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SANITAS SANITATUM 
 
 ET OMNIA 
 
 SANITAS. 
 
't^t^'L^iTT^'iy^-u^ 
 
 SANITAS SANITATUM 
 
 ET OMNIA 
 
 SANITAS. 
 
 RICHAED METCALFE, E.S.S. 
 
 Peoprietoe op HydPvOpathic Establishments, Paddingtcn Gkeen, W,, 
 AND New Baenet, Heets. 
 
 " Fure air, pure water, the inspeetion of unhealthy habitations, tie 
 adulteration of food — these and many hindr.ed matters may he legitimately 
 dealt loith by the Legislature. The first consideratioji of a Minister should 
 he the health of the people'^ — Eael of Beaconsfield. 
 
 J^ol. /. 
 
 l)aii:.b'0,ii; : 
 
 PUBLISHED BY THE CO-OPEKATIVE PRINTING COMPANY, 
 PLOUGH COURT, FETTER LANE, E.C. 
 
 1S77. 
 

 
PEEPACE. 
 
 «-X-J 
 
 During the last thirty years, social and sanitary science 
 has made great strides with considerable benefit to the 
 community at large. 
 
 Parliament has passed various enactments for enforcing 
 the better sanitary condition of drains and houses, pro- 
 viding hospitals for epidemics, enlarging asylums and unions, 
 or, as Dr. Guy calls it, " Hotels for cadging casuals." Signal 
 efforts have been made to ]3revent the pollution of rivers 
 and the si^read of contagious diseases. 
 
 An Act for the establishment of baths and washhouses 
 has been in existence thirty years, but not compulsor}-, 
 its adoption and operation resting Avitli local authorities. 
 The want of greater bath and washhouse accommodation, 
 to jpromote personal cleanliness, has bafiied efficient 
 action in Sanitary Keform, inasmuch as a considerable por- 
 tion of the population of large towns are compelled to live 
 in crowded districts, with very meagre house accommodation, 
 quite inadequate to admit of washing and di-ying clothes. 
 
 The author has had considerable experience in the man- 
 agement of parochial affairs, and has often been an eye 
 witness to the discomfort and inconveniences to which the poor 
 are subjected in washing and di-ying their clothing in the apart- 
 ment in which they live and sleep, and he Imows that the evils 
 resulting from the want of bath and washhouse accommoda- ' 
 tion are often far greater than the consequences of sanitary 
 defects whose removal the law peremptorily enjoins. 
 
 These circumstances have induced him to invite public 
 
Yl PREFACE. 
 
 attention to tliis important question, and lie liopes by showing 
 wliat lias been done in providing batlis and wasliliouses 
 fi-om the rates, Government may be induced to make the 
 Bath Act compulsory. 
 
 The task of collating the statistical retui'ns and infor- 
 mation has been very laborious and difficult to obtain fi'om 
 the authorities, consecLuently any imperfections will, he 
 triists, be overlooked. 
 
 '" The work will be comprised in two volumes. The first 
 contains an account of the baths and washhouses, suggesting 
 the addition of hot- ah baths. A large number of letters are 
 appended, from statesmen, medical men, and other authorities 
 in support of the hot-air bath as a sanitary agent for the 
 working classes. 
 
 I have deemed it prudent to introduce chapters on Small- 
 pox and Dipsomania, these derangements occupying much 
 public attention just now, and having given some considera- 
 tion to these iDainful maladies, some observation might not 
 be out of place. 
 
 The second volume will treat on the rise and progress of 
 sanitary reform and the dwellings of the poor, T^ith plans and 
 suggestions for purchasing houses for what is now paid in the 
 shape of rent in ten years, together with some remarks on 
 the use and abuses of our sanitary Acts. 
 
 Every intelligent man has a duty of some kind to 
 discharge, and when it is done to the best of his abilities, 
 his mission is fulfilled, and it is always an inward satisfaction 
 to any person holding certain views upon questions which 
 affect the interest and comfort of his fellow men, when he 
 has faithfully placed them before his fellow creatures. 
 
 This is just the author's ca. e, and he will feel amply 
 compensated for his trouble if the publication of these 
 volumes is attended with any benefit to his fellow country- 
 men. 
 
