“Your obedient Servant,
“J. Russell.”
The Commissioners consider this the proper time for making arrangements to obtain the returns and information on which they may prepare a report to be submitted to the House of Lords in the ensuing Session of Parliament.
The Commissioners request your particular attention to the subject, as one of great importance to the labouring classes, inasmuch as it may lead to the removal of the causes of prevalent and fatal diseases, and of consequent destitution and suffering.
The steps which the Commissioners propose to take for obtaining the information required by the order of the House of Lords, are:—
1. To procure from the medical officers of unions returns of the number of cases of contagious or infectious disease, the spread of which within their respective districts has been promoted by the circumstances referred to in the order of the House of Lords, with their observations thereon; for which purpose the Commissioners will issue the necessary circulars to the medical officers.
2. To obtain information from the Boards of Guardians of districts in which these diseases appear to have prevailed to a considerable extent, and where the guardians have applied to municipal or other authorities for the removal of circumstances promoting the prevalence of such diseases.
3. In large towns, to request some physician,[[1]] or general practitioner of eminent reputation, to prepare a report (founded upon data obtained from the various dispensaries, infirmaries, fever hospitals, and other similar public establishments) respecting the circumstances promoting the prevalence of contagious and infectious diseases in such large towns.
The Commissioners will be glad to receive from you the name of any physician or general practitioner of sufficient eminence to obtain the requisite data, and who will be willing to furnish them with such a report in each of the towns in your district named in the margin.
4. If the means already indicated should prove insufficient, to obtain a report from yourself founded on personal examination, on spots where, from the returns or from other information, such examination by yourself or the medical officer of the district may appear necessary.