The Sun.
London, England, 1863-06-15 00:00:00

TM SUN, LONDON, MONDAY EVENING, JUNE 15, 1863 w

last month's escort returns give a total of 60,000 ounces,
and large quantities have been brought down by those who
have returned to Victoria. Last year, there was a general
exodus of miners about this period ; for it was believed that
to work during the winter was wholly impracticable. But
the Wakatipu and the Dunstan fields, then not known, in-
clude many essentially winter diggings—streams such as
the Clutha, the Bucklehurn, the Arrow, &c.—which are
truly such; where the climate is generally mild, and the
waters lower than during summer, so that the beds of the
stream can be attached. Then there is the Shotover, pro-
bably the most auriferous river ever yet discovered, and
which is on the Wakatipu field. There the attractions are
so great that hundreds of men have laid in huge stores of
flour, bacon, tea, sugar, and clothes, at fabulously high
prices, 3s. 6d. a pound for flour, for instance— and will allow
themselve s to be cut off from the rest of the world by rugged
ranges, most dangerous always, but even now utterly im-
practicable, because of slight falls of snow; their conviction
being that all will have enough to live upon, if they con-
trive to live and work till spring. How they will fare is of
importance to the hereafter of the province as well as to
themselves. All the progress yet made from Lake Wakatipu
into the ranges between it and the west coast show that the
real source of the gold supply lies there ; and fabulously
great funds are anticipated. With provisions cheaper,which
they will be after something like roads have been made and
settlements effected, every bit of ground yet worked in
Otago would pay well.
Miss Rye is still here. There has been plenty of discus-
sion about the girls who came with her, arising out of her
complaints respecting the utter want of decent accommoda-
tion in the Immigration Barrack, in which the " assisted
females " are lodged on landing. Most ungenerous
charges were made against Miss Rye and her protegees ;
but it was much as an electioneering dodge in connection
with Major Richardson's candidature; and the lady and
the girls had the best of it, to the thinking of all but a few.
Money for a new depot is sure to be voted as soon as the
Council meets, which will be early next month.
P.S. This morning we have news from the North which
seems to show that Matutaera (the King) is in earnest in
his endeavours to smooth the way for the ;occupation of
the Tataraimaka. The Governor's policy has been to iso-
late the intruding tribe, Ngatiruanui ; and " the King" in-
vited him not to take decisive occupation until after March,
when, if the Ngatirnanui are still obstinate, they will be
left to theirfate by the King, William Thomson, and their
adherents. The North, at any rate, seems to be hopeful of a
peaceful solution of this the leading difficulty. It will not,
however, do to lose sight of the lawless and hostile spirit of
other tribes, which has before been mentioned, and which
may at any moment cause a collision from the sheer im-
possibility of even the long suffering Sir George Grey pa-
tiently submitting to outrages.

Sanitary Condition of the City of London.

The following quarterly report relative to the
sanitary condition of the City of London, brought
down to the 28th March, has just been sent in to
the Commissioners of Sewers by Dr. Letheby, Me-
dical Officer of Health for the City :

To THE HON. THE COMMISSIONERS OF SEWERS OF THE

CITY OF LONDON.
Gentlemen,—The returns of births and deaths for the
winter quarter are greatly below the average. In the quar-
ter that has just expired the number of births registered in
the City was 800, and the deaths 803 ; whereas in the cor-
responding quarter of the last 10 years the average numbers
have been 901 and 841.

Of the 800 births, 441 were males and 359 females; and
of the 803 deaths, 395 were males and 408 females.
___

The distribution of births has been as follows :-338 were
in the Eastern Union, 228 in the Western, and 234 in the
City proper. These are in the annual proportion of 521 per
1,000 of the population of the first-named district, 341 of
the second, and 20.1 of the third--making together a pro-
portion of 28 per 1,000 for the whole City. In the corres-
ponding quarter of the last ten years, the average propor-
tions were 34.9 for the Eastern Union, 29'1 for the West-
ern, and 21.4 for the City proper—making a general aver-
age of 271 for the entire city. In all England, at this season
of the year, the annual birth-rate is about 36 per 1,000 of
the population. While, therefore, the City birth-rate is
much below the general standard for the whole country, it
maintains its average proportion as compared with itself in
former years. _ _

Of the 803 deaths in the quarter, 293 were in the Eastern
Union, 229 in the Western, and 281 in the City. These are
at the rate of 28.4 for the first •named union, 34.2 for the
second, and only 24.2 for the third—making together a pro-
portion of 28.6 for the ensire City. In the winter quarters
of the last ten years the average proportion has been little
less than 26 per 1,000 ; and in the whole of England, at this
season, it is about 24.8 per 1,000. The mortality, therefore,
of the City population, during the last quarter, has been
rather excessive, the chief increase having been in the poor
localities of the Western Union, where the death-rate has
risen from a general average of 30 in the 1,000 to 34.2.

