The Sun.
London, England, 1868-07-29 00:00:00

THE PUBLIC HEALTH.

It appears from the return issued by the authority of
the Registrar-General, that in the week ending on Stur•
day, 4,384 births and 4,050 deaths were registered in
London and in thirteen other large towns of the United
Kingdom. The annual rate of mortality was 33 per 3,000
persons living.

The annual rate of mortality last week was 31 per
1,030 in London, 22 in Edinburgh, and 23 in Dublin ; 25
in Bristol, 38 in Birmingham, 37 in Liverpool, 40 in Man-
'chester, 35 in Salford, 39 in Sheffield, 40 in Bradford, 35 in
Leeds, 34 in Hull, 26 in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and 37 in
Glasgow. The rate in Vienna was 29 per 1,000 during
the week ending the 18th instant, when the mean tem.
perature was o'9 deg. Fahrenheit higher than in the same
week in London, where the rate was 27.

The mortality from diarrhoea shewed a further increase
during last week in nearly all the large English towns,
and was at the annual rate of 4 per 1,000 in Newcastle.
upon-Tyne, 6 in Bristol, 7 in London, 9 in Liverpool and
Sheffield, 10 in Manchester and Salford, 11 in Hull, 12 in
Leeds, and, highest, 14 per 1,000 in Birmingham. In
London the temperature in the shade rose to 96'6 deg.
Fahrenheit, and the mean temperature of the week was
69'2 deg., but there was no approach to these high
temperatures in the other towns, the highest recorded
in the shade being 91• G deg., and the highest mean
of the week 64'4 deg., both in Sheffield. It will be
observed that in the English towns the lowest mortality
from diarrhoea occurred in Newcastle, where the mean
temperature of the week was only 60'3 deg., and lower
than in any of the other towns. In London the births
of 980 boys and 1,023 girls, in all 2,003 children, were
registered in the week. In the corresponding weeks of
ten years 1858-67 the average number, corrected for
increase of population, is 2,062. The deaths of 945 males
and 940 females, in all 1,885 persons, were registered
in London during the week. It was the thirtieth week
of the year, and the average-number of deaths for that
week is, with a correction for increase of population, 1,575.
The deaths in the present return exceed by 310 the esti,
mated amount, and are more by 243 than the number
recorded in the preceding week. The deaths from zymotit
diseases were 800, the corrected average number being
631. Seven deaths from small-pox, 35 from measles,
47 from scarlatina, 10 from diphtheria, 45 from whoop-
ing cough, and 57 from typhus were registered.
Fifty-eight deaths by choleraic diarrhcea or summer
cholera were registered in the week ; 38 were children
under 1 year of age, 8 aged 1 year, 1 aged 3 years, 2 aged
5 years. 442 persons died of diarrhcea, of whom 353
were children under 1 year of age, 49 were 1 year
and less than 2 years, and 23 were of persons aged 20
years and upwards. What is required in cases of
diarrhcea or summer cholera, now frequent, is immediate
rational treatment. Neglect of the early stage in children
and in the aged is death. The people should be visited
and informed of this. The health officer of Manchester
has proposed special measures to meet the emergency, and
it will be satisfactory to learn that some such proposal is
adopted by the health officers of London and of all tho
large towns. Eleven persons died from sunstroke.

On Tuesday a failure was announced at Liver-,
pool of a foreign film who have men speculating in cotton
(of which they hold 8,000 bales), and whose liabilities are
expected to reach £150,000.

THE HOP CROP.—The Maidstone Journal states
that during the past fortnight general complaints have
been made of the state of the hop grounds in that neigh-
bourhood, and particularly in the Weald. The red spider
and the dry weather combined have brought grounds
which shewed a probable crop of 15 cwt. an acre to nearly
a total blight, and another week of the present weather
will entirely do away with any prospect of a crop. At
Staplehurst especially the ravages of the red spider have
been something extraordinary—indeed, throughout the
Weald, the prospects which seemed favourable, are now
gloomy. The Sussex Advertiser says the reports from the
hop districts are almost in one unvarying key. The con-
tinued drought has told upon the plant. It is stationary
or going backward, and the burr is falling off and the bine
becoming sickly and yellow. That is the almost universal
report, and everybody predicts that the estimate of the
crop made a week or two ago must be materially reduced.
COLLISION ON TIIE GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY.---
On Tuesday a collision took place on the Great Western
Railway, at a spot about a quarter of a mile west of
Reading Junction. It seems that a narrow-guage coal
train was standing on the up line when a broad-guage goods
train ran into it, doing damage to a considerable amount.
Both the up and down lines were completely blocked.
A number of men were at once sent to the scene of the
accident, but it, wr,s a work of about six hours
to clear the down line, the debris being so great, and the
wheels being jammed together. Fortunately no one N% as
hurt, and the passenger traffic was not much delayed, as
the trains were worked over the line first cleared, from the
west junction to the Reading station. The cause of the
accident is at present inexplicable, but it will no doubt
form the subject of inquiry. Mr. Besant, the divisional
superintendent, with Mr. Peach, the station-master, werq
quickly on the spot, and everything was done that eoull
be to clear the line with ps littlC delay as nossible.