View report page

12
Section VII.—On the Sanitary Work of 1866.
The year 1866 has been exceptionally fruitful in sanitary labour. In
the last of these reports, mention was made of the precautionary action that
was being taken against cholera. In April a second sanitary inspector was
engaged to assist in the work of house inspection and removal of nuisances.
Certain imperfect sewers were replaced by new and efficient ones; means of
disinfecting the sewage were employed; and the public pumps which
yielded impure and dangerous water were locked up. The hope was expressed
that, in the event of cholera attacking the Metropolis, these measures would
cause the epidemic to fall lightly on the District; and it was confidently
stated that in any case, these precautions would bear fruit in an improvement
in the conveniences and general health of the parishioners.

As regards the inspection and amendment of houses, the appointment of
Inspector Dixon allowed of remarkable extension being given to this most
important department of sanitary work. In previous years, the utmost
number of houses that could be kept under inspection was from five to six
hundred. In 1866, the two inspectors have caused improvements to be made
in no less than 1340 houses; and this is exclusive of the improvement that
was obtained, almost universally in the poor houses, by the exhortations of
the medical visitors during the cholera time. The number of improvements
of all kinds that were procured in these 1340 houses amounted to 4375, and