DEATH RATE. By reference to the table of vital statistics, it will be seen that there has been not only a reduction of the percentage of deaths, but also of the actual number of deaths during the year. It is particularly gratifying to make the decrease in those deaths over which sanitary methods are known to have some control, especially typhoid fever, cholera infantum and diph theria. It is thought that before another year there will be a uniform national classification of diseases which will do much to simplify the tables and remove much of the confusion that now exists in comparing tables on vital statistics. DISEASES IN 1897 COMPARED WITH 1896. Cholera Infantum and other diarrhal diseases... Phthisis and other tuberculosis... Infantile debility, marasmus and inanition Heart Disease Decrease. Increase. 68 16 43 16 5 18 14 Typhoid Fever .. Apoplexy and Paralysis Old Age.. Diseases of the brain (unclassified) 11 Convulsions.. :. 2=28 Disease of kidneys.. Meningitis... Diphtheria and Croup... All other causes. 19 18 TYPHOID Fever. "No disease nor cause of death constitutes a better index or measure of the efficiency of sanitary work than typhoid fever," such is the testimony of the Massachusetts Board of Health in their annual report of 1896. If this is the standard, Lowell has every reason to feel proud of the result of the sanitary work done in 1897. During the year there have been 105 cases of typhoid fever with 18 deaths, as compared to 178 cases, and 36 deaths in 1896. During the first six months of 1897 there were 30 cases and 9 deaths, and from the records at our disposal it was noticed that a greater part of the cases were among mill operatives. With the view of learning if there was any condition or state of living among the operatives which could account for their apparent susceptibility to the diseases, the Board of Health asked for a conference of the Water Board and the Agents of our mills with the Health Department. At a meeting held in June, all the Agents and the entire Water Board met in the Board of Health rooms, a full and open discussion of the question of the water supply for Lowell and its relation to typhoid fever took place. It was learned that all the mills, with one exception, the Tremont & Suffolk, used canal water drawn directly from the pipes at the sinks. Some of the mills have wells from which their supply of drinking water is drawn, and one is piped for city water, yet it was the testimony of all that the operatives will use the canal water direct from the faucet, although in all the mills there are notices warning them of its dangers. It was the unanimous opinion that the use of canal water for drinking purposes should be stopped at any cost, and there was a feeling of hearty co-operation by all to that end. It was decided that a thorough investigation of every case of typhoid should be carried on for one year and in the mean time a sign labelled POISON should be placed over every faucet in the mills from which canal water is drawn. The Board prepared the following blank which an Inspector takes to a physician who is attending a case of typhoid, and requests him to fill out the same. In this way a very complete record is obtained of every case. (See blank In addition to this the Board has adopted the Widel serum test for the diagnosis of typhoid fever, and a circular was sent to the physicians to that effect. The prompt and ready co-operation of the physicians was very gratifiying to the Board. During the year 1897 all the water used for drinking purposes supplied by the City was derived from |