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have occasion to present to you a special report on the subject, so
it will not be necessary for me to go further into the matter here.
Daring last year 16 cases of small-pox (males 9, females 7) were
reported in this district against 327, 266, 166,51 and 327 cases
reported in the five years 1877, 1878, 1879, 1880 and 1881 respectively.
From the absence of any deaths registered as occurring
in private dwelling houses, we may be sure that there were very
few cases treated at home besides the two that were reported. Of
the 16 cases reported last year, there were 5 in the parish of Hammersmith
against 82 in the previous year, and 11 in the parish of
Fulham against 245 the previous year. There can not be any
doubt that the great difference in the number of cases in the two
parishes was to some extent due to the late Small-pox Hospital at
Fulham. Still however, although the hospital is now closed, I
should expect a greater proportion of cases in the parish of Fulham
than in the parish of Hammersmith. The difference is due to the
large number of poor class inhabitants in the Fulliam Parish.
These 16 cases occurred in 11 houses in 10 streets. In
9 streets the outbreak was confined to one house in each
street. In one street there were two outbreaks, 6 cases occurred
singly in different houses in different streets. In 7 houses there
was only one case in each house. In 4 houses there was more
than one case in each house. Thus in one house there were three
cases and in three houses 2 cases in each house. Of the 16 persons
attacked with the disease 14 had been once vaccinated, 2 had
never been vaccinated. In one case it was stated that the patient
had been re-vaccinated. It was a very mild case and the patient
soon recovered. This is the only instance out of 1153 cases of
small-pox which have come under my observation in which the
patient was said to have been successfully re-vaccinated. The ages
varied from 2 to 54 years. The average age was 19 years. No
deaths have occurred. Of the total cases reported, 14 were treated at
hospitals and properly isolated, and two were treated at the residences
of the patients and not reported till after the recovery of
the patients. Your Board removed the 14 cases to hospitals, one to
the Western District Hospital at Fulham, and 13 to the South
Western District Hospital at Stockwell. The percentage of cases
removed to hospitals was 87.5 as compared with a percentage of 84.7
in the year 1880. Of the 5 cases in the parish of Hammersmith all
were removed to hospitals and properly isolated. Of the 11 in the
parish of Fulham, 9 were removed to hospitals and properly isolated,
two cases were treated at home. The number of cases
reported last year is too small for the comparative percentage of
removals in the two parishes to be of much practical significance.
In every instance in which a case was early reported and removed
to a hospital there was no second outbreak in the same house,
whereas in those instances where cases were not reported early
other persons contracted the disease in the same house.