PUBLIC HEALTH

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 207, 27 May 1919, Page 6

PUBLIC HEALTH

THK INFLUENCE OF HOUSING

A HEALTH OFFICER'S SUGGESTIONS,

t ' The influence of housing on liho health L 'of "the cominimity was tho subject of a ( - papor-read before tho Towu-pkniiing Coiiferenco by Dr. J. P. Frengley, Deputy

i ■' Chief-Health Officer. Tho doctor urged [ - that the real justification of.a vigorous* f. 1 • effort' to improve housing conditions must ! be 1 sought in tho. improvement of publio

| • health. ,' ■ „ i ! ■ "What is meant by health, that end and i • aim of sound town-planning?" said Dr; f Freigley. "I cannot iniprovo upon tlio Kj- remarks of tho Professor of Sanitary Eni gineeriug of Harvard University in giving j : evidence before the Commission on Build- ! ing Distriots and Restrictions for the City i of' New York in 1916. He said: I -At the outset it is important to got j : 'a' full conception of what is meant • i by-health. At the present time publio i N : health activities axo coming to' be ) dominated by, tho bacteriologist and '• epidemiologist. Attention has been j . fooiised especially on communicablo j,.' diseaso. All tho world knows that j the efforts of-the new publio health I movement in reducing the suffering ] and misery of „ mankind have been I tho most remarkable in tho world's ! history and must long be continued. ! The results Jirfve been'measured ia I terms of death rates and\ sickness ! rates. Naturally enough health has | come to bo regarded by some as the j', absence of diseaso; but that is not -. a complete.' conception of health, i Health is more than the absence of disease. It is something positive, and. 1. • involves physique and vitality, and it f is mental as well as physical. Tho '.. inherent difficulty at tho present timo j !i6 tho absence of scientific mothods I -of measuring this positive element in health. Yet tho world knows as ft i matter 'of. human experience that it ■ is real and vital. expression . V'healtli and comfort of the people I , 1 is. centuries old, and theso two ideas . j': are inseparable. v r • "We are not able to define health: w# I ]'• do not know wlint constitutes & healthy !.'.'man or woman or child. We bfilievo there are certain conditions which are detrimental to health, and town-planning //must- entirely fail in its object if it : , does not first and foremost concern ltsell ■ with the removal of the more glaring •'. or definite insanitary factors and ulti-' mately or coincidently therewith the elimination, of those more remote condi- . tions, ho less patent for evil to health, / such as depressing circumsfanoos in tho I honies, joyless recreation during the hours f ■ of plav and rest, and lack of prida by the citizens in their homes, their towns,i and their oountry. "The health of the people is directly in. flnenced by sanitary drainage and sound ,' plumbing, and I venture to say that in i . the past teiOears those factors of townj planning have heen well attended to by j our civic authorities; but that is no reason why still'greater .efficiency and modernising in these safeguards should • ■ not be insisted upon in tne homes and towns to be established under town- ■ planning schemes of the future. I may' i ; take- advantage of tho qlie3tion of sewerage "to point to one of the difficulties a ! town-planner may be< met with. The '> ■ sanitary engineer prefers ' straight lines i of streets because lines of sewers parallel '■ ' ■ to . such . street boundaries are more 'self-cleansing, more-economical In construction, and inspection and repairs. The town-planner eeoks a mora C -'pleasing, effect to human eyes by an ap-•-v peal.,to Nature. and the adoption of a ! beautiful curve here and there in his i ' i building schime or planning. Who is to ■ decide"between the oontending .parties? J Only the authority who is prepared 'to ' assert that pleasant and beautiful suiri : roundings do contribute to that unknown | quantity—health. ' » "Regarding the designing of the homes, tho. Messed word 'standardisation' might ; , be quoted. Standardisation may 'be all , : -very well for a certain type of motor- ■ oar and for the sizes of . the different fittings/of-a-house-lighting and plumbing i system, or for boots or bottles, But in j -the planning of homes for tho people, ad ■ ..-fit-manyJother affairs,, standardisation } cannot but be subversive of all pro- ! gress. ...While medical, science as yot does ; lot' enable ,us to say whv, .nevertheless i yr"e oan rely on the dictates of instinct, which tells us a 'monotonous existence' j- is detrimental, if not to the general, at ! least,;to. the, mental health. Any standardisation of homes wjiich means rows and rows of buildings all- on the same -plan cannot but be monotonous and proi . .ductive of an environment more likely . to bo detrimental than encouraging to . good health."The prompting? of Nature incline the ;' . lhrge majority of humans—as the Amerii c.ans say—to the reception of pleasure by | an environment of flowering, plants, j bushes, trees—in short, well filled and Jieat gardens. The production of this j happy state of things in New Zoaland • depends; so far upon, the hobby or will- ' ingne'&i'of "the owners and occupiers, i Many people are only too glad to' have fcnd' enjoy sucli surroundings, but make • no effort to produce tbem. You havo only to look out of a train to see how, ; . in adjoining gardens, some are tidy, ■ Others.'neglected. For that indolent or ; indifferent body of people I think town- ; planning or municipal aid must 'be involved'. .-.Many, such people• would bo only I \too willing to 'do something in the gar-den'—back-or front—if they could secure someone (o do the rou<jh work. I picture, therefore, the municipal authority of. the future, keen on town-planning, , helping .in engendering pleasant environ- ! ment by haying a staff'of 'jobbing gardeners' whose services would be availI abie to ratepayers at a specified fee per j Hour, I 'Who, when not so employed, would i Iw engagei! at the municipal parks or I other civic works.

