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ROYAL INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC HEALTH: ANNUAL CONGRESS.
693 and Technical Instruction,
the necessity of medical
urged ROYAL INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC HEALTH: inspection of school children in Ireland. The medical ANNUAL CONGRESS. inspection of schools-which should be accompanied by a pressing need. From an anthropometric survey-was (FROM A SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT.) a national standpoint, however, it was not at bottom a of expenditure, but a question of bookkeeping. It THE annual Congress of the Royal Institute of Public question evil than was better to pay for the prevention of an Health was held in Dublin from August 15th to 21st, The State, rightly or wrongly, had made for its cure. under the presidency of Her Excellency the Countess oi itself responsible for the school education of its youth. Aberdeen. On two previous occasions-in 1892 and 1898-the Much of the money expended on education was wasted institute had met in Dublin, under the presidency of Sii to the physical unfitness of the scholars. This Charles Cameron. The work of the Congress on the present owing in a large measure be remedied by medical inspeccould occasion was divided into eight sections-viz., Preventive tion, and the vigour of the nation improved at the same Medicine, Chemistry and Bacteriology, Child Study and time. question was not one for educational adminisand Veterinary Hygiene, trators The Eugenics, Comparative Pathology alone. It was a matter in which the education Engineering and Architecture, Housing of the Working of public opinion and the cultivation of a "hygienic Classes and Town Planning, Municipal and Parliamentary, and Vital Statistics. There were, in addition, conferences of medical officers of health and port sanitary officers, and of sanitary inspectors. The meetings were all held in Trinity College, the rooms being kindly lent by the Provost and senior Fellows. The Housing Question. Out of the large number of subjects discussed two attracted special attention-the housing question and school hygiene. As there was a special section to deal with the housing question one would have expected to find the discussions on the subject confined to that section, but there was, however, constant overlapping, and the same subject was discussed before small audiences in two, three, or four sections. Three sectional Presidents chose the housing problem in Dublin as the subject of their presidential addresses, and a paper on the same subject was read in at least one other section. A paper by Dr. J. WRIGHT MASON of Hull, entitled " The Housing Problem in Industrial Centres and the New Housing Acts," was perhaps the most important contribution in the Housing Section. He compared the rates of mortality in cottage dwellings with those in large blocks and argued strongly in favour of the cottage system as preferable in every way. Sir LAMBERT ORMSBY recounted the history of a successful experiment on a small scale in Dublin for the housing of the very poor. Mr. C. J. MCCARTHY, the city architect of Dublin, showed the magnitude of the problem which has to be faced in Dublin. The Dublin Artisans’ Dwellings Company had erected 3600 well-planned dwellings, while the corporation had provided 1330 dwellings. Nevertheless, it would be understood that while they had still some 21,000 families occupying singleroom tenements the housing problem was very far indeed As to the direction in from having been solved. which a solution might be found, he thought that instead of attempting to provide working-class dwellings on the outskirts of the city and bringing the people in to their work they would have to acquire and clear large central slum areas. Portion of these would, he hoped, be converted into open spaces, playing grounds, and gardens, and on the other portions would be erected dwellings suitable to the requirements of the working population. They must abandon the idea that any really great and comprehensive reform of the housing of the people could be made remunerative in the ordinary sense of the word. The chief return for which they must look would be found in the improved health of the city and the increased efficiency of the workers. -
School Hygiene.
,
conscience " were prime essentials. Dr. E. MAGENNIS read a paper on "Visual Impediments to Learning,"and Surgeon-Colonel D E FLINN and others pressed for the establishment of day industrial schools.
