1317REPORT ON SANITARY MEASURES IN INDIA FOR 1906-07.

hydrogen peroxide on the mercurial saliva, but hydrogenperoxide alone, as has been shown, may produce the sameeffect. As hydrogen peroxide has now come into general useas a mouth wash these observations are of great interest andvalue. Apart from the blackening of the tongue which mayresult from too free a use of this preparation the questionarises whether the general employment of antiseptic mouthwashes and dentifrices is advisable in healthy persons.Where decay is known to exist there is no doubt that amoderate use of antiseptic agents tends to prevent the spreadof the invading organisms. But when the mouth is in a

healthy condition it would seem preferable to rely uponcleanliness rather than on antiseptics. The bacterial flora

of the mouth may contain organisms that naturallytend to preserve it in a healthy condition but the con-tinued use of antiseptics is calculated to destroy favour-able as well as harmful bacteria.

THE SALARY OF MEDICAL OFFICERS.

AT a meeting of the Derby education committee held onOct. 26th the elementary education subcommittee reportedthat it had resolved to advertise in the medical journalsfor an assistant medical officer at a salary of R200

per annum. We declined to insert the advertisement in

consequence of representations which had been made

to us by local medical men and the British Medical

Jowrnal also refused to insert it because the British MedicalAssociation considered that the holders of whole-time

appointments should have a minimum salary of <S250

per annum. At a subsequent meeting of the ele-

mentary education subcommittee it was proposed that theadvertisement should be inserted in the lay press, whilstanother proposal was that the town should be divided intosections and the work offered to local medical men. These

suggestions, however, were rejected in favour of a resolutionto make the salary Z250 per annum. We are glad tonote this satisfactory result as a consequence of a firm

attitude. ___

THE FREE FEEDING OF SCHOOL CHILDREN INLIVERPOOL.

A SPECIAL committee appointed by the city council of

Liverpool to investigate the subject of the insufficient or

improper feeding of school children has issued recently aninterim report, with a supplementary preliminary report ofDr. E. W. Hope, medical officer of health of Liverpool.Inquiry has been made into the state of affairs existing at 20selected schools and the committee asks the approval of thecouncil of the investigation of 12 others before making a finalreport. Having regard to the voluntary agencies at presentproviding meals for Liverpool school children, the committeedoes not feel justified in recommending that the Education(Provision of Meals) Act of 1906 should be put into operation.Dr. Hope in his report gives a summary of the conditionsobtaining in the 20 schools visited, and the general trend ofobservation goes to show that improper, rather than

inadequate, feeding accounts for the malnutrition of

many children and that parental carelessness or callous-ness is a more frequent factor than parental povertyin cases where children come breakfastless to school.Dr. Hope is of opinion that education of the poorer classesin proper methods of feeding their children is needed badly.Some suggestions and criticisms are made concerning the" coupon " system, which prove it to be liable to abuse.The fact that some of the teachers voluntarily supply thechildren’s wants is noted, and though this reflects greatcredit upon their humanity we are of opinion that thesystem which allows it is wrong, for elementary school

teachers are a hard-worked and ill-paid class,and pan ill-afford such charity, though they may very ..well help bysuperintending the meals. It is gratifying to know that theLiverpool public has responded so well to the appeals ofthe Children’s Meals Committee as to allay anxiety for theimmediate future. A pathetic instance is given of a commonpractice which leads the committee to touch on a very im-- portant economic question in connexion with the children ofthe poor. "A little barefooted child, about five years of age,received her supply’ of bread ’and jam and was followedhome through the rain to the cellar in which she lived. The

medical officer, on entering the cellar, found two other

children who attended other schools who had also arrivedwith their share of bread and jam, and the three of themwere proceeding to divide the meal with two others who werenot of school age. The mother stated that they did thiswhen their father was out of work. Latterly he had beenin hospital but was returning to work the following day.She also stated that she had had thirteen children, seven ofwhom had died in infancy or early childhood.

" Commentingupon this case the committee states that it may feel dis-

posed to dissociate itself from any suggestion that there areless responsibilities in connexion with children below the

school age than with those who are attending school." This

guarded statement opens out vistas of an important muni-cipal service of hygiene for which’ there is certainly noexisting machinery. We shall awaJLt the committee’s final

report with interest. - -

THE King has granted to Mr. George Allardice MacDonald,M.B., C.M. Edin., His Majesty’s Royal licence and authorityto accept and to wear the Insignia of a Knight of the Order ofthe Crown of Italy, conferred upon him by His Majesty theKing of Italy in recognition of valuable services rendered byhim.

A TELEGRAM from the Acting Governor of the Mauritiusreceived at the Colonial Office on Oct. 23rd states that forthe week ending Oct. 22nd there were 8 cases of plague and6 deaths from the disease.

REPORT ON SANITARY MEASURES ININDIA FOR 1906-07.

THE Report on Sanitary Measures in India for 1906-07embraces the data relating to the health of the European andnative armies, the general population, -and the jails, and inaddition presents us with the facts appertaining to vaccina-tion, the various medical institutions, the lunatic asylums,and medical schools. It concludes with a review of thesanitary works that have been carried out and with somevaluable remarks on the etiology’ of certain diseases.As regards the health of the European army, we find that

the year 1906 was an unhealthy one for all classes of peoplein India and the rates of admission to hospital, of mortality,and of invaliding were all higher than in 1905. On an

average strength of 70,272 the admissions were in the ratiosof 871 per 1000 as contrasted with 834 per 1000 in 1905.As in the latter year so in the year under review, the

European troops in the Rawal Pindi and Lahore divisions

enjoyed the best health. The chief causes of sickness wereague, venereal diseases, and simple continued fever, theabove-mentioned increase of sickness being chiefly due to arise in the first-mentioned class of diseases, ague causing anadmission of 176 as ’contrasted with 111 per 1000 in 1905.

i 40 per cent. of the total sickness was due to the above threediseases. The chief causes of mortality were enteric fever

. and hepatic abscess, 31 per cent. of the total deaths being: due to enteric fever and 15 per cent. to hepatic abscess.’ The number of men sent home for syphilis rose from 75 in 1905 to 120 in 1906. With respect to malarial fevers,l these were -most rife in the Peshawar and Mhow divisions*-