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lecturer. The special lecturers will have to take theirordinary share in the work of their departments under thedirection of their professors. Two of the first appointedspecial lecturers belong to the medical faculty-viz., Mr.William Wright, special lecturer on osteology, and Dr. JamesMiller, special lecturer on bacteriology. At the recent Con-gregation for the conferring of degrees each of these gentle-men received the degree of doctor of science, which wasconferred upon them in respect of theses submitted for thepurpose. Dr. James Kerr, medical officer to the late SchoolBoard of London, and now the occupant of the same

position under the education authority of the LondonCounty Council, has been appointed Ingleby lecturer for theyear 1905 and will give two lectures during that year onfeeble-minded children. Dr. John H. Watson has been

appointed second demonstrator of anatomy. The manyfriends of Professor Gilbert Barling have seen with greatpleasure that he heads the list of those elected to fill

positions on the Council of the Royal College of Surgeonsof England.

Health of Birmingham.The report of Dr. A. Hill (who held office up to the end

of last September) and of Dr. John Robertson (who thensucceeded him) on the health of the city for the year 1903has recently been issued. It states that the year was a re-markable one from the point of view of its healthiness. Thedeath-rate continued low during the whole of the year and"we have now the satisfaction to record that the annual

mortality rate was the lowest on record. Indeed, it is

probable that the rate during last year was lower thanin any year since Birmingham emerged in the distant !,past from the condition of a village into that of a smalltown. The mortality-rate was 17’2 per 1000 last year,against 18 in the previous year and 20 in the previoustan years." It is pointed out that this favourable positionwas largely due to the weather which, by keeping the tem-perature at a mean, produced a favourable bill of health.The report continues, " It is possible, however, with reason-able cleanliness in our houses, in our food supplies, and inour general surroundings, that warm weather shall not havethe same disastrous effects as it has had in past years, andthat improved moral and physical qualities resulting frombetter education and increased prosperity, individual and

general, will confer the means of securing greater protectionfrom the dangerous and fatal rigours of the winter season.If we consider the progress made in the health of the

city during the 30 years commencing with 1874, when thedeath-rate was 26’ 8, and ending with 1903, when the death-rate stood at 17’ 2, a diminution of 40 per cent., we feel justi-fied in the anticipation that very great benefits are in storefor our race in the future." The city contained 111,309occupied houses, an increase on the 1896 figures of 10,452.The marriages registered in the city were 4881, a rate of 18 4per 1000.. The births were 16,866, or 31-7 per 1000. Onlyonce since 1873 was the birth-rate lower and that was in1894. The rate for that year was 31-6. The infantilemortality rate was 158 per 1000 births and in this Birming-ham has an unenviable prominence, relatively speaking.The serious epidemics during the year were of scarlet fever,though the number of cases was not so high as in 1902, andof diphtheria, of which there was a larger number of casesthan in any year since 1896. Out of 251 cases of small-poxthere were only 12 deaths. There were 1025 deaths fromtuberculous disease and the medical officer recommendsthe adoption of a system of voluntary notification. Headds that there are in Birmingham at any one time,probably at least 3000 cases of phthisis and alludes to thepossible necessity of a corporation sanatorium. The officersof the department represented 304 houses as unfit for habita-tion during the year. 65 closing orders were obtained. 51notices of demolition were served, and 34 houses weredemolished. In connexion with the milk question the

report says : " It is very important that effective anduniform action should be taken in the matter of super-vising cowsheds outside the city, from which part of the citymilk-supply is drawn. In these rural districts milk is pro-duced under filthy conditions in a good many instances andsent into the city. In summer time such milk is probablyone of the means of setting up epidemic diarrhoea amongyoung children." The assistant medical officer of health is atpresent making an inspection of every milk-shop in the citywith a view to drafting some general regulations in regard totheir conduct, as it is found that contamination of the supplyis probable from the conditions in which the milk is kept in

some of these shops. The inspectors condemned during theyear 223 tons of bad meat, 93 tons of bad fish, and 17 tons ofbad fruit. The 639 city bakehouses include 41 underground, andof these 22 have been voluntarily closed. 14 others havebeen certified as fit, four were refused certificates, and onecase was pending when the report was written. The healthvisitors made 26,170 visits during the year and the tablerelating to their work shows that 3935 tenants were advisedto open windows, 1109 to get rid of lodgers, 335 to washtheir children, and 622 to feed their infants properly.

