CITY CLEANLINESS AND SANITATION.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIX, Issue 230, 25 September 1908, Page 6

CITY CLEANLINESS AND SANITATION.

STREET SCAVENGING MACHINE RECOMMENDED. PROTECTION OF MEAT AND MILK. At the meeting of the City Council last night a letter was read from Dr. Purdy. the District Health Officer, stating that during a recent visit to Wellington he had occasion to remark on the satisfactory condition of the main streets as to cleanliness. He enclosed a. memo, from the Chief Health Officer (Dr. Ma-1 son), who had obtained particulars of a I special machinp for street cleaning. "I ! am sure," continued the Health Officer in his communication, "that the dele-1 gates on the Drainage Bill and the City I Engineer, who had occasion to notice, the work of this machine, will agree < with mc that it is far preferable and j more effective in operation than the | method of employing small boys to sweep up the horse manure in Queen- ! street. Although there has been much < improvement of late in the scavenging; of Queen-street, more especially during; Fleet Week, when it was washed down nightly, I would ask your Works Com- j mittee to consider the advisability of| procuring a 'Pick-up Hand Street | Sweeper.' Owing to the dangers, more ; especially from flies and dust, 1 would j suggest that a by-law be brought in mak- i ing it compulsory for all food, such as.' milk and meat, to be sold in shops i which have closed windows, to prevent dust and flies gaining access to the meat, j The butchers themselves have evidently j not yet realised in Auckland the full extent for which flies are responsible for i contaminating meat. In many countries now, meat is rigorously protected from flies. 1 am firmly of opinion that the: last epidemic of typhoid was mainly spread by their agency. I am informed! that in Wellington, since the leading l butchers put up modern shops with .' closed fronts, the meat has kept much ''■ better, and that in a city where there is so much wind as in Wellington, people ; arc no longpr served with meat coated i with dust." The letter was referred to the Works Committee.