§ Mr. R. YOUNGasked the Minister of Labour, as representing the Ministry of Health, whether the first reported case of small-pox in connection with the recent London outbreak, which fell ill on the 1st July but was overlooked until the 3rd August, was a vaccinated case; whether the case was under medical supervision during the period in question; and, if so, what action, if any, it is proposed to take in respect of the failure of the medical attendant to detect and notify the case as one of small-pox?
§ Sir M. BARLOWThe case referred to is presumably that of a had aged 16 who had been vaccinated in infancy and who fell sick on 1st July. He attended at one of the London hospitals on 4th July, where his illness was diagnosed as chicken-pox. The lad was not again seen by a doctor until 3rd August, when it was discovered that he had suffered a mild attack of small-pox. The diagnosis of small-pox in certain cases is admittedly difficult, and owing to the comparative freedom of this country from small-pox in recent years there are many practitioners who have had no actual experience of the disease.