Prostitution, considered in its moral, social and sanitary aspects, in London and other large cities and garrison towns : with proposals for the control and prevention of its attendant evils / by William Acton.

Date:: 1870

Credit: Prostitution, considered in its moral, social and sanitary aspects, in London and other large cities and garrison towns : with proposals for the control and prevention of its attendant evils / by William Acton. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. The original may be consulted at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh.

232/328 (page 212)

$754. Earl Dc Grey.] I think your attention has been drawn to clause 15 and 16 of the present Act?—Yes. 755. Do you not hold that under the 16th clause there is the power in iustices to order the periodical inspection of any woman who may be represented to them, upon the oath of a superintendent of police, as being a common prostitute 1—Yes. 756. Whether she be diseased or not at the tune when that state- ment is made to the magistrate?—Yes. ^ T-U 757. Therefore, those clauses give the power m that respect which you think it would be desirable to extend 1—Yes. 758 But I understood you to say that power was not universally acted upon even in the districts to which the Act now apphes m con- sequence of insufficient hospital accommodation ?-Yes, from the want of sufficient hospital accommodation, the provisions of the Act are not 759.' Then the defect in that respect arises not from the fault of the Act, but from the want of hospital accommodation ?—Yes. 760 You spoke of the keeping of a register of these women._ ihe police at present exercise a certain control over common prostitutes; do they keep any register now of those people m London?—^o, they ^°''^761 But your suggestion that a register of these women should be kept, would not, I suppose, involve the granting to them of any hcense as prostitutes ?—No ; certainly not. _ , TJn • T ,1n not ''762. Would you approve of a licensing system?—IN o, i do not think that it would be desirable. f„,K„„ 763. You think that it would be repugnant to the general feeling ot the country, I suppose?—I do. , . , 764 What distinction do you draw between a license of that land, and the certificate which you suggested should be given ?-That ce^^^^^ ficate would be simply a card to be produced to the special branch ot po?keTprovided oJ.L established), to enable them to see where t^ie woman resided, and whether she had undergone the periodical medical ''i^'f That card, then, would simply be to show that she had com- plied with the provisions of the Act ?—Yes. _ 766 At present, I think, in all the places m which the Act is now in force,' wlUher at' dockyards or at imlitaiy stations the carrying it out is entirely entrusted to the metropolitan P^^^^fJ^^^ the 767 If the Act were to be extended to other districts _oi uie country not contt ning naval or mihtary estabhshments it migh be SSto extend the^oower of the metropolitan P^^- J^^^^^f ^ not?-I think that great difficulty would be found ^^ ^^^\ Xv could 768. Do you think that the ordmary county constabu a y covUd carry out the Act?-I think that the county constabuk^^^^^^^ should be sorry to entrust it to the hands ot the borough pohce, except in such towns as Liverpool, Manchester Bristol, «c. efficient 769. In the larger towns, you think, where tl^^\ police, the Act might be carried out by the l^^'-^l/^^^tw /o^S ?-Yrs' 770. But that would be difficult in the case of smaller towns I les.$