Nelson Provincial Gazette – 1867 – No. 26

Page 103

✨ Report on Nelson health



103

COMPARATIVE TABLE OF DEATH-RATE PER 1000 IN NELSON, AND IN THE SUBURBAN AND WAIMEA DISTRICTS, for the years 1864, 1865, and 1866.

Year. Population. Zymotic Deaths.† Other Deaths. Ditto corrected for accident. Total Death-rate. Ditto corrected for accident. Zmotic death-rate.†
1864. NELSON, 4427.
WAIMEAS, 3661.		 7
8		 56
34		 51
32		 14.23
11.47		 13.01
10.93		 1.58
2.19
1865. NELSON, 4575.
WAIMEAS, 3766.		 45
17		 75
35		 69
31		 26.2
13.8		 24.92
12.6		 9.6
4.51
1866. NELSON, 4682,
WAIMEAS, 3823		 11
3		 69
24		 61
21		 17.0
7.06		 15.16
6.27		 2.35
.78
Average of 64-5-6. NELSON,
WAIMEAS,		 ... ... ... 10.14
9.27		 ... 4.51
2.49
Average of 64, 66, omitting fever yrs NELSON,
WAIMEAS,		 ... ... ... 15.61
9.27		 ... 1.96
1.49
1861.
1862.		 VICTORIA (Australia)
Ditto ditto		 ... ... ... 19.45
18.20		 ... ...
1861.
1862.		 MELBOURNE and Suburbs
Ditto ditto		 ... ... ... 25.78
23.34		 ... 7.97
Average of 5 years HOBART TOWN (remark-
ably large proportion
of old people)		 ... ... ... 23. ... ...
1861.
1862.		 Country of VICTORIA,
including Provincial
towns
Ditto ditto		 ... ... ... 17.24
16.43		 ... ...
Average of 10 yrs. LIVERPOOL ... ... ... 36.0 ... 7.45
(LONDON (average of week
ending March 2)		 ... ... ... ... ... 3.74
(SIXTEEN of the
HEALTHIEST DISTRICTS
of ENGLAND		 ... ... ... 16.8 ... ...

† Zymotic diseases may be said, in general terms, to include all the so called "preventive diseases," being such as are caused or intensified by decaying vegetable and animal matters, and the gases they give off polluting air and water.

CAUSES OF THE HEALTH OF NELSON BEING LESS GOOD THAN IT OUGHT TO BE.

We are of opinion that the causes of the health of Nelson being less good than it ought to be, are, "the pollution of the town wells by soakage from cesspools, and from slops, &c., thrown out in backyards,—the noxious exhalations from over-flowing cesspools, large heaps of rotting manure, from rubbish, slops, scraps of food, offal, &c., thrown out in backyards, waste town lots, and such places,—vapors from damp or flooded cellars, and from swampy soil, and from rain-water and flood-water, and decaying vegetation, lying in hollows having no natural drainage; and that the present sewer has little or no appreciable ill effect on the health of the inhabitants, owing to the very small number of the water-closets discharging into it; but if sewers were extended throughout the town, and closets generally discharged into them, a very perceptible deposit would take place on the mud flats, and about the wharfs, and prove most detrimental to the health of the town. Tide especially the evidence of Mr. Cross, Pilot, [See Appendix I] who thinks that in such a case no sewer would carry away all its contents so as not to be brought back by the flood-tide, unless it were constructed at least as far as the pilotage lights, at such a level as to discharge its contents at half ebb [See also Memorandum of Provincial Engineer, Appendix V.]

As a minor cause amongst those affecting the health of Nelson, we may mention the immense



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🏘️ Report of the Commission on Drainage and Sewage in Nelson (continued from previous page)

🏘️ Provincial & Local Government
Nelson, Drainage, Sewage, Public Health, Statistics, Mortality, Waimea, Comparative Table
  • Mr. Cross (Pilot), Provided evidence regarding sewer discharge