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regard to providing an extra closet, but this was avoided by reducing the numbers
in the house. Much the same remarks apply to Sultan Terrace. Overcrowding, as
will be seen from the tables, is not of a very serious nature, and its existence has
occasionally only been discovered by night visits. Judging from the number of
empty rooms, it is not owing to lack of accommodation in the area, but due entirely to
reasons of poverty. Three inspections by night were made, on May 29th, July 3rd,
and September 11th respectively, resulting in finding eight cases of overcrowding.
The dust-bins are usually too small, especially in the Borough Council's
property, where they are ordinarily in a better condition than in those of the private
owners; accumulations of dust were found to be frequent.
The keeping of live stock in the yards, apart from pigeons, has almost disappeared,
and in the case of the last I have usually turned a blind eye, unless serious blockage
of light and air or other nuisance should arise, on account of the advisability of
leaving the inhabitants some hobby.
Many of the eases of overcrowding have been remedied by a re-arrangement of
the inhabitants, while others have been reported to the Public Health Committee.
The following houses should be registered so as to bring them under the
regulations which have been productive of so much good in this area:—
Crown Street, Nos. 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 17, and 2, 4, 6, 10 and 12; Hollington
Street, No. 62; Sultan Street, No. 3; Bowyer Street, Nos. 6 and 56; Gange Street,
Nos. 5, 6 and 11; Pitman Street, Nos. 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 27, 29.
In conclusion I should express my indebtedness to Inspector Malins, who is
responsible for this district, and also point out that an excellent object lesson may
be learned from this district of the advantages of asphalte roadways, frequent
scavenging, and the planting of trees.
(Signed) FRANCIS STEVENS, Medical Officer of Health.
The registered houses as let in lodgings are for the most part
situated in this area, but several fresh registrations have been made
during the year in Peckham with opposition comparatively little to
that which we formerly experienced when landlords were informed
of the intention of the Council to register their property. Every
house on the register in April, 1909, was visited and dealt with
according to the by-laws, and subsequent inspections were made
where insanitary conditions were likely to occur.
The Housing Committee asked for a revision of the procedure
adopted by the Public Health Committee with regard to the service
of sanitary intimations concerning the Council's property, and urged
that instead of serving notices in the ordinary way, a counterfoil
book should be provided and written notice be left with the Council's
Housing Manager. They considered that if this were done, urgent
matters could at once be attended to. During the time of the late
Inspector Perry, it was his custom to leave a memorandum at the
Council's Estate Office stating the nuisances he discovered, but it
did not work well; in fact, not mincing words, it was a great failure.
So far as the question of delay is concerned, all urgent matters are
at once notified at the office of the Housing Manager, and all intimations
sent on the next day. But it must be pointed out that the
majority of the notices sent to the Council's Housing Manager relate
to matters which are not so pressing, such as cleansing, &c.
At the conference of the two Committees it was moved: "That
in the opinion of this conference the practice with regard to the
service of intimations in respect of the Council's property in the
Hollington Street Area which was in force in the time of the late
Inspector Perry should be reverted to, and an interleaved carbon
book provided for the purpose"