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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