The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1871-03-11 00:00:00

2e c-:•tourribge 012.serinr.

SATURDAY, MAUCH 11, 1871.

SANITARY LEGISLATION.

'r here is sound sense in tho old classic axiom,
',dos st,"».ema /ex, that is to say that the
heait., of Um. people is the highest object of law.
'fliere is a more modern inCOlll, Lmd Coke being
Om author, if le em•,, S. iis, that "ignor
Wail." Put these
i

EL,,eO 47t eXe,l

to InIXL,LOLf,'IL
8711Aitary kr_77.41.771,..

ly then, to existing

concliasion will ln
irresistible, if M of the people is
toe highest ohi rzt of 1:lo and the pecr!r
ought to 1< iv the lAN, ke isial Ors have exeteised
a woutlerlM iugenmty ii) so cornMenting anc
confusing sanitary legislation ti, t the grand UHL
mid min Of law has luen vitt iially ii, fented.
report of the Sank .r.,„ Comn,i,snmers, which
Las just itype:.red, eh,riv 6110W6 this. We have
not, /Li we ought to have, one greed cohprehem
sive law 011 sanitary matters, imt u large
her of enactments; some of theist Permissive,
and consequently in-operative; some local, and

without any adequate machinery to earl; them
out; some dealing with this branch of the sub-
ject, some with that ;. the entire result being
that there is inextricable confusion amidst this
mass of legislation, and that the whole machi-
nery, and part conflicting with another, is prac-
tically unworkable. All this is deeply to be re-
gretted, for it very injuriously affects the health
and welfare of the body politic. Goldsmith
says:--

How small, of ail tho ills that men t name,
That Fart which laws or kings can make to cure
We cannot agree with this sentiment of one of
England's favourite poets. Such everyday unit-
tern as pure water, pure air, thorough drainage,
and the removal of noxious conditions in in-door
and out-door life, are of the utmost moment, and
good laws on these subjects might be made to
confer an inestimable boon in the country at
large. We suffer at present, not so much from
an absence of law, as from the confusion of laws ;
not co much from our legislators being unttwatre
of the (-vile to be remedied as from that absurdly
weak element in legishitiou, the permissive or
voluntary element. On this subject the medical
Alcor of the Privy Council very justly observes:
Not only have permissive enactments re-
mained for the most part unapplied in places
' where their application has been desirable, but
even nuisances which the law imperatively de-
clares intolerable have, on an enormuus scale
been suffered to continue while diseases which
mainly represent the inoperativeness of nuisance
law have been occasioning fully a fourth part of
the entire mortality of the country." This is
what might have been expected. Look at the
adulteration of Food Act as a parallel example.
It is permissive, is scarcely ever enforced under
any circumstances whatever, and has become a
, dead letter And so with sanitary legislation.
Take the country through and it will be found
. that in the cases of the villages and the smile'-
. towns, neither do the inhabitants generally know
what legislation they have at their commaud if
they choose to enforce it, nor du the local autho-
rities exert as they ought to do the powera they
have. Given a really good law which is for the
benefit of the community, and that law should
be enforced. The only case in which the per-
missive element is advisable is that of a bud law,
and we are not aware that any of our sanitary
laws are bad pesse, except in so far as they may
be merely permissive, or may c&oilict with other
laws on the same subject.
The confusion and muddle of our sanitary
laws not only tends to the perpetuation of great
evils directly affecting our health and comfort,
but they create unnecessary expense; they ag-
gravate the common burden of taxation. We
are taxed so heavily that sorely there is no ne-
cessity to increase our fiscal burdens without tiny
corresponding advantage; while when we con-
sider that increased taxation and aggravated
nuisances are co-existent, this consideration is
quite enough to show the importance of reform.
Among the reforms which the Sanitary Com-
missioners recommend are the following. It is
proposed " to bring every place under one coin-
plete authority for self-government - corporate
towns under the boards of guardians specially
charged with such functions a central autho-
rity being adequately empowered to keep all
such local machinery in action." It is further
proposed that the areas of local government of
various kinds should be made identical, the
union, petty sessional, and highway districts
being as far as possible brought together; that
existing sanitary enactments shall be reduced to
one consolidated statute, all previous laws being
repealed ; and that a Minister of Health and the
Poor should superintend the enforcement of this
consolidated law. ,
Whether this able and judicious report of the
Sanitary Commission is to be ,added to the
already long lists of reports of royal commissions
which remain dormant and unacted upon, re.
mains to be seen ; but it deserves better treat
ment. We heartily agree with all the recom-
mendations of the commissionersin the present
case, but we fear they are too comprehensive,
and, in fact, too good, to be wholly carried out.
The whole subject Moot shortly, however, en-
gage the attention of Parliament, and we trust
that at least something will be done towards so
desirable an end.