Health also. refers to the past year as one of the most anxious and critical in Shanghai, but states that, in spite of the, abnormal conditions, Which favoured.the spread of com: muni cable disease, 1927 was, by geod fortune, a remarkably healthy year in Shanghai, both among the civilian population and among troops: The death-rate among foreigners, excluding the Defence Forees, was 13.7 per thousand, pared with 20.12in 1926, If deaths ing among members. of the Forees are included, the death-rate.was 14.932 thousand, the lowest during the last ten years, Among the Chinese the death-rate was 12.3 a thousand, compared with 153 in 1926. Of the 650 deaths 168 were per cents were among Asiatics other than Chinese, 44.5 per cent. being among the Inpanese. There were altogether 9,966 deaths reported among t Chinese, and 1,825 of these were due to communicable disease. Cholera, typhoid and dysentery caused G78 deaths, or 6.8 per cent of the total number.
"Knowledge and practice of the science and art of health are increasing rapidly among all civilized communities. Recognition of the fact that the purdeti of disease is tone of the heaviest and costliest that weighs upon mankind is followed by the realization that money spent on. measures for the prevention of disease and the promotion of health is money well spent."
One of the outstanding features of the year was the unexpected outbreak of malaria among the British the Shanghai Defence 'A few cases. among. the resident population also The Commissioner further remarks that, in spite of the troublous times through which the Settlement has passed, and is passing, building.
re-building continue. observed, however, that the provision of housing' accommodation for the poorer Chinese does not keep pace with the demand. Factories spring up in areas where there are no houses to accommodate the employees, forcing the latter to crowd more and more into such houses as may be comparatively near. An example of the overcrowded condition in which many Chinese live can be found ju the north-western. por-normal times the congestion in tht but, during the turmoil in March, when continuous streams of refugees the Settlements from ing disturbed territory, was not Uncommon to find as many as 50 oF 60 persons living in houses originally intended for about 5 or 6, Attempts to deal with problem of overcrowding among t Chinese are immediately faced with the age-long problem of the poverty of the people, The solution is along the lines of industrial and social betterment.
The Commissioner has much to about mosquitoes and flies, the following being outstanding "Many people do not appear to understand that mosquitoes breed only in stagnant water and that it is the duty of each householder to supervise his own premises. While the Public Health Department undertakes responsibility for conditions over which private individuals have no control, it is impossible for the inspectors to make house-to-house inspections to control the breeding, of mosquitoes, "Without public ce-operation the suppression of flies is impossible, In Shanghai the annoyance from mosquitoes bears no comparison with the menace from flies, which are capable of transmitting cholera, typhoid, paratyphoid, dysentery and diseases caused by parasitic worms fand other communicable discus 'A fly seen on the dining table or in the milk may have come direct from the uncovered refuse receptacle or from the unscreened servants?
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.