Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 9.djvu/661

 A MODEL MUNICIPAL DEPARTMENT

637

And the figures for 1902 represent, also, the vaccinations actually performed, and not merely the fictitious numbers often reported in previous years ; for the present administration rates its inspect- ors, not by the territory reported to have been covered, but by the exact number of persons vaccinated in a given time, due allowance, of course, being made for the difficulties in different localities.

The results of this campaign against smallpox were almost immediate, as can be seen by comparing the number of cases reported in the city during the different months of the last three years :

Months

1900

1901

1902

January

8

81

152

February

z

147

233

10

199 '

300

April

4

200

245

May

II

454

232

June

8

362

203

July..

I

244

76

August

2

118

20

September

27

24

October

27

8

November

39

43

12

December

70

62

II

Total

156

1,964

I,5l6

In 1901 there were 410 deaths from the disease. In 1902, in spite of the fact that the bad conditions under the previous administration had been allowed to continue so long, and in spite of the fact that 258 more cases were reported during the first three months of the year than during the corresponding months of 1901, nevertheless the number of deaths was only 310.

Medical inspection of schools. One of the most interesting and inspiring departments of work carried on by the New York Board of Health under the present administration is its medical inspection of all the public, parochial, and industrial schools in the city. This work was first begun in a tentative way in 1896, following the experience of the health authorities in Boston and several other large cities, but it has since been steadily extended