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report generally on the means and conditions under which
such emigration may be best carried out, and the countries to
which it should be directed, &c. The Committee, in due
course, made a report, in which they state that they have no
grounds for thinking that the present condition of the United
Kingdom generally, calls for any general scheme of stateorganized
colonization or emigration ; and further express the
conclusions at which they have arrived, under twelve
headings, none of which, practically, touch our difficulty, so
that we are no further advanced by reason of this lengthy and
painstaking enquiry. That emigration would be a boon to
those who might be assisted to leave this overcrowded
Metropolis goes without saying; but immigration from the
country and abroad would speedily fill up any gaps in the
population thus created.
" A WEST-END AVERNUS."
Under the above heading, an article appeared in th& Daily
News, January 24th, 1893, treating of a district comprised in
a few streets in Notting Dale, to wit, St. Katherine's Road,
William Street, Bangor Street, Crescent Street, and part of
St. Clement's Road. The condition of the people, rather
than their dwellings, furnished the basis of the "Commissioner's"
strictures; and this was for the most part true
in respect of the comments by two local clergymen who
wrote letters on the subject. A "leader" appeared, January
30th, followed, on the 31st, by a letter from the Chairman of
the Works and Sanitary Committee, with which the newspaper
discussion closed. The "Commissioner" dwelt upon
"the scenes of degradation and misery" he observed in the
district, which appeared, to him, to be " as God-forsaken as
anything in London." He frankly confessed that he didn't
"know exactly what was wanted, or what ought to be done
to remedy the alleged evils," and added that" apparently
nobody did know." He spoke of "whole streets steeped to
the lips in iniquity, veritable hotbeds of everything vile and