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good that has been effected; and 1 feel sure there is no one
with much experience of house-to-house inspection who would
refuse to endorse this. We bring the greatest pressure to
bear upon tenants whenever they are the persons at fault,
but reform in the habits of the people is a slow process,
although possibly if more attention were given to the teaching
of personal and domestic hygiene during the school curriculum
the pace might be quickened.
Overcrowding.
The number of overcrowded tenements found in Finchley
at the last Census was 230. For the purposes of the Census
an "overcrowded tenement" is officially defined as one inhabited
by more than two persons to a room. It is a definition
which is necessarily imperfect, as it does not take into account
the cubic capacity of the room; but it is simple, and in the
majority of cases could not be regarded as too strict. Section
91 of the Public Health Act, 1875, defines as a nuisance "any
house or part of a house so overcrowded as to be dangerous
or injurious to the health of the inmates, whether or not
members of the same family." Unfortunately a precise definition
of an overcrowded house (as to cubic space) is not
given. In prosecutions under this Section it is usual to take
the minimum cubic space per person allowed in common
lodging houses, viz., 300 cubic feet per adult and 150 cubic
feet per child (a by no means generous amount from the point
of view of health) and one has little chance of obtaining a
conviction unless the air-space per person falls short of that
amount. This is what is sometimes spoken of as overcrowding
in a "legal" sense.
In Finchley during the year 1914, 22 such cases were
dealt with. If the housing accommodation in the district is
inadequate they are difficult cases to deal with, as presumably
no one would live under such conditions unless compelled by
force of circumstances, and prosecution may savour of persecution
to the unfortunate persons concerned.