The Sun.
London, England, 1840-07-14 00:00:00

HEALTH OF THE METROPOLIS.

REPORT.

THE SELECT COMMITTEE appointed to inquire into the
circumstances aff2cting the HEALTH of the INHA-
BITANTS of LARGE TOWNS and POPULOUS DIS-
TRICTS, with a view to Improved Sanatory Regu-
lations for their benefit, and who were empowered
to report their observations, together with the
Mirrutes of evidence taken before them, to the
House, have considered the matters to them re-
ferred, and have agreed to the following Report :
Your Committee hare inquired carefully into the
matters submitted to them, and find that sanatory re-
gulations in many of the principal towns of the realm
are most imperfect and neglected, and that hence result
great evils, suffering, and expense, to large bodies of the
community. They have proposed several remedies ;
viz. general Acts to facilitate regulations in budding,
sewerage, and local improvements, applicable to popu-
lous districts ; also the establishment of boards of
health and local inspectors, and have made other sug-
gestions detailed in their Report.
Before entering into the result of their inquiries, your
Committee venture to lay before the House a few
preliminary observations respecting the important sub-
ject which has been entrusted to their consideration.
By reference to the Population Returns it appears
that, from the beginning of the present century, the
whole population of Great Britain has increased at the
rate of nearly 16 per cent. every 10 years, from 1809
to 1811, thence to 1821, and again to 1831 ; and there
is every reason to believe about the same rate of increase
will. be found to have taken place next year, when the
next decennial return will be made. Whilst, however,
such has been the increase in the population of the
kingdom at large, reference to •the same returns, shows
that the augmentation of numbers in the great towns of
the realm has been much more rapid ; thus, whilst the
increase of population in England and Wales, in 30
years, from 1801 to 1831, has been something more than
47 per cent., the actual increase in the number of inha-
bitants of five of our most important provincial towns
has very nearly doubled that rate ; being
Manchester lO3 per cent.
Glasgow lOB --
Birmingham
Leeds
Liverp00l
giving an average increase of almost 98 per cent. in
five cities, whose united population in 1831 amounted
to 844,700, and at the pressent time may be calcu-
lated at not less than 1,126,000. Far the larger por-
tion of this vast body of persons arc engaged constantly
in occupations connected with manufactures or com-

-
[ I ft,port then, aftcr referri.:g to the evidence
be.,tore the Committe, rAttivis, to the
prneee,is to de.,cribe the condition of fly..
large towas, beginning with Liv;..rpool.]
The prevalence of fevers and others diseases arising
from neglect of due sanatory regulations, is by no means
confined to the populous districts of the metropolis
above described ; .but the same causes appear to pro-
duce the same effects, in a greater or less degree, in all
our great towns. In some of them these evils, and the
mis::ry consequent upon them, is much increased by pe-
culiar faults in the form and construction of the humble
dwellings of the poorer asses. This seems owing to
the scant of all proper regulations in any general Build.
ing Act, applicable to the poorer class of houses in
these crowded districts, for preserving due space and

ventilation.
Thus in Liverpeol there are upwards of 7,800 ir.ha-
bited cellars, occupied by upwards of 39,000 persons,
being one-fifth of all the working classes in that great
town ; and on account of undoubted veracity states
" that the great proportion of these inhabited cellars
were dark, damp, confined, ill-ventilated, and dirty."
In Manchester also, nearly 13,000 persons, being al-
most 1.3 per cent. of the working population, live in
cellars ; and in the adjacent town of Salford, 3,300. •
Such an habitation must almost necessarily be unhealthy
as it implies the impracticability of proper drainage and
ventilation.
Another form of construction of houses for the work-
ing classes, which your Committee considers highly in-
jurious to the health of the inmates, prevails extensively
in many large towns, and especially in Liverpool ; viz.
the position of rows of small houses in close courts,
• built up at the sides and end, and having only one en-
trance, frequently under a narrow archway.
'I he evils arising from this cause are much increased
when it is found, as in Liverpool, that it is combined
with another error in the construction of rows of these
houses, viz. that they are placed back to back, so as to
exclude the pcssibiay al thorough ventilation.
It has been stated to your Committee, that there are
in Liverpool about 2,400 courts, chiefly of this con-
struction, containing an estimated population of about
86,000 of the working classes, in addition to 38,000
living in cellars. Independent of this faulty construc-
tion, so injurious to the health of the inhabitants, the
state of most of these courts is described as almost ut-
terly neglected, with no underground sewers, and no
Attention to cleansing, with no inspection of any kind,
and the surface gutters frequently almost choked with
filth.

