View report page

82
of the lungs, and to the little fatality of zymotic
diseases at that time. The mortality in the first
quarter was 1132, in the second 734, in the third 887,
and in the fourth 779.
Inflammatory affections of the lungs, which caused
725 deaths in 1879, caused only 601 in 1880. It is
interesting to observe also (as bearing on the remarks
made in the last paragraph) that while in the former
year the deaths from these causes was in the first and
last quarters respectively 231 and 296, in the latter
year their mortality in the first quarter was 295, and
in the last 147 only.
Fatal diarrhœa is always a special characteristic
of the third quarter of the year; it is not remarkable
therefore that 223 deaths were attributed to this
affection in 1880, of which 196 occurred in the months
of July, August, and September. It will be recollected,
however, that one of the most remarkable sanitary
phenomena of the previous year was the low temperature
of these months, and the concurrent and consequent
lowness of the diarrhœal death-rate—the total
number of deaths from this cause in that year being
no more than 75, of which only 46 occurred in the
summer months.