47

H.—3l

facilitate this. Concurrently with the sewering of districts of the town, the connection of the houses with the street sewers is being gradually enforced ; and these house connections are all now properly made and trapped according to the by-laws of the Drainage Board under the superintendence of their employees. This must in time effect a great improvement in the healthiness of the town, as in many cases the drainage and trapping of houses was in a very unsatisfactory state, on an amendment of which it was impossible to insist, as there existed perhaps no street sewer with which to make connection. In Invercargill, at last, the question of diverting the drainage of part of the town from the Puni Creek has been commenced, and before next summer it is hoped this creek will no longer be a common sewer and a public nuisance, while the boroughs of South and East Invercargill will be able to dispose of their drainage to a great extent by the sewer being now formed along the line of the creek. North Invercargill has now a pretty complete system of sewers, but for slops only, and the houses in that borough are now having their drains connected with the sewers under the supervision of Inspector Cameron and the local Inspector. In Gore, too, the drainage system has been completed during the year, and houses are being connected by up-to-date connections with the sewers. Main sewers now run through the principal streets of the towns of Riverton, Winton, Otautau, and Wyndham, though closets are not connected with them owing to the want of a water-supply which the revenue of these towns will not allow to be undertaken meantime. But this is a great improvement, since the house-slops may now be diverted from the street-gutters along which they had to run for want of better provision. The two septic tank installations in my district are now working satisfactorily. That at the Benevolent Institution, Caversham, which at first was faulty, has, since the coke has been replaced by a harder grade, done its work well; and that serving the Riverton Hospital is doing nicely, except that a grating was introduced between the grit-chamber and the septic tank, which intercepted the solids that should have gone into the septic tank, thus converting the grit-tank into a septic tank far too small for the work, and causing a smell. This grating is now removed. Prom the septic tank no smell arose when I saw it in March, and it was doing its work thoroughly well, as were the bacterial filters connected with it. In several of the towns the local authorities have adopted at my recommendation or at their own instance a municipal system for the removal and disposal of nightsoil and rubbish, and have had places approved by me and authorised by the Governor as nightsoil-depots ; or they are in a process of doing so. Among these are Port Chalmers, Palmerston South, Mataura, Wyndham, Winton, Queenstown, Arrowtown, and the suburbs of Invercargill South, North, East, and Avenal and Gladstone, as well as the Town of Invercargill itself; and except for a little friction, inevitable at first, these promise to work well. In Riverton, where I had to recommend the municipal collection of nightsoil, as I was credibly informed that many of the householders buried the contents of the privies in their gardens throughout the town, some of the people and of the Town Council too are inclined to resist my recommendation, and I shall have to take an early opportunity to have a conference with the Town Council about the matter. I am not inclined to recall my recommendation for two reasons, the first being that some parties derive their water-supply from shallow wells in the town, and the second, that the town in summer is a favourite health resort for people from the interior seeking the sea-breezes, and for others from many parts of Otago, who have to be protected. Tips for House-refuse and Road-scrapings, etc. In many of the towns these are found to be any place not already built on, and I have been endeavouring to have them located in such situations that they will not be nuisances. In Dunedin, for instance, towards the north and south ends of the city proper, the house, &c, refuse is being tipped into otherwise objectionable hollows, with a view to have them converted into useful recreation-grounds. These have been closely and frequently supervised by us, to see that the refuse was covered with a layer of clean and good soil, which would prevent the underlying stuff from causing a nuisance, and convert it into soil fit to nourish a carpet of herbage. Though occasional complaints have been made regarding these, I am satisfied that they were practically groundless, and that the grumble was more at the temporary unsightliness than from any nuisance these operations were causing. Attention has also been paid to similar places at various localities throughout my district; but a notice to the local authorities has been efficacious in removing the annoyance. In this connection it may be remarked that the reclamation by the Harbour Board of Dunedin has converted a wide stretch of foul-smelling mud-flats, uncovered at low tide, and pervading the town in certain winds with a surfeit of fearful smells, into a valuable and healthy area to be utilised by the railway. This has been one of the best, as well as the most profitable, public improvements recently given to the city, and one which will tell favourably on the public health. Infectious Diseases. The annexed table shows at a glance the incidence of infectious diseases throughout mv district from month to month.