These court; are thus described by Dr. Dancan, an
intelligent. physician resident at Liverpool:—" Very
few I,ave an entrance wider than four feet, and that is
by an archway built over it ; the width is from 9 to 15
feet between the rows ; there is one only six feet. The
backs of the houses in one court are built against the
b setts of houses in another court ; at the further end
there is generally an ash pit between two privies ; they
are in the most abominable state of
It is scarcely possible to conceit e any construction
more prrjudieidl to the frea!tn of the inlet biti:fifs.
" The stench arising from these causes is such, in
some of tla: courts, as to render it almost impossible to
remain for any time in them."
The great mortality of Liverpool is noticed, and a
question is asked, " Do you know whether fevers have
prevailed in Liverpool ?" to which the answer is, Yes,
fever i the great complaint of these people."
" Does that arise in any mea,ure from the want of
ventilation and cleanliness in those dwellings ?—A.
There can be no doubt of that ; I found fever most
prevalent in those districts where there is most neglect
of cleanliness and ventillation."
" Can you give any facts with respect to any particu-
lar localities where fever has been for a length of time,
or where it frequently prevails ?—A. I can state the
average number of cases of fever attended annually_ by
tire dispensaries, and the proportion of those occurring
in courts ; the average number during the last five
years was upwards of 3,003, exclusive of the cases oc-
curring among the members of clubs and friendly socie-
tics, of which there are many is Liverpool ; th,it is
about one in :35 in all classes of the population ; that in
the courts is about two-fifths, and between one-half and
one-quarter in the cellars."
Agaio, it is said, " The proportion of cases of fever
occurring among the inhabitants of ce:lars is about 35
per cent. more than it ought to be, calculating the pro-
portion of the inhabitants of the cellars to the whole
population ;
one in 33. c."
It appears that this kind of property is constantly
increasing ; is a very profitable and tempting investment ;
is the cause of great cost to the community, but contri-
butes but little to the parochial burdens, as it is stated
there arc 16,800 cottages in the parish of Liverpool as-
sessed under 121. per annum, and of that number only
900 contribute to the rates, and their contribution is
7001. on a levy of 10,0001.
Your Committee would pause, from the sad state-
ments they have been obliged to make, to observe that
it is painful to contemplate, in the midst of what appears
an opulent, spirited, and flourishing community; such a
vast multitude of our poorer fellow-subjects, the instru-
ments by whose hands these riches were created, con-
demned, for no fault of their own, to the evils so justly
complained of, and placed in situations whore it is almost
impracticable for them to preserve health or decency of
deportment, or to keep themselves and their children
from moral and physical contamination ; to require them
to ho clean, sober,cheerful, contented, under such cir-
cumstances would be a vain and unreasonable expecta-
tion. There is no Building Act to enforce the dwel-
lings of these workmen being properly constructed ; no
Draining Act to enforce their being efficiently drained ;
no general or local regulation to enforce the commonest
provisions for cleanliness and comfort.
It appears to your Committee that where such evils
arc fouad to follow from the neglect or inability in these
respects of local authorities, that it is the duty of the
Legislature to take efficient steps to protect so nume-
rous and valuable a portion of the community.
These evils, arising from the malconstruction and
crowded state of tbeir dwellings ; the absence of a good
system of sewerage, and all adequate inspection and
cleansing of the courts and alleys in which they reside,
are found to exist in like manner in many parts of the
metropolis, in Manchester, Leeds, Bradford, Glasgow,
and other large towns.
Thus, in Manchester, the capital as it may be called
telolannst2an4tOly,OtiOnh,
abnietacrleyllalr3s,.ooo of the poorer inhabitants
of the cotton trade, with a population of not less
the working classes are described
Thougha betterhe h a hailtaant i otnhso
soef
of Liverpool, the want of proper building regulations,
and any effectual sewerwre and cleansing, as applicable
to the localities inhabited by the workmen, is most justly
complained of.
Your Committee would here beg to quote a few lines
from an able letter, which will be found in the Appen-
dix, written by J. Itoberton, Esq., an eminent sur-
geon, residing at 'Manchester, to the Chairman. After
suogtnruay
ofy
i uml
the
eoavt
eez
me ofae te l
not
inhs
et
these
ae
ut s-
taain:lodvreidrt tireiansigni snt,ochaterhryebienfagorrsrnotneers ts(ilaMl
respects, " especially when it is known that no street
can be paved and sewered without the consent of the
owners of property, unless a certain large proportion
of the land on either side is built upon. Owing to
this cause, several important streets remain to this hour
disgraceful nuisances.
" Manchester," continues the writer," has no Building
Act, and hence, with the exception of certain central
streets, over which the Police Act gives the Commis-