TVater Supplies. Dr. A. C. HOUSTON (of the Metropolitan Water Board) discussed various problems concerned with water-sup-plies. He spoke of the process by which stored water purified itself from bacterial contamination, and thought storage more important than filtration. He suggested that. they had been over-estimating the dangerous qualities of unfiltered water as a constant factor, and under-estimating the necessity of shutting the door against the possibility ofaccident, and also placing an altogether delusive value on the effect of sand-filtration alone. He believed that in the future they would consider it unnecessary still further to " perfect filtration processes when dealing with "stored" waters, that they would have less dread of the evil qualities of unfiltered water as a constant menace, and that the main endeavour would be to guard against the possibility of accident, either before, during, or subsequent to, the filtration process, and so to deal with unfiltered water-e.g., by storage-as practically to nullify the effects of any sudden gross specific infection. Other Papers.-Social Events. Dr. E. J. McWEENEY read a paper dealing with the Role of Carriers in the Propagation of Disease, and another on Meat Poisoning. In the section of Vital Statistics two papers of special interest were read, one, by Sir W. J. THOMPSON, RegistrarGeneral, President of the section, on Vital Statistics of Ireiand from 1864 to the Present, and the other by Mr. D. A. CHART, on Public Health of Ireland from 1801 to 1911. Sit William Thompson showed that the death-rate from practically all the principal epidemic diseases had steadily fallen. The tuberculosis rate had altered little until within the past few years, when there was a slight fall. Influenza and cancer showed an upward tendency. In a general summary he stated that (1) emigration had enormously decrpased; (2) the birth-rate, notwithstanding emigration and a decreasing population, had remained almost stationary ;A (3) the marriage rate had increased of late years ; (4) the death-rate, after many fluctuations, was decreasing. Moreover, (a) the number of inhabited houses in Ireland had increased ; : (b) the number of houses being built had also increased ; . (o) the number of families had increased ; (d) the number of uninhabited houses had decreased. In addition to the sectional meetings there were, of course,.. many pleasant social events. There was all the more time-’ for these as the sections adjourned each day at lunch-time. The afternoons and evenings were spent in garden parties, receptions, dinners, and visits to places of interest. Faults in the organisation of the Congress gave rise to a good deal of grumbling. The overlapping of the work of the sections, already mentioned, robbed many of the discussions of their interest and influence. The official" Programme and Guide " gave no help to a memberwishing to know where and when a particular paper was to be read. Except in one section, that of Comparative Pathology, no time-table was issued. A member therefore had to take his chance of finding something of interest going on in whatever section he happened to visit. In future meetings the time given to the Congress might well be shortened, the number of sections might be diminished, and their wcrking hours
On the subject of school hygiene the most important contribution was that of Mr. W. J. M. STARKIE, the Resident Commissioner of National Education in Ireland. He dealt with the question of dental inspection of school children in Ireland. He learned from the teachers that practically all the older children were as regards their teeth in a desperate condition. With regard to school buildings he said that there were hundreds of school buildings which for sheer horror could not be equalled in any part of Europe. He referred to photographs of two in Donegal and said in his opinion children would be far better off if they remained at home without education than cooped up in such huts for four or five hours a day. If many of the schoolhouses were permitted to be hotbeds of disease it seemed hopeless to expect the State to make any provision for the care of the teeth. And yet he ventured to say that the health of the young should be the first interest of the public. Mr. GEORGE FLETCHER, of the Department of Agriculture lengthened.
the necessity of medical
urged ROYAL INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC HEALTH: inspection of school children in Ireland. The medical ANNUAL CONGRESS. inspection of schools-which should be accompanied by a pressing need. From an anthropometric survey-was (FROM A SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT.) a national standpoint, however, it was not at bottom a of expenditure, but a question of bookkeeping. It THE annual Congress of the Royal Institute of Public question evil than was better to pay for the prevention of an Health was held in Dublin from August 15th to 21st, The State, rightly or wrongly, had made for its cure. under the presidency of Her Excellency the Countess oi itself responsible for the school education of its youth. Aberdeen. On two previous occasions-in 1892 and 1898-the Much of the money expended on education was wasted institute had met in Dublin, under the presidency of Sii to the physical unfitness of the scholars. This Charles Cameron. The work of the Congress on the present owing in a large measure be remedied by medical inspeccould occasion was divided into eight sections-viz., Preventive tion, and the vigour of the nation improved at the same Medicine, Chemistry and Bacteriology, Child Study and time. question was not one for educational adminisand Veterinary Hygiene, trators The Eugenics, Comparative Pathology alone. It was a matter in which the education Engineering and Architecture, Housing of the Working of public opinion and the cultivation of a "hygienic Classes and Town Planning, Municipal and Parliamentary, and Vital Statistics. There were, in addition, conferences of medical officers of health and port sanitary officers, and of sanitary inspectors. The meetings were all held in Trinity College, the rooms being kindly lent by the Provost and senior Fellows. The Housing Question. Out of the large number of subjects discussed two attracted special attention-the housing question and school hygiene. As there was a special section to deal with the housing question one would have expected to find the discussions on the subject confined to that section, but there was, however, constant overlapping, and the same subject was discussed before small audiences in two, three, or four sections. Three sectional Presidents chose the housing problem in Dublin as the subject of their presidential addresses, and a paper on the same subject was read in at least one other section. A paper by Dr. J. WRIGHT MASON of Hull, entitled " The Housing Problem in Industrial Centres and the New Housing Acts," was perhaps the most important contribution in the Housing Section. He compared the rates of mortality in cottage dwellings with those in large blocks and argued strongly in favour of the cottage system as preferable in every way. Sir LAMBERT ORMSBY recounted the history of a successful experiment on a small scale in Dublin for the housing of the very poor. Mr. C. J. MCCARTHY, the city architect of Dublin, showed the magnitude of the problem which has to be faced in Dublin. The Dublin Artisans’ Dwellings Company had erected 3600 well-planned dwellings, while the corporation had provided 1330 dwellings. Nevertheless, it would be understood that while they had still some 21,000 families occupying singleroom tenements the housing problem was very far indeed As to the direction in from having been solved. which a solution might be found, he thought that instead of attempting to provide working-class dwellings on the outskirts of the city and bringing the people in to their work they would have to acquire and clear large central slum areas. Portion of these would, he hoped, be converted into open spaces, playing grounds, and gardens, and on the other portions would be erected dwellings suitable to the requirements of the working population. They must abandon the idea that any really great and comprehensive reform of the housing of the people could be made remunerative in the ordinary sense of the word. The chief return for which they must look would be found in the improved health of the city and the increased efficiency of the workers. -
School Hygiene.
