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arrangements of society which have a bearing upon the health and morals
of the humbler classes. Among other matters, it is engaged, by means of
an influential committee, in devising measures for the improvement of the
dwellings of working men,—an object that must command our sympathy,
for here, if anywhere, the help of all friends of social advancement is
greatly needed.
The Elementary Education Act.—52. The passsing of the Elementary
Education Act has given a fresh impulse to education. Old schools have
been re-organized, and new schools built, and a vigorous emulation presses
forward the good cause of public instruction. All these are important
aids to our sanitary administration, for ignorance lies at the root of all the
physical evils from which we suffer. If plain and practical lectures,
on the laws of health and causes of diseases, were given in some of these
institutions, to the parents of the children, and the young men and
women who could be induced to attend, much good would be done. It is
only by diffusing a knowledge of the leading truths of sanitary soience
among the persons who are the special victims of a neglect of them, that we
can get any secure ground for a belief that the time will come when the
mortality of this city will be materially reduced.
The Progeess of Improvement during the Ten Years.
53. The progress made in the application of sanitary science to the
improvement of the condition of the community, may be estimated from a
brief recital of the principal Acts of Parliament that have been passed, and
of the work done, during the ten years.
54. In 1862, an amendment of the law gave the Justices power to
license Cow-houses. Your Board opposed the granting of licenses, on the
ground that they were injurious to health; but the Magistrates declined to
abolish them, requiring only that the owners of them should observe your
regulations.
55. In 1863, the Officer of Health reported upon the wretched condition
of Church Lane, and contiguous Courts, and your Board took active measures
to abate the nuisances complained of. In 1871, I gave a certificate to your
Board condemning the same property, under Torrens' Act, as unfit for habitation,
and steps are now in progress for removing the worst part of the
property. In the year 1863, Dr. Buchanan reported also on the unhealthy
condition of Coram Place. In 1871, I gave a certificate of its unfitness for
habitation: your Board decided that both it and Russell Place should be
demolished; and, upon appeal to the Justices, your decision was confirmed.
As this was the first, and I believe the only case, in which the Act was
tested by an appeal, the resolution of your Board to undertake the responsibility
should be acknowledged.
56. In the Session of 1862—3, an Act was passed for the better regulation
of Bakehouses. This Act is now carefully carried out in the District.
An important decision was also obtained in this year from the Magistrates,
at the instance of your Board, viz., that 400 cubic feet of space was
essential to the health of every inmate of a house. This decision has worked
excellently in behalf of the well-being of the poor.
57. In 1865, Cattle Plague occurred in the Cowhouses; only one-fifth
of the usual number were in the sheds at the end of the year. In 1865-6,
the legislature amended the Nuisances Removal Act, and passed a Vaccination
Act. In 1865, Cholera appeared in the metropolis, and a second
Sanitary Inspector was appointed to this District.
58. In 1866, a new "Sanitary Act" was passed, giving larger powers
to, and imposing heavier duties upon, Local Boards. It contained provisions,
among other matters, for disinfection, the use of ambulances, the removal to