Small-pox in the District.Another case of small-pox has been reported to the Bir-

mingham medical officer of health in the person of a manwho came from Worcester in an infectious condition, thesymptoms of the disease becoming apparent a few days.later. The man was removed to the hospital, the house was.disinfected, and those who had been known to be in contactwith him were placed under inspection. In Worcester therehas been an outbreak originating in an inmate of thecasual ward of the workhouse. The case was of a mildcharacter. Another inmate of the same ward, who hadcome there from one of the lodging-houses in the city, hasalso been discovered to be suffering from the same disease.A malignant case of small-pox,has been discovered in theCannock Chase district, in the person of a man, a native ofStafford, who applied for admission to the Cannock work-house early one morning, stating that he had been

wandering about all night. As it was clear that he was

suffering from small-pox the master of the workhouse-refused him admittance and he was taken into the small-pox hospital. Previously to coming to Cannock he had sleptat a lodging-house in Rugeley. Dr. J. G. Beasley, medicalofficer of health to the Rowley district council, reported tohis authority that a female small-pox patient had escapedfrom the isolation hospital under the control of the SouthStaffordshire Joint Small-pox Hospital Board and was, aftersome days’ lapse of time, still at large. The police and work-house officials for a distance of ten miles round the districthad been communicated with but no trace of the womancould be found.July 12th.

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MANCHESTER.

(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)

Mersey and Irmell Watershed.IT really seems as if the, Mersey and Irwell joint committee

was beginning to make some progress and that its effortsfor the purification of the rivers and streams of the water-shed were not in vain. On July 5th a report was presentedby Mr. R. A. Tatton, the chief inspector, which was on thewhole encouraging. In commenting on the report, Sir J. T.Hibbert said that the watershed included 95 authorities andhad a population of 2,502,000 persons. There are five

important rivers in its area, of which the Irwell andthe Rouch have 286 manufactories on their banks; the-

Irk, in old days a noted trout stream, 45 ; the-

Medlock, 15 ; and the Mersey, 98. One serious form ofpollution with solid matter, he said, was now a thing ofthe past, but a few years ago all the cinders and othersolid rubbish from the various works were tipped into’the streams or placed where the winter floods wouldwash them from the banks, for the readiest way ofgetting rid of a nuisance was to pass it on to the neigh-bour lower down and the gradual silting up of the river-bed was a matter with which the manufacturers did notconcern themselves. The sludging of the mill lodges,as the reservoirs for the works are called, was formany years a serious difficulty, but that has been over-come. Serious pollution, however, still takes place whencpndensing lodges, in which polluted water is used, are runoff. Mr. Tatton ’’ mentioned the difficulty that existed withthe stone polishing industry," but the solid matter from thatsource is now intercepted. 12 years ago there were 27sewage works in urban districts, now there are 86, and ten inrural districts. Now there are only two urban districts with-out sewage works and both have schemes in hand. In 1891there were 191 works without any system of dealing withtheir effluent; now there are only five. 278 manufacturershave now efficient purification plant, as against 45 in 1893.No doubt each of the various industrial processes has its own

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difficulties. Of 120 dye works 88 have efficient plants ; of75 bleach works are 56 efficient ; of 59 woollen works 44 ;and of 48 print works 38 ; while only three out of 12breweries can claim efficiency. The rivers are now so muchless filthy than they were that the water is becoming moreuseful for manufacturing purposes. Sir John Hibbert is not

very sanguine, for he says they can never expect tomake the rivers attractive, but "they could makethe water of commercial service and they could domuch for the health of the people living on the river Ibanks." This is a somewhat melancholy conclusion tocome to, for these streams have even yet traces of beautyin quiet reaches, swirling pools, and rippling shallows,the sight of which makes one feel that man shouldbe ashamed to foul everything which he touches. There issaid to be " much less decomposition going on in the waterof the Ship Canal than formerly, and the formation of gases isnothing like what it once used to be." Let us hope that therewill be still further improvement, for it is impossible to

imagine, and one would think to endure, anything moremalodorous than the summer fragrance of the Ship Canal. Sir

Henry Roscoe agreed in the main with Mr. Tatton’s report andspoke of the difficulties connected with special trades as,e.g., that of the fellmongers, "owing to the noxious charac-ter of the effluent." As to the progress made in the appli-cation of scientific methods of filtration he said that in 1898there were only six and a half acres of artificial filter beds inuse in the watershed. There were now 105 acres, while thearea for land filtration had only increased from 913 to 1151acres. The volume of sewage to be filtered, at 75 gallonsper head of the population, amounted to 187,500,000 gallonsa day. To carry out artificial filtration at the rate of250,000 gallons per acre, which gives "a satisfactory effluentwithin the limits of impurity allowable," would requireseven and a half times the present area, or 750acres, which he thought we might look forward to. Landfiltration would require some 10,000 acres, which would beout of the question. Manchester possesses half the totalarea of artificial filters at work in the watershed but theyare not sufficient, and the rivers committee is making" praiseworthy efforts to complete its scheme. As regardsthe general results, Sir Henry Roscoe said that " the waterwhich previously was unfit for industrial purposes was nowusable." There seems to be no sufficient reason for beingcontent with this partial purification of Lancashire rivers andalthough Sir Henry Roscoe speaks cautiously he says thatmuch more remains to be done.