The ages at death are classified in Table IL of the Appen-
dix. Three hundred and six, or rather more than one-third
of all the deaths, were among children of less than five years
of age ; and there were rather more than 42 per cent, of the
deaths under 10 years of age. In the Eastern Union the
proportion was nearly 55 per cent. These are the numbers
which have given so large an increase to the general death-
rate, for in former
.years the average proportion of such
deaths to the total number of deaths has been less than 40
per cent. At other ages the proportions have not been re-
markable-101 of the deaths, or about 12 per cent. of the
total mortality, were among persons of from 20 to 40 years
of age ; 136, or about 17 per cent., from 40 to 60 ; and 200,
or nearly 25 per cent., were among persons of 60 and up-
wards.

The chief causes of death were as follows :—Phthisis 90,
mesenteric disease and scrofula 42, hydrocephalus 27, con-
vulsions and teething 41, bronchitis and pneumonia 170,
continued fever 34, scarlet fever 37, measles 21, whooping-
cough 5:5, croup and diphtheria 7, diarrhcoa 7, small-pox 5
and erysipelas 5 ; making together about 19 per cent. of all
the deaths from tubercular diseases, 21 per cent. from in-
flammatory affections of the lungs, and nearly 19 per cent.
from diseases of a zymotic character. Nearly all these are
below the average numbers for the season, but a few of the
individual diseases have been in excess of the average;
tabea and scrofula, for example, have risen from an average
of 35 in the quarter to 42; hydrocephalus from 21 to 27;
scarlet fever from 19 to 37 ; continued fever from 28 to 34;
and the deaths from violence from 40 to 53.

Th 3 increase of the mortality from continued fever has
been chiefly in the Eastern division of the City, where the
number of deaths has advanced from an average of 11 in
the quarter to 18. In the Western Union the deaths from

have declined from 9 to 5; and in the whole of the City

the sickness from it among the poor has fallen from 138
cases in the quarter to 73—in fact, in the winter quarter of
lsst year there were 129 cases of fever on the sick books of
the medical officers of the City Unions.
The total number of cases of all kinds attended among the
poor during the quarter by the union medical officers was
but 2,262, whereas 'in the corresponding quarter of last
year it was 3,223 ; the average number for the quarter
being 2,867.
These facts may be in great part explained by the me-
teorology of the quarter ; for, while the mean temperature
has been almost constantly above the average for the season,
the atmosphere has been comparatively dry. During the
whole quarter, except the second and third weeks of March
the mean temperature for each week has been from 2.1 to
7.4 degrees above the average; and the mean temperature
for the entire quarter has been 42.5 degrees at Greenwich.
and 44.9 degrees in the City. This is about four degrees
above the average for the winter quarter the last 43 years. The
highest temperature for the quarter (61 degrees) was on the
3d of March, and the lowest (32.1 degrees) on the 21st of
February. The greatest daily range of the thermometer has
been-from 9.8 deg. to 17.9 deg. Very little rain has fallen
during the quarter,although the number of wet days has not
been much below the average. Instead, for example, of a fall
of 4.2 inches of rain in the quarter, which is the average of
the last five years, there has been but 393 inches. The
humidity of the air has, therefore, been greatly below the
usual standard ; it has ranged from 74 deg. of saturation to

97, but the average has been only 84.
The sanatory work of the quarter is shown in Tables V.
and VI. of the Appendix. It is thus expressed-1,689 houses
have been inspected, and 882 visits have been made to the
common lodging-houses of the City. These have resulted in
the issuing of 737 orders for sanitary improvement.

The markets and slaughter-houses have also been duly
inspected, and the officers have condemned 42,9761b5. of
meat and 729 head of game and poultry as unfit for human
food. The meat consisted of 284 sheep, 6 calves, 54 pigs,
252 quarters of beef, and 434 joints of meat ; 33,7741b5. were
diseased, 4,1351ba. were putrid, and 5,0671b5. were from ani-
mals that bad died from disease. All of it was sent to the
boilers and destroyed. _ .

In the course of the quarter two persons have been con-
victed of the offence of sending diseased meat to the City
markets. They are—
John Nicholson Halfhead, cowkeeper, Worship-street,
London, who was fined £5 and costs ; and
'1 homas Hewitt, butcher, Wisbeach, who was sentenced
to six months' imprisonment, and a fine of £25 to the Queen.
The quantity of meat condemned in the corresponding
quarter of last year was only 23,4581;)5. As in the preceding
quarter, therefore, the amount of meat condemned is above
the average.—l remain, &c. HY. LETHEBY.
41, Finsbury-square, May 20.

CITY OF LONDON HOSPITAL FOR DISEASES OF
THB CHEST, VICTORTA.-PARK —The number of patients
relieved at this institution last week was 1,372, of which
208 were new cases.

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