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38
Port of Londong Inquiry.
An Inspector from the Local Government Board on April 24th and May 18th
held an Inquiry as to whether the Port Sanitary Authority's jurisdiction in the
examination of food should be extended to include food landed on Wharves. The
Inquiry was the result of a complaint from the London and India Docks Company,
who stated that the examination of food landed at the Docks was of a more severe
character than that of food landed at the Wharves. From evidence given at the
Inquiry it appeared that the Stepney Borough Council was the only Metropolitan
Borough that had appointed a special Inspector to devote his whole time to the
examination of food landed at the Wharves. It transpired that no systematic
inspection by an officer appointed exclusively for this purpose was made on any
Wharves belonging to other Metropolitan Districts. In September the Local Government
Board reported that they had carefully considered the Inspector's Rejoort and
the evidence placed before him at the Inquiry. They had also taken into consideration
the proceedings in Parliament during the past Session with reference to the
proposals in the Port of London Bill; and they had decided, having regard to all
the circumstances, not to accede to the application of the Dock Company at the
present time. The Board had, however, communicated with the Councils of certain
Metropolitan Boroughs with regard to the examination of foodstuffs landed at
Wharves abutting on the River Thames.
i
With regard to the latter paragraph, as the Stepney Borough Council was not
one of the Boroughs to which the Board had sent a communication, it may be taken
for granted that the Local Government Board considered the examination of food
landed on Wharves in this Borough to be satisfactory.
Unsound Food.
In December, 1902, I reported to the Public Health Committee that I had
detained 118 cases of tinned Salmon, belonging to Messrs. Gibbons & Co., Bristol,
on Thorpes Wharf. To all appearance the contents of the tins when opened were
alright, but they contained quantities of tin and slight traces of lead. I communicated
with the owners, and they had samples analysed by their own analyst. This
analyst's certificate stated that tin was present in the Salmon, but at the same
time it was quite fit for human food. The Committee instructed me to seize the
consignment and to bring it before a Magistrate to be condemned. I notified the
owners of my intention of applying to the Magistrate on a certain date which would
allow them to be represented at the Court. They did not appear, but wrote a private
letter to the Magistrate, and as a result he appointed January 10th for the hearing,
and as the case was likely to last a long time he decided to give a whole afternoon