'"The encouragement if the frills of town-planning beforo the essentials are obtained is not desirablo. It is but progressing backwards to pronose that <a street should be regraded and provided with asphalted footpaths and a strip of grass, and trees alongside the road, when the homes jon that road have nothing but- the pan system for nightsoil reception, haphazard drainage disposal; while that, road-crosses a natural water-courso polluted by household drains, and when .in summer the inhabitants lor want of High-pressure'water havo to be satisfied for weeks .with a 'Main Trunk' wash or the amenities of the kindly-proffered borough water-cart. I speak of an actual incident within my own . knowledge, and let me now ret'er to another by way of introducing the situation for homes, as it should not be. In a large town in New Zealand is a suburb yn a flat area which, at one time not far distant, was probably a self-reclaiming swamp. Hero the first, '.hint' thought of, apparently, was roading. 'J here is no doubt the roads are good and well laid, but with what result for the sites ot the homes.. In many instances the road and "footpath are just two feet above the natural level of the homo sections. I do'not think I need elaborate the result, suffice to say that the Health Department is ever and again being asked to try to solve a problem brought about by defective town-planning. Even though I .risk tedious repetition I mist again insist that we cannot have beneficial soil conditions and clean air in, and around the homes of mothers and Children—for the fathers are away most If the day—unless good drainage and unaitary conditions aro' regarded as the essentials. "In almost' ail our towns we find unhealthy gullies, outlookless and generally ■unpleasant sites occupied by the home's of the less well-to-do because tho sections, for the reason given, are the only, possible ones within their 'pockets.' This indefensible state of things town-plan-ning must not only take cognisance of,' but stop. For the reasons which implv cheapness such sites cannot possibly tend to the health and happiness of the dwellers., They would be of greater benefit as town 'lungs.' Does it"not occur to you as quite illogical—to say Die least of it— that in tin; past the best sites were selected for parks, at most intermittently iised by tin* people, whereas no ono worried about the continuous dnily use of .deplorable sites for the homes—it is useless to mince matter?—of' the poorer classes? That is, the better classes of the morrow as they might be, or perhaps 1 filiould snv, would be. wore their environment.stimula.tive to health and welfare."

• 'American capitalists have offered to construct and, if necessary, finance a floating dock and repair plant at Kingston,- Jamaica, • ■ ' -