University Students’ Congress.The first English and Welsh Inter-Universities Students’

Congress, to give it its full title, just held in Manchesterhas had an encouraging success. Its objects were "to

promote the general interests of the students and to advancesocial and academic unity." The universities representedwere Birmingham, Cambridge, Durham, Leeds, Liverpool,London, Manchester, Oxford, Wales, and St. David’s

College, Lampeter, and the delegates numbered about 40.They were welcomed by Dr. Alfred Hopkinsoin, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Manchester, who was able tosay pleasant things all round. He touched on three ofthe subjects down for discussion, one being the pro-vision of residential halls which he thought of "enormousimportance to university life." He next spoke of the

question of volunteer corps in connexion with the uni-versities. There was one in connexion with the University ofManchester and " he hoped the movement would grow andthat it would be felt to be a desirable thing for members of auniversity to prepare themselves to take a part, if need be,in the national defence." Professor Schuster proposed amotion on "The Reform of University Degree Courses,"which ran as follows :-That greater freedom should be given in the degree courses to allow

more time for private study and research, and that the best means forsecuring the additional time required would be found in the abolition inthe degree lists of all divisions into classes as the result of examinationonly.This was passed after considerable discussion by 23 to 6.Professor Schuster in his reply said that the medical facultystood on a different footing from the arts, and pointedout that as regarded the University of Manchester the

practice on the medical side was very much what he advo-cated. " No classes were given in the examinations at allexcept for the M.D. degree, preparation for which wasunderstood to consist of original work." Mr. F. T. H.Davies (Birmingham) proposed a motion in favour of an

inter-university volunteer corps. In addition to its import-ance as regards national defence he spoke of it as tending:to companionship and to the obliteration of the divisionbetween the faculties of arts and medicine. Mr. WilliamThorburn related the conditions under which the OwensCollege company of the 2nd Volunteer Battalion ManchesterRegiment, which he commanded until recently, came to beformed. He regretted very much that he had to give up thecommand of the company, ’’ but the way it had to be con-ducted in order that it might fit in with the general workingof the battalion rendered it impossible for him and also formany of the students to carry on their work." He said thatthere were many students who would be glad to give a monthto work in camp in association with a university battalion,and in that way " they would obtain a training whichwould be of the greatest value to them in after life inthe army, in the Indian Medical service, and in other

positions ...... all over the world." He suggested the-

appointment of a committee to report to the congress nextyear and it was decided to form a committee of five. There-was a strong and apparently unanimous feeling in favour ofthe movement.

Appointment and Awards at the Victoria University,Manchester.

Dr. A. Hill Griffith has been appointed clinical lecturerin ophthalmology. A Fellowship in sanitary chemistryhas been awarded to Dr. W. B. Ramsden. The Dauntesyentrance medical scholarships were awarded to MarionStocks and A. E. Woodall and the Dumville surgical prizeto P. Talbot. Various awards were also made on the arts-side.

Scarlet Fever at Warrington.Scarlet fever has been very prevalent at Warringbon. In the-

first quarter of the year Dr. J. G. Gornall, the medical officerof health, has reported that 232 cases were returned. The-

average number for the last ten years has been 37. Of the205 cases removed to hospital eight died, or 3’9 9 per cent..Dr. Gornall has notified the head teachers of the elementaryschools that discharged patients must not be readmitted to,school till he has given a certificate that they are fit too-

return, and this certificate he will not grant for some weeks.in any case. The chairman of the health committee com-mented severely on the action of the education committee irnnot acceding to the suggestions of Dr. Gornall to close theschools immediately.July 12th.

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IRELAND.

(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENTS.)

Coombe Hospital, Dublin.THE annual meeting of the supporters of the Coombe

Lying-in Hospital was held on July 6th, the Lord Mayor-being in the chair. When the report had been read Mr. T. G.Stevens, in moving its adoption, alluded to the great increase-in the number of patients during the last 12 months and to.the increase in the number of students attending the hospital0.The Rev. Dr. Smylie seconded the motion and said thatthe hospital had now risen to a high degree of eminence-and usefulness. The Lord Mayor, in putting the motion,.remarked that as an old member of the hospitals committee-of the corporation he noted with pleasure the improvements.that had been made in the buildings and promised that he-would recommend his colleagues to give an increased grant.,to the institution.

Apotheca’ries’ Hall of Ireland.The annual meeting and dinner of the Apothecaries’ Hall’

of Ireland were held on June 25th, Dr. A. Atock, the governor,being in the chair. Sir Charles Cameron dwelt on the ancientfoundation of the institution which dates from the year 1746;and to the charter of 1791 under which it now exists. The-

governor mentioned that there were over 500 apothecaries on’the present roll besides a large number of assistants and said!that the diploma of the Hall not only qualified in pharmacybut also conferred the right to practise in medicine andsurgery.

Health of Belfast .during 1903.The report (rather a belated one) of Dr. H. Whitaker,.

superintendent medical officer of health of the city offBelfast, for the year 1903, has just been issued in printed