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3
It may be convenient here to mention that, in the course of three
months, the Secretary and Inspectors of the Jewish Board of
Guardians sent in all, sixteen written communications to the officers
of your Board; in those communications a total of 261 houses are
referred to ; of those 261 houses, the complaint as to 188 houses is,
amongst other details, that they are not provided with a water
supply to the closets.
The extremely general nature of the charges or complaints in the
communication from the Jewish Guardians renders it difficult for
your Committee to do other than deal with the subjeCt in a similar
mode, but two matters appear with some prominence, namely,
that the complaints made by them were not dealt with satisfactorily,
and that a large number of houses in the district are, from foulness
or decay, or from both causes, absolutely unfit for habitation. In
order to fix, with some degree of certainty, what houses were thus
classed by the Jewish Board of Guardians, information was asked as
to the houses complained of; a list was furnished, and that list your
Committee have dealt with exhaustively.
With regard to the first matter of complaint, your Committee
have made enquiry and find that every complaint made by the
Officers ofthejewish Board of Guardians was investigated, and, except
as to compelling water supply apparatus to be put to closets, the necessary
action for the removal or abatement of the nuisance was taken.
Some of the complaints were of the filthy condition of closets, or an
accumulation of dust; all these cases have been found recorded in
the Inspector's books, and, where; necessary, the entries have been
followed up by a record of the results of the action of the Inspectors.
Your Medical Officer has expressed himself perfectly satisfied that
the Inspectors have been able to meet the necessities of the cases as
they arose, and your Committee are of opinion that they have
done so.
With reference to the more important complaint, that a large
number of houses in the district are unfit for human habitation from
causes mentioned in the communication to your Board your Committee,
having obtained a list of the houses complained of, find that
they number 123, of which 87 are described as unfit for human
habitation.
A special visit has been made to the whole of the premises so
described, and most of them have been visited by sub-committees
composed of members of your Committee, and your Committee unhesitatingly
assert, that the sensational description of these houses
contained in the communication from the Jewish Guardians is not
warranted by the facts. That many of the houses in the district
have been subjected to very hard wear, and to much ill usage, is'