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of ventilating sewers, which included the provision of open ventilating grids at distances apart not
more than 100 feet and the use of shafts in addition thereto. In Greenwich the medical officer of
health received a large number of complaints from different parts of the parish with reference to
nuisance from sewer ventilators. He states that " At the extreme (eastern) boundary of the parish
about Bridge-terrace the smell has been very bad, and there has been a great deal of sickness there."
The matter was brought to the knowledge of the Council's engineer. In Plumstead many complaints
were received as to nuisance from sewer ventilatofs. The medical officer of health states that " these
complaints are however becoming less frequent, as road level ventilators are being clcseJ, and shafts
erected to take their place."
Combined, drains.
The difficulties of dealing with systems of combined drainage continue to be referred to in the
reports of medical officers of health. In Paddington " combined drainage has demanded much time
and expenditure during the year." In Hammersmith " tenders for the reconstruction of 47 systems of
combined drainage at a cost of £1,066 were accepted by the vestry during the year, and the sum of
£175 was paid to owners of houses in respect of drainage work executed by them, in compliance with
the notices of the vestry, on combined drains which were sewers within the meaning of the Metropolis
Local Management Act." In Chelsea the majority of the combined drains existing have either been
authorised by the vestry or by the Metropolitan Commissioner of Sewers, and hence in the period
1896-9 the cost to the vestry lias been only £285 17s. 2d. In Bethnal-green the reconstruction of
systems of combined drainage cost the vestry over £1,100 during 1899. In Lambeth in only a
comparatively few cases the vestry had to bear the cost of reconstruction. In Battersea the vestry has
incurred an-expenditure of £'4,132 on reconstruction of combined drainage in the period 1897-9.
Deposit of plans of drainage.
A Bill promoted by the Council, requiring the deposit with sanitary authorities of plans of
drainage of buildings, became law during 1899. The Bill amends the Metropolis Local Management
Act, 1855, and is entitled the Metropolis Management Acts Amendment (By-laws) Act, 1899. The
principal section is as follows—
The powers of the London County Council for making by-laws under section 202 of the Metropolis
Management Act, 1855, shall extend and apply to authorise the Council to make by-laws for the following
purpose.
Requiring persons about to construct, re-construct, or alter the pipes, drains, or ether means of
communicating wii h sewers, or the traps and apparatus connected therewith, to deposit with the sanitary
authority of the district such plans, sections, and particulars of the proposed construction, re-construction,
or alteration as may be necessary for the purpose of ascertaining whether such construction,
re-construction,'or alteration is in accordance with the statutory provisions relative thereto, and with
any by-laws made under the said section.
Provided that any such b3 -laws shall not require the deposit of any plan or section in the case of
any repair which does not involve the alteration or the entire re-construction of any such pipe, drain, or
other means of communicating with sewers, or the traps and apparatus connected therewith.
Provided that any such by-laws shall not require the deposit of plans, sections and particulars
before the work is commenced in any case in which the alteration of drains must be carried out at once,
but the by-laws may require such deposit to be made within a limited time from the commencement of
the work.
The river Lea.
In my last report I referred to the statements of the medical officer of health of Hackney,
concerning nuisance from the river Lea. Dr. Warry includes in his report for the year 1899 a report
by the Public Health Committee of the vestry on a reference relating to the " Lea and Roding Valleys
Main Outfall Sewer," in which it is stated that " the main sources of pollution affecting the Hackney
district are now the effluents from the sewage farm of Walthamstow and the sewage works of Leyton.
. . . An additional source of pollution below Hackney is the effluent from the West Ham sewage
works." The Lea Conservancy Board had, the report says, convened a conference of delegates from
the districts abutting on the river Lea and others interested, to consider what steps should be taken
towards dealing with the sewage from such districts, when it was decided to adopt the main drainage
scheme for the Lea and Roding valleys as the best way of dealing with the matter. Two engineers
were deputed to prepare schemes for the same. The Public Health Committee of the vestry after
advice from their surveyor, expressed their preference for one scheme and recommended the vestry to
petition the Local Government Board in favour of it and to ask the County Council and other bodies to
support the petition.
Dr. Warry states that no further progress has been made since the adoption of this report, that,
in fact, it appears that several of the riparian authorities who were in favour of the adoption of a
drainage scheme have fallen away from their first views and may now be regarded as opponents of any
scheme of drainage, and that it now remains for some central authority to overcome the inertia
of the local authorities contributing to the pollution of the river and that of the Lea Conservancy
Board.
Housing of the Working Classes.
During the year the Housing of the Working Classes Committee had under consideration
several representations by medical officers of health under Part I. of the Housing of the Working
Classes Act. The areas thus represented were the following—
Aylesbury-place area, Clerkenwell—This area was represented to the Council in December, 1897.
It abuts on St. Jolm's-street, and comprises houses in Aylesbury-place, Bishop's-court, Jerusalempassage,
St. John's-square, Albemarle-street and Aylesbury-street. The frontages consist very largely of
commercial premises, at the rear of which were insanitary courts and alleys. The population of the area