iioners power, each proprietor builds as he pleases.
New cottages, with or without cellars luddled to-
4ether, row behind row, may be seen springing up in
many parts. With such proceedings as these the au-
• hontics cannot interfere. A cottage row may be badly
drained, the streets may be full of pits, brimful of
stagrant water, the receptaelfgs of dead dogs and cats,

yet no one may find fault:
" The number of the cellar residences you have pro-
bably learned from the pope's published by the Man-
chester Statistical Society, is very great in all quarters
of the town ; and even in Hulme, a large portion of
which consists of cottages recently erected, the same
practice is continued. That it is an evil must be ob-
vious on the slightest consideration ; for how can a hole
underground, of from 12 to 15 feet square, admit of
ventilation, so as to fit It for a human habitation ?"
" 'We have no authorised inspectors of dwellings and

streets."
Alter remarking that, when well fed, the families of
working people maintain their health in a surprising
manner, even in cellars and other close dwellings, he
states, " That in 1833, 1831, 1835, and 1836 (years of
prosperity), the number of fever cases admitted into the
Manchester House of Recovery amounted to only 421
per annum ; whilst in two pinching years, 1838 and
1839, the number admitted was 1,207 per annum."
" It is," acids this benevolent gentleman, " in such a
depressed state of the manufacturing districts as at pre-
sent exists, that unpaved and badly sewered streets,
narrow alleys, dose, unventilated courts and cellars,
exhibit their malign influence in augmenting the sufferings
which that greatest of all physical evils, want of sufficient
food, inflicts on young and old in large towns, but espe-

