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water pipe, which passed in front of the house and emptied itself on the pavement
below. This case was reported to the Police, and the house is now duly registered, and
placed under their surveillance. Again, rooms have been discovered which were used
for infant schools, where the children were so closely packed together as to afford, in
some instances, 25 cubic feet of space only for each child. Animals have also been
found to be so kept, as to be a nuisance.
As landlords are now aware that their property will be visited in rotation by the
Inspectors, the necessary alterations and improvements are frequently effected by
them, in anticipation of such visit, and orders are not required to be given. The
cases of overcrowding in the houses of the poor, are perhaps the most difficult to deal
with ; for, were a high standard to be taken as the minimum of space which should
be allowed to each person inhabiting a single room; a very large number of additional
lodging-houses would be required to afford shelter to the labouring class, and the
rents would necessarily be raised to an amount above their means of payment. On
the other hand, if people are allowed to live together in very confined spaces, not only
will their own health suffer, but the health of the community at large be endangered.
It appears that about 800 or 900 cubic feet are allowed to each prisoner in our jails,
with every means adopted to renew the air frequently; but, in many of the abodes of
the poor in your district, less than one quarter of that space is all that is allotted to
each inmate ; and, in many instances, without any provision being made for the
renewal of the air, the doors being locked and the windows kept shut during the day.
As overcrowding is now almost universally considered to be one of the chief causes of
ill health, I would advise that 300 cubic feet be the minimum amount of space for
each inhabitant of a room, which should be sanctioned by your Board, and every
house, in which such a space is not afforded to each tenant, should be considered as
overcrowded.
Several houses where fever cases existed, have been inspected by myself and your
Inspectors, and great improvements have been made in many of them, particularly in
John Street, Heneage Street. Here, fever prevailed very extensively, and was in
several instances fatal ; but, as the whole of the 59 houses in this locality have been
thoroughly drained, lime-whited, and cleansed, I hope there will be no recurrence of
this disease.
A great improvement has been effected in Baker's Arms Alley, Rosemary Lane,
formerly, one of the dirtiest and most unhealthy localities in this district. Two of
the houses have been taken down, and the site on which they stood, now forms yards
for the houses in Rosemary Lane. About 150 pigs have been removed from this
locality, and the yards and sheds in which the animals were kept have been converted
to other purposes.