The Sun.
London, England, 1864-12-01 00:00:00

is this the the case ? —there springs up a new cr°1),,,,i7
evile, and we cannot hesitate to attribute the egg'i
vated degree in which a number of specific bc/cIA
miseries prevail to this prolific source of herrn' 34
filthy and ill.ventilated dwelling lowers the viso
powers of its inmates; it breeds disease, and the
celerates the approach of death, It shortec° 0
parents' lives, and diminishes their
It effic,iel3loo
workpeople whilst they are alive. tiisef
the number of unprotected orphans trended-
the rate of infantine mortality; it ue-altili
those who survive a weaker and more tab
generat ion •

" mox daturos
" Progeniem vitiosiorem.'" 0,6 sre
Moreover, filthy and badly-ventilated dwel"npf
are apt to bring on an overpowering feeling °
pression, which engenders in its turn a morbid cod°,
ing for excitement, and this, combined with dlitheir
discomfort, drives the inhabitants to misspend
money, waste their strength, and ruin thei,r•Jbl
spects for the sake of securing temporary
an excessive indulgence in intoxicating 1.A., fet
Then, even though the home be clean and strl'ulsi
if it be insufficient in size for the requireree°,/ide
the family who inhabit it—if it does not P°tber
suitable accommodation for all its metnbers-- Qo
4
evils arise on which we can only touch. .der
quote the words of a writer who has paid collswidei
able attention to this subject :—" overerfat of
dwellings the sense of delicacy, the insitToor
modesty which is at once the safeguard and
'lament of the female character, is sadly vl,BBl;dfr
by familiarity with things that offend ne"witl)
Young presons become prematurely familia:oo
improper ideas, and perhaps addicted to ;‘,letl
indulgences ; and sensual vice, sometimes 'hi°
gross kind, is originated." For maul yearnlb°
subject has engaged the attention and Von pre
efforts of the benevolent ; and as it is in to. fer
vince of houses called the metropolis that los
crowding and neglect of sanitary measure° beet
prevailed on the grandest scale, it has step)
the field of the chief operation of the r'cocisti
plans which have been adopted. The Lois%
for Improving the Condition of the 1411'Arie
Classes, founded in 1844, the Metropolitaht lb'
ciation for Improving the Dwellings °LN
Industrious Classes, founded in 1848, 4'4110
bourer's Friend Society, and some other °jot
associations, have done good service in t vi? jor
by renovating old tenements and by erectloti
proved dwellings. A few months ago the Pools
of Arts published a short but interesting reF.eiro!
the statistics of these improvements in the
polis. We learn from it that more than fort/400:
ferent sets or blocks of tenements have been y
repel
vated or built in different parts of the nieAtry,46
and its suburbs to provide fit dwellings3,l3'aree
• ings for the working class. A certain c!ene,ol'
cheering success has attended these operst;,ol,
very much still remains to be done, especiawafeer,
metropolitan improvements of other kinds art-eortt
ing away many of the habitations of the tog
classes, and are therefore increasing the tecw,i, tP'
overcrowding in those that remain. An7l
individuals who have interested themselves 'rs
movement the names of the Prince Coeo°,l
Miss Burdett Coutts may be mentioned, 0111",edi,,?
cially that of Mr George Peabody, who Pls;ettri
munificent sum of £150,000 in the hands of rof
trustees for the purpose of constructing
e
dwellings for the London poorer classes,
ing in the utmost possible degree the esse°„dn
' healthfulness, comfort, social enjoyment, Pergoir
nomy." The Peabody trustees have alreadi
a large block of tenements in Spitalfielde;
in Islington is nearly completed; and the'rolr
secured eligible sites in other quarters of theerefo;
polis for future building. The experience tbolj
of the last 20 years affords reasonable godreots
entertaining the hope that some of the;:o47
evils of our social state may be greatly mitlisto,*
the continuance and growth of the saMe (30010'
wise liberality, on the part of various ben
soul
tk
which has already effected such excellent