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270
1911]
cards are nearly ready, and the register files have been ordered. Still it is
well that in the past so much of this class of work was undertaken in the
borough, for it places the Council in a much better position than they
probably anticipated.
Some years ago the Medical Officer prepared a map, based on the census
returns for each enumeration area, which showed these areas, coloured
according to the degree of crowding in them. It is a very instructive
cartoon, as it shows at a glance those parts of the borough which are most
likely to require attention. When the most crowded areas have been
inspected it is then proposed to turn attention to those which are less
crowded, and so on.
There is, however, an enormous amount of work to be undertaken, for
Islington, with its ten miles circumference, is no small place—but a large
compact area, with more people living on each of its acres than on the acres
of any provincial town in the kingdom. This house to house inspection will
take a long while for its accomplishment, and unless special means be adopted,
for it must be recollected that there are some 40,000 houses in the borough, it
will be a work of years. Whether this will satisfy the requirements of the
Housing and Town Planning Act remains to be seen. If it should not, then
it might, indeed probably would, become necessary to appoint a special staff
to carry out the inspection. It is to be hoped that they will not be required,
for it cannot be truly said by any one that even the majority of the houses of
Islington require more than the inspection which the Medical Officer of
Health has indicated in his. remarks. In support of this contention he would
mention the f emarkable fact that in the last twenty years one million two hundred
and forty-three thousand one hundred and twenty-two inspections and visits
(1.243,122) have been made to the houses in Islington, which represent 32 visits
to every house. Of course every house was not visited, but houses which
required it were visited more frequently.