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from diarrhoea, 9 from measles, 3 from improper feeding, 10 from
pulmonary or other forms of tuberculosis, and 11 from bronchitis or
broncho-pneumonia, all these being excessive when compared with the
rest of the city.
Blue Anchor Court lies between Great Peter Street and Chadwick
Street, the entrance being from the former through a narrow passage
about 44 ft. long, 20 ft. of which is covered. The court is 104 ft. long,
and there is an open space of 22 ft. between the cottages in it and the
back of the Great Peter Street houses. There are six cottages, consisting
of ground and first floor, the houses are old, but kept fairly clean.
Several of the ground floor rooms have been lined with match boarding
on account of damp. Some of the houses have windows off the staircases,
opening into the yards of Chadwick Street, and air-bricks have been
put in to give some through ventilation. There is no w.a, water-tap or
sink inside the houses, but there are two water-taps and also w.c.'s in
the open court. There is a large gully in the court to which the waste
water of the houses finds its way. Four houses consist of 2 rooms only,
one above the other, 2 are four-roomed. The inhabitants are respectable
persons, chiefly costermongers, and some of them have lived in the
court many years; one family claims to have been in continuous
occupation for upwards of 70 years, another over 30 years. There are
11 families, averaging 40 persons, half of whom are under 15 years of
age. Bents vary from 3s. 6d. and 4s. for one room, 6s. 6d. for two
rooms. The six cottages are assessed at £69 gross, £52 rateable. Ten
deaths have occurred in the last 7 years equal to an average annual
rate of 35 per 1,000, the causes being bronchitis, 3; diarrhœa, 2; kidney
disease, 2; consumption, heart disease and insanity, 1 each. The ages
were 3 months, 4 months, 47, 47, 49, 61, 66, 68, 68 and 73, so that the
liigh rate is partly due to the age constitution of the inhabitants.
A number of cottages known as Ann's Place, adjoining this Court,
were closed under the Housing Act in 1894. They were approached by
Bull's Head Court running from Great Peter Street to Chadwick Street,
in which were also a number of small cottages. The ground is now
lying vacant.
Great Peter Street, on this side, consists of some 24 houses of varying
sizes, with shops on the ground floor. The rooms in the houses are
let out singly, as a rule, at much the same rents as in Chadwick
Street. The population is about 360, of whom 100 are children. Mortality
rates are a little less than in Chadwick Street, but still excessive.
Nos. 7-19 have recently been demolished and offices and flats erected
in their place.
The excessive death-rate in this particular area is particularly
striking when compared with that of the Peabody Buildings, or of the