Chapter XXV Defects in Dwelling-Houses, &c.
There are many defects in dwelling-houses with which it is the duty of the sanitary inspector to deal, such as the Bakehouse Regulations Act, offensive trades, nuisances rendering houses unfit for human habitation, &c., but I propose to give in this chapter, in addition to those with which I have already dealt, such subjects under this head as come within the duties of the town surveyor.
The first which I propose to treat is that of the question of Cellar Dwellings—These are at all times objectionable even if the clauses of the Public Health Act 1875 be strictly carried out, and the surveyor should discourage them as much as possible. Nothing more can be said with reference to them than is contained in the provisions of the above Act, which are as follows:202
“It shall not be lawful to let or occupy or suffer to be occupied separately as a dwelling, any cellar (including for the purposes of this Act in that expression any vault or underground room) built or rebuilt after the passing of this Act, or which is not lawfully so let or occupied at the time of the passing of this Act” (38 & 39 Vic. c. 55, s. 71).
And with regard to existing cellar dwellings they are only to be let or occupied on the following conditions:—
“Unless the cellar is in every part thereof at least seven feet in height, measured from the floor to the ceiling thereof, and is at least three feet of its height above the surface of the street or ground adjoining or nearest to the same; and
“Unless there is outside of and adjoining the cellar and extending along the entire frontage thereof, and upwards from six inches below the level of the floor thereof up to the surface of the said street or ground, an open area of at least two feet and six inches wide in every part; and
“Unless the cellar is effectually drained by means of a drain, the uppermost part of which is one foot at least below the level of the floor thereof; and
“Unless there is appurtenant to the cellar the use of a watercloset, earthcloset, or privy, and an ashpit, furnished with proper doors and coverings, according to the provisions of this Act; and
“Unless the cellar has a fireplace with a proper chimney or flue, and an external window of at least nine superficial feet in area clear of the sash frame, and made to open in a manner approved by the surveyor (except in the case of an inner or back cellar let or occupied along with a front cellar as part of the same letting or occupation, in which case the external window may be of any dimensions, not being less than four superficial feet in area clear of the sash frame).
“Provided that in any area adjoining a cellar there may be steps necessary for access to such cellar, if the same be so placed as not to be over, across, or opposite to the said external window, and so as to allow between every part of such steps and the external wall of such cellar a clear space of six inches at the least, and that over or across any such area there may be steps necessary for access to any building above the cellar to which such area adjoins, if the same be so placed as not to be over, across, or opposite to any such external window” (38 & 39 Vic. c. 55, s. 72).
Where two convictions in respect of the same cellar have taken place within three months, the local authority may close it, and recover any expenses incurred by them in the execution of this duty (38 & 39 Vic., c. 55, s. 75).
The next defect in a dwelling-house which will be considered is that of Insufficient W.C. Accommodation—A new house may not be erected without “a sufficient watercloset, earthcloset,203 or privy” under a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds204 (38 & 39 Vic. c. 55, s. 35).
And with regard to existing premises:
“If a house within the district of a local authority appears to such authority by the report of their surveyor or inspector of nuisances to be without a sufficient watercloset, earthcloset, or privy.... the local authority shall by written notice require the owner or occupier of the house within a reasonable time therein specified, to provide a sufficient watercloset, earthcloset, or privy.... or either of them as the case may require. If such notice is not complied with the local authority may, at the expiration of the time specified in the notice, do the work, provided that where a watercloset, earthcloset, or privy has been and is used in common by the inmates of two or more houses, or if in the opinion of the local authority a watercloset, earthcloset, or privy may be so used, they need not require the same to be provided for each house” (38 & 39 Vic. c. 55, s. 36).
If the local authority approve, an earthcloset may be constructed instead of a watercloset, but in this case they should make arrangements for the supply of the dry earth and the removal of its contents.
The necessary form of notice to be served in connection with insufficient w.c. accommodation may be as follows:
To the owner of the house No. ______ in the borough of ______.
Whereas the above-mentioned house is situate within the district of the mayor, aldermen, and burgesses of ______, the urban sanitary authority for the borough of ______: And whereas it appears to the said urban sanitary authority that the said house is without a sufficient watercloset, earthcloset, or privy: Now the said urban sanitary authority do hereby require you, the said owner, within ______ from the date of this notice to provide a sufficient watercloset for the use of the inhabitants of the said house. And take notice, that if you do not within the time above specified provide a sufficient watercloset, as aforesaid, to the satisfaction of the said urban sanitary authority, they will themselves, at the expiration of such time, do the necessary work to provide such closet accommodation as aforesaid, and proceed to recover the costs and expenses thereby incurred in manner provided by the Public Health Act 1875.
Dated this ______ of ______, 188.
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Surveyor to the said Mayor, Aldermen and Burgesses.
And where the case demands, the following note may be added below the above notice:
“Note.—The urban sanitary authority may, if they so determine, require a separate watercloset to be provided for each house, or they may permit a watercloset to be used in common by the inmates of two or more houses,205 but in either case the closet itself must be properly constructed and provided with due means of ventilation. The urban sanitary authority will approve of the existing closet accommodation if it is perfected by means of the following works being carried out. (Specification of work required to be done must here be inserted.) The whole of the work to be executed in a workmanlike manner and to my entire approval.
“It is, however, to be understood that the above notice requiring the work to be executed within one month will be rigidly enforced; and if at the expiration of that time the work be not completed, the urban sanitary authority will themselves proceed to execute the necessary work to provide proper closet accommodation in such manner as they may deem most advisable, without pledging themselves to the adoption of the method above suggested.”
