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nuisances and raise chimneys. The medical officer of health of Hammersmith brought to the notice
of the sanitary committee the case of black smoke from a chimney shaft at dye works in Latimer-road,
and also smoke from ballast fires on vacant land in the occupation of Olympia.
The medical officer of health of Westminster reports that complaints were made of noxious fumes
from Niagara-hall chimney, and during the summer great improvements were effected. In St.
Margaret's parish proceedings were taken in one case against the proprietors of Queen Anne's-mansions,
and they were fined five guineas and five pounds costs. In St. John's parish 16 complaints were made,
but notices were served in only two cases, the owners mostly consenting to carry out necessary
improvements. The medical officer of health of the Strand reports that " much good has been done in the
district by abating nuisances caused by smoke." Notices were in some cases served by the surveyor,
and in some by the health department. In the City, legal proceedings were taken against a restaurant
keeper, and he was fined 40s. and two guineas costs, and an order made to abate the evil within
fourteen days. In the report relating to Shoredilch it is stated that " several complaints were made to
the health department, and communications containing 15 separate complaints were received from the
London County Council." Notices were served and steps taken to abate the nuisances.
Removal of refuse matter.
Nuisance due to retention of stable manure is referred to in a few of the reports of medical officers of
health. Thus the medical officer of health of Paddington says that when the hay harvest commences and
manure is not required in the country, difficulty in securing the removal of stable manure is experienced,
and he adds that if the vestry would undertake the removal of the manure, the difficulty, so far as the
removal from the district is concerned, would be at an end. The medical officer of health of Kensington
points out that the consent of the owners of manure for its removal by the sanitary authority would be
forthcoming if it became known that the requirements of the law would be enforced in case of neglect
to comply with the regulations, and inasmuch as many persons now have to pay private persons for
this service, they would probably be willing to pay the sanitary authority. The medical officer of health
also states that complaints arising from the storage of manure are less frequent than formerly, owing
to the action of the vestry in prohibiting, in compliance with the Council's by-law, the use of sunken
receptacles for dung. In Fulham penalties were recovered on four occasions for the neglect to remove
manure every 48 hours, as required by the vestry. In St. George, Hanover-square, it is found that
manure collects " in the height of the season, when there is great difficulty in getting rid of the dung
because the farmers are too busy to fetch it away." The medical officer of health of the Strand refers
to the practice of farmers using the same waggons for the removal of London manure which are also
employed for the conveyance of empty fruit and vegetable baskets, and points out the powers of the
sanitary authority to collect manure with the consent of the owner.
Fish offal, in course of removal, was a source of nuisance in several districts. In Limehouse
penalties were recovered against the owner of a barge for conveying fish offal in contravention of the
Council's by-law. The medical officer of Mile-end Old-town refers to the fact that the firm owning the
largest number of vans for the conveyance of fish offal had them altered to comply with the requirements
of the by-law, but it was necessary in some other cases to take out summonses " which had the effect of
mitigating the nuisance." In Lambeth the conviction of a Rotherhithe collector of fish offal was obtained
for not using a properly constructed vehicle.
The medical officer of health of Kensington discusses the effect of the Council's by-law, which
limits the time of removal of offensive matters to certain hours of the morning, the object being that
the removal shall take place during daylight, when due precautions for the prevention of nuisance can
be better taken and ensured. The Kensington Vestry having instituted proceedings for the conveyance
of fish offal, &c., during'prohibited hours, a fish and game dealer in Kensington complained to the Vestry
of Kensington that he had difficulty in securing the removal of such matter on Saturday night owing
to his contractor having informed him that " he was forbidden by the action of the vestry to collect any
more (of the said refuse) on a Saturday night, the consequence being that the refuse would have to
remain on the premises from Saturday morning until Monday morning permeating and poisoning the
adjacent houses." The Vestry of Kensington decided to communicate with the London County
Council on the subject of the modification of the by-law, and also to communicate with other London
sanitary authorities with a view to their adopting a similar course.
It needs to be pointed out that the Council's by-law places restrictions as to the time of conveyance
of offensive matter only, and so long as refuse matter has not been retained until it becomes
offensive it may be removed at any time. A similar matter was referred to in my last report. The
Public Health Committee had received a memorial from soap makers, tallow-melters and bone-boilers,
stating that the by-law was creating difficulties in connection with the collection of fat and bones. It was
then pointed out that the by-law only put restrictions on the conveyance of these materials through the
streets when they were offensive, but that when the by-laws were revised it should be considered whether
some extension of the hours for removal of offensive matter should not be made.
Obviously there is advantage if the by-law leads to the earlier collection and removal of animal
matter before it becomes offensive. Ihe medical officer of health of Poplar (Poplar and Bromley) thus
writes in connection with proceedings before a magistrate. " I think it was shown that on account of
the London County Council by-laws, material that is likely to soon become offensive is removed more
quickly since the by-laws have com9 into operation than previously, as the contractors cannot conveniently
effect the removal within the prescribed hours, so that this by-law clearly has the effect of
preventing material being kept so as to become offensive." The communications of the Kensington
Vestry and of other sanitary authorities on this subject are still under the consideration of the Public
Health Committee.