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of the spread of disease. In Sampson-lane there is a wholerow of what by courtesy are called slaughter-houses, thoughthey are utterly devoid of any sort of suitable arrangement.Cobble pavement prevails, the animals are slaughtered inmere shanties, blood and offal reaches the street, and nomeasure whatsoever is taken to prevent the contamination ofthe subsoil. There is a whole row of these slaughter-shanties, and immediately opposite, overlooking them andonly separated from all the offal by the narrow street,there is a row of inhabited dwelling-houses. There is also aoourt facing the slaughter-houses which is full of manure

piled under a splendid metal plate put up by the

corporation announcing that anyone who deposits refuseon this spot will be prosecuted. At the other endof this lane, which abounds in slaughter-shanties,there are a market and many butchers’ shops. At last Ireached Sackville-street and I would certainly advise thetourist who is brought to this magnificent thoroughfare andtold that Dublin is a fine town to turn aside and wander

through the small streets between Sackville-street, the FourCourts, and the barracks at the foot of Constitution-hill. Forsordid misery, dilapidation, and dirt it would be difficult tofind anything more depressing and degrading.

(To be continued.)

LIVERPOOL.

(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)

Gift of a Botanical Laboratory to University College,Liverpool.

MR. W. P. HARTLEY of Aintree has offered the sum of£ 12,000 to the governors of University College towards the- erection of a new botanical laboratory and museum. TheCollege is in great need of a suitable building for botanicalpurposes, as under present arrangements it is impossible toexhibit adequately the materials collected in the limitedspace at the disposal of the professor of botany. Thebotanical laboratories and museum are at present housed inthe old building in Ashton-street, and consist of a laboratorycapable of accommodating 30 junior students, a smalleradvanced laboratory, a professor’s room, and two rooms whichserve as a museum. The museum contains a teaching seriesof cryptogams and phanerogams and a large herbarium ofBritish and foreign plants. Mr. Hartley’s munificentdonation will enable the governors of University College toprovide accommodation for the numerous requirements ofthe botanical department and will also promote the

completion of the buildings necessary to form a quadrangleof noble proportions. The chair of botany, which is so

worthily occupied by Professor Harvey Gibson, was foundedin 1888, principally by the munificence of Dr. HolbrookGaskell, who contributed the sum of £5000, to which headded a further sum of £1000 in 1894.

The Liverpool Hospitals and the Invalids from the Seat. of War.

The committee of the Royal Infirmary at their last

meeting, in answer to the appeal of the War Office whichhas been made to them in common with the managers ofother hospitals, resolved, in addition to the 12 beds

previously offered, to make arrangements for the receptionof 18 more invalided soldiers belonging to the Liverpooldistrict free of all cost to the Government. To enable thisto be done without prejudice to those for whom the charitywas intended it was determined to convert the largeentertainment room into a ward. This course will entaillittle trouble and expense beyond the increased costof staff and maintenance due to the larger numberto be provided for. The Royal Southern Hospitaland the Northern Hospital will also provide some beds for asimilar purpose ; the latter have offered to provide eight bedsat a charge of 2s. a day. The Stanley Hospital authoritieshave decided not to take any steps in the matter until theyare in receipt of further information on the subject.

The TV arrington Infectious Diseases Hospital.The Warrington Town Council have passed a resolution

decreeing that alterations involving an expenditure of£10,000 should be made in the Warrington InfectiousDiseases Hospital.

influenza in Liverpool.The medical officer of health reports that the death-rate of

the city is exceptionally high, owing apparently to the pre-sence of influenza, although influenza did not appear in thestatistics as the actual cause of death, except in a limitednumber of cases. Dr. Hope points out the valuable workwhich has been done by the female inspectors in improvingthe health of poor localities. In the matter of the manage-ment of infants very useful hints are given by them toignorant parents.

The Proposed County Asylum for Inebriates.A conference between representatives of the Lancashire

County Council and the county boroughs will be held at theCounty Hall, Preston, on Jan. 29th to settle the terms ofthe Bill which is to be promoted next session for providing acounty asylum for inebriates.

The Microbe of ’ ° Pink-eye " in Horses.Dr. H. E. Annett, of the Liverpool School of Tropical

Diseases, has been conducting investigations into the preva-lence of " pink-eye " in Liverpool horses and has found, hebelieves, in every case the same bacillus. The disease hadbeen making such serious ravages among horses in Liver-pool that the Cart-owners’ Association sought the assistanceof Professor McFadyean, who has arrived here fromLondon to investigate the disease on the spot. Should thediscovery of the microbe prove to be an accomplished factthe Liverpool School of Tropical Diseases is to be con-

gratulated in that it will have been the means of minimisingthe widespread ravages of this formidable disease amonghorses throughout the country. Dr. Annett’s experimentsare to be continued.

Jan. 16th. ________________

MANCHESTER.

(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)

The -Housing of the Working Classes.AT the meeting of the Manchester City Council on Jan.

