SANITARY CONDITION OF THE CITY.

Evening Star, Issue 3806, 6 May 1875, Page 2

SANITARY CONDITION OF THE CITY.

The preliminary report of the Health Officer has icached us, and we shall take an early op portunity of noticing its contents. By way of introduction, Dr Cole calls the attention of the rivlc authorities to the following matters : That very mauy of the house j in the city are positively not fit for animals to dwell in, and that until this state of matters is remedied We shall always have a high rate of mortality, in spite of good drainage and sewage. No one should be permuted to build houses possessing less than three rooms, and those should, be ventilated according to sanitary rules. The law of ventilation should also be laid down for public buildings. Many of . our hotels are overcrowded and unprovided with sufficient ventilation. Another factor in the causation of disease is a bad (i. e, ignorant) system of nursing and a want of judicious feeding and bathing. Uur present hours of schooling are badly arranged. It is highly prejudicial to health that children should be obliged to hurry buck to school immediately after their mid-day meal is swallowed, as is.necessitated underlie present system. On the question of dtainage, Dr Cole disagrees with the City Surveyor’s plan, that the Bay is the best outfall for sewerage j and recommends the adoption of Mr Burt, C.F.’s, plan—to divert the Water of Leith for the flushing of a main sewer, to run by the Bay, be continued along the Anderson’s Bay road, and have au outfall directly into the ocean —with some modifications. Ho thinks the separate or irrigation system the one that will yield the best results; recommends that the sandhills at the Ocean Beach should be properly prepared and utilised as a filtering area ;.’and thinks no pumping would be required, as the pressure of the Water of Lsith through Mr Burt’s main sewer would probably be sufficient to propel the contents on to the sandhills previously lowered and prepared, the effluent water finding its way through the sand into the water.