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12
The population of the district must have increased more
rapidly during the last two or three years than during the early
part of the present decade, and in some parts of Hackney more
than in others if we are to judge from the immense number of
houses that have been built and occupied in Stoke Newington,
as in this Sub-District the number of assessments have nearly
doubled since 1873, and have also largely increased in Hackney
during the same period. The great activity amongst builders
in this district is well shown by the number of applications
made to the Board for permission to drain new houses into
the sewers, viz.:—1542 applications in the three years between
April 1, 1872, and March 31, 1875; and as many as 3,386 or
more than double for the three years 1875-78, making a total
of 4,928 in six years. If this number be multiplied by 6.5,
which is the smallest allowance we can make for inhabitants per
house, we obtain 32,532 or about 5,500 increase per annum.
I have, therefore, added on an additional number of inhabitants
for these years as compared with former periods. To show that
the numbers given in the above table are correct I would direct
your attention to the birth rates, which were, when calculated
on the increased population, higher for the three years, 1876-78,
than for 1873-75. The death-rate also supports this calculation
as may be seen by referring to Table X., and by making a
comparison between the mortality for Hackney and for all London
during these periods. The density of population is also rapidly
increasing as there are now 42.5 persons per acre, against 29.6
in 1809. As this density is calculated on the total area of the
district, and as there are 568 acres of water, open spaces and
commons in this district, which cannot be built upon, the real
density of population is much greater; indeed it has been
ascertained by a census of parts of the district that in some
places there are above 200 inhabitants per acre, and the mortality
in these localities is, as might be expected, much above the
average, and therefore materially assists in keeping up our deathrate
in spite of the strict sanitary supervision exercised in these