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other coloured smoke so far as nuisance is concerned ; an extension of the definition
of smoke to include grit and the recognition of smoke in quantity as a source
of nuisance. So far as procedure is concerned the system of inspection of
chimneys in the Borough with a view to discovering and as far as possible dealing
with such as were found to be a source of nuisance which was established several
years ago was continued. A special report is submitted at each meeting of the
Public Health Committee setting out the number of observations made and
nuisances discovered and instructions taken as to procedure to be followed.
During the year 1930 six complaints were received and dealt with. The
number of nuisances reported to the Committee was six, and in each case the
attention of the offender was drawn to the matter. In no case was it necessary to
institute proceedings in court.
Rat Repression.
Though activity in this connection continues unabated, the number of complaints
received varies little year by year. In 1925, for example, the total was 67,
and in 1930 it reached 60. The investigation of these complaints necessitated the
inspection of 64 premises, 25 of which were used for business purposes (7 of these
for the preparation or storage of food), the remaining 37 being private or tenement
houses. In 5 of the cases investigated the infestation was directly attributable to
defects in the drainage system and disappeared immediately these were remedied.
In every instance all advice and assistance was given to the owner or occupier by
Inspectors Draper and Willis, who acted as Rat Officers, and secured excellent
results from the methods advocated.
A Rat Week was held during the year from the 3rd to the 8th November,
1930, and attracted a considerable amount of attention to the subject. Great
assistance was obtained from the Borough Engineer and his staff, and also from
a number of large firms in the Borough. The result, it is safe to state, was a
considerable reduction in the rat population of the sewers and other places affected
by these vermin.
The accompanying report submitted to the Public Health Committee following
one of the Rat Weeks held in the Borough contains a certain amount of information
that may be found interesting.
" Rat Week this year was, at the suggestion of the Ministry of Agriculture,
held in the Borough during the week commencing Monday, November 4th, and
the special steps which have been found to meet the needs of the district in other
years in relation to this campaign were taken on this occasion.
Rats and mice, as the Ministry point out, are responsible for an immense loss
(said to fall little short of £10,000,000) to the country each year both directly, in
the destruction of foodstuffs and materials, and indirectly as the agents and
carriers of disease germs, and it is only by systematic action on the part of all
occupiers of lands and premises and by the local authorities vested with powers
under the Rats and Mice (Destruction) Act, 1919, that any marked improvement
in the position ran be looked for.
In St. Marylebone, though there has been no slackening of effort to deal with
the problem, I think it may safely be said that improvement sufficient to be called
" marked " is taking place. Complaints of nuisance from rats are fewer in
number than formerly, and from careful observations made by the officer,
who has the matter specially in hand, and by other members of the staff of the
Department over a period of some years, it appears that the majority of the people
in the Borough—from the large railway and commercial concerns to the individual
householder—as a result of the publicity given to the matter and the persistent
propaganda of the Council, are fully alive to the nuisance and possible danger
from rats and mice, and to their responsibility for getting rid of the vermin.
As an instance of the success attending continuous efforts to deal with rat
infestation, mention may be made of a communication received from the Chief
Engineer of the Group comprising the Metropolitan District Railway Company,
the London Electric Railway Company, the City and South London Railway