3rd a report from the Sanitary Committee was adoptedwhich recommended the purchase of 237 acres of land atHigher Blackley to be used for purposes under the Housingof’the Working Classes Act and the Allotments Acts. In

moving its adoption Alderman Walton Smith, the chairmanof the committee, spoke of the work done during the past14 years in the way of demolishing back-to-back houses andinsanitary buildings generally and of the difficulties expe-rienced in finding suitable accommodation for the peoplewho had been - displaced. Objection was taken to thepurchase, as the distance was four miles from thecity, but this was met by the statement that bythe time the houses were built and the land laidout there would be railway and tramway facilities, so

that working men would be able to get to and from theirwork without difficulty. There is some difference of opinionas to whether a workman should live near his work or at adistance, and it is satisfactory to know that one member ofthe council, well known for his acquaintance with the habitsof the working classes, said that those who lived awayattended their work better than those living near to it inthe centre of the town. This recalls the mistake madewhen the assize courts were built in Strangeways. Itwas thought that the judges, tired with the day’s workin court, would be glad to pass along a corridorinto the beautiful house adjoining which had been builtfor their entertainment. But no; they wanted to get awayfor a few hours from the scene of their labours and tobreathe a fresher air, so that now they make no use of theirlodgings in Strangeways. The better sort of working menwill be only too glad of a change from the stuffy town,while the boon to their wives and children will be priceless.And in these days we cannot afford to neglect anything thatwill help to bring up the coming race in health and vigour.

Street Explosion in Manchester.We are reminded from time to time that all of our nineteenth-

century conveniences bring with them their special dangers.Not long ago a high-pressure main gave way in Strangeways,causing a large upheaval of the ground, and some time after-wards a sewer gave way in Oxford-street threatening, as oneof the local papers puts it, "a number of innocent passers-bywith the fate of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram." Occasionalupheavals on a comparatively small scale have occurred inconnexion with the electric supply and on Jan. 5th a terrific

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report startled the people near the Royal Exchange, the flagsin front of the building being lifted for a distance of20 yards, while, as an eye-witness says, " in a few secondsa sheet of flame at least 20 or 30 feet high sprang from thepavement." It is extraordinary, and as some say "littleshort of miraculous," that no one was hurt, for these flagsare crowded on Friday afternoons. There were, however,some narrow escapes, one gentleman having bis hat blownacross the road though he felt no shock. There are alwayssatisfactory explanations of the why and the wherefore, butthey come a little late. Mr. Wordingham, the city electricalengineer, is said to have explained that " the accident wasdue to the fact that the old-fashioned rubber cables are liableunder certain conditions to portions of the rubber distillingfrom excessive heat." Another account states that it wascaused by defective insulation, "the current finding its way outthrough a weak spot and instantly converting a considerablelength of the indiarubber covering into inflammable vapourswhich took fire." It shows how progressive and yet howimperfect our practical knowledge is that these cables, laida comparatively short time since, with the sanction, pre-sumably, of the late Dr. John Hopkinson, who representedthe foremost science of the day, should so soon have become" old-fashioned" and discarded and that for some time theirremoval has been going on. The explosion took place in acomparatively small section that was awaiting removal.Mr. Wordingham is said to have stated that " the new kindof cable was of a material that would render a repetition ofthese explosions absolutely impossible when the relay-ing in the city was complete." This is satisfactory sofar as it goes, but such predictions are not always ful-filled. As the Manchester Courier says, "Nothing wouldexcite more general surprise than the absence of excavationsfor two days together in any of our main streets " for some-thing connected with the gas pipes, water pipes, sewers, orelectric cables.

A Fatal Christmas Feaat.As everyone knows, our national festivals are made the

occasions by some of the baser sort for disgusting orgies,though it is comparatively rare for the results of their abuseto be the subject of a coroner’s inquest. Bnt on Jan. 2ndMr. Smelt, the city coroner, held an inquiry concerning thedeath of a woman from Salford who, with her husband, wasspending New Year’s Eve with an aunt in Hnlme. She hadcomplained of not feeling very well, but after taking sometea and whisky seemed better, and during the evening tooksome tinned salmon, tinned lobster, bread-and-butter, sweetcake, two glasses of claret, and a bottle of stout. She alsosang a song, but had to go to bed, and " soon after mid-night, whilst the company were still welcoming the new

year with liquor and music, she died." Besides this womanthere were ten people in the house all drunk. Mr. Heslopmade a post-mortem examination of the body and after hisevidence the jury returned a verdict of "Death from

syncope arising from heart disease and excessive eating anddrinking," while Mr. Smelt characterised the case as

one of the most disgraceful that had ever come beforehim. We hear a great deal that is true about thegood qualities and the intelligence of our working classes,but not perhaps quite as much as it is well for us to know ofthe large leaven that exists of those whose civilisation islittle above that of the lowest savages. The problem oftheir rescue from a condition that does not speak well forthe practical results of our educational methods is not oneto be entered on here, but it is saddening and disquieting tothink that in close proximity to, yet untouched by, theknowledge, the culture, and refinement of the day there arenumbers of our people whose moral and intellectual plane isscarcely above that of the " brutes that perish."

