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The cases for the past five years are : — Auckland „ , , Country „, , , City. Suburbs " Districts. TotaL 1901-2 .. .. .. ..35 33 49 117 1902-3 .. .... .. 86 94 138 318 1903-4 .. .. .. ..110 112 145 367 1904-5 .. .. .. ' .. 68 93 112 273 1905-6 .. .. .. .. 47 86 107 240 Grey Lynn, 9 ; Parnell, 9 ; Mount Eden, 10 —each has more than its due number of oases ; while Onehunga, 28, has experienced something like an epidemic. The heavy rate in Coromandel, 16, noted last year has given place to a " Nil " return, the epidemic having been stamped out. In Hamilton and Waihi scarlet fever has got a hold, the former having 10 cases and the latter 14. Tn Bay of Islands (11) and Whangaroa (13) scarlet fever is too prevalent. Diphtheria. Though not reaching the figuring of 1902-3 in any portion of the district, diphtheritic affections of the throat have been a distinct feature of the past year's conditions. Diphtheria Cases. Auckland „ , , Country m* i «.. Suburbs. Tv i. • ■. Total. City. Districts. 1901-2 .. .. .. ..27 15 9 51 1902-3 .. .. .. ..68 49 34 151 1903-4 .. .. .. ..18 24 29 71 1904-5 .. .. .. ..28 24 11 63 1905-6 .. .. .. ..26 43 28 97 In Auckland City the cases may be taken as normal in number. Several cases occurred in the western end of the western suburb, and seemed to have a school connection ; otherwise the city would have had a very favourable record. The high case-rate in the suburbs is mainly accounted for by an epidemic in the Birkenhead District, three cases of which terminated fatally. It may, however, be doubted whether some of those notified as diphtheria or suspected diphtheria should ultimately have been diagnosed as actual diphtheria. Devonport* Newmarket, Mount Eden, and Remuera had a full share of cases of this disease. Of Manukau's 6 cases, 4 occurred in and around Waiuku, where diphtheria has appeared at intervals during the years 1903-4-5. In May last Inspector Winstanley very thoroughly disinfected the public school, since when no fresh cases have arisen. Tuberculosis. Notifications of tuberculosis from Auckland City show a marked reduction extending over several years —31, 38, 23, and 18 being the past four years' records. In Manukau County several of the cases were of Maoris. In Bay of Islands all the cases were those of Natives. As remarked in previous reports, the notification list is, owing to the insidious nature of these complaints, far from being an accurate index of the prevalence of the various forms of tuberculosis. Blood-poisoning. Twenty-one cases were notified. Of these, 3 were known to be puerperal septicaemia—viz., Newmarket, 1 ; Mount Eden, 1 ; Waihi, 1 : 4 were tetanus —City, 1 ; Onehunga, 1 ; Parnell, 1 ; Mount Albert, 1. One case, at Coromandel, was at first supposed anthrax, but this was not supported by the final diagnosis. Ptomaine Poisoning. On Saturday, the 17th March, 1906, a race meeting was held on the Paeroa Racecourse, and repeated on the following Monday- On that evening it was learnt that very many people who had partaken of lunch on the racecourse were ill, with all the usual symptoms pointing to ptomaine poisoning. Most of those markedly affected—probably about thirty-five persons —took ill within a short time— an hour —after dining. lam indebted to Dr. Gilbert Smith, of Paeroa, who attended the patients when first taken ill, for the following description of the attack : " The symptoms observed in the cases of ptomaine poisoning were in nearly every case similar, though of course varying in severity. The first symptom appears to have been a state of collapse quickly followed by vomiting, then epigastric pain with almost continual retching, succeeded by abdominal pain and diarrhoea. This last was not present in nil cases. The collapse in some cases was extreme, but the diarrhoea was not as a rule severe, and in some cases only slight. The sequelae were also similar in the various cases —great prostration (both muscular and nervous) and epigastric pain, in some cases lasting for five or six weeks." Investigation of the cause seemed to point to the ingestion of pressed beef tongue. Seventeen sick persons were interrogated, what they had eaten was tabulated, and only one of them was found not to have eaten tongue —and she was not sure. Nevertheless, at least three persons were emphatic that they had eaten plentifully of the same tongue and yet suffered nothing. The butcher who supplied the tongue and the caterer gave me every assistance in trying to solve the problem of cause. I learnt that

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