 Geafenbeeg House, New Baenet, Herts, 
 March, 1877. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 tIjvSJ 
 
 Preliminary Dissertation. — On the Functions of the Skin in 
 
 Eelation to Life, Health, and Disease ... ... ... i.-xx 
 
 CHAPTEE I, 
 
 Else and Progress of the Bath and ■VVashhonsc Movement in 
 
 England ... ... ... •.■ •■• •■• l-2» 
 
 CHAPTEE II. 
 
 Eaths and Washhouses erected on the Eates, under the pro- 
 visions of the Bath Act 9 and 10 Vic., Caj). 74, -with a 
 complete financial return of their original cost and 
 working expenses since the date of opening each estahlish- 
 ment (Metropolitan) ... ... ,,. ... ... 23-47 
 
 CHAPTEE III. 
 
 Provincial Baths and "Washhouses ... ... ... ... 48-100 
 
 CHAPTEE IV. 
 
 Ec -introduction of the Turkish Bath, -with Observations en the 
 
 Vapour Bath ... ... ... ... ... 101-12 
 
 CHAPTEE V. 
 Hot-air ^•«"s?(5 Warm Water Baths... ... ... ... 126- 
 
via CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 PAGES 
 
 Economics of tlie Hot-air Bath, with, a plan of a Turkish Bath 
 
 and Warm Lavatories ... ... ... ... 151-170 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 On the Recipients of Medical Charities and the Value of the Hot- 
 
 au- Bath as a Medicinal Agent for the Poor ... ... 171-200 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 Small-pox 201-234 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Dipsomania ... ... ... ... ... ... 235-272' 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Letters from Statesmen, Noblemen, Medical Men, Literary Men 
 
 of eminence, and others ... ... ... ... 273: 
 
PRELIMINARY DISSERTATION, 
 
 On the Functions of the Skin in Relation to 
 Life, Health, and Disease. 
 
 " A great part of Sanitary Science can be comprised in that one word 
 — cleanliness." Dr. Lyon Playfair. 
 
 IT may appear somewhat superfluous in tlie preseiit 
 state of civilization to seek to impress the public 
 mind with the advantages of bathing. But while 
 admitting the improvements in cleanliness that have 
 taken place during the last twenty-five or thirty 
 years, particularly amongst the middle classes, it will 
 not be denied there is still room for further enlighten- 
 ment, especially when we consider that there exists a 
 large amount of absolutely forced uncleanliness amongst 
 the working classes, not only in the metropolis, but 
 in many of the towns and cities of the United 
 Kingdom. 
 
 Whatever obstacles there may be In the way of 
 improving the condition of the lower orders who form 
 an important part of the community, and (assuredly 
 no permanent good can be effected without acting 
 
ir. 
 
 upon their physical surroundings) we must admit that 
 there exists little real diflEiculty in supplying them with 
 adequate Baths and Washhouses, and even were the 
 difficulties as formidable as they are insignificant they 
 ought not to be allowed to stand in the way of the 
 important end in view, viz., the physical and moral 
 elevation of the people. 
 
 Notwithstanding their social positioUj the great majority 
 of the artizan and labouring classes have their tastes 
 and distastes, their sympathies and antipathies, which 
 are guided by their natural instincts, just as much as 
 those occupying a higher social position; and it is 
 fortunate for them that it is so, or their moral and physical 
 condition would be even lower than it is. Had their 
 education received earlier attention from the Legislature, 
 in all probability their social status would have been 
 improved long ago, and the terrible strife existing be- 
 tween Labour and Capital might have been mitigated 
 if not avoided. We look to the educated and intelligent 
 having time at their disposal, and on whom devolves the 
 discharge of public duties, to disseminate such knowledge 
 amongst their fellows who occupy a less favoured position 
 in society, as will enable them to arrive at a sound judg- 
 ment on any theory or principle, which affects their 
 interest and comfort. 
 
