Sessional_Paper_1899 — Page 375

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In all 199 cases were notified during the year, the numbers in the several months being-

January February. 'March

April

May..

June August

54

...86

...38

.13

5

2

1

Plague.--Unfortunately, the Colony was again attacked in an epidemic form by this disease which prevailed practically until the end of August.

There were 1,320 cases reported ith 1,175 deaths; of these 75 occurred amongst the Non-Chinese with 49 deaths—a mortality of 65.3 pont.; whereas the mortality amongst the Chinese was 89.6 per cent. The following table gives the number of cases reported in each month of the years 1896 and

and 1898-

1896.

1898.

January February. March

49..

9

125

67

..168.....

.137

April

.316.

.468

May...

..344.

.534

June

.113.

92

July....

52.

•

August

25.....

.7

2

September

9..

1

October

2

2

November

1

()

December

0

1

1,204

1,320

It will be seen that the disease in each year attained its maximum in the month of May, in this Colony in each outbreak the months of maximum mean temperature are followed by a material reduc- tion in the number of cases.

The city of Victoria is divided into ten Health Districts.

On the 24th March, the Health Districts Nos. 2, 4, 5 and 6 were declared infected; in the follow- ing month the disease spread to British Kowloon, this being declared infected on the 18th April, whilst Aberdeen and Aplichau were not infected until June.

Unfortunately, more Europeans were attacked than was the case in 1896, the numbers being 26 as against 16. I regret to have to report ainongst these two of the Nursing Sisters at the Govern- ment Civil Hospital who both succumbed to the pneumonic type of the disease; the first, Sister Frances, undoubtedly having contracted it from a Chinese patient in the observation ward at the Government Civil Hospital suffering from what proved to be the pneumonic variety, and the other, Sister Gertrude,, contracted the disease whilst nursing Sister Frances.

Each epidemic year has been followed by a year of freedom from the disease, e g., 1894, 1896, and 1898 were epidemic years whilst in 1895 and 1897 and thus far in 1899 the Colony has been practi- cally free from the disease.

It is worthy of note that an outbreak of rinderpest (cattle plague) occurred amongst the cattle at the Pokfulam Dairy Farm in the months of February and March and that during the earlier part of the year the neighbouring provinces of Kwang Tung aud Kwang Si were overrun with rinderpest which killed off large numbers of cattle. A similar outbreak of rinderpest occurred amongst the cattle at Pokfulam prior to the 1894 epidemic.

The following table gives the number of cases of infectious diseases notified during the year :—

Diseases.

Bubonic Fever

Small-pox.....

Enteric Fever

Diphtheria....

Puerperal Fever

Scarlet Fever.

Cholera

January.

February.

March.

September.

☺)

67 137

468 534

92

7

54 86

38

13

10

2

0

1

2

5

12

6

3

1

2

1

1

+

1

1

:

10

5

:

:.

:..

October.

1

2

:

:

November.

:

1

2

December.

Total.

:

1

1,320

:

199

6

52

5

6

:

N

:

:

10

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