THE INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF HYGIENE AND DEMOGRAPHY. II.— HOUSING THE POOR IN THE SUBURBS AND IN BLOCKS.----HOSPITALS. — THE HOSPITAL AT LEAMINGTON.----ASYLUMS FOR THE INSANE.
THE subject of the third day’s discussion, was the problem of the Housing of the
Poor. Several papers were read, but the two which express most clearly the two aspects of the question, were by Mr. Rowland Plumbe, F. R. I. B. A., on “Cottage Homes for the Industrial Classes in the neighborhood of Large Cities,” and by Doctor Sykes, medical officer of health for St. Pancras, on “ Block Dwellings for the Industrial Classes.”
These two papers are good examples of the two views that are generally taken as affording an indication of the solution of the housing problems.
“ What is the good,” says the advocate of suburban housing, “ of endeavoring to re-herd the people again upon areas you have cleared and so to a great extent reproducing the insanitary conditions you are endeavoring to remedy ? It is against all sanitary and economical principles to crowd human beings into small plots of land which it is impossible, from their position, to satisfactorily ventilate and which are much more useful and suitable for the erection of factories and workshops. In the suburbs the diminished cost of the land and the great available area, will enable you to provide really healthy houses, well ventilated, well lighted, bright and cheerful, each house self-contained with its own private garden. Life amid such surroundings will surely be more attractive to the workingman and more beneficial to the health of his wife and children than in crowded, dark and dingy blocks of dwellings packed closely together in back streets of a town.”
“ Yes,” replies the holder of the opposite view “ we do not doubt that the air and the surroundings of the suburb are more beneficial to the health, especially of growing children, than those of the town ; but the disadvantages of distance make themselves very appreciably felt in the expenditure of time, energy and money on travelling, the relaxation of family ties, and the curtailment of home life, the husband and other members of the family taking meals away from home, the frequent loss of work if the exigencies of occupation require the worker to be at short call, the long absence in occupations entailing exceptionally early or late hours, the increased expenditure in the family marketing, the extra cost, etc., if other members of the family besides the husband work away from home ; and other disadvantages. Therefore block-dwellings in town are a necessity and we should recognize this fact and devote our energies to the better construction and arrangement of town dwellings.” There is, no doubt, much to be said on both sides. Unquestionably life in the suburbs is healthier and more satisfactory in theory than town life, but it hardly works in practice. The railway companies are far from ready to offer facilities for really cheap travelling, and even if they do workingmen grudge very much the hour or so they nave to spend in travelling in order to reach home. Besides there are a large number of occupations which absolutely require a man to live close to his work. It will be interesting, however, to examine briefly the papers of each speaker and learn what they have to tell us from their experience in working in their respective spheres.
Mr. Rowland Plumbe after stating his ideal of what a suburban industrial village should be, went on to describe a work of this nature which he had executed in the north of London. “ The estate, having an area of 100 acres, is called Noel Park, and is situated at Wood- Green, a suburb in the northeastern district, about ten minutes walk from the Hornsey and Wood Green Stations on the Great Northern Railway, Green Lanes and Noel Park Station on the Great Eastern Railway is actually on the estate, and tramways run along the main road on which it is situate. The site has a very gentle slope towards Tottenham; the soil is the usual dense clay found in the outlying parts of London on the north side of the river, and which is always much improved by road-making, planting, paving and draining.
“ The main avenue is 60 wide, other avenues are 50 wide, and the cross streets 40 wide. As the houses are built the roads are completely made up, channelled and curbed, and the footways are entirely paved with York stone, and planted at regular intervals (mostly with plane trees). At present it is contemplated to provide a large open space as a recreation-ground.
“In laying out the estate, all the houses are well set back from the road and the corner houses are specially designed and planned. There will be about 2,600 houses on the estate, mostly of five different classes varying from first-class houses on plots 16 x 85 with a floor-area of 1,065 on both floors, containing two sitting-rooms, kitchen, wash-house and four bedrooms and letting at 11s. 6d. per week, including rates and taxes, to fifth-class houses on plots 13 x 60 with a floor-area of 470 , containing front living room with kitchen and small wash-house, with two bedrooms on first floor and letting at 6s. per week, including rates and taxes.