 In the 19ih century it ought to be unnecessary to 
 introduce remarks on the skin, but the want of public 
 knowledge on the importance of keeping it clean in 
 order to maintain the bodily health, has urged me to do 
 so. I am sorry to say there are but few, even of the 
 educated public, who have that practical knowledge of the 
 physiological action of the skin, Avhich is necessary to 
 an appreciation of the value of bathing, for the main- 
 tenance of a healthy condition of the animal economy. 
 
III. 
 
 Tlie skin is a delicate integument, which envelops and 
 protects the wonderful and complex organism of our 
 physical frame, and in an adult it has an extent equiva- 
 lent to about fifteen square feet, or 21(30 square inches. 
 Though to the eye it appears to be a single and some- 
 wliat simple tissue, it really consists of three layers, 
 differing very materially in structure. 
 
 The internal layer is the cittis or skin proper, which is 
 plentifully supplied with blood-vessels, nerves, and absor- 
 bents, and is consequently very sensitive. The external 
 layer is the epidermis or cuticle, or the scarf-skin, as it is 
 commonly called. It is a thin elastic, albuminous mem- 
 brane, and, being destitute of blood-vessels and nerves, 
 is comparatively devoid of sensibility. Between the skin 
 proper and the cuticle is the rete mucosum, an indistinct 
 layer, unless, as in the negro, it becomes the seat of the 
 pigment from which his colour is obtained. 
 
 The surface of the skin is studded over with an amazing 
 number of minute pores, forming the mouths or openings 
 of the canals or ducts of the sudoynparous glands and 
 sebaceous follicles, situated in or below the skin. These 
 little glandular organs are continually secreting and 
 excreting, the one a watery, and the other an oily fluid, 
 which lubricate the surface and impart pliancy and 
 softness to the skin. The openings of the canals may be 
 readily seen, and their number estimated by a simple 
 microscope on the points of the fingers. By means of a 
 powerful lens, Erasmus Wilson was enabled to count the 
 number of pores in a square inch of bodily surface, and 
 hence to estimate, with a close approach to accuracy, the 
 total number of pores in the whole body of an average- 
 sized person. He found these to be not less than seven 
 millions, and as each pore represents a little tube a 
 quarter of an inch long, it follows that the length of 
 
rv. 
 
 excretory tubes in the skin is little short of twenty-eight 
 miles. 
 
 Now the greater portion of the blood flows through the 
 vascular network of the true skin ; and it is important 
 to bear in mind this extreme vascularity, as we generally 
 find organs supplied with blood in proportion to their 
 importance in the animal economy. 
 
 The function of the skin is threefold — absorptive, 
 secretivCj and excretive ; it is also the seat of the sense 
 of touch. The absorptive function of the skin is illus- 
 trated by the rapidity with which water is frequently 
 absorbed when the body, under certain conditions, 
 is entirely or partially immersed. Experimenters have 
 often found that if the body, after long fasting, or 
 exhaustion by severe or protracted labour, is plunged 
 into a warm bath and kept there for half an hour, a 
 marked increase of weight ensues. This function of the 
 skin is, perhaps, more clearly shown by the endermatic 
 method of administering medicines. 
 
 Medical men are well aware that many medicaments, 
 when applied to, and especially when rubbed into, the 
 skin, produce their known effects as rapidly and 
 completely as when introduced into the stomach or 
 directly into the blood. 
 
 As an excreting organ the skin is of great importance. 
 It is estimated that about one-fifth of the whole 
 excrementitious matter of our bodies is exuded through 
 the skin. Its primary office is to separate from the 
 blood the effete hydrogen in the form of its super- 
 abundant watery particles. It has, however, many 
 important secondary offices. The chief cutaneous 
 excretion — the perspiration — is of two kinds ; sensible 
 perspiration, which is a fluid occasionally excreted, 
 as after severe exercise ; and insensible perspiration, 
 
V. 
 
 or transpiration, an invisible vapour which is continually 
 being given off by the skin. The sweat, or sensible 
 perspiration, is essentially an aqueous fluid, but it 
 holds in solution a very great variety of substances. 
 Its taste is saltish, and its reaction acid. Chloride of 
 sodium (common salt) ; salts of ammonia ; the salts of 
 the organic acids ; butyric, formic, acetic, lactic, and 
 carbonic acids ; earthy phosphates; peroxide of iron; 
 pigmentary, fatty, and proteine matter, and nitrogen, 
 are always found in it. 
 
