Glossary
It was very common in Victorian times
for illness to spread very quickly through 
the
whole local community. Infectious diseases
like diptheria, scarlet fever, measles and whooping cough were passed
on easily when people were gathered closely together.
As children in country districts often came to school from a very wide
area round about, there was always a danger from disease and
epidemics.
Almost all school Log Books from these years
mention the absence of children due to illness, and schools often had
to close for weeks or even months...
