The Express.
London, England, 1864-12-31 00:00:00

THE HOUSELZSS POOR.

The foHowing letter has been addressed by Mr.
?small, Metropolitan Inspector of Poor Laws, to
the President of the Poor Law Board, on the sub-
Oct of the houselees poor of the metropolis :
• '
Poor-laig Board, Whitehall, &W., Dec. 30, 1864.
—I have the 'honour to submit to you the following
eismarks on the subject of the homeless poor of the metro-
polis, and of the act of hat session (the 27 and 29 Viet.,
si 116) known as the "Metropolitan Homeless Poor Act."
Is 1863 returns were obtained by your direction from
De several metropolitan unions and parishes showing the
intent of the aocommodatiou provided for destitute
eagrsnts and wayfarers, and the numbers who either received
or who were refused a night's lodging during the first week
of each of the months of January, March, May, and August
1863. It appeared from these returns that in the sure.
date, sooommodatioa was provided in the several metropo-
plan workhouses for 997 pumas, but that the woommode-
Men was very unequally distributed. The conclusion which
yon formed on examining the returns was, that in some
seisms **provision foe vagrants and wanderers was suth-
sleet, while is Wien it was manifestly inadequate, so that
a serious and unequal Muthea was throws on the former
Is compared with the latter. The atiostioa of the Poor.
law Baud bad on several meadow bees preriewdy directed
to the same subject, and the board had *gamily referred
to, the defects in the mode of administering relief to
wagelints and homeless poor in the metropolitan dietriet,
and had endeavoured to induce boards of guardians to dio
dot* the obligatios which rented on them in regard to this
a= of poor. These considerations indoosid you to issue a
flilllllo to the boards of guardians of the metrepolia, dated
December 23rd, 1883. Is that minute you remark "It is
a fundamental principle of the poor-law that every destitute
pain, without reference to the question of settlement or
milloseoe, is primarily entitled to relief where he is actually
destitute, and it is the duty of the guardians to see that all
marsary sad reasonable arrangements are made for afford-
tag to every such peruse the requisite relief, whether ia
hod, clothing, medical attesdance, or lodging.' 'Yes' then
informed the goardianathat the ***Ma anon fligenwlwat
sod their officers to afford the requisite relief * all really
destitute applicants was imperative, and mold ith be evaded.
Thus the re,' airementa of the existing limi,Mad the beet
amens of discharging the obligations which it imposed:were
dearly pointed out, Lod you relied on **boards of guardians
and their ofkcen to give practical effect to your minute.
la the last session the " Metropolitan *foamless Poor Aet"
Ina passed. That act did not introduce any new principle,
het it removed all inducements to *arid admissions into
the vagrant wards from a diens* the part of boards of
guardians to be relieved from besting an undue share of the
emit of maintaining way** This the act effected by en-
sdieg boards of guardians toile refunded by the ?Lampe.
Alas Board of Works whatever cost they might incur. I
have satiefactios in being able to state that sunset all the
metropolitan boards vs( guardians have heartily co-
operated in endeavoming to cony out the objects of
the act, sad that there is sow only one board
of guardians which has failed to provide special

secommodatioe for destitute vagrants sod wanderers.
The following 38 unions and separate parishes are within
the metropolitan district, yin. :—Bethnal-green, Chelsea,
Clerk= weak St. James; Folham, St. George, Hanover-
square; St. George-in-the-East, St. Gilesio.the.Fiaida and
Bt. George Bloomsbury ; Hackney, Hampstead, Holborn,
Bt. limy, Isliesson ; St. Junes, Wastmineter ; Bensingtos,
City st Loudon, East Loudon, West London, St. Luke,
Misliffener ; St. Margaret and St. John, Westminster;
Meettio.in-theeFields, St. Masylebone, Bile-nod Old Town,
Mitddiagton, St. Nome, Poplar, Shateditch. St. Leonard ;
litepoey, The Strand, Whitechapel, Bermondsey, Camberwell,
Mk George-the-Martyr, Lambeth, Newington, St. Okras,
Motherkithe, St. Savioers, Wandsworth and Clapham,
Greenwich, and Lewisham. The poor-laws are ad-
wasistered in these places by 39 separate boards
composed of 1,215 guardians of the poor, of whom 130,,
being county magistrates, are ex-officio guardians of the
poor. There are 41 workhouses in the district (the pariah
of St. George, Hanover-square, and the pariah 111 Si. Mar-
genet and St. John, Westminster, posseemiew respectively
two workhouses, each parish using one workhouse for the
reception of destitute vagrants.) Them ere 82 masters and
mealtimes of workhouses, and 96 relieving °Ears. The
guardians of the West London Union provide moommoda.
Gm for destitoW vagrants in lodging houses, as the work-
house of that union is being taken down, it having been
werchased for the purposes of a railway. There are thus
37 workhouses within the metropolitan district, in each of
which there are wards specially dedicated for the reosptioe
of destitute vagrants end wanderers, and in the aggregate
these wards will sow soweimodets fully 1,400 moms.
Thirty of them wards contain all Decassary sod sulkiest
amnion:lmM for affording requisite relief. and 21 of the 30
weirdo have been lately enlarged. I consider that seven of
Wee wards are still inadequate, although I am aware that
the accommodation which even these afford has enabled the

guardians to admit all who have applied for admimicie. In
the case of use only of these overeat wards his admissios
been refused, so far as I am aware, in consequence of their
bang full. Daring the first week of December, 1863, 3,40 d
beds were occupied in the vagrant wards of the metropolitan
district, but during the corresponding week of this pretest
year 4,655 beds were so occupied. The greatest number of
beds occupied in owe night in the first week of December,
2854, was 712, and the lowest number 607. A teak of work
lilted to the sea, streigtb, sad capacity of the permits ad.
witted is exacted in 28 of the workhouses, the boards of
guardians considering it expedieet that a task of work should
be required from each able bodied person relieved, in return
for his food aid lodging, in *Deformity with the sth end 6th
Viet., C. 37, a. 5. Is nine of the workhouses a task of work
vas not exacted at the beginning of this month, but, in so.
seedance with the recommendation of the Poor-law Board,
Mil subject is now under the consideration of the boards of
guardians, and at my visits to Novara of these beside I have
endeavoured to show the guardians that the diapensiog with
the La of work is calculated to encourage vagrancy.-1 our
Moldiest servant, B. B,
Metropolitaa Inspector of Poor.laws.