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Surveyor to the said Mayor, Aldermen and Burgesses.
With regard to watercloset accommodation for factories, it appears to rest entirely with the town surveyor to draw the attention of the sanitary authority to any case where he considers this is deficient, as by the following clause:
“Where it appears to any local authority by the report of their surveyor that any house is used or intended to be used as a factory or building in which persons of both sexes are employed or intended to be employed at one time in any manufacture, trade, or business, the local authority may, if they think fit, by written notice require the owner or occupier of such house, within the time therein specified, to construct a sufficient number of waterclosets, earthclosets, or privies and ashpits for the separate use of each sex.
“Any person who neglects or refuses to comply with any such notice shall be liable for each default to a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds, and to a further penalty not exceeding forty shillings for every day during which the default is continued” (38 & 39 Vic. c. 55, s. 38).
In providing closet accommodation which is to be used in common by the occupants of a number of houses, it must be remembered that it should be of the most simple description. Any one acquainted with the working of waterclosets situated in courts and alleys will know how badly they are treated, and into what a fearful state of disrepair and filth they speedily fall, as the great difficulty the sanitary inspector always finds is to have them kept clean; “What is everybody’s business is nobody’s.” And although by clauses 40, 41, 46, &c., of the Public Health Act 1875 persons causing a nuisance can be punished, it is a difficult matter to detect the person in fault, unless of course it is a structural defect, when the owner can be summoned if it is allowed to remain uncured.
For this reason what are known as “Fowler’s closets,” or some modification of this principle, should be adopted in all such localities where earthclosets or some of the dry systems are not in force, as they are without any complicated valve apparatus or anything of the kind.
The last point to consider in this chapter is that of Houses without a proper supply of water.
“Where on the report of the surveyor of a local authority it appears that any house is without a proper supply of water, and that such a supply can be furnished at a cost not exceeding that authorised by any local Act, or where there is not any local Act, not exceeding twopence a week, or at such other cost as the Local Government Board may determine, the local authority shall give notice in writing to the owner, requiring him, within a time specified, to obtain such supply, and to do all such works as may be necessary for that purpose,206 and in default of his doing so may carry out all necessary works themselves for obtaining such supply” (vide 38 & 39 Vic. c. 55, s. lxii.).
It is not very often that a house is found without any supply of water at all, for if that from the mains is not laid on it is generally found that the house is supplied from a well or from a stand-pipe in a court, or some similar source. If the water is derived from an impure well or other contaminated source, the following clause of the Public Health Act 1875 must be enforced in order to close the well or compel the discontinuance of the polluted supply, when a “proper” supply of water can be enforced in the manner I have described:
“On the representation of any person to any local authority that within their district the water in any well, tank, or cistern, public or private, or supplied from any public pump, and used or likely to be used by man for drinking or domestic purposes, or for manufacturing drinks for the use of man, is so polluted as to be injurious to health, such authority may apply to a court of summary jurisdiction for an order to remedy the same; and thereupon such court shall summon the owner or occupier of the premises to which the well, tank, or cistern belongs if it be private, and in the case of a public well, tank, cistern or pump, any person alleged in the application to be interested in the same, and may either dismiss the application, or may make an order directing the well, tank, cistern, or pump to be permanently or temporarily closed, or the water to be used for certain purposes only, or such other order as may appear to them to be requisite to prevent injury to the health of persons drinking the water.
“The court may, if they see fit, cause the water complained of to be analysed at the cost of the local authority applying to them under this section.
“If the person on whom an order under this section is made fails to comply with the same, the court may, on the application of the local authority, authorise them to do whatever may be necessary in the execution of the order, and any expenses incurred by them may be recovered in a summary manner from the person on whom the order is made.
“Expenses incurred by any rural authority in the execution of this section, and not recovered by them as aforesaid, shall be special expenses” (38 & 39 Vic. c. 55, s. 70).
It is an established fact that wells within a town must always be regarded with some suspicion, and where they exist either publicly or privately the local authority would do well to have the water from them analysed with a view to having them closed. Even cisterns, if not frequently examined and cleansed, will cause the water that is stored in them to become polluted, not only from the dust of the air settling in them and the natural impurities of the water passing through them, but frequently from foreign objects falling into them and decaying, such as rats, mice, cats, and in one case that I know of, a sirloin of beef, and in another a plumber! These remained in the cistern until the colour, smell, and taste of the water drew the attention of the drinkers to “something being the matter!” The cure for the chance of such cases as these is of course the constant supply.
Notes
202 Any cellar in which any person passes the night shall be deemed to be occupied as a dwelling within the meaning of this Act (38 & 39 Vic. c. 55, s. 74).
203 “In this Act (P. H. Act 1875) the term ’earth closet’ includes any place for the reception and deodorization of fæcal matter constructed to the satisfaction of the local authority” (38 & 39 Vic. c. 55, s. 37).
204 In case of several houses together, it has been held as not necessary to have separate accommodation for each house, if there is sufficient for them collectively. (Clutton Guardians v. Pointing, 4 Q. B. Division 340, 48 L. J. M. C. 137.)
205 It is not always possible for a separate w.c. to be provided for each house, hence the wisdom of the law which makes it permissive for a local authority to allow a group of tenements to be provided for by several waterclosets close together.
206 A similar provision is made requiring the keeper of a common lodging house to obtain a proper supply of water (38 & 39 Vic. c. 55, s. 81), but it does not appear to be the express duty of the town surveyor to draw attention to this, as it does in the more general clause.