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at all) and a fire-place, to act as ventilators. The consequence is, that the air in
them becomes most offensive and unwholesome, being seldom renewed, and constantly
being rendered impure by the exhalations from the lungs and skin of the
inhabitants. In addition to this, the stair-cases, from which most of the air
comes into the dwelling-rooms, are themselves filled with unwholesome air, from
the constant passing to and fro of the inmates of some of the rooms, and in many
cases they are shut in at top and at the back, so that very little fresh air can
come into them to displace the foul air which accumulates. The consequence of
this is, that the fathers and mothers become unhealthy, children grow up or die
scrofulous, consumptive, ricketty, or anaemic ; whilst in some cases low fevers are
produced, and other epidemic diseases rendered more virulent. We have lately
seen that in our army, chiefly owing to the closeness of the barracks, soldiers are
more unhealthy than other classes of the community at the same ages, and die,
especially of consumption, twice as rapidly. But in the houses of many of
the poor the rooms are more close than any of the barracks. In the latter 450
cubic feet of space is the minimum allowed by regulation to each individual;
whereas in the former that is almost a maximum ; the minimum it is difficult to
give ; in this parish it is certainly much below 200 cubic feet. Can anything be
done to remedy these evils ? You cannot give the poor larger rooms in many
cases, but by calling on the landlord to improve the ventilation, the rooms may
be rendered much less unhealthy, and this you have power to enforce under the
Nuisances Removal Act by the 29th section, which provides that " if the medical
officer of health certify to the local authority that any house is so overcrowded
as to be dangerous and prejudicial to the health of the inhabitants, and the inhabitants
consist of more than one family, the local authority shall cause proceedings
to be taken before the justices to abate such overcrowding, and the justices
shall thereupon make such order as they think fit." Now, you are at liberty to
offer this alternative to the person permitting such overcrowding: either that he
improve the ventilation, and thus remedy the evil, or else that he abate the overcrowding,
which you can enforce by an appeal to the magistrate.
I am not quite certain what is the best and cheapest method of ventilating
the rooms of the poor—the introduction of a valve (such as that invented by
Dr. Arnott), or a syphon into the chimney, the use of perforated glass, or one of
Moore's ventilators in the window, the introduction of a perforated brick, or a
plate of perforated metal into the wall near the ceiling and near the floor are
methods which may be adopted with advantage in different cases, and in every
instance should be combined with good ventilation on the stair-cases.
Although more than 500 houses have had their draiuage improved during
the past year, there are still thousands of houses in the parish in which it requires
improvement. There are a number of streets and courts the houses of which
cannot be properly drained for want of main sewers. In my last annual report
I enumerated some of these places, and I regret to add, that what was then said
is still true, and that no new sewers have been made under your direction during
the year. In some places the nuisances arising from the want of them are very
great. I believe the reason that no new sewerage has been undertaken during
the year is, that you consider that the law relating to this subject requires amendment,
and entails too much of the expense on the whole parish, instead of the
owners of adjoining property. I trust another year will not pass without some
progress being made on this head.
Amongst the influences operating injuriously to the health of this as well as
all other parishes in London, must never be forgotten the social and moral condition
of many of the poor. Their filthy, improvident, and intemperate habits
in some instances render any improvements which it is within the province of
your board to enforce almost useless; and the unwholesome state of many houses
is due more to the neglect of the tenants than to any fault of the landlords. Such