On the health of nightmen, scavengers, and dustmen / by William Augustus Guy.

Date:
[1848]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: On the health of nightmen, scavengers, and dustmen / by William Augustus Guy. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. The original may be consulted at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh.

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    master scavengers, it was mentioned that when, in the course of last year, a deputation of the leading contractors waited upon Lord Mor- peth, a petition for pecuniary assistance to bury this man was shown to his lordship. Another man, who was familiarly known as Old Wood, was said to have completed a century. I have already stated inci- dentally, that out of nine nightmen employed by Mr. Creevy, one was 66 years of age, and that Mr. Thorn refers to one who was at work at 67. Measured, therefore, by the test of age, the occupation of the scavenger would not appear to be very unhealthy. The average age attained by all above 20 in the three classes of occupation does not materially differ; the scavengers, however, are about a year younger than the two other classes, This circumstance is easily explained by the fact, that many of the men working in the scavengers’ yards begin at a very early age as sifters, while the brick- layers’ labourer is not fit for any branch of his employment till a'later period; and this remark applies, to a more limited extent, to the brick- maker. That this is the true explanation, is rendered highly probable, by the average age of all who are employed in the three trades above 30 years of age. The mean age of the bricklayers’ labourer, reckoning from this point, is found to be 41-75-, of the brickmaker 43’42, and of the scavenger 44-66. In confirmation of these results, it may be men- tioned, that the average age of the 45 sewermen examined by Mr. Houseman, was 39 years and 2 months, and that of the men reported upon by Mr. I’Anson, 45 years. It may afford a standard of com- parison, to give the average age of pressmen and compositors, as ascer- tained by myself. Of 45 pressmen it was 34 years, and of 197 compositors 28 years. The per centage proportion of men among the scavengers found in the enjoyment of robust health, is the same as among the bricklayers’ labourers, but greater than among the brickmakers, the numbers being respectively, 81, 81, and 68. But on the whole, I have no hesitation in stating, that the scavengers are the healthiest looking body of men. The per centage proportion reporting themselves as subject to sickness of one kind or another in the three employments, are:—Scavengers 19, bricklayers’ labourers 25, and brickmakers 36. So that in this respect the scavengers have a marked advantage. The per centage proportions stating that they had suffered some severe attacks of illness, other than fever, were as follows:—Scavengers lOg, bricklayers’ labourers 11, and brickmakers 46. The per centage proportion attacked by fever, it may be well to repeat, were:—8, 35%, and 21|, for scavengers, bricklayers’ labourers, and brickmakers respectively. Among nightmen it was 3 per cent. Of the 45 men working in the sewers, two, according to Mr. House- man, had suffered attacks of fever, one of which was traced to the occupation. This would give about 4 per cent. The per centage proportion of scavengers who had never been kept away from their work by illness for a single day, was 53, of brick- layers’ labourers 36, and of brickmakers 18; being a result highly favourable to the scavengers. The per centage proportions never kept away from work a week by illness, were for the three classes as follows:—Scavengers, 18 per cent., bricklayers’ labourers 7 per cent., brickmakers 14 per cent.; a result also favourable to the first-named class.