Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Limehouse]
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knowledge, which one at a distance cannot be supposed to possess, and
which with a contentation of facta that cannot be shaken, have conspired to
produce but one result.
Mr. Radclifle begins by tracing the Cholera to its eastern and continental
origin— alludes to some sporadic cages in different parts of England—
then goes rather fully into the first cases at 14, Priory Street, Bromley.
Hedges and his wife, it appears, went to Greenwich Park on the Sunday, and
returning, just without the precincts had a pint of ale. On Monday they
visited a travelling circus at Stratford, and on the testimony of a son and
daughter, who were not very likely to exaggerate, are here said to have had
only half-a-pint. The origin of the disease fatal to both, is admitted to be
obscure. The Commissioner is of opinion that" they swallowed the poison
not minding however to say of what kind, But from the habits, &c., of the
parties, in this slight sketch, it may be strongly susj ected that it was not a
water poison.
At page 287 he observes " that the history of the outbreak over the
metropolis in the succeeding fortnight aa already given, shews that Bromley
was not the sole centre of the early activity of the poison, but that the
epidemic quickly declared itself in several widely-separated districts."
He next enumerates " the conditions intluencing the progress and distribution
of the outbreak in commenting on which, it will be more satisfactory,
in every way, to place Mr. Radcliffe'a views and mine in parallel
i» *
columns.
Mr. Radcliffe's Statements.
METEOROLOGY.
That temperature and meteorological
changes played a very subsidiary
part in the great development
of the epidemic a very few
momenta' consideration will shew.
So far as predisposing the individual
to the disease was concerned,
their influence was not limited to
any part of the metropolis. So far
as exaggerating the noxiousness of
REMARKS.
We are in the habit of talking
about Meteorology as though in relation
to sanitary matters it was
really understood. There is everything
to learn in this science. The
great East District, with the worst
reputation for filth, &c., up to the
period of the Cholera explosion, is
frequeutly more exempt from certain
noxious zymotic diseases than