“ The general requirements of the inhabitants have been studied. Already the estate has been formed into a separate parish, and a church has been built holding 850 on the ground-floor, with missionhall, parish-rooms, and all the usual church societies. Building sites have been offered for churches of other denominations; a fine boardschool has also been built; various social clubs already exist, as also cricket, football and other clubs ; space is reserved for a public hall should it ever be required, and every facility will also be given for the erection of Polytechnics and other buildings for technical education ; also for free libraries, swimming-baths, and other similar buildings, whenever the authorities are ready to put the various Acts of Parliament providing these buildings into operation.
“ The estate is occupied by young married people, a few retired tradesmen with moderate incomes, travellers, warehousemen and clerks, railway employes, tradesmen’s assistants of all kinds, artisans of all classes, cabmen, letter-carriers, laborers, policemen, pensioners, etc. The inhabitants are healthy, and but few complaints are made. The death-rate on the estates from January to end of June last was about 14,41 per thousand, as compared with a death-rate in the general district of about 15.25 per thousand.
“ In regard to general statistics, it may be interesting to know that an average of about twenty-five houses per acre are built upon the estates, including space for roads, and that the population is at the rate of about seven people per house, so that when it is completed it will contain a population of about 17,500. There will then be over five miles of roads and streets formed. The outlay, including the land, up to the present time has been about 460,000h, and the net income is now about .21,0001., so that the estate (though only about half-developed) already pays over 4J per cent.’”
Doctor Sykes’s paper was of a different character, and dealt more with general principles than a particular case. He considered that the healthiest condition of construction was that in which through ventilation or perflation was obtained and said that blocks might be so constructed as to reproduce one of the bad features of back-toback houses. It was highly desirable, almost necessary, that a street should run between every alternate row of blocks, and blocks should he limited to a height of from 40 to 60 . He objected to out-buildings, towers, or projections as impediments to light and air.
Orientation was an important point, the least obstruction to the sun’s rays being presented by buildings running north and south. Various suggestions with regard to the relative proportion of the space between the blocks to their height had been made, but anything less than a width equal to the height of the building above ground level would be unacceptable to hygienists.
“ The reckless manner,” said Doctor Sykes, “ in which at the present moment blocks of dwellings are being erected with an utter disregard for this provision of light and air calls most earnestly for legislative restrictions in the construction of this class of buildings. The growing antipathy of philanthropists to block-dwellings is greatly justified by the dread of the ultimate effects of the total absence of any restrictions as to this class of buildings erected on old sites. The crusade against insanitary dwellings, without adequate restrictions upon the buildings that will replace them, may make the last state worse than the first.
“ Apart from the influences of town life, is there any reason to suppose that block-dwellings are, per se, unhealthy ? Residential flats are not held to be less healthy than self-contained houses. Provided that the proportion of open to covered space is adequate to permit of proper access of sunshine and daylight, of sufficient aeration and perflation, increased height of building can scarcely cause any direct injury to health. On the other hand, the conditions of life are dissimilar in cottages and in blocks in important respects.
“ In block-dwellings, the families, and especially the children, are brought into closer and more frequent contact, and the sanitary arrangements are under more constant supervision. The effects of these conditions upon the mortality, as compared with London generally, have been most ably demonstrated in a paper upon the vital statistics of block-dwellings read before the Royal Statistical Society in February of this year by Doctor Newsholme. He showed that, notwithstanding that the age-distribution of population in Peabody buildings was much less favorable to a low mortality than in London as a whole, the death-rate was 2 per 1,000 lower, and that the birthrate was much higher, and the infantile mortality much lower than in all London. But that the death-rate of children between one and five years of age was higher, and was caused by scarlet fever, diphtheria and still more largely by whooping-cough and measles, diseases to which children are so prone, and which are communicated mainly by direct infection. In this respect the social condition induced by block-dwellings resembles schools, and is equally remediable. Another point elucidated was the influence exerted by the greater supervision of sanitary arrangements, in the fact that the death-rate from typhoid or enteric fever was one-half that for all London, and it is well recognized that this disease is the best test of sanitary conditions available.”
These two clever papers seem to show us two things. (1) That it is possible to form suburban industrial villages with a very fair prospect of success. (2) That the greater portion, however, of the industrial population of London desire to live in the town and that such desire can be satisfactorily met if an efficient control, carrying into effect certain recognized principles, be exercised over the construction and administration of the block-dwellings.
