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104
SANITARY LEGISLATION.
Before entering upon customary details of the work of the
Inspectors, under the Nuisances Removal and other Acts, I may
refer to a "Special Report on Sanitary, Nuisances Removal, and
other cognate Acts," by the Law and Parliamentary Committee.
It was the outcome of an enquiry, on reference by your Vestry,
"Whether the provisions of the various Acts have been and are
being enforced by the Vestry as fully as the circumstances of the
Parish demand ?" If not, they were to "advise as to the steps it
is desirable to take for their better enforcement; and also, whether
any amendment of the law may appear necessary." The first step
taken by the Committee was to obtain reports from the Surveyor
and the Medical Officer of Health, "with respect to any special
matters which in their judgment have not hitherto received, but
which should receive, the attention of the Vestry." These
reports, in the result, formed the basis of the Committee's enquiry
and report, and with that report, which was unanimously adopted
by your Vestry, were published and widely circulated. It will
suffice, therefore, to say, for my own part in the matter, that
attention was frankly called to all of the points which appeared to
me to require consideration, whether regard be had to failure to
exercise existing powers or to the need for additional powers.
The Committee expressed their views on each point raised, and
made valuable suggestions in regard to "better enforcement" of
the law, and to the need for "amendment of the law." Their
conclusions, however, were reassuring, for they found that "the
Acts referred to are, upon the whole, satisfactorily administered
in Kensington," and that the Acts themselves are also fairly
sufficient, defect taking the form rather of difficulty in putting the
law into speedy operation than in the terms of the law itself.
My report, dated March 13th, 1885, dealt with the following
subjects:—1. The Housing of the working classes. 2. Underground
rooms. 3. Construction of drains. 4. Inspection of drains,
&c. 5. Power of Vestry to cause work to be done at owner's