_Scarlet Fever_ was fatal in 32 cases—an increase of 22 over the mortality of the previous year. 28 of the deaths took place in the Town sub-district, and 4 in Brompton—21 of the victims being under 5 years of age. The disease was, to a certain extent, epidemic in the Autumn, and, fears being entertained that it might spread, through the agency of the Board Schools, precautions were taken by the London School Board, acting on the suggestions I laid before your Vestry, to prevent children attending school from infected houses. The evil blew over as the winter advanced; but, in accordance with the usual course of epidemic scarlet fever, a more severe outbreak may be looked for during the current year, the signs of which are not wanting at the present writing. I have already referred (p. 10, _ante_) to a curious outbreak of scarlet fever following on a dinner-party at South Kensington, and it may be here mentioned that a report of the occurrence having found its way, with more or less inaccuracy, into some of the papers, a good deal of alarm was created, and an impression got abroad that the disease was very prevalent in Kensington, his impression was not confined to the immediate locality, and the effect of it was to cause a considerable exodus of the wealthier classes at a prematurely early period of the “season,” as well as more or less consequent injury to trade. Some suspicions connected with the state of the Knightsbridge Barracks and the health of the soldiers’ families, including those that lived outside, added fuel to the fire, if indeed they did not kindle it. I had no reason, myself, to suspect any extensive prevalence of scarlet fever, for I knew that the deaths though rather above the average were still few in the aggregate, and I was aware, after repeated enquiry, that the cases under treatment at the three charitable dispensaries and by the five district Poor Law Medical Officers were astonishingly few. In fact, on several occasions when enquiry was made, it turned out that only one or two, or at the most three cases, were under the care of the Medical Officers, although they have many thousand cases of sickness among the poorest classes under their care during the year. I also ascertained from many medical men that they had very few cases under their care, most of them none at all. I stated these facts in my June report, but as the alarm was really great I thought it well to address a circular letter to the two hundred and fifty medical men whose names appear in the Medical Directory as residents in Kensington, asking for information and stating all I knew as to the actual dimensions of the epidemic, if it could be so called, and the comparative abeyance of scarlet fever in dispensary and parochial practice. To this letter I had fewer than fifty replies, including those that were _viva voce_. As I had asked for positive information only, it is probable that many of those who did not favor me with any reply were