SLUMS IN AUCKLAND.

Otago Witness, Issue 2861, 13 January 1909, Page 41

SLUMS IN AUCKLAND.

CASES OF OVERCROWDING. (F*om Ova Own Corjuspondsnt.) AUCKLAND, January 9. In the course of an interview with a Star representative this morning, Inspector Grieve, of the Public Health Department, imparted some interesting information on i being asked if slums actually existed to ! any extent in Auckland. Mr Grieve aaid I that the position, though not so bad as it was a year or two ago, was still far ! from satisfactory. Most of the- worst | tenements had "either been removed or improved, and more sanitary conditions 1 enforced where the overcrowding or state of the buildings necessitated intervention ■ on the part of the public health officials. It was difficult at times to get at the true circumstances where gross overcrowding was suspected, but they were occasionally , abl« to sheet home the facts. Mr Grieve produced a copy of a report which had just been forwarded to the chief officer's ' department, quoting two cases, as follows: i " Ponsonby road — house of three bediooms ! and one living room, rented by a widow 'at 16s per week, s There also resided I in the house a married son and his v. ife, their four children, and an unj married daughter, or a total of 12 | persons, one of whom is reported to be ! | down with typhoid. Victoria street — ! House of four 'bediooms and living room, rented at 15s per week occupied by a husband, wife, and two grown-up sons, a grown-up daughter, her child, and seven lodgers ; a total of 13 persons. The mother and father and grownup daughter and her child all slept in one room, the lodgers and sons sharing the 1 other rooms, even to sleeping in the living 1 room." The gieatest difficulty seems to , arise, in Mr Grieves opinion, from *he inability of the working man to iind a, 1 house of three- or four rooms at a rental not exceeding 8s or 10s per week. ! Instances of overcrowding are plentiful. In Baker street, in a house of four rooms, two families, totalling 13 persons, were found to be living. There were two rooms on the ground floor, and a flight of steps j led to a couple of attics. The inmates slept all over the floor, and the conditions were such that the owner had to be compelled to foice the removal of one family. Another bad cate — the worst, in fact, that Inspector Grieve has found in Auck- , land — was that in which a family of 12 | lived in three rooms attached to a shop lin the city. There were 10 children, ] several of whom were grown-up, ! besides the parents, and the space was so ; 1 crowded that the living room was also , used as a bedroom, and a cot was placed ] on the landing at the stairhead). The 1 father was not a man in poor circum- . stances, and was carrying on an important j business. In that case the health officers I gave the man 24 hours to quit, and hequitted. It was very often difficult to get jat facta, until illne.ss actually broke out amongst the inmates and the cases were reported to the Heitlth Department. I ■