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65
at the same time, their attention was called to the facilities provided
in the Council's scheme. A number of firms availed themselves
of the scheme from the start, and made an annual payment to the
Council based upon a scale charge, for the services of the Rat
Officer and his staff. It was hoped that in this way the scheme
would become self-supporting, but, although a considerable sum
is received annually from persons using the scheme, this hope
has not been realised.
While the financial results have been somewhat disappointing,
there can be no doubt as to the value of the work carried out under
the scheme during the past three years. The small annual deficit
is (many times over) compensated for in the saving in foodstuffs,
and damage otherwise caused by these destructive pests.
During 1922 the work carried out under the Council's Rat
Repression Scheme is summarised as follows:—
Premises visited 1,911 Contracts renewed 24
Poison baits used 14,545 Value of contracts £248 6 0
Dead rats found 1,815 Cash for poison bait £23 7 6
Drains were tested at 94 premises in connection with this
work, and in 41 cases were found to be defective. Most of these
defective drains were in private houses. As the presence of rats
in houses is usually regarded as prima facie evidence of drain
defects, the work of the Rat Officer therefore is carried on in close
co-operation with that of the district Sanitary Inspectors.
The methods employed under the Rat Repression Scheme have
been described in previous Annual Reports. It is only necessary,
therefore, to state that as an inspection of the summarised figures
shows, the work done during the year under this head has been as
satisfactory as in previous years.
Personal Cleansing Station.
During 1922, 4,444 children and 274 adults were cleansed at
the Personal Cleansing Station, Sheepcote Lane. Of the 4,444 children
attending 262 were suffering from scabies and the remainder
were verminous. These children, with the exception of 7, attended
from the Public Elementary Schools in the Borough by arrangement
with the Education Authority, the London County Council,
who have entered into a contract with the Borough Council for
the use of their Personal Cleansing Station. The treatment and
cleansing of the children is carried out under the supervision of
the officers of the London County Council Public Health Department,
while the disinfection of the clothing and of the homes is
dealt with by the Borough Council's Sanitary Staff.
The building of the new Cleansing Station, the plans and specifications
of which were passed by the Borough Council and
app oved by the Ministry of Health, was begun towards
the end of the year, and the new premises, which are being
constructed on the most modern principles, are expected to be
ready for use in the early summer. The new station will prove a
worthy addition to the Council's Public Health activities, and the
Health Committee are to be congratulated on the persistence with