London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
St George (Southwark) 1877
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Southwark]
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17
Annual Report of the Medical Officer of Health — 1877—8.
???ankets, 76 covers, 90 article of wearing apparel, and 93 sundries. Nina lota of articles
??? burned by the desire of the owners.
The number and the names of the articles, submitted for analyses, will be mentioned
Inspector Edwards in his report. I will for one moment refer to one of them, namely,
???lk. This substance is model food, prepared by nature fur the growth and maintenance
infanta. It is composed of water, casein, fat, sugar, and salts. These are mixed in due
???oportion, and which may be disarranged as well by abstraction as by addition. By
???imming off the cream, fat is removed, and fat plays a very important part in the system.
???e saline ingredients, the chief of which are phosphate of lime, and phosphate of mag???sin,
enter largely into the composition of hard, firm, well-formed bone. Examples of
???ir deficiency may be soon in ricketty children, with their deformed protruding chests
d their grotesque shaped legs, whereby instead of an active, elastic step, you behold a
???ddle. Those ailments may follow the addition of pure water only, and for the apparent
???ocence of which adulteration, I have heard apologies made, and the harmlessness of the
???defended. I need not here refer to the disastrous consequences which have followed
??? dilution of milk from impure water.
The Registrar General tells us, that the great mortality at Leicest e r was attributed to ???lk from cows, which had been supplied with w a t e r contaminated with sewage.
TABLE No. 9 .
| NAME OF WATER COMPANY. | TONS. | SAVEof WATER COMPANY. | tons |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1877. | |||
| Southwark Company—April | 32 | ||
| 28 | „ „ May | ||
| 29 | |||
| 27 | |||
| 27 | |||
| „ „ October | 29 | ||
| 27 | |||
| „ „ december | 30 | ||
| 30 | „ „ January | ||
| „ „ February | |||
No change has taken place in our water supply, or in its administration; although at
distant period some change seems inevitable. Proposals for such change have been put
march, but of so gigantic a character, involving alike vast expense, and universal disturb???
of roads and streets, that they will not, anyhow as a whole, I think be accepted.
The Rivers pollution Act now in operation, will tend greatly to keep the sources in a
??? of purity, from which many towns draw their water. Our once beautiful, bright,
???nless rivers, had been so blackened and defiled with nameless abominations, that instrud
* The Tons figured, are so many tons of impurity in 100,000 tons of water.