London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

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Hackney 1861

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Hackney]

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4
accumulations most unpleasant. The Registrar General of Births
and Deaths observed, in his Report for the last Quarter, .that
fever, under various designations—typhus, typhoid, low continued
fever, and scarlatina—prevailed extensively in many parts of the
countryand he then enumerated a long list of places in which
they had caused an excessive proportion of deaths.
In one of my former Reports I pointed out the injury which
would accrue to sanitary proceedings, if too much importance was
attached to efficient drainage only, and too little to diet, clothing,
density of population, the internal condition of the dwellings of
the poor, proper water supply, and the immense influence exerted
on health by atmospheric variations. The experience of the past
year again shows the necessity of keeping up a regular and efficient
supervision of the interior of houses, of attention to diet, clothing,
and exercise, especially when the weather is unusually hot.
The details of the sanitary works having been laid before you
in the fortnightly Minutes, and in the printed Quarterly Reports,
I shall now submit for your consideration a general abstract of the
births and deaths, the ages at death, and the causes of death, which
have been compiled by me from the original returns.

TABLE I.

1861—Births in each Sub.district.

Quarters.Stoke NewingtonStamford Hill.West Hackney.Hackney.South Hackney.Totals.
First4635185277156699
Second6033220253130696
Third3528215278124680
Fourth3132198285131677
Totals17212881810935412752
Per Centages.Births6.24.629.839.719.7100
Pop.18617.96.629.237.818.5100

The births in the district have continued to increase, 2752
having been registered in 1861, against 2633 in 1860,2570 in 1859,