 Various estimates have been made of the quantity 
 of matter exhaled, in the form of perspiration, from 
 the surface of the skin of the adult human body in 
 twenty-four hours. These have ranged from 20 to 40 
 ounces, and, perhaps, 30 might safely be taken as a fair 
 average. Seguen found from experiments the amount 
 to be 15,840 grains, or about 33 ounces. According 
 to the carefully-conducted experiments of Anselmino, 
 the sweat contains, on an average, '088 per cent, of 
 solid matter, 100 grains of which gave 22*9 grains of 
 saline matter : these calculations give foi* the twenty- 
 four hours, 107 '47 grains of organic matter, and 81'92 
 grains of saline matter. 
 
 These are the principal substances thrown off by the 
 skin when in a healthy condition. In various diseased 
 conditions of the organism, however, the skin becomes 
 the medium of discharge from the body of poisonous 
 substances, either producing or resulting from disease. 
 For instance, carbonate of ammonia and uric acid have 
 been discovered in the perspiration in a variety of 
 diseases, especially mental complaints. In such cases 
 the skin usually assumes, in addition to its own proper 
 offices, a compensatory function, in consequence of the 
 dimiiiii^iied activity of, and secretion from, internal 
 
VL 
 
 organs. Excretion is an all-important depurating or 
 purifying process ; if the worn-out tissues of the body- 
 are not duly removed from the blood and discharged 
 from the system, they rapidly accumulate and act as the 
 deadliest poisons ; and the worst consequences to health 
 and life often result. There is no greater and more just 
 cause of alarm to the physician than the cessation or 
 suspension of customary discharges from the various 
 excretory glands and canals. Should the renal secretions 
 be suppressed, uroemic poisoning and death from the 
 accumulation of urea in the blood is the result. Should 
 the biliary function be suspended, bile accumulates in 
 the blood, and insensibility and death as inevitably 
 follow as in the former case. 
 
 Again, should respiration be interfered with, the effete 
 carbon is retained in the system, arterial blood becomes 
 venous, the brain is poisoned, and then the action of the 
 heart stops. But it often happens that a function is 
 temporarily suspended, the functional activity of an 
 organ diminished or arrested, while its duties are under- 
 taken by another organ until it has recovered tone and 
 energy. This increased a<jtivity, this augmentation of 
 duties, on the one hand, is imperatively necessary to 
 neutralize the lessened energy of the suspended function, 
 on the other ; otherwise the balance of the different 
 functions, on whose integrity health depends, would be 
 lost, and permanent disease, speedily terminating in 
 death, would result. 
 
 Now the skin often partially or wholly relieves the 
 lungs, kidneys, intestines, and other internal excreting 
 organs, of their important duties. 
 
 In disease of the kidneys, for instance, the skin some- 
 times eliminates in the form of carbonate of ammonia, 
 the, urea which accumulates in the blood anO- would 
 
VII. 
 
 otlienvlse act as a deadly poison. The functions of the 
 skin and the kidneys stand in so close a relationship, 
 that they often assume the place, to a great extent, of 
 each other, so that when the skin is impaired, the kidneys 
 increase in activity, and vice versa. It is in this way that 
 the balance necessary to life is maintained; but this 
 compensatory action is limited, so that the one oro-an 
 cannot wholly, or permanently, or, indeed, for any leno-th 
 of time, supply the place of the other. The most casual 
 observer will have noticed that, in hot weather, when the 
 skin is active, the quantity of perspiratory matter thrown 
 from the system is increased, and the quantity of urine 
 passed is diminished, while in cold weather this is reversed. 
 It is a too common occurrence, when scarlatina is 
 treated without a j^roper attention to, and the reo-ula- 
 tion of, the functions of the skin, as is the case with " old 
 physic," that a sequel sometimes extremely difficult to 
 deal with supervenes, namely, dropsy. Scarlatina, beino- 
 an eruptive disease of the skin, obstructs the escape of 
 the perspiration, and causes the fluid to accumulate in 
 the system. The kidneys will for a time succeed in 
 relieving the patient. But if the skin is not speedily 
 restored to its normal action, dropsy is inevitable. In 
 case. of disease of the renal functions the skin" relieves the 
 kidneys of their duties, which is witnessed by the fact 
 that the fluid eliminated contains some of the sub- 
 stances common to urine. A marked functional 
 sympathy also exists between the skin and the intes- 
 tines, which is best illustrated by the effects of unhealthy 
 or diseased state of the one upon the other; hence the 
 tendency to diarrhoea from cold feet on the one hand 
 and the connection between cutaneous eruptions and 
 intestinal irregularities on the other. These brief 
 illustrations might be almost indefinitely extended ; 
 
