London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

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London County Council 1904

[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]

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61
With reference to the amount of manure produced, Dr. Caldwell Smith estimates that the 7,000
horses in Wandsworth would produce 95 tons per day or 34,216 tons per annum, and that of the 95 tons
63 tons accumulated in the stables and 31 tons were deposited on the public highways.
Dr. McCleary estimates that 362 tons of solid matter and 23,377 gallons of liquid matter must
be daily deposited in the streets in London, while the daily amount of manure deposited in stables is
over 725 tons of solid matter and 76,131 gallons of liquid matter, if the horses in the total county are
in the same proportion to population as he found in Battersea.

The frequency of removal of manure from stables in Battersea and Southwark is stated to be as follows:—

Frequency of removal.Daily.Three times a week.Twice a week.Weekly.Fortnightly.Monthly.
Battened— No. of stables7852148267178
Southwark— No. of stables176195193*57

In Finsbury a notice was issued by the Borough Council requiring the daily removal of manure.
Nuisance from the use of peat moss litter is less frequently mentioned in the annual reports than in
previous years. The Fulham Borough Council, however, instituted proceedings against an omnibus
company under Section 21 of the Public Health (London) Act, for nuisance caused by the removal
of peat moss manure from receptacles in which it had first been deposited from the stalls, but
withdrew the summons on payment of costs and on the company undertaking to deposit the manure
directly from the stalls into the vans in which it was removed.
Removal of offensive matter.
Prosecutions for breach of the County Council's by.laws prescribing the hours and conditions of
removal of offensive matter were instituted in Stepney, Poplar, Southwark, Bermondsey, Battesea,
Wandsworth, Camberwell and Deptford. The Borough Council of Wandsworth had, in 1901,
instituted a service for the collection of offal from fishmongers' and butchers' premises. In February
of 1904 a letter was addressed by the borough council to fishmongers and butchers in Wandsworth
stating that owing to the difficulty experienced in disposing of the offal the Council had been compelled
to make other arrangements for the service. A contract had therefore been entered into, the Contractor
undertaking to collect and dispose of trade refuse in a manner similar to that adopted by the
Council, leaving the requisite number of empty tins when removing those containing waste upon
charges practically the same as made by the Council, viz., not exceeding three tons per week, one
shilling ; from three to six tons per week, two shillings ; from six to nine tons per week, three shillings ;
from nine to twelve tons per week, four shillings ; and any greater number than twelve tons, the charge
to be at the same rates. The medical officer of health states that the arrangements have worked
satisfactorily.
In Woolwich offensive trade refuse was regularly collected by the borough council from 55
tradesmen ; the number of receptacles thus removed was 9,581, a sum of £119 17s. 6d. being received
for this service.
Pollution of rivers and canals.
The Medical Officer of Health of Hackney includes in his report analyses of samples taken in
1904 from sewage effluents as they were passing into the Lea and comments on the fact that nothing
has since been done to reduce the pollution. The Medical Officer of Health of Lewisham gives account
of pollution of the river Ravensbourne by crude sewage discharged at Mill Pond, Southend, from the
storm overflows of the sewers of the West Kent Main Sewerage Board. As the result of representations
by the Lewisham Borough Council these overflows were closed. He also states that the Local Government
Board has sanctioned a loan for the improvement of the works at the Croydon Sewage farm, the
effluent from which he found polluting the river Pool and then finding its way iuto the Ravensbourne,
and that a judgment was obtained against the Crystal Palace District Gas Works Company, for
polluting the rivers Pool and Ravensbourne with water.gas tar. Works were afterwards carried out
by the Company, which will probably be sufficient to prevent recurrence of the nuisance. The
Regent's Canal was kept under observation by the Council's inspectors and by the inspectors of the
Sanitary Authorities concerned during the year, but no nuisance was reported.
Housing of the Working Classes Act.
The following is a summary of the principal proceedings in 1904 of the London County Council
and of the Metropolitan Borough Councils under the Housing of the Working Classes Act.
* Every two days and every three days.
6108] I