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101
bugs cannot be eradicated without the united efforts of
all persons concerned. There is no definite proof that
bugs cause any particular disease, but judging by analogy
it is almost certain that they spread diseases.
Overcrowding.
Overcrowding was dealt with in my Annual Report
for 1930 at some length. According to the Census
figures, the population of Fulham fell from 157,937 in
1921 to 150,928 in 1931 and it was estimated at 149,600
for 1932 by the Registrar General.
The Registrar General's standard for overcrowding
is that a house is overcrowded if there are more than
two persons per room. This standard cannot, however,
be enforced in a Court of Law and the one usually
employed in London is the minimum free air space laid
down in the London County Council Byelaws with respect
to Houses Divided into Separate Tenements.
Bad cases of overcrowding are decidedly less common
than they were some years ago. The lowest wage earners
suffer the greatest hardship in this respect, especially
those with large families of young children. Landlords
are often averse to accepting these cases as tenants, as
children are sometimes destructive to property and
additions to the families are always possible, leading to
overcrowding.
A great defect in the housing of the working classes
in London is that a large proportion of the houses originally
intended for one family are now occupied by more
than one family and Fulham is no exception in this
respect.
The Council's Housing Inspector carried out 268
initial and 2,283 re-inspections during 1932, giving a
total of 2,551 inspections.
One hundred and twenty six houses were added to
the register of lodging houses under the London County
Council Byelaws during the year.