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and Workshop Act, 1878, were duly visited and inspected, and, where found necessary, orders were
made relating to their cleanliness, ventilation, overcrowding, sanitary arrangements and the number of
persons employed in or in attendance at such buildings."
Strand—" The staff has been strengthened by the appointment of an inspector to carry out the
duties imposed by the Factory and Workshop Act, and by the by-laws relating to houses let in
lodgings."
Holborn—Forms relating to lists of out-workers " have been printed and distributed in the
district, and it is the duty of the sanitary inspector to receive the lists of such out-workers, and to
ascertain the condition of their dwellings, especially the presence of cases of infectious diseases therein."
Shoreditch—" During the year notifications were received from Her Majesty's inspector
of factories of insanitary conditions existing in 62 workshops and factories situate in the parish.
In 51 of the premises works were effected in compliance with sanitary notices served. Many of
the notifications received referred only to dirty conditions of the walls and ceilings, and in a number
of cases it was found necessary in addition to order extensive works to be carried out, such as the
introduction of additional water-closet accommodation, the improvement of light and ventilation, and
the abatement of overcrowding."
Bethnal-green—"It was not until December, 1893, that a special officer was appointed to look
after the workshops of Bethnal-green. His duties are to systematically inspect and register all workshops
in the parish, to measure up and cube all workrooms and fix the number of persons allowed to
work therein, to caution occupiers as to overcrowding, insanitary conditions and defective ventilation,
and where his cautions are neglected to report the circumstances and take such proceedings in the
police-court as may be ordered for the recovery of penalties, &c. Much time and thought were devoted
to the work of the new offices and to the preparation of the necessary books, forms and notices. All
this has been satisfactorily accomplished."
Whitechapel—The sanitary inspectors report "Notwithstanding the large increase in the
general work of the district, we have been able to devote some attention to overlooking the workshops
under the order issued by the Home Secretary." The tabular statement relating to " sanitary and
other work performed by the inspectors," shows that 30 workshops were cleansed, in 30, overcrowding
was abated, in 2, additional water-closet accommodation was provided.
St. George-in-the-East—Overcrowding of workshops was abated in 22 instances, and 31 workshops
were cleansed and repaired.
Limehouse—The sanitary inspectors report, "We have been able to give some attention to the
inspection of workshops under the order issued by the Home Secretary." The tabular statement of
'' sanitary works " shows " factory inspections 20, factory nuisances abated 4."
Mile-end Old-town—A detailed statement is given of the proceedings with regard to workshops
during the year. These were of a very complete character. A list of over 200 workshops is given,
showing the address, position in house, trade, number of persons allowed to work at one time in the
workshop on the basis of 250 cubic feet per head, the date of inspection, the condition of the workshop
at the time of inspection, and the work carried out under the provisions of the Public Health (London)
Act. Referring to out-workers, the medical officer of health, Mr. Taylor, reports—
" In the early part ot this year I addressed a circular letter to all employers of labour of
this description in our district, drawing their attention to this order, and requesting to be
informed of the homes of these outworkers .... In our own area there were 377
different outworkers' homes, all of which were visited, and in almost all cases the workrooms
were found to be in a cleanly condition; where sanitary defects were discovered, notices were
served and the nuisances remedied. This work of inspection took up a considerable amount of
time of the inspectors. One may regard this work as serving a very useful purpose to the
community at large, as it ensures their wearing apparel being made in cleanly and properly
ventilated workrooms ; and in the event of infectious diseases taking place in these houses, we
are enabled to communicate the fact directly to the employers, and so proper precautions can
be taken before the clothing is either sent to the shop or sold to the public. During the last
year numerous instances of this has occurred, in one case the outworker had some hundreds of
coats stored on the same premises where a case of scarlet fever had occurred. I find that we
are one of a very few of the authorities that have made any attempt to grapple with this work ;
this is to be regretted, as we know that unless it is undertaken all over London there must
necessarily be many hundreds of houses in every district that escape observation, as where
work is given out by employers outside the area of one's district to employees inside the
district, it is impossible for us to become aware of their existence unless all the local authorities
carry out the order of the Board in a like manner. It is thought by some that work of this
magnitude ought to be carried out by a central body which would co-operate with the local
authorities. With this I agree, as unless we have a considerable increase in the staff of
inspectors, the order cannot be carried out in its entirety. In our own district, with only one
year's experience, I find that it involves a large amount of extra work, and these outworkers'
homes will not be able to be visited as frequently as one could wish and at the same time
keep up the regular work of our department. I am at the present time having our last year's
list revised, as out-workers of the class in our district are constantly moving from one part to
another."
Poplar—South District—" The out-workers have received the attention of Mr. Raymond (the
sanitary inspector) who keeps the out-workers' register. At my suggestion a numbered alphabetical sheet
index was made ; every day the addresses on the notifications of infectious diseases are compared with
this index, in order to find out whether an out-worker resides in the house where the complaint exists;
by adopting this plan, 4 out-workers in Poplar were found in connection with the notifications, and 22
in Bromley. Mr. Raymond made the necessary inquiries and served notices on the occupiers of the