THE RECENT ACTIONS AGAINST THE SANITARY BOARD.
THE, HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
MEDICAL OFFICER OF HEALTH'S REPORT. The following report by the Medical Officer of Health having reference to the recent actions at law against the Sanitary Board has been submitted
Sanitary Board Offices, Hongkong, 4th September, 1896. Sir, I have the honour to report for the in- formation of the Board that the finding of His
7
Bervants. was reduced
far more in
Th
October
THE CLEANSING AND DISINFEC TION OF PREMISES
NEW BY L.
The Sanitary Board h
been considering a
will be number of new by-laws made under section 13 of Ordinance 15 of 1894,
Honour Mr. T. Sercombe Smith, in an action precautions as the said Board may from time up at the next meeting of the Board. One of
brought against the Board in July last to re- cover damages for the removal of portions of certain cocklofts, was as follows
“I am of opinion that the removal of any portion of the joists or any portion of the cocklofts taken down was certainly not within the powers of the Board, and that constitutes a misfeasance which converts the legal entry, the original lawful entry of the officers of the Sanitary Board, into trespass ab initio," and commenting upon this decision the Hon. the Acting At torney-General writes that; "The Acting Puisse Judge decided
that the removal of boards from off the premises, whether clean or dirty, was an illegul act and rendered the Sanitary Board trespassers ab initio."
It is upon this decision that the Crown Soli- citor admitted trespass in the more recent ac- tions for damages taken by the occupiers of Nos. 88 and 90, Bonham Strand, against the
Board.
when an epidemic is raging in the colony, and the action to be taken to disinfect and cleanse premises under such circumstances, with by doubt in laws 23 and 24, which I, in common with other members of the Board, have always considered as relating to the action to be taken in dealing with articles which have been in contact with sporadic cases of an infectious disease; by-law 24 states that, when "in the opinion" duly certi. fied in writing of a duly authorized officer of the Sanitary Board, any article cannot be effec- tively disinfected or ought for any sanitary reason to be destroyed, it shall be destroyed in such manner and in such place and with such to time direct," and because Mr. Sercombe Smith reads these by-laws together, and the officers of the Board duly authorized to carry out the house to house inspection and cleansing did not certify in writing that in their opinion these filthy cocklofts "ought for sanitary rea- sons to be destroyed," the Board and its officers, after working night and day to check the ravages of one of the most terrible and fatal of diseases known to modern science, and when their efforts have at last, but at the cost of several valuable lives, been crowned with suc- ce, are cast in damages for this technical breach of a by-law which, owing apparently to its clumsy wording, has failed to give to the Board those powers which under the Ordinance it is legally entitled to wield.
the by-laws having reference to the cleansing and disinfection of premises is as follows
"The officers of the Sanitary Board daly authorized in writing may in any affected by any of the aforesa within such limits as may fro said Board;
be defined by the
to house visitation for the purpos ing the sanitary condition of o
so visited and of all and eve
and of ascertaining whether
It will be within the recollection of the members of the Board that at a meeting held on February 27th of this year, the western portion of the city was declared to be affected by plague, under by-law 22 made under section 13 of Ordinance 15 of 1894, and the resolution of the Board authorized “the Medi- drafted specially to deal with similar epidemics tures or fittings; or any portion thereof,
as died
the for
son in or upon the said premi or affected by any of the said or the body of any person who therefrom. If the premises so visited part thereof shall be found in a dirty or itary condition in the opinion of the officer ma I would also direct the attention of the Boarding aneh visitation, he may forthwith to have the same thoroughly cleansed to the fact that practically the same men were
fected by the officers of the said Bo employed this year to stamp out the epidemic as were employed in 1894 by the Permanent Com-coolies acting under the instruction of the mittee, and not unnaturally the measures which officers; and whenever, in the opinion they adopted to effect the cleansing and disin-officer making such visitation, it is necessa fection of premises were not dissimilar to those the thorough cleansing and disinfection of adopted in 1894, when no such powers existed premises to take down, remove from the pre- for the purpose, and it was only natural to sup- mises, and destroy any mezzanine floors, cock pose therefore that an Ordinance and by-laws lofts, partitions, screens, or other similar struc would contain all the powers which were felt to in the opinion of the officer making such be so necessary in 1894, and the assumption of tion any such mezzanine floors, cocklofts, which by the Permanent Committee could only tions, screens, or other similar structures or fit. be legalized by the insertion in the said Ordin- tings prevent the free access of light and air to ance of section 16.—I have the honour to be, sir, the said premises, he shall forthwith have the same taken down, and if he considers the removal your most obedient servant,
from the premises and the destruction there necessary in the interests of the public health, he shall forthwith cause the same to be removed from tion the premises and destroyed. Huch desti shall be carried out with such pre in such manner and in such places as the said Any Board may from time to time, direct dead body found on such premises shall be forthwith removed for burial, and any person attacked or affected by any such disease shall be taken to the Hygeia or to such other public hospital, whether temporary manent, as may be from time to time pointed by the said Board for this purpose unless the Medical Officer of Health or other medical practitioner, duly authorised by the Board certifies that such person is lodged and cared for without danger to the public health."
