View report page

Since the 28th September, 16 additional notices have been served for sanitary
defects in Jones' Buildings, none of which have been attended to (Nov 9,1867 )
I have great cause to complain of this neglect on the part of the owners
of property, not only on account of the waste of the Inspectors' time, which
might be more usefully employed in extending the area of their inspections,
but on account of the injury to the health of the tenants by the continuance
of the nuisances In many instances, it is only after the serving of repeated
notices, personal interviews, writing letters, taking out compulsory orders,
and perhaps summonses, that the necessary works are completed An alteration,
therefore, in our mode of proceeding, is absolutely necessary, in order
to compel the owners of certain house property to execute the required
sanitary works without unnecessary delay To bring about a more speedy
compliance on the part of the owners of property let out in tenements, I
advise the Board either to cause all those houses in this district that are let
out in tenements, which are not kept in a proper sanitary condition, to be
registered under its regulations, or to take proceedings under the Metropolis
Local Management Act, and execute the work themselves, and charge the
owners with the expense; or to proceed against them for the recovery of
penalties for neglecting to comply with the orders of the Board The good
effect of either of such proceedings would soon be apparent It is manifest,
from a perusal of the above table showing the neglect of certain owners of
property, that our present mode of proceeding in endeavouring to improve
the sanitary condition of the district must be abandoned, and a more summary
method adopted in its stead It is stated by some of the tenants living
in certain of the localities complained of, that their rooms have not been
limewashed for periods varying from five to thirteen years The excuse
made by an owner, when pressed to do the whitewashing of the rooms after