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cations. The certificate, which is dated 25th September, 1889,
reads as follows : —
" I hereby certify that the drains at were in August, 1884, put
into thorough repair, and were reconstructed upon modern principles, the
new lead soil pipe being carried outside the house, and a new ventilating
pipe carried from drain to roof; new flushing tanks, traps, &c., were
supplied. I have to-day examined the work which I did at the above
date, and find it to be in good working order."
Whether "W. B. E." exercised the prudence that might
have been expected, in accepting the assurance of a house
agent, on faith of such a "certificate," that the drainage was
" all right," is open to question. Be this as it may, it is
manifest that the owner of the house, who carried out all the
requirements of your Vestry, was in no way to blame.
"W. B. E.'s" letter gave rise to an interesting correspondence
extending over several numbers of the Times. The
subject, moreover, was dealt with in a leading article on the
20th August, written obviously by one well acquainted with
sanitary law and practice, and in which full justice was done
to your Vestry. "W. B. E." contributed a second letter
before the appearance of the article, and was permitted to
explain his position in a further communication subsequently.
Reduced to its simplest terms, his complaint against "Bumbledom
" was—(1) that the sanitary inspector was reticent;
(2) that by his reticence he exposed "W. B. E." and his
family to an avoidable danger; and (3) that the proceedings
taken for the abatement of the nuisance were not expeditious
enough. With reference to (1), I may observe that the
inspector carried out the instructions of your Vestry, which
direct that " reports by the inspector, in regard to matters
arising out of inspections or otherwise, are to be made to the
Vestry; no reports are to be issued by the inspector to
parishioners or otherwise, but only such notices as the
Vestry may direct." With respect to (2), the words of the
inspector's report may be cited: "I told" (Mrs. E)