THE subject of the third day’s discussion, was the problem of the Housing of the
Poor. Several papers were read, but the two which express most clearly the two aspects of the question, were by Mr. Rowland Plumbe, F. R. I. B. A., on “Cottage Homes for the Industrial Classes in the neighborhood of Large Cities,” and by Doctor Sykes, medical officer of health for St. Pancras, on “ Block Dwellings for the Industrial Classes.”
These two papers are good examples of the two views that are generally taken as affording an indication of the solution of the housing problems.
“ What is the good,” says the advocate of suburban housing, “ of endeavoring to re-herd the people again upon areas you have cleared and so to a great extent reproducing the insanitary conditions you are endeavoring to remedy ? It is against all sanitary and economical principles to crowd human beings into small plots of land which it is impossible, from their position, to satisfactorily ventilate and which are much more useful and suitable for the erection of factories and workshops. In the suburbs the diminished cost of the land and the great available area, will enable you to provide really healthy houses, well ventilated, well lighted, bright and cheerful, each house self-contained with its own private garden. Life amid such surroundings will surely be more attractive to the workingman and more beneficial to the health of his wife and children than in crowded, dark and dingy blocks of dwellings packed closely together in back streets of a town.”
“ Yes,” replies the holder of the opposite view “ we do not doubt that the air and the surroundings of the suburb are more beneficial to the health, especially of growing children, than those of the town ; but the disadvantages of distance make themselves very appreciably felt in the expenditure of time, energy and money on travelling, the relaxation of family ties, and the curtailment of home life, the husband and other members of the family taking meals away from home, the frequent loss of work if the exigencies of occupation require the worker to be at short call, the long absence in occupations entailing exceptionally early or late hours, the increased expenditure in the family marketing, the extra cost, etc., if other members of the family besides the husband work away from home ; and other disadvantages. Therefore block-dwellings in town are a necessity and we should recognize this fact and devote our energies to the better construction and arrangement of town dwellings.” There is, no doubt, much to be said on both sides. Unquestionably life in the suburbs is healthier and more satisfactory in theory than town life, but it hardly works in practice. The railway companies are far from ready to offer facilities for really cheap travelling, and even if they do workingmen grudge very much the hour or so they nave to spend in travelling in order to reach home. Besides there are a large number of occupations which absolutely require a man to live close to his work. It will be interesting, however, to examine briefly the papers of each speaker and learn what they have to tell us from their experience in working in their respective spheres.
Mr. Rowland Plumbe after stating his ideal of what a suburban industrial village should be, went on to describe a work of this nature which he had executed in the north of London. “ The estate, having an area of 100 acres, is called Noel Park, and is situated at Wood- Green, a suburb in the northeastern district, about ten minutes walk from the Hornsey and Wood Green Stations on the Great Northern Railway, Green Lanes and Noel Park Station on the Great Eastern Railway is actually on the estate, and tramways run along the main road on which it is situate. The site has a very gentle slope towards Tottenham; the soil is the usual dense clay found in the outlying parts of London on the north side of the river, and which is always much improved by road-making, planting, paving and draining.
“ The main avenue is 60 wide, other avenues are 50 wide, and the cross streets 40 wide. As the houses are built the roads are completely made up, channelled and curbed, and the footways are entirely paved with York stone, and planted at regular intervals (mostly with plane trees). At present it is contemplated to provide a large open space as a recreation-ground.
“In laying out the estate, all the houses are well set back from the road and the corner houses are specially designed and planned. There will be about 2,600 houses on the estate, mostly of five different classes varying from first-class houses on plots 16 x 85 with a floor-area of 1,065 on both floors, containing two sitting-rooms, kitchen, wash-house and four bedrooms and letting at 11s. 6d. per week, including rates and taxes, to fifth-class houses on plots 13 x 60 with a floor-area of 470 , containing front living room with kitchen and small wash-house, with two bedrooms on first floor and letting at 6s. per week, including rates and taxes.
