The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1881-02-08 00:00:00

DORCHESTER TOWN COUNCIL.

Ni=

THZ HRALTH OF TSB BOROUGH.

The Medical Officer of Health presented his annual
report on the general health of the borough during the
Past year. It was a most exhaustive report, and the
following statement will contain the matters of
general interest referred to :
Berme inspected systematically. with and without your
Inspector, the whole of the borough. Ind "pt m/sell
Informed of the Millennia which might efect injurious')
the public heath therein, 1 beg 0,, held you this, my
annual report for the year 1881), respecting the origin and
distribution of diseases. 1 em of opinion that one bad
C 155 of typhoid fever In Fordington was due to drinking
water from an old wet which is used for culinary
purposes in the same neighbourhood; there wens two
other mildeecesee which originated from inhaling horrible
smells, emanating from • hasp of decomposing matter,
proper precautions having been at once taken, the further
Spread of the disease was prevented in this particular
street, in which It might have destroyed many Uvee, being
by far the most unhealthy and most densely crowded spot
In your borough; one other cam was treated in the
hospital, but no deaths from this dews have been
re
In the newly-built Orchard-strest there have
been three {bathe from scarlatina, and his complications
during July, brought on by settling out of doors too soon
after recovering from the fever; fumigation, disinfection
of the walls of the room, he, prevented the occurrence of
any other cues, if we except one child under live years of
age. The deaths due to diarrhea and Its complications
were 10 in number, and were ell under one year of age; of
the other children attacked, only one under fire years of
age recovered. There were five cases of measles, which
terminated fatally, the oldest being two yeah of age
One fatal ease of whooping cough, ollowed by oonrubdcns,
occurred on June 25,h, the subject being a little girl one
year old. In the County Hospital one chill died of croup,
after every means had been resorted to in order to save
the life. Amongst the chief sanitary rasters that have
been done may be mentioned the following ;—Fifteen
pig-styes have been so altered as not to be injurious to
health; Ave entirely removed, being too close to dwelling-
houses ; 10 drains have been put in order; two have been
trapped; three oases of over crowding have been abated—
in one case I found, on measuring, only 247 cubic feet for
each person, which is ilea than half the minimum allowed
for soldiers; boiling up of refuse prevented; seuninin-
tions of decaying animal and vegetable meter taken
away attar 24 hone' notice, besides some 1,580 loads of
refuse carted away by the scavenger; one slanghterhous%
not tape a• it should be, greatly improved, ko. Total
number of births, 243(108 males, 135 females) ; registered
thee t Ist queer, 78(38 males); led, 68(08 melee); 3rd.
46(24 make) ; 4th, 61(21 males • 41 being born alive In the
Holy Trinity parish, 14 boys ; Si. Peels, 16 boys ; 25
In All Saint's, 9 boys; 83 in Bast Foedington, 39 boys; 59
In West Fordingteni._3o boys; lashing 142 619 boys)
Gil ln
Fordingtou and 191 bore) In Dorchester; thus it lbe
seen the births exceed the deaths by Mt giving • birth-
rate of 32.4 per 1,000; respecting the 141 deaths (84 males
and Li 7 fema), 19 occurred in Hely Trinity. wish, 24 in
Peter's, 14 All fient's, 47 in East Fordii. 24 in
West Fo and LI Is the hospital; thorn in West
Forth ode the five deaths in the R.H.A.
Barracks, also the two who died in the new Infantry
Depot—a young soldier of consumption, aged A and •
male infant of five months (iliarrhoss and oourWlion2):
and in St Peter's the inquest held on the body of a
woman who died in EL IL Prison, in December, free
chronic disease of liver; there was another inquest over
the body of • young man in All Saint's parish, who cow
niiitnd suicide by hanging himself to the balusters; both
cams were the result or drink ; bronchitis caused 18 tenths ;
heart Amass, 13 (in 7 of thee dropsy supervened, consump-
tion, 12; old age, diarrboi I, each 9, he.; the population being
at 1ea5t7,435 (census 1871.6,915) gives • death-rate of 181 per
I,INU. No less than 60 of the children died bef are attes-
ting 5 years of age, and 49 of thaw died under one year,
showing 196 per 1,000 as the rate of infant mortality,
which is much higher than it should In--in other weds
very nearly one in every five died before they were •
twelvemonth old. This, however, is hirer than the rate
of mortality amongst French children (211 per cent.).
This high rate I attribute to artificial feeding, to the
densely crowded district of Fordington, surrounding Dor-
chester, causing so many oases of fatal dientre• above
referred to, for 31 we deduct the deaths of these 37 infants
who died in this particular district we have a very low
rats—only 48 per 1,000 MI the rate of infant mortality for
all the parishes of Dorchester combined. Two new
slaughter-houses have been duly licensed. After my in-
spections, making a total of eight, the cowsheds I have
often visited to prevent diesels being spread by the
agency of milk. Having appended the forma 11 and B.
containing the deaths and new cues of sickness in your
borough during the past twelvemonth for your perusal,
and sent • copy of this report to the local Government
Board, I beg te remain. gentleman. yours most obediently,
E. J. Day, F. 0.5., Ik., Medical °Moor of Health.—llls
Worship the Mayor and Corporation of Dorchester. Feb.
Ist, 188 L