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101
151 vacated Council houses were disinfected during the year,
and in 6 cases a second disinfection was found necessary.
Out of the total of 151 vacated Council houses no less than 59
showed signs of vermin.
The Council has decided that no transfer from one Council
house to another is to be granted unless the transferee be found to
be in a non-verminous house.
DISINFESTATION OF VERMINOUS HOUSES.
This matter, as in previous years, has been one of extreme
difficulty for the department to deal with. It will be noted that
the Medical Officer of Health has dealt with this question in his
Report. It has also been a very difficult question for other
Authorities throughout the Country to deal with, and I have never
yet heard of a satisfactory and effective manner of dealing with bugs.
The only thing that can be said in the matter is that nothing
but cleanliness on the part of the individual will really lead to a
solution of the matter. If all tenants were clean and free from
bugs, both as regards their person and furniture when entering
Council houses there should be no reason to expect further trouble.
This, unfortunately, does not occur.
The bug, having once found its livelihood in the house, either
by itself or for generations following him, is almost impossible
to remove.
The perfect tenant suffers at the hand of the imperfect one,
and there will be no solution of the matter probably until every
individual is taught that cleanliness is an extremely close second
to Godliness.
The disinfection of verminous clothing and bedding is carried
out by means of a Washington-Lyon's Steam Disinfector situated
at the Council's Sewage Farm.
FACTORY AND WORKSHOPS ACTS, 1901 AND 1907.
A register is kept of all the workshops in the District, and at the
end of 1933 there were 78 workshops, 57 workplaces and 42 bakehouses
registered.
The following tables give details of the work done in connection
with these places:—