MR, CHARLES S. BUTLERsaid, he wished to ask the noble Lord the Secretary of State for the Home Department a question relating to the sewerage of a densely-populated district, of which he had given notice.
To render the question intelligible, it was necessary that he should explain, that at a Court of Sewers held on Tuesday last, a deputation from the inhabitants of Sydenham, consisting of medical and other gentlemen, waited upon the Commissioners to present a memorial as to the dreadful state of the sewerage in their district: they produced medical certificates, stating that it was in so filthy and unwholesome a state as greatly to affect the health of the inhabitants, and that it had been the cause of all the fevers in the district for the last four or 60 five years. This statement was confirmed by Dr. Roberts, who stated that he attended a patient who was carried off in seventy hours, and there was no doubt that his death was caused directly from the poison arising from these drains. So dangerous to health were they, that if the hot weather should set in, it was impossible to say what the consequences might be. It was also alleged by the deputation, that certain new works that had been done by the Commissioners were worse than useless; in some cases the pipe drains had fallen in, and the black sewage was going down the roads as it did before. Now, Sir, in reply to these, and other similar statements, Colonel Dawson, one of the Commissioners, is reported to have said, that the only advice he could give to the inhabitants—and he gave it with regret—was to construct cesspools, the insides to be coated with cement. He would not trouble the House with any further explanation of his question than to remark that the Sanatory Commissioners conclude their third Report,' dated 13th July 1848, by stating "That any delay in making adequate provisions for imposing obligations as to the improvement of house drainage, and the abolition of cesspools, is a delay in the removal of the most extensive sources of disease and mortality," The question which he had to put to the noble Lord was, whether, considering the enormous evils which had resulted from the system of house drainage by means of cesspools—a system opposed to the recommendation of the Sanatory Commissioners —the noble Lord approved the advice given by the Metropolitan Commissioners of Sewers to the inhabitants of the Ravens-bourne district, to construct cesspools; and if the noble Lord did not approve such recommendation, whether he would take any steps to counteract the influence which such a recommendation must naturally have upon the minds of the inhabitants who had been paying rates for many years?
He would also take that opportunity of asking the noble Lord, if he was aware that there were twenty-eight miles of thickly-populated streets and places in the parish of Bethnal Green entirely without sewers or the means of sewerage, although the owners of the property had paid rates for nearly a century?
§ VISCOUNT PALMERSTONsaid, the question, bearing upon a very important matter, was one of great difficulty, and he was afraid with regard to an early remedy that difficulty was insuperable. There was 61 a large portion of this metropolis—that recently constructed—which was totally destitute of sewers. There was also a large portion of this metropolis which had sewers, but where the sewers were ill-constructed, and in a state of great decay. Well, to make sewers where there were none, and to put into good order old ones which were defective and out of order, required a very large outlay. The Commissioners of Sewers bad not at their disposal money enough to meet these different demands. The sum which they had was limited to the amount of rate levied upon the different districts; and the Commissioners were in a very disagreeable situation for any public officers to find themselves in—they were called upon by almost every part of the metropolitan district to lay out a large sum of money for repairs and alterations which were really absolutely necessary for the comfort if not for the health of the inhabitants of the districts in question; and, on the other hand, they had not the means to carry out these works. They now proposed that a Bill should be brought in, enabling them to raise an adequate sum by mortgage upon the rates. That Bill was under the consideration of the Government, and, if it should receive their sanction, he hoped to have the support of his hon. Friend in carrying it through the House, so that the Commissioners might have the means to carry out the necessary improvements, which they did not now possess. With regard to the practical advice referred to as having been given to the inhabitants, it was quite clear that if they could not have covered sewers, it was better to make use of cesspools than of open gutters in streets, which affected the health of the district through which they ran.