Washhouses in Congested Districts.At the last meeting of the Manchester City Council one of

the members asked what had been done with regard to hissuggestion made some months ago to the Baths and Wash-houses Committee that small washhouses should be providedin the congested districts of the city. The chairman repliedthat a special sub-committee had been appointed to considerthe question and would be called together early in the year.This question is not new. It was brought before the com-mittee years ago. The boon to the poor women living inback streets in crowded houses with scant accommodation forwashing themselves and their children would be most valu-able. They have not the courage to go to the palatial publicbaths with their grimy little offspring but would gladly

take them to a cottage differing little from those in whichthey dwell. This matter has often been pressed on thecommittee, as the chairman well knows. But some of thecouncil are ambitious and wish the baths to be noble

buildings " worthy of a great city," as if anything wouldfor long be decorative where smoke is allowed so much of itsown sweet way.Jan. 9th.

SCOTLAND.(FROM OUR OWN OORRESPONDENTS.)

Hospital Accommodation for Wounded ASoldiers in Scotland.THE Board of Directors of the Crichton Royal Institu.

tion, Dumfries, have offered to take in 10 wounded soldiersfrom South Africa, preferably men suffering from nervousdisorders. The managers of Campbeltown and districtCottage Hospital have offered to the War Office the free use offive beds in the hospital for the accommodation of woundedor invalid soldiers. The Red Cross Society in Glasgow hassuggested to the Health Committee of the Glasgow TownCouncil that a portion of the new hospital at Ruchill in theMaryhill district of Glasgow should be offered to the Govern-ment for the accommodation of soldiers from the front. Thecommittee forthwith agreed to offer the Government theuse of the eastern part of the hospital consisting of eightpavilions where 500 soldiers could be accommodated. It isunderstood that the Red Cross Society undertake to providethe medical men and nurses. It is expected that thehospital will be ready for use by the end of February or thebeginning of March. Two beds have been offered in theCastle Douglas Diamond Jubilee Hospital for the accom-modation of wounded soldiers, preference being given tothose of the territorial regiment, the King’s Own ScottishBorderers.

Typhoid -Fever in Ayr.Six fresh cases of typhoid fever have been notified within

the last few days in Ayr, bringing the total number up to176 on Jan. 16th.

Urban Mortality in Scotland in 1899.An examination of the monthly returns as to the eight

principal towns of Scotland, published by the Registrar-General and the issue of which for last year has just beencompleted, shows that the total general mortality in the eighttowns together was 32,430, which on an estimated aggregatepopulation of 1,587,414 gives a death-rate for 1899 of20 43 per 1000 living inhabitants. Of the total 32,430deaths, 15,828 occurred in Glasgow (the largest of the

eight towns), 5859 in Edinburgh, 3189 in Dundee, 2719in Aberdeen, 1410 in Leith, 1509 in Paisley, 1321in Greenock, and 595 in Perth. This brings out therespective death-rates in the towns individually as follows:-Glasgow, 20-16 per 1000 ; Edinburgh, 19-60; Dundee, 19’20;Aberdeen, 19 06 ; Leith, 18-22; Paisley, 19°49 ; Greenock,21-70 ; and Perth, 19 37. Of the whole 32,430 deaths 12,111,or 37-34 per cent., were of children under five years ofage. In Perth 24’37 per cent. of the persons who diedwere under five years of age, in Edinburgh 32-19, in

Paisley 35’39, in Aberdeen 36-81, in Dundee 37-91, in

Glasgow 39-15, in Greenock 41-33, and in Leith 42-13.Miasmatic diseases caused 3062 deaths in the eight townscollectively, or 9-4 per cent. of the whole number. In

January, measles and whooping-cough were prevalent inAberdeen, Edinburgh, and Leith. In February, whooping-cough prevailed in the same three towns, measles inAberdeen, and influenza in Edinburgh. In March, influenzawas marked in Edinburgh and Aberdeen, whooping-cough inEdinburgh and Leith, and measles in Aberdeen. In Aprilmeasles still prevailed in Aberdeen and whooping-cough inLeith. In May and June whooping-cough continuedto prevail in Leith and measles was marked in July.Measles also prevailed in Glasgow in June, July, and August.In September fever prevailed in Paisley. There was

an abnormal mortality from measles in October in Glasgow,Leith, and Greenock. The same was the case in Greenockand Perth in November, in which month also whooping-cough prevailed in Perth. In December the average rateof mortality from miasmatic diseases was exceeded inPaisley owing to the prevalence of measles and whooping-cough, in Greenock because of measles, and in Perth becauseof measles, scarlet fever, and whooping-cough. The deaths