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14
I believe there was a fear that the proposed action would involve
the Corporation in considerable expense. The task proved by no
manner of means an easy one. All the owners concerned were
brought together and the necessary plans were prepared and laid
before them. Patience and persistence brought their reward and
the first area lying between the two arms of Washington Road,
Norbiton, was in due course freed from this constant threat of
flooding. A similar case in Elm Crescent which involved
properties also in Canbury Park Road and Cowleaze Road was
later dealt with in the same manner. All this work was completed
without expenditure by the Corporation. I recall with pleasure
the comments of the then Chairman of the Sanitary and Drainage
Committee and the relief and obvious pleasure shown by the tenants
of the houses.
But all the difficulties which confronted a new-comer to
Kingston in those early years were not limited to housing and
sanitation in the popular sense. Many moons before my appointment
here I had heard stories in the London Markets of the ease with
which unfit meat could be disposed of in Kingston. I thought
they were wildly exaggerated - until after I took up my appointment.
I found that there had been no inspection of meat by the department
except when the condition of the food was so bad that the butcher
concerned had no alternative but to surrender it for destruction.
No meat had been known to have been condemned as the result of
postmortem inspections at the slaughterhouses which numbered
eight or more at that time. Indeed, the occupier of one slaughtering
establishment gave as his reason for refusing me admission that he
had occupied the place for fifteen years and during that time no
sanitary inspector, or other officer, had sought to inspect the
place or his meat: In the face of strong opposition from a section
of the trade it required quite a considerable amount of determination
if I were to have any hope of success. I recall one very highly
respected Alderman of the Corporation expressing profound concern
when he realised that several tons of diseased meat had been found
on various premises in the town over a period of less than one
year. He wondered what had happened to similar quantities of
unfit meat in previous years. The files and records contain
details of much activity which limitation of space prevents
inclusion here. It is true to say that today Kingston possesses
a reputation second to none in the matter of disease-free foods.
Whilst on this subject of food, I feel that I might with
appropriate reserve, express my pleasure, which I am sure is shared
by all, that this town has been spared the ordeal of a serious
outbreak of food poisoning during the period of my service. Long
may such a state of affairs continue. An achievement such as
this is not the result of efforts by an individual. It is due in
great measure to the work of educating the public and the food
traders over a long number of years in this almost hackneyed subject
of clean and safe food handling. It is work that has been continued
without break over the past thirty years. Today we are reaping the
reward and the state of the food shops in this town has received
favourable mention in the national press. I am grateful to the
managements and staffs of all food shops for their ready cooperation
without which this town could not have reached so high
a standard.
Much of what has been written above will be new to the majority
of the present Corporation. I crave the indulgence of those members
to whom the facts were already known. The scope of the duties of
the modern sanitary inspector is so wide and much of the work is of
such an unspectacular character that it is not surprising that the
public generally remains unaware of what is done to create and
maintain a healthy environment. Of necessity many of the duties
are carried out quietly and unobtrusively.