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of the old Contagious Diseases Acts was to put women in such a 

 state of health that they should be authorised to return to an 

 evil life ; (4) The aim of this scheme was to protect the innocent 

 from contagion, and check the spread of this awful disease. 

 The full inquiry asked for was to include a report whether 

 some form of notification of these ailments, as in the case of 

 other infectious diseases, was possible or not. This is the 

 scheme alluded to above. 



In September 1899 the Brussels International Medical 

 Congress passed strong resolutions, proposed by the British 

 Medical Association, calling for full inquiry into the causes 

 and prevalence of these diseases. 



It might be well here to recall the " Suggested Terms of 

 Reference for Inquiry re Venereal Diseases " as drawn up by 

 Col. Long in 1898 : (a) To ascertain how great the evil is now, 

 irrespective of its temporary increase or decrease ; (b) To collect 

 evidence as to the prevalence of the various forms of Venereal 

 Disease among patients attending the hospitals and dispen- 

 saries throughout the country ; (c) To collect information as to 

 existing arrangements for the treatment of Venereal Disease, 

 the distribution of hospitals and dispensaries, and the number 

 of beds available in different places, and to make suggestions 

 as to more efficient provision for the treatment of the disease ; 

 (d) To collect suggestions and express opinions as to any means 

 that can be devised for preventing or limiting the spread of 

 Venereal Disease among the population of this country ; (e) To 

 consider the possibility of so altering the law of libel that 

 while medical men should still be liable if they improperly 

 divulged private information obtained in the course of their 

 practice, they should yet be in a position to take action which 

 would render interference possible by some sanitary authority, 

 with a view to ensuring proper precautions being taken against 

 danger to the community, and especially to innocent persons. 



The next forward step in this movement took place in 1903, 

 when a meeting was held in May at which the Bishop of Stepney 

 (now Archbishop of York) was in the chair. Resolutions were 

 carried reaffirming the necessity for full inquiry, and urging 

 that public bodies connected with the health of the people 

 should take action. To further the object of these resolutions 

 a very representative committee of men, under the chairman- 

 ship of the late Col. Long, M.P., was set up, In that year also, 



