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General Character of Defects.*- -The premises dealt with during the year were mews
dwellings built over stables occupied by horses. In each case through structural defects effluvia
from the stable beneath had access to the dwelling rooms above. There is a common belief that
the smell of horse manure is not injurious to health, but anyone who subscribes to such a creed would
be quickly converted to an opposite way of thinking if he had the opportunity of experiencing the
sickening stench that arises when an old stable floor is taken up or a choked drain
inlet in a stable is cleared. An added danger arises from the fact that the drain
inlets of the horse-pot type used in the stables axe as a rule untrapped, with the
result that foul gases from the drains, or in the absence of an interceptor from the sewer itself, pass
freely into the interior of the stable. In many of the cases reported on, an unventilated staircase
was so arranged as to be entered at the foot from the innermost part of the stable, and appeared to
have been constructed for the express purpose of conducting air contaminated in the manner
described to the dwelling rooms above. When the staircases were entered from the mews way, foul
air was still in certain instances admitted to the upper story through defects in the soffits of the
stairs, in the matchboard partition walls or in the stable ceiling. A number of w.c.'s were found
in cramped and most unsuitable positions beneath the staircases, where light and ventilation from
the external air could not be obtained, and in certain cases nuisance was occasioned by untrapped
or defective sink wastes which discharged below into stable drains.
In addition to the above defects may be noted the dilapidated state of the woodwork and general
structure of many of the houses visited.
Results.—On the 21 premises where defects were remedied without the making of Closing
Orders, horse-pots of the bell-trap type have been replaced by modern gullies, and the soffits and
entrance of the staircases have been so constructed as to prevent the access of effluvia from the
stables beneath to the dwelling rooms above. Through the public spirit of owners and their
willingness to carry out the Council's requirements, a great deal of valuable work has been carried
out, and in many houses ventilated cupboards for storing food have been provided, and other
improvements have been made which could not have been obtained except from landlords who were
anxious to do their best for their tenants. In G further cases the owner, being unable to bear the
expense of the necessary work, has altered his premises so that they can no longer be used as
dwellings.
Closing Orders.—Of the four mews dwellings which have been closed by order of the Council,
one has been rendered fit for habitation, one has been converted into a garage, with a loft overhead,
to which access can only be had by means of a vertical ladder, and one has been demolished. In
the fourth case the house remains unoccupied, but the undertaking to render the premises fit for
habitation has not been carried out.
Demolition Orders.—No demolition orders have been made during the year, but notice of the
Council's intention to consider the question of the demolition of a certain dwelling house which
had been closed, was served in the manner required by Section 18 of the Housing Act, 1909. Before
the date named in the notice the premises were pulled down and no further action was taken. In
a second case the owner of premises which had been closed attended an informal meeting of the
Housing Sub-Committee, when the question of demolition was discussed. On an undertaking being
given by the owner's representative that the premises would be rendered fit for habitation within two
months, the formal procedure required by Section 18 was postponed. This undertaking has not been
fulfilled. The house in question stands attached on either side in a row of seven other dwellings.
When the Closing Order was made the premises were in a grossly insanitary state, but they are
capable of being converted into a first-rate garage with dwelling rooms overhead. Their demolition
would not only leave an unsightly gap in one side of a mews, but would also probably bring down
the neighbouring houses. In this case, in the case already quoted of dwelling rooms converted
into a loft and in others which will inevitably occur, it would accordingly appear that the obligation
under Section 18 to demolish is either unintentional or inserted in the Act without a proper
apprehension of the difficulties and absurdities that would arise if demolition were to be insisted on
in every case.