cially the young."
" Manchester," he adds, " has no public park or other
ground where the population can walk and breathe the
fresh air, and, in this respect, is disgracefully defective,
more so, perhaps, than any town in the empire."
Your Committee have dwelt longer on the state of
Nlanehester and Liverpool than they should otherwise
have done, because these great towns are so much sup-
ported by, and connected with, the cotton manufac-
ture, which employs a greater amount of capital and
workmen than any other in this empire, or, perhaps, in
any quarter of the globe, and which is rapidly in-
creasing in importance, and the number of persons oc-
cupied in it is constantly augmenting.
It seems alike a matter of duty and policy in the
Legislature to take care that the industrious classes,
by whose hands the great riches derived from this trade
are chiefly formed, should be protected from evils
(such as have been described), by the Government and
the more opulent ranks, who owe zo much to their un-
wearied exertions.
If from the fzre,q to cennected with the e!ntton
trade ,our Committee turn their attention to tho,,e
vi.e:e ins popuktion chiefly e.inplo: eel in the tyoAllei,
or.Enui4etures (the second in point of est Na.), they re.
gret to have to report that the evidence adduced before
them shows nearly the same neglect as to any effective
regulations to provide for the comfort or ensure the
health of the labouring community.
Thus, in Leeds, with a population of above 80,000
rrsons, the state of the streets, courts, and dwellings
inhabited by the working classes appears greatly neg-
lected ; paving, sewerage, and cleansinc, (as applicable
to the health and comfort of these workmen) seem sel-
dom thought of and never enforced.
Your Committee are, however, happy to remark,
that the great town of Birmingham, inhabited by so
many industrious mechanics, so long celebrated for
their skill and ingenuity, appears to form rather a
favourable contrast, in several particulars, with he
state of other large towns.
The nature of the employment generally appears not
injurious to health ; the general custom of each family
living in a separate dwelling is conducive to comfort
and cleanliness, and the good site of the town, and the
dry and absorbent nature of the soil, arc very great
natural advantages. Still there are many regulations of
great consequence to the health and comfort of the in-
habitants which appear neglected, to some of which
your Committeee will advert in the remedies they recoLi-
mend. Some sanatory regulations respecting the com-
mon lodging-houses appear absolutely necessary for the
safety of the community.
In addition to their inquiry into the state of many of
the large towns of England, your Committee also di-
rected their attention to the condition of Dublin and
Glasgow. With respect to the former, although many
improvements may be made, and additional sanatory re-
gulations arc absolutely necessary, they do not think it
necessary to do more than direct attention to the able
evidence of Dr. Maunsell respecting it, containing
many valuabie suggestions.
With regard to Glasgow, however, they arc sorry to
observe that the details are of the most melancholy and
afflicting nature. An intelligent witness, who has bait
every means of knowledge, states " that penury, dirt,
misery, drunkenness, disease, and crime, culminate in
Glasgow to a pitch unparalleled in Great Britain."
And in another place, " I did not believe, until I vi-
sited the wynds of Glasgow, that so large an amount
of filth, crime, misery, and disease, existed in one spot
in any civilized country."
The witness was eccimpanied by the magistrates
and heads of the police, and describes the want of ven-
tilation, sewerage, cleansing, and attention to the health
of the poorer inhabitants in the lower parts of the
town as most grievous in its effects. The result is
summed up in the fAlowing terms :—" Such being the
state of things in large districts of Glasgow, it is not
surprising that the number of persons who died last
vpar was 10,270, lacing at the rate of one in
:24 6-10 to the whole population, or that out of tl-:at
number 2,180 died of typlms fever, which never
leaves Glasgow." These melancholy details, which
can scarcely be read without shuddering, are am-
ply confirmed b 3 Dr. Cowan, a physician resident in
the town, whose work, called " Vital Statistics?' has
been laid before yatir Committee, and its general accu-
racy proved. It is there stated, and confirmed in evi-
dence, that the rate of mortality in Glasgow has in-
creased most rapidly, and is thus given in round num-
bers :-1829, 1 in 39 ; 1831,1 in 3v ; 1835, 1 in 29 ;
1838, 1 in 26 ; thus showing the frightful increase from
1 in 39 to 1 in 26 in 17 years.
And again, it is shown that the mortality in children
under 10 years of age has risen from 1 in 75 in 1821
to lin4B in 1839. " Fever, it is stated, has boon gra-
dully increasing in the city of Glasgow, and its victims
constitute within a fraction of 55 out of everyloo patients
treated in our hospitals." "This increase has been
during a period of great prosperity." The Report
quoted goes on to say, " We may safely assume that
the 12,895 individuals treated in the fever hospitals
during the last seven years, all, with few exceptions, de-
pending on their daily labour, and extending the benefit
of that labour to others, were out of employment for a
period of six weeks."
(TO BE CONTINUED )

THE NEW MASTER IN CHANCERY.—The
Mastership in Chancery, vacant by the displacing of Lord Hen-
ley under the recently passed Act of Parliament, has been pre-
sented to John Ron-filly, Esq., the son of the late lamented Sir
Samuel Romilly.
EXTRAORDINARY FLEECE OF WOOL.—Mr.
Wm. Bird of Sutton, a few days ago, sheared a 5-year old ram,
purchased of Mr. J. Bisshopp, of Westburton, the fleece of
which (being perfectly clean) weighed upwards of tredve
pounds.— I,ants Advertiser.
On the 12th inst., at Cumberland Lodge, the
C.suntess of Uxbrid,-, of a still born son.
- - - -

