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district; and from the unsatisfactory result of my inspection of them, I
expressed a very decided opinion that before any building, or part of a
building, could be legally used for baking bread or confectionery, such
building, or part of a building, should be annually licensed by the magistrates
in a similar manner to cow-houses and slaughter-houses; and, if any bakehouse
is found to be so badly constructed as to be neither fit, nor capable
of being made fit, for the purpose, such bakehouse should not be licensed,
and the further use of such place for the baking of bread, or the making of
confectionery, should be prohibited.
I have again to direct the attention of the Board to this subject, in
consequence of the discovery that in several localities premises utterly unfit
for the purpose are so occupied. Thus, on inspection it was found that
an underground room, or cellar, at No, 43, Fashion-street, was used as a
bakehouse, and was occupied by a woman as a sleeping apartment. This
woman, who was a Jewess, had recently arrived from Poland, and had six
days before the Inspector's visit given birth to a male child, upon whom,
within two days, the operation of circumcision was to be performed; an
operation, even when performed in a healthy atmosphere, is not always free
from danger to the life of the child. This bakehouse had only been in use
as such for about six weeks. The oven is erected in the centre of the cellar,
the height of which is about 6 feet and is badly ventilated. It was ascertained
that the process of making and baking bread had been carried on all
the time the woman was living there. The heat of the place was most oppressive.
It was ascertained that the husband of the woman and her father had
both slept in the little shop upstairs where the bread was exposed for sale.
At No. 124 Wentworth-street, an underground room used as a bakehouse
was found, in which there was an oven in the middle of the room; the
top of the oven is only one foot from the joists of the floor above.
At No. 140, Wentworth-street, the oven is nearly in the centre of the
room, and is 11 feet long, 8 feet 6 inches wide, and 6 feet high. One end
of this bakehouse has a window which opens upon the public privies and
dustbins in Marlborough-court, the smell from which is very offensive.
The heat arising from the ovens and furnaces in these bakehouses is
suffocating, and from the want of ventilation renders not only the bakehouse
unfit to be used for the making of bread, but likewise renders the
upstairs rooms of the house unfit for habitation. It was found that the
joists of the floors above the oven in each of the underground rooms were
so hot as to indicate danger from fire.
Under the circumstances just mentioned I again suggested that
the system of licensing should be resorted to, if possible; and that suggestion