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administration. 35
Water Supply.*—During the five yeais 143 notices of discontinuance of supplies were
received from the Water Board, 74 relating to occupied houses and 52 to empty premises.
In 91 instances the supply was cut off on account of failure to pay the water rate, in 39 on
account of waste arising from defective fittings, and in one instance because the supply was
not required.
Mortuary.*—During the five years 1,604 bodies were received at the Public Mortuary,
Paddington Green, 1,290 (80'4 per cent.) being removed thereto on Coroner's order. The
annual average for the period was 301, which compares with 283 in 1912 and 333 in 1913.
The bodies deposited to await burial numbered 320, including 9 of persons dying of infectious
disease. Post-mortem examinations were made on 625 bodies, equivalent to 48*4 per cent,
of the instances of removal on Coroner's order. In 1912 the corresponding percentage was
43'5 and in 1913, 47 4.
Pig-Keeping.—Section 17 (4) of the Public Health (London) Act, 1891, enacts that any
premises within forty yards of any street or public place are unfit for the keeping of pigs,
which implies that the keeping of such animals within the Borough is illegal.
In January, 1917, the Local Government Board issued a circular letter which, in effect,
advised the Council to ignore the provisions just mentioned and to encourage the keeping of
pigs—as also of rabbits and fowls—wherever possible, without causing serious nuisance.
The object of the Board's action was to make use of edible house refuse and to make an
effort to supplement the threatened shortage of food.
Pig-styes were opened at the Paddington Infirmary and at the Dust Wharves belonging
to the Councils of this Borough and of the Borough of St. Marylebone. A fair number of
householders engaged in rabbit and fowl rearing.
Trade Nuisances:* Offensive Smells.—The complaints received numbered 44, arising
from 34 premises, including 13 relating to public house urinals, 10 to fishmongers and 9 to
poulterer's premises.
Manure Nuisances.—There were 86 complaints of smells due to failure to remove
manure from 66 premises.
Smoke /VMtsatice.j—The taking of skilled stokers for the Services and the demand for
smokeless coal for the Navy rendered the enforcement of the law against the emission of
smoke not only impracticable but also undesirable. The complaints received in the course
of the five years numbered 40 and the time spent in observation amount to 531J hours.
Smoke of varying density was recorded during 339 hours (nearly 64 per cent, of the time
given to observations), " black " smoke being noted during 13-f hours. The durations of
" black " smoke recorded each year are very small, but the percentages of duration (in hours
of observation) serve to illustrate the extent to which the difficulty of avoiding the emission
of such smoke increased vear bv vear.
Duration of black smoke per 100
hours of observation
1914
0.7
1915
2.7
1916
2.9
1917
3.6
1918
6.6
Canal Boats.|—An Annual Report has been presented each year by the Examining
Officer, so that a brief summarv only is included here.
There was an increase in the volume of traffic during the war, the number of boats
using the Basin in any year rising rather more than 33 per cent, from 63 in 1914 to 96 in
1918. In the course of 667 inspections made during the five years 83 infringements of the
Acts were discovered, requiring the service of 60 notices.
The children found on the boats diminished from 148 (78 of whom were of school age)
noted in 1914 to 90 (51 of school age) in 1918. The progressive decline in the numbers is
fully brought out by the subjoined figures.
Number of boats using Basin
Total children found
Children of school ages
1914
63
148
78
1915
65
150
91
1916
68
130
80
1917
74
93
63
1918
96
90
51
* See also Table XIV., Appendix
† Mr. Wansbrough, the Inspector of Workshops, deals with this matter. See also Table XIV., Appendix.
‡ See also Table XIV., Appendix. The Chief Inspector (Mr. Potter) is the Inspector of Canal Boats.
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