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42
FOULING OF PUBLIC FOOTWAYS BY DOGS
The following bye-law was made by the Council on the 29th July, 1924, for the good rule and
government of the Borough:—
No person being in charge of a dog in any street or public place and having the dog on a lead
shall allow or permit such dog to deposit its excrement upon the public footway
Any person offending against this bye-law shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding 40 shillings
This bye-law shall cease to be in force after the 1st day of August, 1926, unless a bye-law
confirming and continuing its provisions has been duly made and come into force before that date
In July, 1926, the bye-law was adopted permanently by the Council
This bye-law is enforced by the Medical Officer of Health and his stafi Active assistance is
given by the police, the Home Secretary having intimated in June, 1928 as a result of representations
from the Council, that the police had been instructed to report to the Council such offences against
the bye-law as come to their notice in the course of their ordinary duties During 1936, 5 prosecutions
were instituted, fines being imposed in four cases, ranging from 5s to 10s, and in 1 case the
summons was dismissed
The publicity which has been given to the bye-law has had good effect in causing many dogowners
to be more careful One minor difficulty in enforcing the bye-law is that an offender cannot
be compelled to divulge his identity, and cannot be given in charge as the police do not enforce the
bye-law
Notices concerning the bye-law were frequently posted on shingle-bins throughout the Borough
CANAL BOATS ACTS, 1877 and 1884
By virtue of the Local Government Board Regulations of Nth May, 1878, the Paddington
Borough Council is one of the Registration Authorities for the Regents and Grand Junction Canals,
now the Grand Union Canal The Medical Officer of Health is the Examining Officer for the purposes
of the Regulations
Mr V L Ronchetti acted as Canal Boats Inspector during the year
The following report for the year 1936 was made to the Council by the Medical Officer of
Health, and was adopted by the Council as their statutory report to the Minister of Health as
required by the Canal Boats Act, 1884
Ninety-five canal boats were inspected during the year, the following infringements
of the Acts and Regulations being discovered:—
Boats leaky 2
Cabins leaky 2
Woodwork of cabins defective 1
Cabin floors defective 1
Bulkheads defective -
Bulkheads required —
Stoves defective 1
Absence of water storage vessel —
Boats without certificates 2
Painting of cabins required 1
Numbering wrong or illegible 2
Boats overcrowded —
Four notices were served and on no occasion was admission to a boat refused
Legal proceedings were instituted in one instanoe The case was heard at the Marylebone
Police Court on the 21st April, 1936, when the defendants were fined ten shillings, with ten
shillings costs, for failing to furnish the boat with a suitable and sufficient stove, and ten shillings,
with ten shillings costs, for failing to remedy the leaky condition of the boat and the cabin
thereof.
No case of infectious disease was reported but one death was recorded as occurring among the
canal boat population.
Fifteen children of school age were found to be living on the boats inspected.
It is practically certain that a number of boats, registered many years ago, have changed ownership,
been registered with another authority or been broken up It is under the circumstances
impossible to trace a number of registered boats or to know the exact number of "live" certificates
of registration.