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106
duced through the medium of old furniture or other articles which
had not been subjected to treatment before being taken into the
home.
Cyanide disinfestation of premises in this Borough is not
practicable because of the danger to the inhabitants of adjoining
houses, and in this connection the discovery of the insect killing
properties of D.D.T. has been of the utmost importance, and
spraying with preparations containing D.D.T. has now replaced
the earlier method of treatment by sulphur dioxide.
The effectiveness of the treatment in the cyanide chamber
led to the erection by the Council of two more such chambers in
order to deal with the increasing amount of disinfestation necessary.
It is interesting to note that the cyanide gas chamber erected in
Hackney was the first to be constructed in Great Britain for the
purpose of vermin destruction and that other municipalities have
since followed suit, using copies of the Hackney plans and specification
for the purpose. The cyanide chamber has been used not
only for furniture but also for the destruction of food parasites;
furniture mites, and moths; and for disinfestation of many kinds,
including clothing for re-sale or export to other countries in
connection with relief work.
The great increase in the cleanliness of school children is
borne out by the fact that whereas in 1920 treatments to school
children totalled 7,128, in 1950 the corresponding figure was
1,354, whilst scabies has similarly shown a remarkable reduction,
the comparative figures for this condition being 6,521 in 1920 and
234 in 1950.
War-time conditions resulting in overcrowding, the congregation
of people in shelters and difficulties in maintaining personal
cleanliness led to a considerable and progressive increase in
Scabies, there being 1,263 cases in 1939 and 2,924 in 1941; whilst
for the years 1939 to 1941 the total was 6,805. In 1941 it became
necessary for the Minister of Health to make an Order (Scabies
Order, 1941) under Defence Regulation 33A, giving local authorities
power to inspect premises in which persons found to be verminous
were or had been accommodated, to require persons who were or
had been accommodated therein to submit themselves for examination,
and to secure the cleansing and treatment of such persons
found on examination to be verminous and the cleansing, treatment,
or destruction of verminous articles. In order to deal with
the increasing number of persons requiring attention, bathing
facilities provided at the Disinfecting Station were improved and
extended.
The concern felt at the increase in verminous conditions
resulted in scabies being made compulsorily notifiable in 1943,