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provided by this authority. The Act, being a voluntary one,
largely militates against its utility, and for the well-being of
the public it is unfortunate that its powers have not been
made more drastic. So long as a person is only a nuisance to
himself it does not so much matter, but when he becomes a
source of annoyance to others it is surely time to ask whether,
in defiance of the Englishman's idea of liberty, some compulsion
should not be applied.
A good deal of trouble has been found to arise from the
urinals attached to public-houses and the Committee made an
attempt to force the provision of extra accommodation or to
raise the standard of that already existing. The matter is in
the hands, unless it can be dealt with under the ordinary
nuisance section, of the Licensing Justices, who do not
always see eye to eye with the local authorities. The requisitions
were, however, attended to by many of the publicans,
with a result that the urinals in question are certainly in a
more satisfactory condition than they were, but the standard is
still very low. In justice, however, to the publicans, the
defects often lie as much with the users as with the providers.
Complaint was made from the headmaster of a County
Council school with regard to the sandpit in Leyton Square
and the opportunities it provided for the spread of infectious
disease. Amusements which cause an assembling together of
children will also afford greater opportunities for the spread of
diseases, but there is no special danger in a sandpit. All
that will lead people to be amused in the open air is
for good in spite of the possibility, which has not been proved,
of the pits being a medium for the propagation of skin
diseases. Under these circumstances I advised that the
Council would not do well in closing their sandpits. On the
contrary, there is every reason that the number should be
increased.
An application was received from the Guild of Hairdressers
in respect of a certificate to be incorporated with
various regulations which they propose to draw up for
the conduct of the business on more sanitary lines than
heretofore. They asked the Council that the Medical Officer
of Health should make an inspection and that, on its result,
issue certificates as to the sanitary state. The Council did not
agree to take any action ; had they done so the conditions I
should have imposed would have been those common to