,
conscience " were prime essentials. Dr. E. MAGENNIS read a paper on "Visual Impediments to Learning,"and Surgeon-Colonel D E FLINN and others pressed for the establishment of day industrial schools.
TVater Supplies. Dr. A. C. HOUSTON (of the Metropolitan Water Board) discussed various problems concerned with water-sup-plies. He spoke of the process by which stored water purified itself from bacterial contamination, and thought storage more important than filtration. He suggested that. they had been over-estimating the dangerous qualities of unfiltered water as a constant factor, and under-estimating the necessity of shutting the door against the possibility ofaccident, and also placing an altogether delusive value on the effect of sand-filtration alone. He believed that in the future they would consider it unnecessary still further to " perfect filtration processes when dealing with "stored" waters, that they would have less dread of the evil qualities of unfiltered water as a constant menace, and that the main endeavour would be to guard against the possibility of accident, either before, during, or subsequent to, the filtration process, and so to deal with unfiltered water-e.g., by storage-as practically to nullify the effects of any sudden gross specific infection. Other Papers.-Social Events. Dr. E. J. McWEENEY read a paper dealing with the Role of Carriers in the Propagation of Disease, and another on Meat Poisoning. In the section of Vital Statistics two papers of special interest were read, one, by Sir W. J. THOMPSON, RegistrarGeneral, President of the section, on Vital Statistics of Ireiand from 1864 to the Present, and the other by Mr. D. A. CHART, on Public Health of Ireland from 1801 to 1911. Sit William Thompson showed that the death-rate from practically all the principal epidemic diseases had steadily fallen. The tuberculosis rate had altered little until within the past few years, when there was a slight fall. Influenza and cancer showed an upward tendency. In a general summary he stated that (1) emigration had enormously decrpased; (2) the birth-rate, notwithstanding emigration and a decreasing population, had remained almost stationary ;A (3) the marriage rate had increased of late years ; (4) the death-rate, after many fluctuations, was decreasing. Moreover, (a) the number of inhabited houses in Ireland had increased ; : (b) the number of houses being built had also increased ; . (o) the number of families had increased ; (d) the number of uninhabited houses had decreased. In addition to the sectional meetings there were, of course,.. many pleasant social events. There was all the more time-’ for these as the sections adjourned each day at lunch-time. The afternoons and evenings were spent in garden parties, receptions, dinners, and visits to places of interest. Faults in the organisation of the Congress gave rise to a good deal of grumbling. The overlapping of the work of the sections, already mentioned, robbed many of the discussions of their interest and influence. The official" Programme and Guide " gave no help to a memberwishing to know where and when a particular paper was to be read. Except in one section, that of Comparative Pathology, no time-table was issued. A member therefore had to take his chance of finding something of interest going on in whatever section he happened to visit. In future meetings the time given to the Congress might well be shortened, the number of sections might be diminished, and their wcrking hours
On the subject of school hygiene the most important contribution was that of Mr. W. J. M. STARKIE, the Resident Commissioner of National Education in Ireland. He dealt with the question of dental inspection of school children in Ireland. He learned from the teachers that practically all the older children were as regards their teeth in a desperate condition. With regard to school buildings he said that there were hundreds of school buildings which for sheer horror could not be equalled in any part of Europe. He referred to photographs of two in Donegal and said in his opinion children would be far better off if they remained at home without education than cooped up in such huts for four or five hours a day. If many of the schoolhouses were permitted to be hotbeds of disease it seemed hopeless to expect the State to make any provision for the care of the teeth. And yet he ventured to say that the health of the young should be the first interest of the public. Mr. GEORGE FLETCHER, of the Department of Agriculture lengthened.