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the byelaws for good rule and government is one prohibiting the sounding
or playing upon any musical or noisy instrument or singing in any street
or public place within one hundred yards of any church, place of public
assembly, hospital or house. Another byelaw prohibits keeping
within any house, building or premises any noisy animal which shall be
or cause a serious nuisance to the residents in the neighbourhood; proceedings
in this case can be taken only after the expiration of a fortnight
from the date of service of a notice signed by not less than three householders
residing within hearing of the animal. Yet another byelaw
prohibits calling or shouting in a street so as to be an annoyance for
the purpose of hawking, etc. Another which refers to the noise from
wireless loudspeakers, gramophones, etc., which "shall be so loud or
so continuous or repeated as to cause a nuisance to occupants or inmates
of any premises in the neighbourhood."
Section 313 of the Middlesex County Council Act, 1944, reads:—
"(1) A noise nuisance shall be liable to be dealt with as a statutory
nuisance under the Act of 1936: Provided that no complaint to a justice
under Section 99 of the said Act shall be of any effect unless it is signed
by not less than three householders or occupiers of premises within
hearing of the noise nuisance which is the subject of the complaint.
(2) In any proceedings under the Act of 1936 in respect of a noise
nuisance occasioned in the course of any trade, business or occupation,
it shall be a good defence for the person charged to show that he has
used the best practicable means of preventing or mitigating the nuisance
having regard to the cost and to other relevant circumstances. (3) For
the purpose of this Section a noise nuisance shall be deemed to exist
where any person makes or continues or causes to be made or continued
any excessive or unreasonable or unnecessary noise which is injurious or
dangerous to health. (4) Nothing contained in this Section shall apply
to a railway company, the Transport Board, or any statutory undertakers
or their respective servants exercising statutory powers."
Fouling of Footpaths by Dogs
Many of the owners of dogs who live in flats more especially flats
over shops make it a practice to exercise their dogs on rather defined
routes. The occupiers of the houses on these roads complain of the
fouling of the footways, and periodically some submit the suggestion
that the byelaws relating to the fouling of footways by dogs
should be exhibited on such places as the lamp standards in these roads.
The General Purposes Committee decided that publicity should be given
instead by copies of this byelaw being exhibited on the Council notice
boards. The byelaw reads:—"No person being in charge of a dog
shall allow the dog to foul the footway of any street or public place by
depositing its excrement thereon. Provided that a person shall not be
liable to be convicted of an offence against this byelaw, if he satisfies
the Court that the fouling of the footway was not due to culpable neglect
or default on his part. For the purposes of this byelaw the owner of
the dog shall be deemed to be in charge thereof, unless the Court is satisfied
that at the time when the dog fouled the footway it had been placed
in or taken into the charge of some other person."