The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1876-08-19 00:00:00

KIDDERMINSTER TOWN COUNCIL.

On Wednesday the monthly meeting of the Council
was held in the Guildhall, present the Mayor, Mr. T.
Radford, Aldermen Dixon, Ho!loway, Naylor' Lloyd,
and Councillors Cowen, Coxon, Fin-don, Milnes,Herring,
Greaves, W. IL Green, H. Dixon, C. Crowther, Gros-
venor, C. E. Jefferies, and Cooke.

The principal reports presented for adoption by the
Council were as follows :

(1) The Medical Officer's : Mr. Corbet presented a
report and a supplementary report. The former stated
that the deaths for the month were 20, or 118 per
thousand; the blithe wet 69. He reported that the
state of the ashpits in many parts of the town, especially
in Paddock Court, Chapel Place, and Chapel Street was
very bad, and that some 18 wells from which water is
obtained in the town contained water deleterious to
health, and must be condemned and disused in the
future. The supplementary referred especially to the
prisoners' cells in the new Town Hall not yet com-
pleted: This was considered as far as Mr. Corbet was
concerned as ultra vire:, Mr. Henry Dixon and Mr.
Charles Jefferies saying that these places would be in-
spected, and would have to receive the sanction of the
Inspector before they were declared fit for use. The
report in other respects showed a lamentable state of
things in sanitary matters, there being in one case no
less than 17 houses with only three water closets.
Mr. Jefferies said that the Sanitary Committee had
had this under consideration, and had ordered the
Sanitary Inspector (Mr. Edge) to double his stff
working power, horses, carts, and men to meet the r.•
Tfirements of the case. It was a ditlicu.ty just now to
grapple with such a state of things, for in the present
stat • of the weather the removal might cause serious
effects.
The Mayor then requested Mr. Edge to use a plentiful
supply of deodorizing and disinfecting agents, and to
get the evil removed as quickly as possible.
'I he Sanitary Committee's report showed ayment of
accounts as follows were ordered--.E24 5s 10d. The
committee had also expended during the month £l3
2d, but had received £l4 'lss Id for removal of night
soil, leaving a balance in hand of £1 Sc 11d. The
amount received by the inspector and paid by him to
treasurer is 1:9 Hs 6d, leaving a balance of £lO 16.1 8d
due to the Council, after bringing forward £5 14s Id
from last month.

Mr. Edge's sanitary. report bora out that of Mr.
Corbet's as to the bad quality of the pump water. He
kid caused seven wells to be closed on this account. Ha
rqiorted the slaughter and lodging-bosses clean and in a
fair condition, and stated that he had soused two lots of
fish to be condemned a. bad. All these reports wer•
passed unanimously, it being elicited in the course of
conversation that the tap water was finding groat
'avour with the people and becoming rapidly adopted by
them.

The drainage report show‘d that the committee had
balanch and each in hand to the amount of £lB 9s Id;
that accounts paid during the past month had amounted
to £269 13s lid. The Sewage Farm accounti were £7
7.1 61; other accounts, £4O. The collector of water.
rate, &c, had paid in £1,799 9. 9d, and for the Caldwell
Cottages, 1:9 12s,

The report was adopted.
The Improvement Committee's report was a volum-
inous one, dealing with the works now in progri as
throughout the borough. The collector had paid to the
treasurer £1,893 9e, and poor persons had been excused
their rated to the amouLt of £8 is 6d. Mr. Bale's
tender for the lot-arrangement of the fish market at £55
was accepted, and the committee recommended the pur-
chase of some land at Comberton Hill, near the Railway
Bell Inn, at 6s per yard.
It was also recommended that Mr. Paton have the
printing of the burgess list, and that the road in Shrub-
bery Street, being offered to the town by Mr. Gething
for the proprietors of the Shrubbery Land Club, it was
requested that the same be accepted as a public high-
way.
Mr. Hilton having completed his contract in the Closes
to the satisfaction of the surveyor, it was ordered that
the road be now opened.
The committee recommended that accounts to the
amount of £BBO 4s 4d be paid, and that £8 Os 6d be also
paid for Mr. Granger's wall.
The amount expended in labour for the month was
£9B 16s 6d.

The report was adopted without discussion, and the
meeting separated. .