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89
ency Committee of your Board was called, when I laid before
them the facts of the case. I pointed out to them that an inevitable
destruction of human life would occur unless some prompt
action was taken to isolate these cases. I reminded the Committee
that I had forewarned your Board that the serious state of
affairs which then existed would come to pass, and I pointed out
to them that my advice had not been carried out by provision
in the way of hospital accommodation being made for the
isolation of cases which would require removal in this district.
The Committee, after visiting several sites, passed a resolution to
erect Hospital Marquees at the end of Imperial Road, in the
parish of Fulham. The order was given by your Committee on
April 27th, at 4 p.m., and the erection of it was placed in the
hands of your clerk and myself. A very large number of men
were at once employed, and telegrams were dispatched in very
many directions. The work was carred on by torch-light all
through the night, and at 3 p.m. the following day every thing
was in readiness, and the first patient was admitted. Altogether
there were 19 patients removed to these tents, 13 were discharged
cured and 6 died. Of the 6 that died, in one case the
patient was received two days after giving birth to a child, and
she died from exhausition, the result of secondary hcemorrhage
the second day after her admission. The child was attacked with
the disease a few days afterwards and died. In the third case
the patient was suffering from variole hoemorrhagica, an always
fatal complaint. The other three were cases of variola confluens,
the patients died from exhaustion. A great deal of public
agitation was made about the action taken by your Board, and
a mass meeting of the inhabitants was called with the view of
condemning the course you had adopted. It was rumoured that
the mob were going to pull down the tents. It was therefore
deemed to be necessary to call out about 120 armed police.
Fortunately a very heavy shower of rain fell at the time appointed
for the mass meeting to assemble. The inclemency of the
weather had the effect of cooling the mob, and the result was
that after having passed two or three resolutions in condemnation
of the action you had taken, the meeting terminated without
any attempt at violence
The Gas Light and Coke Company were not so easily satisfied,
but applied in the name of the Attorney General to the Court
of Chancery for an interlocutory injunction to restrain you from
using the end of Imperial Road, a public thoroughfare, for the
purpose of erecting a Hospital thereon. Your Board gave an
undertaking to the Court not to take more than 19 patients into