“ The general requirements of the inhabitants have been studied. Already the estate has been formed into a separate parish, and a church has been built holding 850 on the ground-floor, with missionhall, parish-rooms, and all the usual church societies. Building sites have been offered for churches of other denominations; a fine boardschool has also been built; various social clubs already exist, as also cricket, football and other clubs ; space is reserved for a public hall should it ever be required, and every facility will also be given for the erection of Polytechnics and other buildings for technical education ; also for free libraries, swimming-baths, and other similar buildings, whenever the authorities are ready to put the various Acts of Parliament providing these buildings into operation.
“ The estate is occupied by young married people, a few retired tradesmen with moderate incomes, travellers, warehousemen and clerks, railway employes, tradesmen’s assistants of all kinds, artisans of all classes, cabmen, letter-carriers, laborers, policemen, pensioners, etc. The inhabitants are healthy, and but few complaints are made. The death-rate on the estates from January to end of June last was about 14,41 per thousand, as compared with a death-rate in the general district of about 15.25 per thousand.
“ In regard to general statistics, it may be interesting to know that an average of about twenty-five houses per acre are built upon the estates, including space for roads, and that the population is at the rate of about seven people per house, so that when it is completed it will contain a population of about 17,500. There will then be over five miles of roads and streets formed. The outlay, including the land, up to the present time has been about 460,000h, and the net income is now about .21,0001., so that the estate (though only about half-developed) already pays over 4J per cent.’”
Doctor Sykes’s paper was of a different character, and dealt more with general principles than a particular case. He considered that the healthiest condition of construction was that in which through ventilation or perflation was obtained and said that blocks might be so constructed as to reproduce one of the bad features of back-toback houses. It was highly desirable, almost necessary, that a street should run between every alternate row of blocks, and blocks should he limited to a height of from 40 to 60 . He objected to out-buildings, towers, or projections as impediments to light and air.
Orientation was an important point, the least obstruction to the sun’s rays being presented by buildings running north and south. Various suggestions with regard to the relative proportion of the space between the blocks to their height had been made, but anything less than a width equal to the height of the building above ground level would be unacceptable to hygienists.
“ The reckless manner,” said Doctor Sykes, “ in which at the present moment blocks of dwellings are being erected with an utter disregard for this provision of light and air calls most earnestly for legislative restrictions in the construction of this class of buildings. The growing antipathy of philanthropists to block-dwellings is greatly justified by the dread of the ultimate effects of the total absence of any restrictions as to this class of buildings erected on old sites. The crusade against insanitary dwellings, without adequate restrictions upon the buildings that will replace them, may make the last state worse than the first.
“ Apart from the influences of town life, is there any reason to suppose that block-dwellings are, per se, unhealthy ? Residential flats are not held to be less healthy than self-contained houses. Provided that the proportion of open to covered space is adequate to permit of proper access of sunshine and daylight, of sufficient aeration and perflation, increased height of building can scarcely cause any direct injury to health. On the other hand, the conditions of life are dissimilar in cottages and in blocks in important respects.
“ In block-dwellings, the families, and especially the children, are brought into closer and more frequent contact, and the sanitary arrangements are under more constant supervision. The effects of these conditions upon the mortality, as compared with London generally, have been most ably demonstrated in a paper upon the vital statistics of block-dwellings read before the Royal Statistical Society in February of this year by Doctor Newsholme. He showed that, notwithstanding that the age-distribution of population in Peabody buildings was much less favorable to a low mortality than in London as a whole, the death-rate was 2 per 1,000 lower, and that the birthrate was much higher, and the infantile mortality much lower than in all London. But that the death-rate of children between one and five years of age was higher, and was caused by scarlet fever, diphtheria and still more largely by whooping-cough and measles, diseases to which children are so prone, and which are communicated mainly by direct infection. In this respect the social condition induced by block-dwellings resembles schools, and is equally remediable. Another point elucidated was the influence exerted by the greater supervision of sanitary arrangements, in the fact that the death-rate from typhoid or enteric fever was one-half that for all London, and it is well recognized that this disease is the best test of sanitary conditions available.”
These two clever papers seem to show us two things. (1) That it is possible to form suburban industrial villages with a very fair prospect of success. (2) That the greater portion, however, of the industrial population of London desire to live in the town and that such desire can be satisfactorily met if an efficient control, carrying into effect certain recognized principles, be exercised over the construction and administration of the block-dwellings.