodation of the crew, the existence of scurvy on board ship or any
breaches of those clauses of the Merchant Shipping Act of 1867 that relate to health of crews.
9. To advise ship-owners with the sanction of the Sanitary Authority as to any defective sanitary
arrangements in their respective vessels and to consult with them, if requested, as to
remedying the same.
10. To be ready at all times to advise ship-masters as to sanitary arrangements afloat and
specially with regard to the water-supply, the state of the bilges, etc.
11. To examine and keep a record of all reports respecting examination of vessels handed in by
the Sanitary Inspector, to classify and summarize the same and to present them to the Sanitary
Authority at each and every meeting.
Similarly, the qualifications and duties of the Port Sanitary Inspector were set out in detail.
It is interesting in this connection that the first qualification required is "A general knowledge of
ships and seamen, to which end it is desirable that he should have had some service afloat". This
principle enunciated at the very founding of the Port Sanitary Authority has been followed so
that today generally London Port Health Inspectors hold their Master's Certificate in addition to
their public health inspector qualification.
The concluding remarks of this first half yearly report are noteworthy — "According to my
own knowledge and belief, no other part of the Public Health Act indicates greater and more
varied responsibilities than the section which relates especially to the Port of London. For it is
now acknowledged that, as a natural result of the insular position of the kingdom, and the vast
extent of our commerce, the sanitary condition of the shipping and of the floating population must
exercise a considerable influence on the health of the country, as regards the importation and
transmission of epidemic diseases. The opening of the Suez Canal, and the extension of the
railway system throughout the world, especially in Europe, has increased, year by year, our
communication with the East, where, as we know, cholera is endemic. This disease is fast
becoming endemic also on the Continent of Europe; and inasmuch as the metropolis is, by way of
the Thames, in almost hourly communication with Baltic and Mediterranean ports, the urgent
advisability of using all means to prevent the introduction of disease into this the largest port in
the world is sufficiently apparent".
Dr. Leach's reference to the opening up of sea communication via the Suez Canal and the
extension of land communication by the progression of railway systems can be paralleled in the
modern world by the new problems caused by the modern rapid communication with all parts of
}he world by air.
The first M.O.H. was as conscious of pollution of the Docks and River by industrial effluents
and sewage as his modern counterparts. He reported the existence of latrine and closet
outlets in the banks of the River as well as nauseous odours emitted from certain manufacturers
in or near the banks of the Thames. Three men were suffocated off Barking Creek in August, 1874,
by fumes arising from a cargo of a chemical nature, so the M.O.H. reporting that the law was powerless
to stop these nuisances recommeds an extension of powers granted under the Alkali Acts.
With regard to sewage we have his vivid description as follows —
"Having regard to the fact that there are in the docks a constant minimum average of two
hundred vessels with crews living on board, the sanitary work of the port cannot, in my
opinion, be thoroughly carried out without a staff of three dock Inspectors, and if an epidemic
of cholera occurred, a further increase would be, as a temporary matter, absolutely necessary.
For, it must be remembered that vessels in dock, with crews living on board, are placed
under very unfavourable sanitary conditions. The ventilation of deckhouses and forecastles
is frequently insufficient, the crews are often idle, and therefore more dirty than usual, a
great deal of carelessness sometimes exists as to the water-:supply, and, chiefest of all,
these men are floating, as it were, on cesspools of their own making, inasmuch as the contents
of all latrines and closets must of course flow into the docks. It is, however, satisfactory to
report that, as I hope and believe this serious evil will shortly be remedied, for I am now in
communication with the various managers of the docks, and the chief ship-owners concerned,
with special reference to this question".
In fact, the General Manager of the Victoria Docks and the Managing Directors of the P. & O.
Company made the necessary arrangements for the accommodation of Lascar crews on shore before
Dr. Leach's Report had reached the Committee.
The first M.O.H. was "up-to-date1' in practically all aspects of his duties. He had regard
"to the desirability of complicating commercial interests as little as possible" and also to the
fact that he could not at that time under any circumstances legally detain a vessel for any disease
other than cholera. He came to the conclusion "that reliance must be placed on the speedy and
proper examination of vessels as soon as possible after they have come to moorings". It may be
that he was ahead of his time and that we will go full circle and find we come to the same conclusion
in the not too distant future, even if for other and varying reasons. We may well conclude
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