disease in Australia. As British subjects, we naturally ask, 

 in tlie first place, how often this disease occurs in our ancestral 

 home. 



Hydatid Disease in G-reat Brttaii^'. — When I entered 

 upon the investigation of this question it seemed to me that 

 there were two sources from which some reliable information 

 might be gleaned, viz. : — 1st, the Annual Mortality Eeturns 

 of the E-egistrar- General of Births, Deaths, and Marriages ; 

 and 2nd, the annual records of the various hospitals. From 

 the former source we might expect to learn how many persons 

 die every year in Great Britain from hydatid disease, and from 

 the latter how many patients come under treatment from this 

 cause in the various hospitals. I regret to state that the 

 amount of information from either source that I have as yet 

 succeeded in acquiring is by no means so extensive as I could 

 wish, for I have had at my disposal a few only of the Annual 

 ^Reports of the Eegistrar-G-eneral of Births, Deaths, and Mar- 

 riages for England and Wales, and I have been unable to learn 

 anything about Scotland and Ireland. 



Through the kindness of Mr. Cleland, the obliging Eegistrar- 

 General for South Australia, I have been able to examine the 

 annual reports of the Eegistrar- General for England and 

 Wales for the decade 1871 to 1881. During these ten years 

 there died in England and A\^ales — Males, 2,(379,416 ; females, 

 2,498,895 ; total, 5,178,311. Of these 486 persons were re- 

 ported to have died of hydatid disease, being at the rate of one 

 out of every 11,876 deaths. Xow, I think with Dr. Cobbold, 

 that this return is very far below the true one, for many cases 

 of hydatid disease, fatal and otherwise, are no doubt not re- 

 cognised as such. However, we must for the present accept 

 the figures as they stand. In round numbers, then, we must 

 assume that about one death out of every 12,000 in England 

 and Wales for the decade 1871 to 1881 was due to hydatid 

 disease. 



And now what do the hospital records teach us ? About 

 three years ago I forwarded to the authorities of a large 

 number of London and provincial hospitals printed forms 

 seeking information upon this point. Out of several dozens of 

 such apjDeals, only two received any attention, for replies 

 reached me only from the London Hospital and the Bristol 

 Eoyal Infirmary. However, I have attained access in anotber 

 way to the statistics of St. Bartholomew's Hospital for the 

 decade 1869 to 1879, and to those of St. Thomas' Hospital for 

 the four years 1876 to 1880. The return of the London Hos- 

 pital extends over the five years, 1876 to 1881 ; that for the 

 Bristol Eoyal Infirmary includes only the year 1880. However, 



