The Sun.
London, England, 1865-09-20 00:00:00

City Sewers Commission.

The Commissioners of Sewers of the City of London
met yesterday at the Guildhall for the despatch of public
business. The Chairman (Mr. Deputy and Under-Sheriff

De Jersey) presided.

The commissioners worn occupied for some time in dis-
posing of applications for shop fronts, cellar flaps, area
gratings, and other projections over the public way ; and
afterwards, Mr. Baker, one of the contractors for removing
dust from the houses of the ratepayers, was summoned, and
fined £3 for neglecting to remove the dust from one of the

houses in his district. Mr. IC. Flood, tho inspector of
pavements of the district, proved the case.

THE CATTLE PLAGUE.
Mr. GEORGE WALTER drew the attention of the Court to

:he state of the slaughter-house in Hosier-lane, upon which

subject a memorial from a number of the inhabitants was
presented at the last meeting, and said that complaints were
still mado of the unwholesome and unpleasant smell ema-
nating from the slaughter-house in question.
In answer to Mr.:\VALTEn,

Mr. NEwmas, the inspector of slaughter-houses, said that

about 11 diseased animals had been slaughtered in the

slaughter-house in question since the last meeting of the

commission.

Mr. WALTER said ho had understood that thero were as

many as 20 diseased animals slaughtered on these premises
at the same time, and he thought the practice of slaughter-
ing diseased animals in the same premises where other
_ _ _

cattle not diseased were also killed was a highly dangerous

one, and ought not to be permitted to continue. Ho sug-
gested whether, for the present, a part of the space in
Smithfield could not be set aside for the purposo of slaugh-
tering the cattle affected with the disease.
Dr. LETHEBY, ha.Ving been appealed to by Mr. Walter for
his opinion, said he considered that the practice of slaugh-
tering animals which had been affected with the present

prevailing disease in the slaughter-houses and knackers'

Yards in London was fraught with great danger, on account
of its being ameans whereby the disease might be spread to
a large extent among the cattle in London and the neigh-
bourhood, and also because there was not only a chance of
the infection being carried by the slaughtermen engaged in
these places to healthy animals, but there was also a still
greater danger from the mixing of the dung and offal of the
diseased animals with the dung which was distributed as
manure over the country

Mr. NIND, referring to the suggestion of Mr. Walter with
reference to the setting aside a place in Smithfield in which
diseased animals might be slaughtered, said that no doubt
any such proposition would bo strongly opposed by the
authorities of St. Bartholomew's Hospital on account of the
fear of the spread of the disease.
Mr. G. WALTER moved, "That having regard to the pre-
vention of the spread of infectious typhus fever among the
cattle of London and the neighbourhood, the commissionera
are of opinion that the present practice of slaughtering
cattle affected with the disease in the slaughter-houses and
knackers' yards of the metropolis should be discontinued,
as there was great danger of propagating the disease by tho
dung and offal of the diseased animals being mixed with the
manure of those places and distributed upon the land."
The resolution was put and at once agreed to; and it was
further decided that copies of it should be forwarded to the
Markets Committee of the Corporation, the Metropolitan
Cattle Plague Committee, and to the Lords of her Majesty's
Privy Council.
Mr. Josrrx DAW, the principal clerk, read a letter, signed
by Mr. G. C. Oke, the clerk to the Lord Mayor, acknow-
ledging the receipt of a copy of a report of Dr. Letheby
relating to a diseased cow, and stating that his lordship
had no power to authorise Inspectors Newman and Wylde
—who were recently, on the application of Dr. Letheby,
appointed•under the Orders in Council—to take any legal
proceedings against any persons offending against the
regulations of the Council relative to the cattle plague, but
adding that his lordship would give any case that was
brought before him his best attention.
The letter was ordered to be entered on the minutes.

A number of letters were read from persons residing in
and about Leadenhall-market complaining of the offensive
smell arising therein, and suggesting a new mode of cleans-
ing the market so as to prevent any sediment or accumu-
lation of filth.

The suggestion was ordered to be carried out under the
direction of the inspectors of the commission.

SANATORY CONDITION OF THE CITY.

Dr. LETIIEBY presented to the Court the following report:
44 To the Honourable the Commissioners of Sewers of the
City of London.

" Gentlemen—The-invectors' returns, which are before
you, relate to 220 houses that have been inspected during
the week, and I submit a list of 66 places for sanatory im-
provement.
" I also submit a certificate of the unwholesome over-
crowding of the house No. 10, Robin Hood-court, Shoe-
lane, Holborn, with a view to the registration of the place
as a common lodging-house.
" In consequence of complaints of the nuisance arising
from the effluvia from the stable of Mr. Davis, in Knight-
rider-street, escaping into Crane-court, I have visited the
place, andl have to recommend that orders be given fortho
ventilation of the stable by a shaft in Crana•-court, and that
the present openings into the eroart be closed.
"The markets and slaughter-houses have been duly in-
spected, and the officers have condemned 15,4171b5., or
nearly 7 tons, of meat as unfit for huthan food. It con-
sisted of 41 sheep, 5 calves, 34 pigs, 114 quarters of beef,
and 983 joints of meat. Most of it was in a putrid condi-
tion on account of the warm weather.
" The mortality returns for the week are a little above
the average for the season. Last week there were 50 deaths
registered in the City, the average number for the corres-
ponding week of the last nine years being 45 ; 22 of the
deaths were among children of less than five years of age,
and only 6 among persons of 60 and upwards. The chief
causes of death were as follows :Phthisis 7, mesenteric
disease 7, hydrocephalus 2, diarrhoea, whooping-cough!
and croup of each 1, making together 16 deaths from tuber-
cular diseases, 3 from inflammatory affections of the lungs,
and 11 from diseases of a zymotic character.
" I remain, gentlemen, your obedient servant,
(Signed) " HY. LE THEBY.
" Guildhall, Sept. 19, 1865."
THE GAS SUPPLY.

Dr. tETHEBY further reported that the illuminating
power of the gas supplied to the City during the week had
been in each case above the requirements, of the Act of Par-
liament, the average power having been above 13 candles of
standard quality. The chemical quality of the gas in the
case of the City Company, had been equal to the requirements
of the acts ; but the Chartered Gas had been overcharged
with ammonia, and the Great Central gas with sulphur.
From a report presented to the court by the clerk, it ap-
peared that on Friday, the 15th inst., the balance in the
hands of the Chamberlain on the sowers-rate account was
£9,845 Os. 10 d, ; and that they had overdrawn on the con-
solidated rat/£7,250 10s. 4d., and on the metropolis main
drainage rate £1,516 Is. 4d.
After transacting some other business the commissioners
adjourned.