HH62/2/SELKIR/7

Transcription

[page] 6

Before leaving the subject of the mortality of the county
I may refer to a paper which was read at the Sanitary Con-
gress recently held in Edinburgh, and published in the
"Sanitary Journal."
In this paper Selkirk is taken as an example of one of the
most insanitary counties in Scotland, and, to prove that the
county is exceptionally unhealthy, the general death rate,
the zymotic rate, and the tubercular rate for the seven years
1855 to 1861 are compared with the same rates for the period
1882 to 1888. The following are the figures:-

[table inserted]

The following quotation is taken from the same paper:-
"It is with sorrow that I find our beautiful Selkirk again showing
herself sanitarily ugly. She ranges in tubercular death far ahead of
any other county, no less than 18:36 per cent. being her average rate
during the last septennial from tubercular disease. This rate of death
is 2.36 more than she was burdened with from 1855 to 1861. Her
position both in respect of zymotic disease and tubercular disease and
death demands, in my opinion, inquiry on the part of our central
authorities into her condition, and as to the causes which are at the
bottom of such an unfortunate state of affairs."

Int the first septennial period the population was almost
purely rural : it consisted of 10,449 persons, of whom about
half lived in the then small towns of Selkirk and Galashiels.
In 1881 4144 lived in the country and 21,420 in the above

[page] 7

towns. There can be no doubt that the increase in the urban
population accounts for the higher rates, and while I am
of course unable to say anything about the state of sanitation
on the burghs, I have no reason to think that there is any-
thing in the country districts to cause the Local Authority
anxiety.
There is, however, no doubt that by improving the
ventilation of cottages and draining the ground on which
they stand, by isolating consumptive patients, or, if that be
too strong a measure, insisting on the systematic use of dis-
infectants, and by preventing the use of tubercular meat,
the death rate from consumption might be considerably
lowered.
An inspection of the above tables shows the necessity, for
public health purposes, of an accurate return of deaths by
the local registrars, and it is here convenient to state the
arrangements that have been made to secure a regular supply
of such information for the future. Under the Registration
Act the Registrar General has no power to require district
registrars to give information to local authorities, and if, as
is said, the Secretary for Scotland has such power, he does
not exercise it. There is, however, nothing in the Act to
prevent a local authority making a private arrangement with
each Registrar, and returns of deaths in Scotland are obtained
in this manner by many local authorities. I was authorised
by the County Council to offer a fee of 3d for each entry,
with a minimum annual fee of five shillings and an additional
shilling for the number of births in the year. All the regis-
trars agreed to these terms, and I hope to have no further
difficulty in obtaining information until the matter is dealt
with by legislation.
There is no hospital for infectious disease in the district,
and therefore all cases of infectious disease have to be isolated
at their homes. This is much facilitated by the isolated
position of many of the houses, so that when the children are
prevented going to school and the housewives are cautioned
not to allow the bakers' and grocers' vanmen to enter the