FRANCIS W. CLARK, Medical Officer of Health.
cal Officer of Health and his staff to make a house to house visitation within that portion of the City bounded on the North by the Praya, în the South by Caine and Bonham Roads, on the East by Wyndham Street, and on the West by the Western boundaries of Marine Lot No. 184 and Inland Lot No. 833 for the purposes stated in the by-law referred to," and at about the same date a number of European and Chinese constables were temporarily transferred The Secretary. Sanitary Board. to the Board for the purposes of this house to house inspection and cleansing, while applica- tion was also made to the Military Authorities for the loan of a few soldiers to perform similar duties under the supervision of the constables and Inspectors of Nuisances.
On 2nd April a further resolution was passed by the Board declaring the Eastern division of the city to be similarly affected by plague, and additional men were obtained from the Police Department and from the Military Authorities for work in that portion of the city.
On April 9th the Board appointed under the provisions of Ordinance 11 of 1895 a Select Committee, consisting of the President, the Captain Superintendent of Police, and the Medical Officer of Health, to supervise and arrange all matters connected, with the cleans ing and limewashing of houses, and also the house to house visitation within the areas infected by "bubonic plague," and the work was carried on throughout under the personal supervision of this Select Committee.
The services of the soldiers were dispensed with by a resolution of the Board under date of June 4th and of-the European and Chinese constables on July 18th.
The Secretary attached the following note:— The exceptional measures taken this year to combat bubonic plague were no doubt in a very great measure based upon the knowledge and experience gained in 1894, but, so far as I have been able to ascertain, the work was carried out in a very much less drastic mauner. Had the same whitewashing remedy been adopted this year as was taken in 1894 these actions could
not have been taken.
THE GRANITE PUNCHING NUISANCE.
per
hen
As shown by the rapidity of many of the deaths and the high percentage of mortality, the disease was quite as malignant this year as it was in 1894. It is certainly a matter for regret that the line of action to be taken by the Board's servants should have been carried out in such a manner that the Supreme Court of the colony has decided to be illegal. At the same time, it should be steadily borne in mind
THE CONTRACTOR CONVICTED that the actions taken were considered necessary in the interests of the public health of the At the Police Court on the 29th Sept. A Hok, ■ Colony and were thought to be perfectly legal contractor in the employ of the Public Wor by those in charge of the work. At the date on
Department, was again summoned for dress which these Bonham Strand houses were. or causing to be dressed granite cleaned the number of cases reported daily of Victoria on the 26th and 28th Sep
such dressing could have been exe averaged 12, and in the face of what occurred in 1894, no sensible man would at that time quarry without rendering the granite have hesitated to proceed with the work of injury during transport to the place was required for use. The summons cleansing dirty dwellings so that he might have time to think out nice points of law. This is of out at the instance of Mr. A, course emphasized when it is remembered that Wyndham Street, Mr. Denn
the defendant and the where premises were reasonably clean the re
his own case y moval of woodwork even where it stood in an
Mr. Morris, in addressing the illegal form would not have been necessary. To my mind, therefore, the real fault lay in the absaid that as the defence had initio dirty habits of the occupants of these he trusted the dwellings and the dirty condition of the pre-facility to
bring forwa mises in which they existed."
for the
That portion of by-law 22 under which the work of cleansing and disinfection was carried out reads as follows:-"If the premises so visited or any part thereof shall be found in a dirty or insanitary condition in the opinion of the officer making such visitation, he may forth. with take steps to have the same thoroughly cleansed and disinfected by the staff of the said Board, or by contractors or others specially-appointed for that purpose," and I gave it as my opinion, both during the cleansing operations and when called as a wit- ness in the actions taken against the Board, Unless the factor “Cure by faith" is that the taking down and the removal of dirty admitted, it is absurd to suppose that the and rotten cocklofts was essential to the thorough medicinal value of the ginseng, which the Court | Mr cleansing and disinfection of the premises. has found to be damaged, was affected in
nany His Honour Mr. T Sercombe Smith, how-way by the rough handling it is asserted to dence being over, read by-law 22, which relates to periods have sustained at the hands of the Board's
The Magistr
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