Reports on the sanitary state of the labouring classes : as affected chiefly by the situation and construction of their dwellings, in and about the metropolis ; extracted from the fourth and fifth annual reports of the Poor Law Commissioners.

Date:
1840
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Reports on the sanitary state of the labouring classes : as affected chiefly by the situation and construction of their dwellings, in and about the metropolis ; extracted from the fourth and fifth annual reports of the Poor Law Commissioners. 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.

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    in Bethnal Green and Whitechapel. iotato-parings, the refuse of animal and vegetable matters of all kinds, the dirty vater from the washing of clothes'and of the houses, are all poured, and there hey stagnate and putrefy. In a direct line from Virginia-row to Shoreditch, a mile in extent, all the lanes, ' ourts, and alleys in the neighbourhood pour their contents into the centre of the lain street, where they stagnate and putrefy. Bead-street and Vincent-street.—The condition of these streets is exactly similar a that of the preceding. Families live in the cellars and kitchens of the un- 1 rained houses, dark, and extremely damp. In some or other of these houses ■ ever is always prevalent. “ My assistance here,’’ said the medical officer who r/as attending me, “ is always required : I am never without cases of fever here.” Even in Church-street, Bethnal Green, the main thoroughfare, there is no ; rain ; the water runs off as it can ; and now and then the parish authorities send ound a mud-cart, to gather up what becomes so thick as to block up the way. At the lower end of Orange-street the mass of putrefying matter on each side kows into a stagnant ditch in Wellington-row. In the houses adjacent to this i.itcli fever is often extremely prevalent. At the end of Wellington-row, and at right angles with it, a ditch from eight to ten feet broad extends nearly to the Hackney-road. In the greater part of its ourse gardens neatly cultivated extend from adjacent houses to its edge. The ■tench arising from this ditch at this moment is intolerable. The poor people ihabiting the neighbouring houses, while cultivating their little gardens with so much care as a recreation, and in the hope of promoting their health, little think i.uat at every moment they are inhaling a deadly poison. From a common sewer, which comes from Hackney, and which is covered until •; reaches Goldsmith’s-place, in the Hackney-road, commences a broad un- overed ditch, which empties itself at about the distance of a quarter of a mile, into a pond called Wellington Pond. This is a piece of stagnant water, which overs at least three acres of ground. It is black and filthy, more especially that i iart of it into which the above-mentioned ditch directly opens. This pond is urrounded by houses, and the inhabitants complain bitterly of the stench which ften arises from it. Several of the residents, of whom I inquired respecting its ondition in different states of the weather, assured me that, in the summer espe- ially, when they are suffering greatly from the heat, they dare not open the windows of their houses, on account of the intolerable stench from this pond. At Anne's-place is an open space from Hackney. On the one side of this ewer is a broad public footpath ; on the other side, close upon the margin of the it ewer, stands a row of houses ; little wooden bridges are thrown across the sewer . :om the footpath to the houses. At the present moment this sewer is loaded v .’ith thick, black, stagnant, putrefying matter. From Goldsmith's-place to Cambridge-heath there is an excellent under-ground 1 ommon sewer completely covered in. Here the inhabitants are healthy ; no case i: f fever is known to have occurred in the neighbourhood. This sewer was made wo or three years ago, before which, fever was as prevalent here as in most other r iarts of the district; but since that time there has been a remarkable improvement n the health of the inhabitants. Cambridge-road is also well drained, and in like manner the inhabitants are teal thy ; there is here no fever. Immediately behind Bethnal Green is a large stagnant ditch, surrounded by »oor cottages, the inhabitants of which are constantly suffering from fever; into his ditch, among other things, is constantly flowing the filth from a number of tigsties. where it is allowed to accumulate and putrefy. Jumes-street, Green-street.—Almost impassable from the quantity of water wbicli s allowed to remain upon the surface. Here there are several nightmen’s yard’s ; he soil, collected in great masses, is quite open and exposed. The stench is abo- ninable; the inhabitants in the neighbourhood complain grievously of the nui- sance, but know not how to get it removed. The parish authorities were anxious hat my attention should be particularly directed towards it. In Digby-street here is another large yard of the same description, the eflluvia from which are nost offensive. The houses in the immediate vicinity of this filthy yard are of a jood description. I did not think it necessary to carry my examination of Bethnal Green any
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