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knowledge they are attended to at once; the reconstruction of
drains and the clearing out of overcrowded dwellings, certainly.
17,709. But you have not yet told us of any particular
instance; in the 28 years surely you can call to mind one or
two?— It is as easy to call to mind two or three hundred as to
call to mind two or three. It is a constant daily practice, and
therefore to ask me to put my finger upon one particular case is
almost too much.
17,710. Are we to understand that it is the daily practice of
your vestry to reduce overcrowding, to cause whitewashing, the
general improvement of dwellings, and the improvement of
drains?— Yes.
17,711. You are doing that constantly?— Yes, whenever it
comes to our knowledge, and our sanitary officers think it necessary,
it is carried out.
17,712. Could you undertake to give us the work of the last
two years, or the work of the last twelve months, or both, I mean
health improvement works carried out hy your Yestry?— I could
furnish you with volumes of reports containing instances of that
kind, hut I do not happen to have them here. It is a part of
our daily customary usual work of the parish. I could give you
volumes of them.
17,713. Do you mean volumes of improvements in dwellings?
— Removal of nuisances, cleaning up, including abating of overcrowding,
and such like.
17,714. And you have been doing that constantly?— Yes, it
has been part of the ordinary work of the Yestry ever since the
Yestry has been established.
17,715. Then it naturally follows, if one might take the liberty
of saying so, that Clerkenwell must have been in a terrible condition
a few years back, if you have been constantly doing that
by your local operations, and yet the condition of things still
exists, as to which we have had so much evidence before the
Commission?— Clerkenwell was in a terrible state at one time,
before the Yestry came into operation; but it has been improving,
in my opinion, ever since. That there will be and are defects
there can be no denying, and I am afraid that there always will
be defects requiring attention.
17,716. (The Chairman.) Of course, I do not for an instant
question your statement as to the number of nuisances removed
by the Yestry, and so forth; being familiar with vestry work
myself I understand how that part of the business of a Vestry is
carried on. But with regard to the general statement which
you have just made, that Clerkenwell has greatly improved since