SUSPECT-ED MURDER.—On `Wednesday morn-
ing last, at six o'clock, the body of a man named William
Reynolds Rothery was taken out of the canal between the
Wellington and the Suspension Bridges, near Wellington.
road, in this town. The body contained several marks of
lence—the principal of which were a gash in the throat,
about two and a half inches wide and two inches deep, and a
cut on the left side of the nose. The unfortunate young man,
who was about twenty-one years of age, was of temperate
habits and frugal disposition, and obtained his livelihood in the
capacity of a dealer in rags, irons, bones, and articles of a si-
milar kind. His place of residence appears to have been in
Ilolbeck-lane, opposite the -Volunteer public-house. In this
place he resided alone. The deceased left Holbeck on Thurs-
day week, about twelve o'clock at noon, carrying with him some
rags for sale, which he disposed of at Mr. Kirk's rag-ware-
house, Meadow-lane, for cash. The last. time he was seen,
so far as it has been ascertained, was on 'Thursday week, six
days before discovered in the canal. When he left home he
was attired in a common cloth cap, lacking the neb, a checked
handkerchief, ootton shirt, short blue linen smock, pair of fustian
trousers, blue cotton stockings, and pair of laced boots. The
height of his person was about fire feet six inches, of slender
make, with light complexion, blue eyes, and light-coloured
hair.—Leeds Times.

GRAND ENTERTAINMENT GIVEN BY THE
DIRECTORS OF THE EAST INDIA COMFANY TO LORD
KEANE, LATE COMMANDER OF THE ARMY OF THE INDUS.
—A most splendid banquet was given at the London Tavern,
on Saturday evening, by the Directors of the East India Com-
pany, to Lord Keane, on his return to this country, and in ho-
nour of his Lordship's brilliant victories in the East Indies.
There were present the Marquis of Lansdowne, Lord Mel-
bourne, the Marquis of Normanby, Lord Hill, Lord Abinger,
Earl of Munster, Lord Morpeth, Lord Seaton, Sir John Ilob-
house, Sir George Grey, Sir James Macdonald, Lord Denman,
Sir George Murray, Sir Hussey Vivian, Sir C. Dalbiac, Sir
Charles Adam, the Vice Chancellor, the Attorney-General,
Dr. Lushington, Mr. Sheil, Sir E. Paget, the Deputy Chair-
man of the Company, and many officers who have been con-
nected with the armies of India. About 150 Noblemen and
Gentlemen sat down to a most sumptuous repast. 'rise chair
was taken by Mr, Butterworth Bailey.
SINGULAR CIRCUMSTANCE.—LateIy, as a
lad, employed at the British Company's Wharf, in this town,
was standing near the canal, a fine Newfoundland dog, which
belonged to the late Mr. Elsdon, approached to caress him, in
doing which the energy of his fondness was so forcible that he
pushed the boy into the canal, when the sagacious animal, on
perceiving the danger to which he had subjected the lad, im-
mediately plunges! into the water, and succeeded in bringing
his friend safely to shore.—Monmouthshire Merlin.
THE TURN-OUT AT STOCKPORT.—The diq-
pute which has now existed nearly ten weeks between the ma-
nufacturers and power-loom weavers of Stockport, is not yet
terminated. Several mills are only partly at work. The
whole number of weavers out of employ last Wednesday was
1,324 ; but some of them have since commenced work, and it is
expected that the rest will not hold out any considerable time.
The dispute between greats and the manufacturers apf
the
pear
far from an end, and g inconvenience is felt by some o
weavers, who have returned to work.—Bolton Free Press.
Fresh herrings, caught by the fishermen of Burn-
mouth, were yesterday sold in our market at Gd. per dozen.
Next week the fishing is to be commenced. by the fishermen of
our port; and we are happy to hear
.there is every prospect of a
successful season.--Berwick 'MT; Wel.,