274 
JOHN M. PARKER. 
during the twenty years previous to 1870 did not vary greatly 
from 22.5 per 1,000 of population, and it was estimated by Mr. 
Simon that 125,000 persons died each year of diseases due to 
defective sanitary conditions. Although Simon’s figures were 
thought by some to be exaggerated, they nevertheless had 
great weight in persuading Parliament to adopt the reforms 
recommended by him. During the next twenty years exten¬ 
sive improvements were carried out on a large scale, with the 
result that in 1889 the mortality had fallen to 17.9 per 1,000, 
thus more than justifying the calculations of Simon.” 
The statistics collected by Dr. Buchanan on this subject 
are also instructive : 
In Salisbury, England, after the introduction of improved 
drainage, the annual death rate from phthisis fell from 44-J per 
10,000 to 22J per 10,000 between 1857 and 1864. In the same 
period of time, in the towns of Ely, Rugby, Worthing, Mac¬ 
clesfield, Leicester, Newport and Banbury, the death rate 
from phthisis fell 47, 43, 36, 51, 52, 52, and 50 per cent., re~ 
spectively, in consequence of improved drainage alone. 
While in the French cavalry barracks, after better sanitary 
measures were adopted, cases of non-specific diseases of the 
lungs fell from 104.7 P er 1,000 to 3.59 per 1,000, and the only 
conditions present to account for this remarkable change was 
increased facility for ventilation and increased cubic space.” 
{Journal of Comp. Med., Oct., 1893.) 
The importance of this matter is also shown in Dr. Ernst’s 
report on his experiments at Matapan, where, in referring to 
the effect of improved sanitary conditions on diseased cows, 
he says: “Before the farm buildings were used at all, they 
were thoroughly cleaned from top to bottom. Every portion 
of old manure was carted away, as well as all the old earth. 
The whole of the woodwork was scrubbed and then washed 
with corrosive sublimate solution (1 :1000) and finally white¬ 
washed, and every care was taken to secure good drainage 
and ventilation. The result and effectiveness of all this have 
been best demonstrated by the fact that every animal brought 
to the place made a most marked improvement in its general 
condition, while some of them even went so far as to appear * 
to get well.” (Ernst.) 
