Report from Select Committee on Metropolis Sewers : with minutes of evidence, and an appendix.

  • Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Select Committee on Metropolis Sewers.
Date:
[1834]
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report from Select Committee on Metropolis Sewers : with minutes of evidence, and an appendix. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    you levy your rate ?—We know the amount which the assessment of those houses comes to, but not the number of houses. ascertained, owing to that circumstance.—{A plan was produced, and explained to the Committee.)—We should find it difficult to make a similar return to that required from the Westminster district, because our jurisdiction is confined to those portions of the parishes where the sewers are under the management of the trust; we do not exercise a control beyond that which we rate or assess. 223. And you only rate or assess those parts of the parish that derive actual benefit from vour sewers ?—Yes. 224. Then you appear to admit, upon this question of jurisdiction, a principle which is not acted upon in the district formerly under examination : you do not consider any parties liable to the sewers’-rate who do not derive an obvious benefit from the sewer ?—Who do not derive benefit or avoid damage. I use these terms, because they were made use of on the trial. 225. But indirectly, all the inhabitants of the district, the water of which flows into your sewers, derive a benefit?—Yes ; but it is not such a benefit as the court at that time considered rendered them liable; and the principal ground relied upon was this; if there was no sewer at all, they would neither derive a benefit nor avoid a damage, because their height was such, that the water must run down from them, and, therefore, they received no benefit nor avoided any damage, and they were not liable. 226. The Committee have in evidence that a large district of Westminster, that derives no benefit from the sewers, but is left in a great state of neglect, is liable to the assessment; you do not, therefore, proceed upon the same principle entirely that is proceeded upon in Westminster?—Not entirely; but in a great degree; because we know of no parts in the district but what we assess and charge. 227. Are there any portions of the district assessed by your Commission which are not drained?—There are some portions that have no other drainage but surface drainage. 228. What portions are those ?—Very small in extent in different places ; because since the passing of the Local Act of the 54th of Geo. 3, we have put as liberal, if I may so term it, a construction upon the provisions of that Act as we could pos¬ sibly do, in order that the drainage of this division might be improved to the utmost. 229. Was there any special provision in that Act, authorizing the Commissioners to build sewers where sewers did not formerly exist?—Not absolutely ; but we have in some degree considered that, inferentially, we might; the 22d clause is the one I allude to. 230. Will you read the clause?—■“ That the Commissioners of Sewers for the limits aforesaid for the time being shall, from and after the passing of this Act, have power and authority from time to time, as they shall see occasion, to widen, deepen, embank, alter, arch over, remove, amend, cleanse and scour all and every or any of the public sewers, drains, watercourses, encroachments, bridges, penstocks, nuisances, impediments and annoyances within the said several limits, and the borders and confines thereof, which are at present within the jurisdiction of the Commissioners of Sewers, and to form, make and lay out new sewers, drains and watercourses, in lieu of old ones, in, under or across all or any of the present streets, lanes, passages and public ways.” Now the liberal construction that the Board has put upon this, has been, that wherever there has been an imperfect drainage, they would make it a complete sewer; that wherever it was necessary or desirable to vary the old drainage, that they would make a new one ; but absolutely to make a new sewer in a new street, they doubt how far this clause will warrant them ; at the same time they have been endeavouring to the utmost to give as liberal a construction to this clause as it could bear. 231. And you have given so liberal a construction to this clause, that there are now very small portions of your district remaining that have not the advantage of sewage ?—Very small. 232. But those small parts are assessed in common with the others ?—They are. 233* ^ would be very easy for vou to make out, in the same form as that sug¬ gested to Mr. Houseman, an account of the whole of the population, the number of houses, and the rental, comprehended in your jurisdiction, stating that part ot those houses exempted from your jurisdiction, and are not liable to the assessment, from the circumstances stated to the Committee?—Yes, we can do that. [The Witness was directed to furnish such an Account.] 0,28. c 3 234- Tou Samuel Mills, Esq.