Dr. H. F. Parson's report to the local government board on the sanitary condition of the Stourbridge registration district, and on the late prevalence of scarlet fever therein.

  • Parsons, H. F.
Date:
1879
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Dr. H. F. Parson's report to the local government board on the sanitary condition of the Stourbridge registration district, and on the late prevalence of scarlet fever therein. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service. The original may be consulted at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service.

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    supplied on the constant system. It is laid on to most of the houses of the better class, and also to many cottages, of which the rateable value is sufficiently low to enable it to be supplied to them at a cost not exceeding 2d', per week. The houses supplied from private sources are mostly those of an intermediate class, and those on the outskirts of the town. An outlying group of houses, called Gig Mill, is badly off for water, the inhabitants having to resort to a brook of suspicious purity. The wells, sunk as they are into the porous sandstone rock, without any protecting bed of clay, are in some cases situated so near to privies and other deposits of filth, as to endanger the purity of the water. Some wells which were obviously polluted have been closed by order of the Sanitary Authority, and waterworks-water laid on in their place. The Medical Officer of Health states that the chief obstacle met with in procuring the substitution of the waterworks-water for that of private wells of doubtful purity, is the difficulty of proving the latter to be polluted, unless the expense of an analysis be incurred in every case. Excrement Disposal.—There were in the district in 1877, 298 waterclosets, I earthcloset, 1,141 midden privies with 1,088 middensteads, and 44 “vault privies,” The latter differ somewhat from the arrangement which usually goes under that name ; they are midden privies, in which a portion of the ashpit next the privy is vaulted off from the remainder, communicating with it however by an opening closed with a flag ; when the ashes have been removed this flag is taken away, and the semifluid excrement flows out into the ashpit and is ladled out: it is considered that the removal is effected more easily in this way, than when ashes and. excrement are mixed together. The midden privies are of the worst type, very large, deeply excavated, usually open to the rain, and frequently receiving that off adjoining roofs; hence always wet and offensive, often dilapidated and leaky, and in some cases in disgustingly close relation to houses. Thus in one or two instances not only did the midden abut on the house, but a window opened out immediately over it. It did not appear that any measures had been taken to introduce a better system, even in the case of new erections, nor even that.it had entered any one’s mind that any improvement was necessary. In a few cases indeed, middensteads in confined situations had been roofed in ; but covered middensteads were not in favour, as being more difficult to empty ; and indeed it must be admitted that the specimens seen were no improvement upon the ordinary open middens, being just as large, ill-constructed, wet and offensive, rain and subsoil water not being effectually excluded. The removal of night-soil and ashes is performed by a contractor, for the annual sum of 360/: the work is carried on only during the night. Offensive Trades.—There are in the district several works dealing with skins, by far the largest being the leather-dressing and parchment works of Messrs. Turney, of Stourbridge and Nottingham. These were described by Dr. Ballard in his report on offensive trades, and though giving off offensive effluvia to some extent, are perhaps as free from nuisance as is to be expected in works of the kind. A ■ glue manufactory carried on until lately by the same firm was the subject of much complaint from residents both in the urban district and in the adjoining parts of the rural district; this, however, is now closed. Vital Statistics.—The births and deaths in the Stourbridge Urban District during recent years have been as follows:— ' Causes of death. 1874. 1875. 1S7G. 1877. 1878. 1879. Scarlet fever - _ 9 3 2 18 17 1 Measles - - 1 15 — — 4 4 Diphtheria - - — 2 3 — 1 3 Croup - - 1 3 5 1 — 1 Whooping cough - - — 2 12 3 — 4 Typhus fever - - - — — — — — 2 Enteric fever - - - — 1 1 — 1 — Other fevers - - - 1 2 — — 1 — Diarrhoea - - 15 16 12 3 10 2 Phthisis - - 7 17 20 10 12 11 Inflammations of lungs - - 25 31 32 18 19 44
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