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bad class. The area comprises 730 houses, of which 652 are occupied,
wholly or partly, by persons of the labouring classes; the remaining 78
houses consist of 12 public-houses and beershops, 21 shops and factories,
2 registered lodging-houses (153 beds); and 43 empty houses. The
population, exclusive of those in lodging-houses, is 5566—viz., 3370
adults and 2196 children, who occupy 2545 rooms, sub-divided as
follows:—
2118 persons occupying 752 single-room tenements.
2265 „ „ 506 two-room tenements.
1183 „ „ 211 tenements of 3 or more rooms
(781 rooms)
"Including those in the lodging-houses, the total number of persons
of the labouring classes displaced will be 5719 " (comprised apparently
in about 860 families)
"The Medical Officer for Bethnal Green reports that 'a low condition
of health prevails in the area, and that this is due to the bad
condition of the houses, and bad arrangement of the streets and courts.'
He further says 'that the lighting and ventilation of many of the houses
are defective, and that a number of them are insufficently provided
with proper sanitary conveniences inasmuch as the only access to the
closet in the yard is through a dark, badly ventilated cellar.' "
The annual rate of mortality in the four years 1886-9 (40
per 1000) was stated to be, from whatever combination of causes,
largely in excess of the rate prevailing in the Parish as a whole
(22.2 per 1000); the zymotic death-rate (8.6) very high, and the
death-rate of the infant population excessive: the density of the
population, moreover, is more than double that of the Parish
generally, being 373 persons per acre. The above facts, in the
opinion of the Committee, effectually removed any doubts as to
the metropolitan importance of the scheme, and they proposed
accordingly to deal with the area under the provisions of Part 1
of the Housing of the Working Classes Act.
"The valuer's estimate of the gross cost of the scheme"
(they stated) was "£371,000, from which must be deducted the
estimated recoupment of £106,000," from sale of the cleared
site, &c. "There must be added the engineer's estimate of the
cost of the new and widened streets, a sum of £35,000, bringing
the total estimated nett cost of the scheme to £300,000; which,