March 10, 1902.1
more primarily the cause of the disease, During the past week two deaths have occurred among the European population, a Castoms tidewaiter named Agnew and Captain Baird, of H.M.S. Britomart, having fallen victims to the disease. . ‚'
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The PLESIDENT-I may say I heard of these rumours on Saturday, and I have already been in communication with the doctor at Shameen and asked him for particulars of these illnesses. It is impossible from this communication to form any conclusion as to whether the disease is Asiatic cholera or sporadic cholera, but usually sporadic cases do not occur till well on in the hot season.
·CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
will be got by the Harbour Master. I think it is best to leave that to him, and I hope that the vigilance of the police will prevent dead bodies coming in that way.
Mr. BADELEY-l'here is no very great danger from dead bodies.
Dr. CLARK-Not so much as from living
cases.
In reply to a question, Mr. BADELEY said the police were not very well qualified to exercise supervision over the fruit sold by hawkers,
This was all the business.
A meeting of the Sanitary Board was held on the 6th inst. in the Board Room. Pre sent:-Dr. J. M. Atkinson, Principal Civil Medical Officer (President); Hon. A. W. Brewin, Registrar-General (Vice-President), Dr. F. W. Clarke, Medical Officer of Health; Mr. F. J. Badeley, Acting Captain Superintendent of Police; Hon, W. Chatham, Director of Public Works; Mr. E Osborne, Mr. Fang Wah Chün, Mr Lau Chupak, and Mr. G. A. Woodcock (Secretary).
Dr CLARK-I think, sir, the Board might take some action in regard to this outbreak of cholera in Canton. I have prepared two resolu- tions on the subject, and I would suggest, firstly, "That the Board. ask the authority of the Government to issue advertisements in the European and Chinese Press warning the public against the consumption' of unripe or over-ripe fruit, uncooked vegetables and unboiled milk, in view of the prevalence of cholera in Canton." Secondly-and I may say I have been in consultation with the Harbour Master on this point, and also with the Acting *Captain Superintendent of Police-I would suggest "That the Board recommend that the Acting Captain Superintendent of Police be requested to arrange for the boarding of all steamers and launches bringing passengers from Canton, with the view of ascertaining whether any sick persons or dead bodies are on board." It would not be difficult to carry out the latter precaution, as there are only a matter of six or eight steamers and launches coming down here from Canton every day. I think we ought to have some knowledge of their passengers, because cholera is rather different from plagae. With plague, it is possible for a man to leave Canton in the incubation stage of the disease and arrive here apparently perfectly well, but if he leaves in the incubation stage of cholera it is several chances to one that he will be dead on arrivaling the year, 13 urinals were added to those here, or anyway, practically moribund. I think, in view of the danger of introduction, especially now that water is bang obtained by the Chinese from very doubtful sources, it is very important that we should take every possible step to pre- vent the introduction of infection.
Mr. BADELEY-I beg to second the resolu- tions, and I may state that I have already given instructions to the Inspector of the Water Police to arrange for the boarding of these steamers as they come down from Canton by the police, to see if there are any likely cases of cholera on board,
Mr. OSBORNE-Two points occur to me in connection with this. As far as the first resolution is concerned, warning people against the consumption of unripe fruit, etc., we might do something ourselves by issuing orders to the Inspector of Markets and other persons whose duty it is to supervise the sale of fruit, ́telling them to be particularly careful to see that all fruit exposed for sale is fit for human food. The other point is that I hope the Captain Superintendent of Police will impress upon the policemen whose duty it will be to board these launches that it is only the launches from Canton, not to Canton, because otherwise a great deal of trouble might arise if through any misunderstanding they interfered with the exit of people from the Colony. This is a point I feel very strongly upon, and I think others in the Colony hold the same views.
|
Hon. W.CHATHAM―The resolution refers only to launches and steamers. Are there no other passenger vessels? At any rate, if there are not, there surely must be the crews of junks which come down the river from Canton. Is it not proposed to adopt any precautions with regard to them? I think we ought to do something to supervise them as well as launches and steamers. Dr. CLARK-I may say, sir, it is almost impracticable to deal with all the junks coming into the harbour. I have considered this question very carefully, and I believe it takes forty-eight hours or so for a junk to come down from Canton, and therefore if any deaths occurred on board the bodies would go overboard or be landed long before the junk arrived in the waters' of this Colony. Anyway, Emay say the junks are all visited by the boarding officers attached to the Harbour Master's Office, so that whatever information is to be got in that way
SANITARY SURVEYOR'S REPORT. The report of Mr. J. Bryan, Sanitary Sur- veyor, for the year 1901, was laid on the table. During the period under review the drainage of 715 houses has been completed, and repairs or additions made to the drainage arrangements of 303 houses. Out of 54 buildings which were tested in the matter of drains and sanitary fittings, 9 required reconstructing and 45 amending. The necessary work has in each case been executed. In addition to these 54 buildings, the Sanitary Surveyor or the Drain- age Inspector inspected 21,432 houses, with the result that minor drainage defects were dis-
instances. The in 2,0 7
uum- covered ber of nuisances reported to the Medical Officer of Health was 661, and to the Direc tor of Public Works, 417. The drains of 1,181 private houses underwent cleansing. Whilst no new water-closets were erected dur. already in existence. The number of new buildings was the largest certified in any one year since 1889, 796 new houses and two additions having been passed. The plague cemetery at Kennedy Town is nearly fall, there being room for only about 50 bodies more, As an extension of the ground is impracticable, a valley at Cheung Sha Wan has been selected for future burials, and the work of laying out this cemetery is now being proceeded with. Of prosecutions during the year there were 47, the number of convic- tions being 42 and the amount of penalties
Last realised $250.
year the amounted to 175 and the penalties to $1,635.
