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43
Street, and by the Bull Head Dock. I must leave to the Surveyor
of this Vestry how to deal with these nuisances, but it appears to
me that no drainage can be considered perfect if the subtile poison of
sewer gas be allowed to mix itself with the atmosphere of our
thoroughfares.
I have to invite the observation of the Committee of the upper
district to the opening of a nine-inch drain pipe on the western side
of King Stairs and close to them. This orifice is about six feet
above the level of the mud, and discharges on the shore all the
sewage of the Dover Castle public-house, and the liquid from the
urinal placed in the passage leading to King Stairs. The soil is
often poured out in large quantities over the mud, and the Inspector
states that the foul smells have been much complained of.
The earth covering the upper part of the new sewer between
Albion and Adam Streets, is below the level of the back yards of
the houses, therefore a sort of groove or dry ditch exists where the
open sewer was formerly. This ditch is in the most filthy state
imaginable; many of the privies not having yet been connected with
the new sewer, the soil lies in abundance on the surface, and garbage
of all sorts is thrown into the hollow. The ditch is in a much worse
state than it used to be before the alteration, when it had at least
twice a day the benefit of being washed by the tide. I must
recommend that severe measures be directly employed to force the
landlords to connect the house drainage with the sewer, otherwise
during the hot weather fever will certainly sprmg up in this locality.
All these remarks are also applicable to the Cobourg Ditch, where
every species of impurity has accumulated from the same causes.
These two nuisances prove that the most judicious system of drainage
may be entirely thwarted by the indifference of landlords and the
culpable carelessness of the multitude.
The most remarkable feature in the mortality of last month is the
freedom of the parish from epidemic disease. No death having
been registered from measles, small pox, typhus or diarrhoea. The
only prevalent complaint having been scarlatina, three cases of
which proved fatal in young children.
The whole mortality of the month was thirty-six, rather less
than the average. Four inquests were held on bodies found in
the Thames.
Yours respectfully,
March, 1857. W. MURDOCH.