The Sun.
London, England, 1853-09-14 00:00:00

CITY COURT OF SEWERS.

Yesterday the Court met for the first time since
the holidays for the dispatch of business.
The medical officer read the following report,
which had been drawn up by himself.
" According to the desire of the commission, I have
inquired into certain nuisances complained of in connec-
tion with the altered system of slaughtering in Newgate-
market. It appears that in consequence of the suppres-
sion of slaughtering cellars within the City, there has
been a greater demand, especially in this locality, for
other slaughtering places, and many or those persons
who own registered slaughter houses in Newgate-market
have been induced to share these with the displaced
slaughterers. In consequence of this hospitality, the
amount of slaughtering in particular premises has in-
creased very considerably, and such premises have, in
fact, assumed altogether the character of public slaugh-
ter-houses, where, on many days, slaughtering goes on
continuously, For this purpose they are absolutely un-
suited, in respect of their dimensions and ventilation, so
that neighbours who had patiently tolerated the previ-
ous system have raised loud objections against the re-
cent aggravation of the nuisance. It appears that in.
22 slaughtering places of this locality there are slaugh-
tered annually about 141,800 animals, and, to measure
the evil accurately, it must be remembered that this
slaughtering comes unequally in different houses, and on
different days. Thus, for instance, in one particular
slaughter-house, whioh is much complained of by its
neighbours, there have been killed 250 animals in a day
and the ventilation of this place can only be effected
through a sort of shaft, 12 feet wide, which is bounded
on the south side by the backs of those houses in Pater-
noster-row. These houses, accordingly, cannot but re-
ceive the entire effluvia of the shambles, and the inmates
naturally complain of this as an extreme nuisance and
injury. On other occasions I have stated to your hon-
ourable Court my opinion of slaughtering-honses gene-
rally, in its relation to the health and cleanliness of the
city, and I therefore confine myself now to what is dis-
tinctive and peculiar in the case under your notice.
" It seems to me that whatever evils inevitably belong
to intramural slaughtering are aggravated to the utmost
degree when unlimited license of slaughtering is con-
ceded to premises with defective accommodation, walled
in on all sides by high inhabited houses ; and I would
accordingly recommend that your solicitor's opinion be
taken as to the best mode of framing and enforcing some
regulation which may abate the nuisance, by restricting
the employment of every slaughtering-house to the bond
fide personal uses of its registered proprietor.
" Your inspector of slaughter-houses likewise reports
that there are great inconveniences in the present ar-
rangements for the removal of blood and offal, which re-
moval, lie repeats, he has now allowed (contrary to the
first order of your honourable court, subsequently re-
scinded) to take place at any and all hours of the day.
This frequent, or rather continuous removal of offensive
material, is not only a nuisance to the neighbours, in
respect of its stink, but likewise, I am informed, inter-
feres with the business of the market ; and I would re-
commend that your regulation relating to the removal
of refuse matter be reconsidered, with a view to remedy-
ing these evils.
" The principles for such regulation would seem to be
—first, that the removal should take place at as early
an hour after the completion of slaughtering as can pos-
sibly be, without inconvenience to the public. Secondly,
that by employment of a sufficient number of hands, the
entire clearance of the locality should be effected as ra-
pidly as possible. And thirdly, that it should be com-
pleted at a sufficiently early hour in the evening for the
inspector to be able at times to visit the premises, and
ascertain their freedom from all offensive matters.
" From such inquiry as I have been able to make on
the subject, it appears to me that three hours would
prove amply sufficient for the purpose of clearing away
all refuse matter from all the slaughtering places of the
locality, and that the hours from eight to eleven p.m
would be a convenient and suitable tine. Likewise, in
case of your honourable Court approving any such regu-
lation as I have suggested, for restricting the employ-
ment of each slaughter-house to the personal uses of the
registered owner of the same, it appears to me that it
would very much conduce to the health and cleanliness
of the locality that slaughtering should be allowed only
within fixed hours, say from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m., so that
during the greater part of the day the place might be in
a condition of tolerable freedom from nuisance.

" Of course the details of such regulations require to
be adapted very carefully to each other, and to the ne-
cessities of the trade. And perhaps your honourable
Court will refer these particulars to the consideration of
one of your committees.
I deeply regret to apprise your honourable Court,
as an ample justification of whatever strictness you may
think it requisite to apply in sanitary regulations, that
at the present time there is great reason to apprehend
a renewed visitation of Asiatic cholera through the
country, and I have already received official information
of the disease prevailing in an epidemic form at New-
castle-on-Tyne."
Mr. FL L. TAYLOR said that although the con-
cluding paragraph of the report rather tended to
alarm, yet he hoped that there were no sufficient
grounds to anticipate the existence of cholera in
this country, at all events in the City. The sub-
ject-matter of the report was one of the greatest
importance ; but before the Court could deal with
an evil of so great a magnitude, ample provision
must be made for slaughtering in another place.
In a few minutes some members of the Court, him-
self included, intended visiting the site of the new
market, where convenient and suitable houses
would be erected for slaughtering cattle, and when
completed, which he hoped would be at no distant
period, the Court would be in a position to take the
most efficient measures to get rid of the nuiFance com-
plained of in the report. He thought it of great im-
portance, with a view of mitigating the existing evil,
that registered owners of houses who allowed non-
registered
owners and others to slaughter in them
should be made amenable to the law, as suggested
by the medical officer.
Mr. ELLIOTT said that, in his judgment, the
whole city of London ought to be grateful toat
Mr.
Simon for his very able report, and moved
it
be referred to the General Purposes that
Committee, to
initout the
Tconsider the best means of carrying
excel-
lenthreecmoomton having been secondedmieudationscoutained
Mr. Deputy
CHRISTIE, was carried unanimously.
It was unanimously
decided_ that Gracechurch-
street should be paved with wood, under Mr.
Carey's patent, after which the Court' adjourned.