SMALL-POX AND VACCINATION.

531 matter of water supply; and if, locally, doubt is still held as to the possibility of danger arising a cemetery in the intended position, the present is the time for exhaustive

fee for the burial of the bodies of all newly-born infants, whether they shall have been stillborn or survived their birth. In the Portsmouth case, the midwife present at the birth was the person charged. Though she saw the child born living and surviving its birth one hour and a half, she gave a certificate of stillbirth, and succeeded in getting it buried as such. It would also appear that this was a usual practice with her, and that the official in charge of the Mile-end Cemetery at Landport was entirely ignorant of the provisions of the Act of 1874. According to his own statement he buried, at a rough guess, from 100 to 120 bodies of infants every year without medical certificates oi the requisite declaration. This is a circumstance calling for an inquiry from the Home Secretary. It is needless to point out the terrible effects of such a loose system of burial, and we note with satisfaction that the defendant was fined £3, or in default a month’s imprisonment. The magistrates also expressed great dissatisfaction at the entire ignorance of the provision of the Act shown by the official of the cemetery, characterising this loose manner of burial as most reprehensible. Copies of those clauses of the Act which relate to the burial of infants ought to be in the hands of every official in charge of a burial-ground, and should also be placarded on the office wall, for the benefit of midwives and others who are ignorant of the Act and its penalty clauses.

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inquiry by some skilled geologist who has made the subject of water supply a special study. Under any circumstances, Dr. Gourley will have the satisfaction that his attitude has secured the consideration of a number of reasonable doubts, and that it has enabled those doubts to be dealt with before it had become too late.

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WEST HARTLEPOOL CEMETERY AND POSSIBLE WELL POLLUTION. THE proposed extension of the cemetery at West Hartlepool has given rise to fears that pollntion of the public water supply might result if it were carried out; and Dr. Gourley, the medical officer of health, has expressed apprehensions as to this. He has explained that the water supply is drawn from a well in the magnesian limestone, situated about 400 yards to the eastward of the proposed extension, the depth of the well being some 200 feet, and the level of the water having been reduced by pumping ; and he has stated that there are apprehensions of danger of the infiltration of putrid animal matter into the well, and hence serious risk of dangerous contamination of the public water source. Amongst other matters, he has further pointed out that the land between the proposed cemetery extension and the water-

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SMALL-POX AND VACCINATION. A REPORT of Dr. Mumby, medical officer of health for Portsmouth, has met with some local criticism for the reason that it contains photographs illustrating the appearance of a vaccinated and unvaccinated person respectively when suffering from small-pox. Distasteful as the illustrations may be, they honestly show the disease in its two forms. The opponents to vaccination undoubtedly meet with success because small-pox is rarely seen at the present time by the majority of English people, and its terrors have therefore ceased to havethe influence which they possessed in pre-vaccination days. If opponents of the Vaccination Acts could be made to see in small-pox hospitals the terrible disfigurements from this disease which result when unvacci. nated persons are attacked, their objections to vaccination would receive a rude shock. What small-pox can do in an unvaccinated community may be learnt from the story which is told concerning Morocco. It is stated that some twenty thousand people have fallen victims to this disease; in a single town, Rabat, thousands are believed to have died, the panic-stricken people flying in all directions from theinfected district. When it is considered how gladly these poor creatures would avail themselves of the protection afforded by vaccination, it is painful to read that at Luton the guardians are refusing to enforce vaccination, and have returned a discourteous reply to the Local Government Board, who had called their attention to the fact that less than half the children had been vaccinated who had been born in that district during the period from July to December last year. Unfortunately, the Luton board are not exceptional, for we learn that the Gloucester board of guardians have also adopted a resolution that there should be no prosecution of nearly five hundred persons who had neglected to have their children vaccinated.

works has been made up with refuse material, in itself dangerous to health. Mr. R. E. Middleton, Mem. Inst. C. E., WOOLWICH AND SANDHURST. has in consequence dealt with the matter at some length, and he has arrived at a number of conclusions in the main THE Reports of the Board of Visitors upon these two adverse to this view. He points out that the proposed national military schools have just been published, and cemetery site consists of a band of clay varying in aflbrd as little information as possible respecting the health thickness from 26 ft. at its eastern end to 17 ft. at its of the cadets. It is true we are told that at Woolwich the north-western end ; that bore-holes show it to be im- Board " observed with much satisfaction their bright and pervious to water ; that burials can be so arranged as to healthy appearance," but it would have been much more leave a bed of clay not less than 10ft., which shall satisfactory if the usual numerical details respecting the not be pierced; that the waterworks do not draw their amount and nature of the sickness which had occurred water from any of the upper strata, but from beds below, among them had been furnished. The number of cadets at and hence that pumping produces no scour in the upper the date of inspection was 252, "being 50 over the establishstrata; and he draws the conclusion that the proposed ment." The report states that "the total number who cemetery extension is not liable to produce contamination have been admitted to hospital was 130, or an average of the water supply. At the same time, lie urges the con- of 1’61 per cent."; we should rather have been disposed to struction of certain drains around and in the cemetery, and On the inspection day there say it was 51’6 per cent. he points to the risk which is incurred by the deposit of were 8 sick in or 3’17 per cent., which appears hospital, town refuse where the stone crops out, and by reason of to us a very high ratio. No information is given as to cesspools. The report which he has prepared seems to the diseases for which they were under treatment. It is exonerate a cemetery in the proposed situation from doing also stated that during the year eight lost a term through possible harm; and as we believe that Mr. Middleton’s sickness. Of Sandhurst, the Board report that the health services have been called in as an independent expert, the of the cadets during the year has been good, and their greatest weight should be attached to his opinion. But appearance and physical condition all that could be desired. there has recently, in more cases than one, been a tendency At the date of the examination the number was 306, exto construct cemeteries for the dead without proper regard cluding one rusticated. The admissions into hospital to the enormous interests of the living in the important during the year were 112, or 36’6 per cent., which contrasts