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128
Overcrowding.—The number of cases of overcrowding that
have been dealt with by Notice and abated during the year was
30, a reduction of two from the previous year.
I have in former reports referred to the difficulty experienced
in remedying this serious nuisance. Overcrowding is
more or less inevitable in districts where rent is high. The
number of rooms occupied by a workman is largely determined
by what he can afford, instead of what is required to comfortably
and hygienically house his family. It is patent to all that
if a man's income is small and his work precarious, to provide
the standard number of cubic feet of space, some sacrifice must
be made in another direction, which few people are prepared to
make.
In the Beckton and North Woolwich Ward the number of
persons per house is slightly higher than in other parts of the
Borough, but no case of overcrowding has been reported that
would justify action being taken. I have previously pointed
out that the only true remedies for overcrowding are cheap rents
and regular work, and to instil into the rising generation the
vital importance of fresh air and cubic space, and that it is as
essential to provide sufficient wholesome bedrooms as it is to
provide wholesome food, and that one is as necessary as the
other.
It is to be regretted that a lack of appreciation of fresh air
(among people who should know better) should exist, and in
this particular direction it is not uncommon to find that
although there is an abundant cubic capacity, there is a dearth
of fresh air, and it is frequently considered that both are
unimportant.
I have stated that poor people have to submit to their
circumstances, and make the best of the number of rooms at
their disposal, but every one, irrespective of position, can
obtain an unlimited supply of fresh air, which is more essential
than cubic capacity, and is freely available to all.