Abstract
ONE of the most imperative requirements of social life is some means of dealing with those waste products of the human mechanism which are dirt only while they remain out of their proper place, but are capable of becoming a source of serious inconvenience and injury whenever they are allowed to accumulate in the neighbourhood of dwellings, especially in densely populated places. In the case of isolated dwellings, and where the population is scattered, no great difficulty would be experienced in devising simple measures for disposing of this refuse so as to meet all requirements. But wherever the population is concentrated, the difficulty of dealing with house refuse, so as to prevent its becoming a nuisance, and, at the same time, to make it useful, is greatly increased. Partly on this account, and partly because neglected accumulations of house refuse are in the highest degree detrimental to health, the measures adopted in towns for dealing with house refuse have been subjected to the control of the municipal authorities, instead of being left to the option of the individual occupiers of houses; and in modern times it has come to be regarded as one of the first duties of such bodies to provide for the disposal of house refuse so as to preserve the health and life of the populations under their care. This sanitary axiom has indeed been forced into recognition by the ravages of epidemic disease, such as plague, fever, or cholera, and it may now be deemed unquestionable, except where ignorance overcomes intelligence, or where mistaken notions of economy prevail.
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PAUL, B. Town Sewage . Nature 1, 207–209 (1869). https://doi.org/10.1038/001207a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/001207a0