Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-04-23
STUDY OF SOCIOLOGY
Mr.. Budget Meakin' sAddress
on Industrial Conditions.
PROBLEMS DISCUSSED
CONGESTION OF POPULATION IN
NARROW CONFINES.
The Situation Here and in England
Insanitary Dwellings and Their
Effects on Health.

Effects on Health.
The housing conditions of the industrial
classes of England were described in the
presence of large audience of persons IN
terested In sociology and social economy
by Mr. Budget Meakin of London at the
I-niversalist Church last night. Mr.. Meakln
has investigated this particular branch of
social science in almost every country on
the face of the globe. He has lived among
the Moors. the Chinese. the Malays; he
has studied at close range the domestic
economy of the people of India, the Japan
csc and the Turk For his writings on ORR
entalism he has been decorated by the Sui
tan of Turkey. and he is known the length
and breadth of continental Europe as one
of the most reliable authorities on this
subject in the world. At present Mr.. Meakin
is engaged in carrying out the Shaftesbury
industrial betterment course of lectures
and his visit to this country Is for the
purpose of gathering material with winch
to continue the course in England.
The lecturer introduced by Commits
sioner Macfarland, who referred to him
as one who had come to this country to
tell what he had learned in England and
to learn what he could of the conditions
in America. At the beginning of his re-
marks Mr.. Meakin said he did not wish
it to be understood that he had subjected
the conditions in the District to the dras-
tic criticism he is said to have made in
declaring that some of the places he had
seen in this city were worse than those IN
London. He said he did not make any
such statement What he had said was
that he had visited some places in Wash
ington which would not be allowed to be
used as dwellings in London This is an
entirely different thing. he said, and the
people of the United States should remem-
Der that the matter of cleaning out and
tearing down the lnSanitary dwellings IN
England is comparatively new, while the
crowding has been going on there for CEN
turtles
A Modern Problem.
1.-THE house problem. as it is observed to-
day, is modern problem said Mr.. Meak-
in. Each generation has had its housing
problem in London. and each generation
has dealt with it differently. In order to
show the difference between the London
of today and the London of one hundred
Years ago, Mr. Meakin showed maps of
the city and suburbs. The maps were
ordinary post office sketches. The first.
London in 1903, showed the city
fined to the banks of the river The lee
turer pointed out the congested districts
as those close to the factories. line rep
resenting the city walls could be plainly
seen on this map. and there was little
habitation beyond this.
1t explained that the congestion in
creased the city spread out; the con-
better class of people had moved out into
the suburbs. At present, as shown by the
modern map. there is no congestion in the
city proper, what is termed THE City
in London. This is entirely. devoted to
business. The homes that were built for
the wealthy of hundred years ago on the
outskirts of the old town are the crowded
districts today. To illustrate this view, Mr..
Meakin showed picture taken last August
of house built more than hundred
years ago for wealthy resident of the
city. Later DR.. Isaac Watts, the hymn
writer. secured the building for use a
school. The structure fitted out for
this purpose. 1t has sanitary accOmmOda-
tons for but one family, but when the
photograph of the house was made last
August it contained twenty families. This
is one of the kind of houses that Is being
used by the industrial classes. and the
reasont why the landlords permit such
abuse of property as it would seem to the
average observer is that he finds 1t to be
IA good investment. There is no outlay for
repairs. and at the slightest excuse he
raises the rent.
Cause and Effect.
In the days when this condition became
what it is. for it is not increasing now,
the industrial classes We're compelled to
live near their places of employment In
some portions of England. notably in Biz
mingham and Leeds, rows of insanitary
dwellings, containing from two to four
rooms. have been erected literally against
factory and the houses in some cases
not being more than five feet wide.
This shuts out light and air and en-
courages dampness and disease. In one
portion of England. of which pictures were
shown to the audience last night, the death
rate among children under five years of
age was stated to be more than 200 per
thousand. and a high death rate among
children means very unhealthy lOca-
ton.
The cellar dwellings in Leeds were shown
to the audience by the lecturer, who told
how the law regulating these dwellings
was passed and just how far it fol-
lowed In passing Mr.. Meakin stated that
Leeds was the only city in England which
has not thus far adopted stringent rules
regarding the maintenance of such places.
Mr. Meakin called the especial attention
Of his hearers last night to the height of
the buildings in England as compared with
that prevailing in the United States He
said he had recently heard that on one
acre of ground in New York it had been
found that 100 persons lived. This was
in five-story and siX-Story buildings, how
ever. In England there are no fve-story
and six-story buildings. The buildings are
never more than two stories in height, and
in ma iorty of cases only one; yet
he continued. he had found acre of
ground in England on which existed 800
persons: considerably more in proportion
than the New York
The stereopticon views shown by Mr.
Meakin were all clear and distinct and
were manifestly merely types of thousands
of places to be found in the centers of civ
ization in England
A Model Village.
Passing from the insanitary to the san
itary condition. Mr.. Meakin showed pic
lures of village that had been established
In the suburbs of Birmingham through the
benevolence of wealthy manufacturer.
The houses had been built for the workmen
employed by this manufacturer and the en-
tire village had cost almost million dol
lars. The village was laid out with plenty
of open space between buildings. shade
trees and Fairgrounds for children being
provided. and during its first year had
Melted an income of $4,000. After the viii
lage had been thoroughly established on a
paying basis the manufacturer had pre-
scented il to the state. with such stipula-
tons that ii can never grow into a conges-
ted community. and the houses will al
ways have three times much ground
about them as is actually occupied by the