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SANITARY STAFF.
During the year the following changes have taken effect among
the staff of your department: —
Mr. Mills, who had previously acted as superintendent of combined
drainage works, qualified himself as a sanitary officer, and
in March, on your recommendation, the Vestry appointed him as
additional inspector. The decrease in the amount of work and
number of men employed by the Vestry in connection with " combined
drains" has enabled me to take advantage of Mr. Mills'
services in many ways, specially in the better supervision of new
buildings, drainage, &c., and in connection with several of the
seizures of unsound food and the procuring of samples. From the
date of his appointment Mr. Mills has rendered most valuable
assistance and has shown every disposition to assist me and to
carry out any duties entrusted to him in a most careful and
painstaking manner.
In the early part of October your Committee resolved to have
the drains of all premises visited by the inspectors tested with a
surface test. This necessitated a re-arrangement of the method of
carrying on our house-to-house work and other inspections. A
Sub-Committee was appointed to enquire into and report upon the
matter, and as a result it was decided that each inspector should
be required to set aside one day in each week for house-to-house
work and that an assistant at 30s. per week be appointed to
accompany and assist each in rotation with the testing of the
drains. Mr. J. Jones, who has been in your service as junior
sanitary clerk about four years, applied for and was appointed to
the new post of general assistant, in my judgment an advantageous
arrangement. This caused a vacancy for a junior clerk, and
after advertisements had been issued Leonard Massey was
appointed at 15s. per week and commenced his duties here on the
20th of November. Massey brought a capital school record and