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19 [1899
almost insuperable, for owners or tenants will not let their
tenements to them. Consequently I have not been surprised to
find that some of these people have been compelled to undertake
the serious responsibility of renting a whole house, trusting to meet
their obligations by letting those rooms which they do not require
for their own use. I was much surprised, recently, to find that a
house, which is on the register of Houses let in Lodgings, was
occupied by a blind man, who told me that he had been for thirty
years in the receipt of parish relief. This man, of course, let his
rooms to others, who only just paid him their exact proportion of rent,
and no more, so that the remainder had to be made up by whatever
money his wife could make by charing and similar work. Of course
he had no means with which to affect the annual cleansing which
the by-laws require. The owners of the property, a well-known
firm, when appealed to, positively refused to do it, and in a letter
addressed to myself have thrown the responsibility on the Vestry.
To take such a case to a Court would only result in the tenant,
already a pauper, being mulct in a fine which he could not pay;
while, on the other hand, if a summons were issued against the
owners under the Public Health (London) Act requiring them to
cleanse the premises, it would to a certainty be dismissed on the
ground that cleansing, lime-washing, etc., was decorative work, and
did not come under the sections dealing with nuisances. I have
frequently heard Magistrates deciding in this manner, as I have also
heard them affirm that dilapidations, broken walls, floors, ceilings,
etc., cannot be dealt with under the Act. There can be no doubt
that the law requires amendment, for undoubtedly such defects are *
nuisances, for they harbour dust and dirt, and afford lodgment for
the germs of infectious disease.
MARRIAGES.
During the year 6,508 persons were married, which is equal to
a rate of 18*8 persons per 1,000 of the population. This was an
increase of 1,068 persons married on the average number recorded
during the preceding ten years.