CO129-487 - Others & Individuals - 1924 — Page 178

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matter of cubicles in new houses i.e. houses bush after

the passing of the present law and to put auch houses

on a more or less similar footing to the older houses

in which cubicles were permitted by the law.

It was therefore decided that in 'new hous es

cubicles should be allowed provided the following con-

ditions were observed: (1) the front quarter of the

floor to be left free from cubicles; (2) the partitions

forming the sides of the cubicles to be glazed or made

of rail or other open work in their upper thirds.

The following diagra” shows the arrangepent.

A large number of floors have had their

cubicles altered to comply with this plan.

In making this concession the Board was actuated

by the knowledge that the effectual enforcement of the

law would result in driving those people to whom

cubicles are a necessity from new houses into 'old

houses! thereby increasing the over-crowding of such

'old houses' which are for many reasons less sanitary

than 'new houses'.

While it is admitted that a hard and fast law

to prevent the construction of windowless cubicles in

new houses is desirable, it was found that in practice

it was undesirable to enforce the law owing to the

fact that the "new houses" are not of such design as

makes such concession unnecessary.

A new type of house for the Chinese working

classes is imperatively needel and I am informed that

this matter is receiving the attention of the Government.'

The Medical and Sanitary reports were con-

sidered by the Colonial Advisory, Medical and

Banitary Committee, and the following observations by

the

(

the Committee were communicated to the Governor.

Table of notifiable diseases. The Committee

observed that tuberculosis is not included among these

diseases. In view of its considerable incidence (e.g.

in Tung Wah Hospital there were 656 cases, with a mor-

tality of 50 per cent), they recommended that tuber-

culosis should be made notifiable in order that, if

possible, early infections might be removed from in-

sanitary or overcrowded surroundings, the latter being

subsequently disinfected, and in order that advanced

cases might be isolated so as to prevent their acting

as a continuous source of infection.

Respiratory Diseasea. The high death rate

from tuberculoses indicates in the opinion of the

Committee, the importance of continuing such propa-

ganda as is found most effective in teaching personal

hygiene and the necessity of dealing with overcrowding

as far as possible.

Straits Settlements.

The number of deaths registered in the Straits

Settlements as due to Phthisis and Tuberculos de in

1922 was 2,966, as compared with 3,258 and 3,336 for

the two previous years. Total admissions to hospital

1552, with 722 deaths. The following is an extract

from the Secretary of State's despatch on the Medical

Report.

"The Committee also observed with satisfac-

tion that building bye-laws are now applicable to the

rural areas, as the necessity for town planning schemes

in the growing districts is apparent. No reference is

made under "Infectious Diseases" to the occurrence of

tuberculosis in these areas, but in view of the

example