The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1826-10-09 00:00:00

THE FEVER IN IItrDLIV.

[Frain the DiallinMorning fingistrr.l
Wednesday, pursuant to a requisition, a nseeting of the parish-
ioners of St. Catherine's was held in the Vestry Room of the parish
church, for the purpose of receiving the Report of the officers of
health, and to adopt such measures ar may be deemed effectual for
the relief of the distressed and sick poor of that pariah. At twelve
o'clock, the Rev. Mr. Mwsox, one of the Curates, was called to the
Chair.

Mr. SPARROW Alien read the Report of the proceedings of the
Officers of Health, who had been appointed bg the parish on the
29th of August last. It appeared that upon applying to the Com-
mittee of the Fever Hospital for accommodation for the fever cams,
it was stated in reply, that there were 420 patieriti in the hospital
the 14th of September, though it usuaily accommodated but 120.
The balance which remained in the hands of the t.easurer appointed
by the Officers of Health amounted to 11. 12s. 104 d.
Mr. PHR LAX said, that throughout the Liberty the people were
out. of enspiment, and the fever was raging to an alarming degree
Whole families, save been sent to the hospital. In one instance •
fatbes sedesodier have been sent, together with seven children ; in
other ismaeces the psleu.s have been sent with six and with four
chain&
• The Int iiiekeion alas then read—to the effect, tiro the epide-
eerie b 'rending with alarming rapidity, and that there seems to be
so probability of its decline:
Dr. Coaatoas sad, before they passed the resolation, it would
be
_Prom* to state the grounds upon which it was founded. The
Officers bf Health had complied with the Act of Parliament, by
employing the measures which it authoriz-d them to resort to. It
was evident that these measures had failed in checking the progress
of the epidemic. Though bills had been distributed calling on the
poet to send in the names of the sick to the Officers of Health,
these notices were seen by very few of them. It appears from the
remelts on the park* books, that in September 1816, the fever eases
amounted to 00—in September 1817, to 110—anti in last September,
his .(Dr. Corrigan's) average *as 300. He wits confident he was
under the number. •
Dr:MAaets said the number was considerably underrated.
Dr. Conalosw proceeded to say, that this average had been
made up from some of the streets and lanes immediately, adjoining
the church. He had not inspected more than one-third of the
parish. In some iostanees there were eight, or ten; or twelve indi-
, withal, in one room, ill of fever, and nothing but straw to lie upon !
He has seen a poor. woman in fever lying on the floor, and covered
slily with a bit of sacking. Poverty and disease, indeed, prevailed
throughout the parish to a frightful extent.
Dr. .11 AGEE, senior Physician to the Sick Poor Institution,
Meath-street, expressed his concurrence in what had fallen from
Dr. Corrigan. The names entered on the books of the Sick Poor
Institution during the last month of his attendance amounted to
392. This was the number entered, but generally where one name
is put down, there are live or six individuals in lever in that house.
He might then safely assume that he had attended upwar.ls of 600
individuals during the last month in that single district. With re-
spect to hospital accommodation, that was entirely out of the ques-
tion. At the commencement of the epidemic, a deputation, of
which he, Dr. 3lagee, was one, was sent up to the Castle frian the
Exchange Committee, to apprize Government of the matter. They
were told by Mr. Goulburn that the Lord Lieutenant had issued
orders to the Board of Health to take immediate measures
to arrest the progress of the epidemic. That Board of Health, he
would now say, have been guilty of the grossest neglect, and have
incurred an awful responsibility. (Hear, hear.) Instead of taking
immediate measures to stop the epidemic. they met once a week for
about six weeks ; and what was the result ? They erected certain
sheds for the accommodation of the fever patients. These, he un-
derstood, will tom the public 1,6011/. Their erection occupied more
than six weeks. These sheds were obviously unfit for the reception
of fever patients. The poor objects who were there exposed to the
air and cold. when they came out cured of fever, became martyrs
to rheumatism. This was not surprising, as those tents were
formed of gauze canvass. A great delusion prevails amongst the
public respecting the utility of whitewashing. Lime has no
power to controul the progress of fever ; its effect is to deteriorate
the air by attracting its oxygen. For instance, there is a lime kiln
yard In Meath-street, where the houses are covered with the dust
of quick lime; yet this place has been a nest of contagion and
disease. There are only four houses in it, and 40 or 50 cases have
occurred in them. In the Liberty there were upwards of 3,000 ill
of fever. He would suggest that a Committee be appointed by
this meeting to co-operate with the Committee of the Sick Poor In.
stitution, in devising measures for preventing the spread of the
epidem;c.
Dr. ST LEVENS, another of the Physicians of the Sick Poor In-
: stitution, said it was impossible to conceive the horrors which he
had witnessed. Within the last two days he found a poor creature
with her body only protected from the cold floor by a few shavings.
The hospitals increased the epidemic. The moment the patients
t there became convalescent. they were discharged, to make room for
others. In two or three days they relapsed, and spread the fever
.1 among their families. The best measure this meeting could adopt
was to co-operate with the Sick Poor Institution, and cell upon Go-
vernment for assistance.
Doctor CORRIGAN' said, that their application to the Board of
Health had been of no avail.
Mr. BIRCH said, he, as one of the Officers of Health, had
w..ited on the Board of Health, who took very little trouble about
the matter.
Previous to the passing of the next resolution, Dr. Corrigan ad.
dressed the meeting, and detailed at length the rise and progress
of the epidemic, which has at intervals, during the last twenty
years, visited this metropolis. In the year 1804 the Fever Hos-
pital of Cork-street was first owned with eighty beds. So sanguine
were the Committee under whose superintend:nce it had been
erected, that it would check and extinguish the epidemic then ex-
isting, that at a public meeting, it was resolved as soon as fever
ceased, that the Hospital should be handed over to trustees, to be
disposed of by them, and the money appropriated to the use of the
poor. Instead of those hopes being realized in 1808, it was found
necessary to increase the beds to 180. And now it appears that
there are 400 patients in that Hospital. It may be safely assumed
that double that number, namely, 840, are received in during the
month. This would give an annual average of 10,000. It appears that
there are 1,400 at present in the different fever Hospitals in Dublin.
I The epidemic istherefore making great stridea, and if no better motives
I urged the richer classes to exert themselves to check this fever, they
should be prompted to do so by a feeling of selfishness. It should
be remembered, that the ravages of the last epidemic reached the
upper walks of life, and the mortality there was far greater than in
the hospitals. It was one out of every two. This consideration
should arouse the public to call on the Government for assistance.
The present epidemic was proceeding like that of 1818. and as
winter approached, the typhoid type was becoming every day more
general. He had seen, within the last few days, several cases of
fever with petecitim.
Dr. MAGEE observed he had seen a great number.
Dr. Coitatoaw proceeded to remark, that it was commonly hue.
glued that cold weather checked the epidemic ; nothing was more
erroneous. Ile concluded by impressing on the Meeting the neces-
sity of making exertions to remove the causes of fever, by giving
the poor food and fuel.
It sou then moved and carried, that a Committee should be ap-
pointed to devise measures for obtaining wholesome food for the
poor, and that the Committee be requested to co-operate, If it
should seem advisable, with the Committee of the Sick Poor In-