View report page

141
in their attempt to make a Census of "Homeless Persons" wandering
in the streets of London between the hours of 1 a.m. and 3 a.m.
Every part of the Borough was visited by the ten men from this
Department who went into all streets, courts, alleys, entries,
passages, and many model dwellings, registered lodging-houses, &c.
The results were as follows :—
(a) North Clerkenwell.—In this district 8 homeless men and 3
homeless women were counted. Some 400 other persous were also
seen, some of whom in all probability belonged to a class of
unfortunate women, and many of whom were labourers, workers in
bakehouses, ostlers, stablemen, coachmen, and persons who had
been turned out of public houses. Some 25 blocks of buildings
were visited.
(b) South Clerkenwell.—In this district 4 homeless men and 5
homeless women were counted and very few other persons were
seen, probably not more than another dozen. In all 41 blocks of
buildings were visited, and 7 out of 9 persons were found on the
staircases of these premises.
(c) St. Luke.—In this district 18 homeless men and 3 homeless
women were counted. Some 70 or 80 blocks of dwellings were
inspected and probably some 300 persons in all were seen. Some
of these probably belonged to the unfortunate class, but the
majority were labourers, people turned out of public-houses, &c.
As a result of this night census, it may be said that, with the
exception of one or two localised areas including in all only a few
streets, very few persons of any kind are to be found out and about
between the hours of 1 a m. and 3 a.m. in the Borough of Finsbury.
The total number of persons accurately to be described as homeless,
on this particular night, was 41, or 0.4 per cent. of the whole of
the population of the Borough.
The Medical Officer of the London County Council, Sir Shirley
F. Murphy, reported (March 1st, 1904), " that in a particular area of
London 1,463 men, 116 women, 46 boys and 4 girls were found by
the Council's officers to be walking the streets on that night, the boys
and girls appearing to be under 16 years of age. 100 males and
68 females were also found asleep on staircases, in doorways and