With regard to the deaths occurring in the locality belonging to the
pump, there were sixty-one instances in which I was informed that the
deceased persons used to drink the pump-water from Broad Street, either
constantly or occasionally. In six instances I could get no information,
owing to the death or departure of every one connected with the deceased
individuals; and in six cases I was informed that the deceased persons
did not drink the pump-water before their illness.
The result of the inquiry then was, that there had been no particular
outbreak or increase of cholera, in this part of London, except among
the persons who were in the habit of drinking the water of the
above-mentioned pump-well.
I had an interview with the Board of Guardians of St. James’s parish, on
the evening of Thursday, 7th September, and represented the above
circumstances to them. In consequence of what I said, the handle of the
pump was removed on the following day.
Besides the eighty-three deaths mentioned above as occurring on the
three last days of the week ending September 2nd, and being registered
during that week in the sub-districts in which the attacks occurred, a
number of persons died in Middlesex and other hospitals, and a great
number of deaths which took place in the locality during the last two
days of the week, were not registered till the week following. The
deaths altogether, on the 1st and 2nd of September, which have been
ascertained to belong to this outbreak of cholera, were one hundred and
ninety-seven; and many persons who were attacked about the same time as
these, died afterwards. I should have been glad to inquire respecting
the use of the water from Broad Street pump in all these instances, but
was engaged at the time in an inquiry in the south districts of London,
which will be alluded to afterwards; and when I began to make fresh
inquiries in the neighbourhood of Golden Square, after two or three
weeks had elapsed, I found that there had been such a distribution of
the remaining population that it would be impossible to arrive at a
complete account of the circumstances. There is no reason to suppose,
however, that a more extended inquiry would have yielded a different
result from that which was obtained respecting the eighty-three deaths
which happened to be registered within the district of the outbreak
before the end of the week in which it occurred.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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