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

EDGE-H ILL

Nearly at the top of Edge-hill, leading out of Padding.
ton, there is a small street, or, more correctly speaking,
lane, called Upper Mason-street, the other end of which
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 stuff, from several cottages, are being
thrown. These in time will cause a tearful stench, and
germinate fever. The extent of these tunnellings is very
great, running in several directions, and they become dan-
gerous when no longer worked, from foul air, &c. : their
extent is very laconically expressed in a quaintly-worded
pertn't, which Mr. Williamson wrote out for me why-n
living, and which he told me would enable me to pass the
workmen at any time: it runs--

" Dr. Watson is not to he interrupted in his walks on my pre

" J. W. E. H. 7th august, 1839."
It is so characteristic of this extraordinary man that I put
it in evidence. At the upper end of Upper Mason
street, are 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 runs 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,.ntents, as I was told, of a small gutter, and residue
of a midden which had been emptied the night before.
The cot tagers complained 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
street clean were without avail, in consequence of the
inefficient drainage and gutterage of the street. I have
not the least doubt that here in the summer a pestilential
miasma arises, highly prejudicial to the health of the in-
habitants.

The condition of the tunnelling now unworked will be
very likely to prove anything but as conducive to the fu-
hue health of Edge-hill. 1 know for a fact, and 1 have
the authority of others who were tenants of houses
over these singular excavations, that some of them have
been and are used as reservoirs or receptacles for the con-
ten,s of ashpits, &c. &c., which, because of their almost
unlimited capacity, would seem to have the advantage of
nev, r requiring to be looked after for cycles of years.
This may be the fact ; but then. can such huge and gra•
dually-accumulating reservoirs of refuse exist under
ground, having apertures of entrance and of ventilation,
vvitlimit proving prejudicial to health. Like the vacated
cellars of Freemason's-row, the cessation of busy life
within their precincts is a signal for, and cause of, the de-
velopment of foul accumulations of matter and air, perhaps
never anticipated by their eccentric excavator, yet no less
the fact. because sanitary forethought was hardly then in
fashion. Need I pause to assure all parties who may
happen to be concerned in this angular inheritance of
caves and tunnels, that my observations are only passed
upon public grounds of health alone. This point is
marked out by the aphorism of our lawgivers. viz., " So
rise thine own as not to injure other." The principle lies at
the basis, and is acted upon in all acknowledgements by the
law of public or private nuisances. In High-street, Edge-
hill. there is a court, of a small size. is hich is in sad trim.
Heaps of ashes, &c., are in corners of this court, and the so-
litary house it contains bas been ist a depraved condition as
to its walls and impure atmosphere; owing to the leakage
through the former of liquid draining From a privy adjoin-
ing, cne corner near the fireplace becomes intolerable
from the stench, when the adjoining nuisance happens to
want attention. The approin h to this court is by a low
archway, prejudicial to hats. Mr. Greatrex has kindly
taken the pains to accompany me here, and to all the re-
maining places of Edgehill and Windsor, to which I shall
have to direct attention. It is always highly satisfactory
to have a second 'witness of the scenes revealed in these
notices. because truth, strictly assured, is the amount
of conviction unqualified.
I am, Sir, &c.,
G. C. WATSON, M.D.
Bedford-strot.

ROYAL MERSEY YACHT Coos.—The monthly meeting
for May was held on Tuesday evening last, and was nu-
merously attended. Several members were admitted by
ballot, and others 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 first 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.