The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1846-03-03 00:00:00

HEALTH OF TOWNS ASSOCIATION.

The first annual meeting of this excellent association
was held on Friday, the Worshipful the Mayor, David
Hodgson, Esq., in the chair.
The M AYoft opened the proceedings by stating that
the meeting of last year was attended by his predecessor,
and that he had, with great pleasure, adopted the exam-
ple of James Lawrence, Esq. He hoped that the report
and the speeches of the evening would redouble their
energies in the good cause for which they had assembled.
All division of party feeling was he re set aside, and there
was but one object in view in which all could join. Up-
on the wealth of nations much had been written ; but up-
on the health of nations very little had been written.
Theories, good in themselves, had often been propounded ;
Therefore, while the enlightened men of this and other
towns came forward to plead far better by example than
precept for a better description of habitations for the
poor, it was for others to second their exertions. lie
felt that, upon the ground of personal considerations, he
ought to have remained at home ; but he desired, even at
the sacrifice of some eersonal comfort, to lend the society
his best support. (Applause.)
Dr. DuNcAs read the report, which stated that the
association had not, as had been stated, been established
for the purpose of opposing the local authorities, but with
the view of diffusing knowledge upon the important sub-
ject of public health, and, by doing so, suggesting reme-
dies. The report at great length gave a history of the
establishment of the society, and the diff,rent means
which had been adopted to accomplish the objects. The
committee circulated pamphlets and other publications on
the subject, caused lectures to be delivered, and distri-
buted gratuitously 1.500 copies monthly of the Liverpool
Health of Towns Advocate. The report alluded to the
lectures of Mr. Granger, Mr. Harbord, and others, as
furnishing important facts.
The TREASURER read the accounts, from which it ap-
peared that there was a balance in the bank of £ll5.
ADAM HODGSON, Esq., moved the adoption of the
report. The society now assembled had no legal or ad-
ministrative power. It had no funds. But the line of
conduct it had pursued was fairly and fully set forth in
the report. There was, however, one omission in the
report, and that was with reference to the zeal and abili-
ties devoted by the medical men of the committee.
(Applause.) The reason of that omission was, because
one of the medical gentlemen had himself drawn up the
report. He then proceeded to state the object of the so-
ciety, and the principle upon which it was founded. He
said there was an immense amount of disease in England.
He did not mean to say that all disease could be pre-
vented ; but he contended that a portion of it might he
prevented. In the country, 18,000 a year died ; in the
towns, 25,000. To what, then, was this to be imputed ?
To the want of cleansing, drTnage, and water. Tire so-
ciety had circulated papers, in which it was proved that
Liverpool was the most unhealthy town in the kingdom.
The over-crowding of the population in tire town was also
another cause of disease. In Loudon, one in 690 died ;
and in Liverpool, one in 407 died. The mortality in Li-
verpool was twice as great as it was in Birmingham. He
was not raising up a fanciful picture, hut he was showing
what was going on daily in the streets of Liverpool. He
then proceeded to explain the effects of poverty in the
shape of moral demoralisation. The ague, and also fevers,