154 



KNOWLEDGE ♦ 



[Feb. 20, 1885. 



gas blow-fiipe, clean the surfaces aa before, and place the 

 unhardetied end in the flame, keeping it there until the 

 deep-straw colour appears at the cutting end, when the 

 drill should be dipped in water. After tempering, the cut- 

 ting edges should be prepared for use by sharpening on an 

 oilstone. 



CHAPTERS OX MODERN DOMESTIC 

 ECONOMY. 



XVI.— TUE FKAMEWOEK OF THE DWELLING-HOUSE. 



STRUCTUR.\L EXAMPLES. 



IN a paper read to the Society of Arts, on Wednesday, 

 the 13th iukt, Captain Douglas Galton, C.B., F.R.S., 

 commented mo.st ably upon the most recent report of the 

 "Rojal Commission on Metropolitan Sewage," and gave 

 ample evidence to show that that inquiry has at last landed 

 us on the threshold of future activity, by a full recognition 

 •of all the evils that have to be dealt with, and the prin- 

 ciples of action to be observed. In the substance of the 

 paper itself, which has since been published,* and during 

 the disou.*ion which followed, many plans for the disposal 

 of the sewage were brought forward ; and it seems clear 

 that the Royal Commissioners deem it advisable to get rid 

 of the metropolitan sewage by allowing it to discharge iuto 

 the sea at some place where it cannot materially affect the 

 sanitary condition of the river, or interfere with the special 

 duties of the Conservators of the Thame.-'. All this seems 

 to be quite capable of being carried out for the metropolitan 

 sewage alone, as a sort of ready expedient at this time of 

 dire necessity, when something mu^t be done to obviate 

 immediate danger. The hydraulic system is, as v.'e have 

 shown before, defectiv-e at its very foundations, and it will 

 have to be thoroughly eradicated before the utilisation of 

 the city refuse can be at all adequately, not to say perfectly, 

 dealt with. But, in the meanwhile, the urgent necessity 

 of the case demands that something shall be done, and the 

 details of that something have at least been plainly in- 

 dicated in the report of the Royal Commissioners. 



One of the most important observations made by Cajitain 

 Oaltou, however, is worthy of quotation here. He says : — 



But with respect to the sewage of districts outside the metro- 

 polis, the subject is largely one where future action is less 

 fettered by former proceedings. No doubt, even if it were ad- 

 mitted as an axiom that sewage of outlying populations sliould 

 not be allowed to flow through dcnsely-inhaljited districts, yet it 

 is possible that sewers might be arranged to carry the sownge from 

 the places in question to the sea. But is this necessary? oris it 

 desirable ? If sewage from places in the Thames valley above 

 the metropolis, or from the valley of the Lea, is rccpiired to be 

 taken to the sea, where are we to stop ? The difficulties of the 

 sewage question arise from concentration ; and it is, therefore, a 

 much more rational solution to give up the idea of concentration, 

 and to require each district to make arrangements for the disposal 

 of its own sewage. 



If a population concentrates itself on a limited area, it must 

 make arrangements for the wants entailed upon it by that concen- 

 tration. For instance, it must provide streets to give access to the 

 houses ; it must provide open spaces in which to marshal the 

 railway trains which bring in the food or other articles which 

 minister to the daily wants of the population. It must provide 

 gathering grounds for its water-supply, parks for recreation, and 

 open spaces in which to bury its dead. Similarly, it is equally 

 necessary tliat every nucleus of population should provide open 

 spaces on which to purify its sewage, without being offensive to 

 neighbouring houses. 



The logic of this last analogy is somewhat of the nature 

 of a conclusion, non sequilur ; but all the other it'ms are 

 full of sound sense, and entirely corroborate the state- 

 ments we made some time since. Whilst we hold with 



* " Journal of the Society of Arts," Feb. 1-3, 1SS5, pp. 290-303. 



Captain Galton, that each suburb should deal with its own 

 excrementitious watte, we cannot for a moment endorse 

 his opiuion that that refuse need take the form of sewage, 

 as such. We think, after what we have before stated, 

 most of our readers will be convinced that if sewage is 

 made in the suburbs, it must eventually find its way into 

 the river as a potent cause of pollution. All the evidence 

 upon this matter tends to show that in rapidly-gi'owing 

 districts adequate sewerage provision cannot be made ; and, 

 even if such means were capable of accomplishment, it 

 would be out of the question for each local board to pro- 

 vide for its conduction to the sea ou the score of over- 

 whelming expense. The Metropolitan Board is too heavily 

 burdened as it is to approve of any scheme which shall 

 augment their quantity of refuse to be disposed of, and 

 sewdge farms in each district would only prove to be very 

 expensive luxuries of questionable value ; for the sub- 

 stance of independent and disinteresed research goes to 

 show that the conversion of sewage sludge into valuable 

 manure is not remunerative, but the reverse. 



Last week we pointed out what an important bearing 

 all this has upon the social demands of life in this groat 

 city, and that costly sewers are incompatible with the 

 healthy housing of our London poor in the suburbs. We 

 have reason to believe that, if the dry system of sewage 

 utilisatiou, after the plan perfected by Mr. Conyera 

 Morrell, were adopted in Greater London, the immediate 

 results would be : — (1.) A po.ssibility for dealing effectively 

 with the city sewage until such time as further provision 

 can be made for dispensing witii the drains for human 

 excrement. (2.) A wholesome conflition of things in the 

 suburbs and the river. (3.) A marked decrease of demand, 

 and a consequent diminutiin of the water-supply, which 

 would di.<;pense with undue calls upon the underground dis- 

 tribution of waters of the Thames valley, and cause a 

 sensible reduction in the water-rates. (4.) The commercial 

 value of a product which would bring prosperity to the 

 agriculturalist, and repay its cost of utilisation in many 

 other ways, whilst at the same time it would enrich the 

 local boards and enable them to decrease the rates and 

 taxes. (.5.) Scope for the shelter of the London poor ; the 

 working man would be enabled to enjoy all the benefits in 

 a healthy and happy home. These are not mere idle 

 phantasies, but plain matters of fact, which are capable of 

 being proved from every point of view. 



One objection that has been raised to prevent the 

 abolition of sewers is, that provision cannot be made in 

 their absence for the disposal of street I'efu.se. In the 

 metropolis it has been found that such an objection is at 

 least feasible ; but, for the .suburbs, it has been estimated 

 that, with properly-constructed gullies leading to surface 

 drainage pipes, and suitable street carts, there need be 

 no apprehension of evil from such .source.s. 



We propose now to illustrate the principles which we 

 Lave already enunciated, by means of a series of practical 

 examples. In doing so it will be necessary for us to 

 discuss not only structures which are to be regarded from 

 our modern standpoint as advance^, or types of perfection, 

 but defective instances, which, on account of their prevalence 

 in our household appointments, call for special comments of 

 warning to those who desire to learn how best to choose a 

 dwelling-house. 



The details of the framework of the dwelling-house may, 

 for the sake of convenience, be considered under the fol- 

 lowing heads: — (I.) The disposal of refuse, to include a 

 description of dustbins, garbage-receptacles, and apparatus 

 for the treatment aud utilisatiou of solid and liquid 

 excreta by the "dry" process. (II.) The system of house- 

 drains and their accessories. The course of a perfect 



