The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1846-05-12 00:00:00

EDGE-HILL.

Newly at the top of Edge-hill, leading out of Padding-
ton, there is a small street, or, more correctly speaking,
lane, called Ueper Mason-street, the other end of all ch
opens into High-street. At the Paddington end there is
a tunnel, which was excavated by the late Mr. William-
son. Into this tunnel all the refuse water, ashes, and
useless household siuff, from several cottages, are bring
thrown. These in time will cause a fearful stench, and
germinate fever. The extent of these tunnellings is very
great, running in several directions, and they become dan-
gerous %hen no longer worked, friim foul air, &c.: their
extent is very laconically expressed in a quaintly•worded
rrtn t, which Mr. Wil!iarnson wrote out for me wh n
living, and which he told me would enable me to pass the
workmen at any time: it runs-
Dr. Wa'son is not to be interrupted in his walks on my pre.
mises, either on the surface or under the surface.
W. E. 11. 7th August, 1839."
It is so earacteristic of this extrtorditiary man that I put
it in evidence. At the miner end of Upper Mason
street, ar- the yards and offices of the houses on the
eastern side of Mason street; on the opposite side of this
lane is a row of cottages seemingly thickly inhabited.
The street tuns north and south, and at the upper end
turns with a sharp bend into High-street. Here. at the
bend. I found the remains of a mass of thick slimy mire,
the c men's, as I waa told, of a small gutter, and residue
of a midden which had been emptied the night het tire.
The coitagers coniplained that the smell from filth thrown
out by the inhabitant+ of the houses in the neighbourhood
is most obnoxious, and all their endeavours to keep the
wreet clean were without avail, in consequence of the
inefficient drainage and gutterage of thy street. I I ave
not the least di übt that here in the summer a pestilential
miasma anises, highly prejudicial to the health of the In-
h,,b rants.

The condition of the fonnellings now unworked will he
very likely to prove anything but as conducive to the fn.
to e health of Edge-hill. I know fora fact, and I have
the authority of others who were tenants of houses
over these singular excavations, that some of them have
hi en and are u.ed as resrivoirs or receptacles for the con-
ten s of ashpit-, &c. &c.. which, because of their almost
unlimited cap%ei,v, would seem to have the advantage of
or,/ r recurring to be looked after for cycles of years.
This may be the tact ; but then, can such huge and at a•
&wing reservoirs of reluse exist und,r
ground, having apertures of entrance and of ventilation,
wi ho .t waving pr• jud cial to health. Like the vscated
c, liars of Freemason's-row, the cessation of busy life
wit in their pi eoinc,s is a signal for, and cans of, the de-
velopment of foul accumulations of matter and air, perhaps
nevi r ant,cipated by their eccentric excavator. vet no les:
the tact, because sanitary forethought was hardly then in
fashion. Nerd I pause to assure all patties who may
baePtii to be concerned in this s ngular inheritan'e of
caves and tunnels, th,t my observations are only passed
upon public grounds of health aline. This point is
o .1.1(.41 nut by ih anhori.ni of our lawgivers. v:z., "So
use thine own as not to injure othe,.." The principle lies at
'lie basis, and is acted upon in all acknowledgements by the
law of public or private nuisances. In Iligh-street, Edge-
hill, there is a court, of a small size. which is in sad trim.
!leaps of ashes, &c., are in corners of this court, and the so-
litary house it contains has been is a deerived condition as
to its walls and in purr Wrnosplii.re ; owing to the leakage
brought the former of I,qincl draining from a privy adjoin.
ing. cne rcrner near the fireplace becomes intolerable
from the st' Itch, when the adjoining nuisance happens to
want. arterit'on. The approto h to this court is by a low
archway. piejudicial to hats. Al r. Gieatrtx has kindly
taken the owns to accompany we here, and to all the re-
main es of Edgehill and Windsor, to which I shall
have to direct attention. It is always highly sat's'actory
to have a second witness of the scenes revealed in the se
notices, because truth, strictly assured, is the amount
of conviction unqualified.
I am, Sir, &c.,
G. C. WATSON, M.D.
Br dford

ROYAL MERsLY YACHT CLUB.—Tile monthly meeting
for May wa, held on'Tuesday evening 'art, and was nu-
merout.ly attended. Several members were admitted by
ballot. and o.hers proposed for next month. The open-
ing cruise for the season, of the yachts to sail in company.
was fixed to take place on Saturday, the 23rd instant.
The that club sailing match of the year was also fixed to
take place on Friday, the sth of June. A list of defaulters
in their subscriptions for last year, 1845. was brought
forward, and the members were expelled the club.