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concerned, the dwelling-rooms and work-rooms are to be visited by
the Medical Officer of Heath or the Sanitary Inspector, and the
authority is held directly responsible for their sanitary condition.
In the present year a further Factory Act will probably be passed,
aiming at still further extending the sanitary clauses of the
previous Acts, and also amending them in several important
details, which aim at preventing disease. From our experience so
far, I do not anticipate that we in Stoke Newington shall find it a
difficult matter to do our duty under these Acts. I have already
secured a complete list of the present "out-workers" in our parish,
and have sent their names and addresses to the Medical Officers of
Health of the parishes in which they dwell. These returns are made
in order that we may mutually acquaint each other of the existence
of infectious disease among these out-workers, with the object
of preventing the importation of such disease into our respective
parishes.
BAKE-HOUSES.
It will be seen from the report of the Chief Sanitary Inspector
that there are 14 bake-houses in the parish, and that as a result of
an inspection it was found necessary to serve Notices upon 13 of
these.
WATER SUPPLY.
The greater part of Stoke Newington is supplied by water on
the intermittent system, and the water-cisterns are frequently
found to occupy very undesirable positions. I have visited several
houses where the drinking-water cistern is under a bed-room floor,
and either uncovered or very imperfectly so. No sort of cover
under these circumstances can remove the dangers which attach
to such a position from the penetration of dirt and vermin.
It would be a gain to the district if the necessity for thus storing
water on premises, where in so many cases it runs some risk of
pollution, were removed. This, of course, could only be done by
the adoption of a constant supply throughout the whole district.