168 



GNATS OR MOSQUITOES — CHAPTER VIII 



but it will not, I presume, be denied that the disease is 

 everywhere in India accountable for a considerable propor- 

 tion of the total mortality, or that any perceptible diminu- 

 tion in the prevalence of malaria could fail to make itself 

 evident in the total death-rate. 



It is inconceivable that the introduction of a pure water 

 supply should raise the death-rate from cholera and bowel 

 complaints, and as a matter of fact the figures of such of 

 the towns as I have examined show improvement in this 

 respect. 



Nor can the enhancement of the death-rate be fairly 

 ascribed to improved registration, as during the entire 

 period this has been admittedly fairly accurate as to total 

 mortality however worthless it may be as to detailed 

 causes, nor is there any evidence to show that there has 

 been any general improvement in this respect. Moreover 

 it must be remembered that the dates of introduction of the 

 regular water-supply differ widely in different places, and 

 that the increased mortality has followed immediately in by 

 far the majority of cases. Further, the increase though 

 immediate is not progressive, as may be seen by running 

 through the series of tables published up to the present 

 date. 



It is therefore undeniable that in the North West 

 provinces at least, municipal malaria has increased and not 

 dnninished coincidentally with the introduction of filtered 

 water-supplies. 



