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23
The Candle Manufactory and Tallow-melting Establishment, in
High Street, known as Messrs. Tuekor's, was as usual the subject of
many complaints : and a memorial, largely and influentially signed,
praying for the interference of your Vestry, was received in September.
Besides the regular inspections by the Sanitary Inspector of
the district, I visited the works upon several occasions; and by
direction of the Works, Sanitary ana General Purposes Committee,
specially reported thereon. The conclusions at which I arrived
were, that the nuisance would be almost, if not quite, abated if the proprietors
refused to purchase or melt putrid fat; if the workmen
obeyed their instructions, and if the melting operations were conducted
during the night, and every night, in the hot summer months.
The nuisance has been much diminished since September, thus
proving the justice of my conclusions, and that the means provided
for preventing annoyance are nearly adequate, if duly carried into
effect
Mortuary and Disinfecting Chamber.
The Parish is still without a Mortuary and a Disinfecting Chamber.
There is no place for the safe reception of the bodies of those
who have died of infectious diseases, the Guardians of the Poor
having closed their Mortuary against the common use of the Parish.
It must be admitted that they acted within their right, and under
the sanction of the Local Government Board in so doing, while, at
the same time, they reduced to a minimum the need of such a place
by special arrangements with their Funeral Contractor for the speedy
interment of persons dead from Small Pox or other infectioua diseases.
Your Vestry appointed a Special Committee, some months
back, to consider in what way these wants might be supplied, and
the resolutions passed in December, 1870, carried.into effect. The
Committee devoted much time to the consideration of the subject,
but have been unable to make a Report hitherto owing to delays and
difficulties beyond their control.
Disinfection.
In consequence of the prevalence of Small Pox an arrangement
was made with an experienced person for the clcansing and disinfection
of infected bedding, clothing, &c., of poor persons. This
was done with great advantage in 78 cases, at a cost of nearly £90.
But as Small Pox is known to have been present in upwards of 300
houses, the remedy provided, it is obvious, was very partial. In all
cases where infectious diseases prevailed a notice was served requiring
the disinfection of rooms, clothes, bedding, &c., and your Vestry
distributed to every house a copy of a paper I prepared, pointing out
the agents most suitable for the purpose, and the proper method of
applying them. The most generally useful of these agents in the
sick room appears to be the Carbolic Acid ; but for the fumigation
of rooms, nothing is better than burning sulphur, the resulting