[Report 1910] / Medical Officer of Health, Darlington County Borough.

  • Darlington (England). County Borough Council.
Date:
1910
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1910] / Medical Officer of Health, Darlington County Borough. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    6/16 (page 6)
    OFFENSIVE TRADES. During the year a licence was applied for by Messrs. Davis and Co. for fat rendering for premises in Wooler Street. The licence was granted in February, 19)0, as Mr. Davis stated when before the Committee making his application, that he would use nothing but fresh butcher’s fat, and manufacture pure beef dripping only. On several occasions when the Inspector visited his premises, he found that very rancid fat was being rendered, and the business was simply a tallow melting concern. The stench at times was unbearable from the premises, and numerous complaints were received from the inhabitants of Wooler Street and neighbourhood, with the result that the Committee revoked the licence on 8rd December. All the other fat renderers, tripe boilers, &c. have conducted their business satisfactorily and without any complaint from their neighbours. SCAVENGING. The streets have been kept clean and in good order during the year. This applies also to the back streets, which being beautifully paved with Scoria brick, afford an even surface from which the contents of the ashpits, and any other refuse can be completely removed. I am glad to be able to state that the privies and ashpits have been more regularly cleared, and fewer accumulations have been found than in former years. I hope in the future this work will be carried out with even greater efficiency, because it is of the utmost importance to the health of the town that the sanitary premises of the dwellings should be kept free from pollutions of decaying animal or vegetable matter. I have no doubt that a foul state of privies and ashpits has much to do in the generatian of such diseases as Enteritis and Diarrhoea, and probably also of Enteric Fever. These conveniences are the resort and breeding place of flies, and thence they get into the pantries and larders, and so contaminate food, that is impossible to compute that for which they are responsible. For this reason as I have said above, frequent emptying and disinfection of these places is imperative in order to keep down the number of these zymotic cases. FACTORIES AND WORKSHOPS. During the year all the factories and workshops have been regularly visited and inspected. There was no overcrowding in any of them, and all the defects in their condition and sanitary arrangements were remedied after notice had been served by the Inspector. Now that they are all registered, and the owners have grasped the fact that they are under observation, and legally bound to keep them in order, a notice pointing out any breach of the bye-laws governing them is all that is needed to obtain compliance therewith. In some cases there was want of proper cleanliness of the walls, ceilings, and floors, a few defects in the ‘sanitary conveniences and drains, and defective roofs, &c. The following were some of the cases requiring notice •—