On the motion of the PRESIDENT, seconded by Mr. W. CHATHAM, the report was adopted.
VETERINARY SURGEON.
summonses
Mr. A. Gibson was appointed Colonial Veter- inary Surgeon, vice Mr. C. V. Ladds, pensioned.
DRAFT DEPOTS BYE-LAWS.
The SECRETARY laid on the table a draft of Depots Bye-laws proposed to be substituted for those made on 18 h April, 1901
The P&ESIDENT-I think we may pro eed to make these bye-laws. They have to be approved by the Legislative Council.
The bye-laws were considered clause by clause and were ultimately adopted, on the motion of the PRESIDENT, seconded by the Hon. W. CHATHAM.
RATS ORDINANCE.
The SECRETARY laid on the table draft regular tions to be made under "The Rats Ordinance, | 1902,"
to
Dr. CLARE-These regulations, up No. 4, have been drawn up by the Harbour Master and are now referred to this Board for consideration. There is only one point that strikes me, and it is this, that in the second line of No. 1 it is required that all shores used for secaring ships iù docks must be protected so us I have to prevest the entrance of rats. just been speaking to the Harbourmaster, pointing out to him that when a ship is in dock she nses 100 or 150 shores and that most of these shores are placed against the sloping s'de of the ship and that no rat could possibly climb up the side.
But he s ys that some of those shores might be in the immediate neighbour. hood of a port-hole. The last two regulations have been drawn up by myself. I think they are very desirable." They are not very drastic.
+
178
One is simply a penalty; probably it will have to go to the Attorney-General for his con sideration.
Mr. E. OSBORNE-As regards the question of shores, I think we had better refer it to the person who is competent to speak of the subject, and that is the general manager of the Hong- kong and Whampoa Dook Company. They are the only people outside the Naval Yard with docks; ia fact, they are the only people who have docks; and they would be able to tell us better how to prevent rats going on board ships when they are in dock. As regards rats, on shore, I should like to have geen, and hope we have power to make. much mora drastis bye-laws than very
I should like to see, considering these. that it is generally recognised now that rate are, the principal cause of plague, anything in the nature of a ceiling abolished, at any rate in new houses, and also in the nature of a wooden floor less than a certain distance from the ground, in fact, any place that might be termed a breeding-place for rats. That is a matter which perhaps the Medical Officer could tell us how to embody later on.
The PRESIDENT-We already have the power to remove ceilings.
Mr. F. J. BADELEY-Will the regulation as to ships apply to launches ?
Dr. CLARK-If they are alongside a wharf, yes.
Mr. BADELEY-But you see them there in twenties and thirties, You do not seem to touch at all the question of rats coming here on cargo-boats and so on shore. I do not know whether they do so, but the regulations do not touch that point at all.
8
Dr. CLARK-It was not considered necessary,
rats do
sh p because
not pass from to the shore or from the shore to a ship during daylight; they pass backwards and forwards at night. Janks will be required to moor away from the Praya wall or the wharves at sunset. That and other circums' ancest led the Harbour Master to think that it would not be necessary to make the same regulations for these boats as for steam vessels at present. I am prepared to more that the Board inform the Government that they have considered these regulations and approve generally of them, and also, that they approve of the addi ional regulations which have been added since they were sent down, but that they beg to direct the attention of the Government to the second line of No. 1 with reference to the protection of all shores used for securing ships in docks and to suggest whether it would not be possible to arrange that shores would not be put in in the neighbourhood of portholes rather than require a guard on every shore which is used for securing a ship in dock. These regulations are sent to us merely for consideration.
I
Hon. W. CHATHAM seconded.
Hon. A. W. BREW.N-I do not see the good of touching launches, because they do not com. municate between ships and the shore and do not leave the waters of the Colony; it would be just as well to make restrictions against com. munication between different houses, because, after all, what we want is to prevent rats comig from other places outside.
The motion was agreed to.
CLEANSING OF THE CITY.
Dr. CLARK moved :— That the Board define that portion of the City of Victoria, west of Garden Road, east of Wyndham Street and Peddar Street, north of Robinson Road and south of Caine Road (known as No. 3 Health
District) as the local limits within which house visitation for the purpose of cleansing and officers of the Board shall make a house-to- disinfecting the premises contained therein, in accordance with Bye-law No. 1 of the Bye-laws for the Prevention or Mitigation of Epidemic, Endemic or Contagious Disease, made under section 13 of The Public Health Ordinance a motion to en ble the gangs to complete No. 13 of 1901." This added Dr. Clark, was the cleansing of the city.
The PRESIDENT seconded, and the motion wa' greed to.
THE WORK OF THE CLEANSING GANGS.
The report of the work done by the cleansing gangs during the week ended 23rd February shows that the total number of houses dealt
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