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 Paddington]
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with the Registrar of Births it was ascertained
that 1200 persons had neglected to send certificates
to his office, as the law demanded, of the successful
Vaccination of their children. Upon inspection of
these cases of default, it was found that a large
proportion had already been Vaccinated successfully
by private medical men, but children's parents
had often neglected to forward the certificate to
the registrars, thereby incurring a penalty of 20s.
During the interval of time between registration
and inspection, a great many persons had removed
from the original place of residence where the
birth was registered, some of these had doubtless
been Vaccinated, and had neglected to certify ;
a small number of children had died; meanwhile
a large number of others were too ill, or represented
by parents as too delicate for the operation: lastly,
a certain proportion remained whose parents positively
neglected or refused to comply with the
Vaccination law. In all these two last class of
cases notices to obey the law were issued—requesting
within 14 days either to have the child vaccinated
and send a certificate to that effect, or to get
the medical certificate of the child's unfitness for
vaccination—before the expiration of the time
allowed a large proportion have complied with
the request; the remaining proportion, reduced to
a few, have been dealt with by enforcing penalties.
On the 23rd of June, J. Fowler was summoned at
Marylebone for refusing to have his child vaccina-