CONSUMPTION IN AUSTRALIA.

Press, Volume LXIV, Issue 13230, 25 September 1908, Page 6

CONSUMPTION IN AUSTRALIA.

Statistics recently published chow that the steady decrease in tho death-rate from consumption which lias been a feature of the mortality returns in New South Wales and Victoria for some years past, is beimg maintained in' a gratifying degree. In. New South Wales, in 1885, with a population considerably undeir a million, 1078 persons died from phthisis, a proportion of 11.6 per ten thousand of tho population, whUo last year, with a population well over a million and a half, tho number •of deaths from this oau3o diropped to 9GI, showing a proportion of omly 6.2 per ten thousand. The proportion has fluctuated to soma extent during the period mentioned, but each fiveyear period, has shown a decrease, and the deabh-rate from thie disease has now reached a point below that of New Zealand, the proportion of deaths from phthisis in N the Dominion kst year beine 6.66. In 1905 our rat© vra& only 5.7 per ten thousand, probably tho lowest in tho world, and had ' roachcrl that figure after a series of drops, .but eince then, for the last two years, .it has shown a tendency to rise, though, as compared with most other countries, it ie still satisfactorily lomr. In Victoria the death-rate from consumption, is higher than fe. the sister Stat©, but. the decrease from 14.4 in 1889 to 9.5 last year indicates / -in," Victoria, as elsewhere, the fight against the white plfliguo is being -waged successfully. The gG3pel_of fresh air and sunshine, us remedial agente, 'has been preached so often and so 'emphatically that* it is coming to ibe - "accepted generally and TTith dkillod , 'saaiiatorium treiUtmijnt it is having, a marked effeofc upon the puiblic health. The President of the New South Wales Board.of Health adds an interesting note to his statistics. Referriaig to the practice,, universal in tho State, of feeding- calves and pigs witli unfboikd skim milk, a practice which is responsibLe for the perpetuation of tuberculosis among diairy cattle especially, he declares that "were noth"ing but boiled skim milk (or boiled '•milk, if whole milk is used) allowed ." to be fed to istock, there is no doubt "ithat in itfoe course of two or three "years a very remarkable dimiriu- " tion in the numbers affected with ''tuberculosis would be brought about.'! When the close connection between tubercrakßsis in dairy herds and among ©anauraeiis of milt is bettor undenstood-, .publio opinion will comipol Toform ' in this particular.