VIII. 
 
 but they are sufficient to show the important relation 
 existing between skin and the internal organs. 
 
 When the removal of effete watery matter from 
 the blood is stopped, the labour of elimination is added 
 to the ordinary duties of the internal organs. Were this 
 vicarious action of but short duration, no permanent 
 mischief would probably accrue. But all the organs 
 of the body are liable to become exhausted by over- 
 exertion, if long continued; and this exhaustion if not 
 remedied, will sow the seeds of, if not terminate in, 
 disease. If the functions of the skin are long suspended, 
 either partially or entirely, not only are the lungs likely 
 to become diseased, but almost all the internal viscera 
 will suffer sooner or later. That protean disorder 
 dyspepsia, intestinal ailments, lesions of the liver and 
 kidneys, primarily, and cutaneous diseases, secondarily 
 or sympathetically, are one and all, frequent results of 
 irreo-ularities in the depurating action of the skin. 
 
 It is of the greatest importance that the integrity of 
 the skin should be preserved in order to resist cold, and 
 however paradoxical it may appear, it is also capable of 
 generating cold. The human body has a fixed tempera- 
 ture, beyond which it cannot be raised by external heat ; 
 when therefore the external heat exceeds that of the body, 
 this is compensated by increased perspiration which is 
 converted into invisible aqueous vapour, and is essen- 
 tually a cooling process. This is the reason why the 
 human body has been found capable of resisting artificial 
 temperatures greatly higher than boiling water j*^ hence 
 
 * Erasmus "Wilson, in his work on the skin, instances the fact that 
 Sir Charles Blagden supported a temperature of 260° for nearly ten 
 minutes. The furnace in which Sir Francis Chantry was in the habit of 
 drying his moulds was heated to a temperature of 350°, and into this 
 his men occasionally entered without inconvenience. The oven used by 
 Ohabert during his exhibitions in London was heated to between 4008 
 and 6008. 
 
IX. 
 
 in summer, In tropical climates, or artificial high tem- 
 peratures, perspiration ought to be encouraged and 
 not checked. 
 
 Such, then, is the wonderful system of cutaneous 
 drainage which nature has provided to eliminate from 
 the body impurities that otherwise would not only 
 derange health but destroy life. The skin Is also a 
 medium for the reception of impressions on the nerves, 
 its whole surface being one vast network of those 
 mysterious organs ; which explains the intimate relation- 
 ship and dependence existing between healthy skin 
 action and mental equilibrium. 
 
 From theso considerations it must be patent to 
 everyone how supremely important it is that the skin 
 should be kept clean, in order to preserve its normal 
 action. 
 
 The human frame is admirably adapted by the laws of 
 its being for the realization of happiness, yet we find 
 daily it is an unfailing source of pain and discontent to 
 multitudes, a state antagonistic to the benign intentions 
 of our Creator, and the result of transgressing those 
 laws by virtue of which '' we live and move and have our 
 being," Health essentially depends upon obeying certain 
 conditions which experience teaches us It is impossible 
 to violate, or even modify, without incurring suffering. 
 We may conclude also that according to the extent of our 
 transgressions so will be the Intensity of our sufferings. 
 Physically, we live under a stern mandate — Obey and 
 live ! disobey and die ! Disease and consequent suffer- 
 ing everywhere presented to our view are but the reflex 
 of our own actions. 
 
 Our acquaintance with life and its conditions, even to- 
 day, is so imperfect that we can do little more than say 
 with the Psalmist, " We are fearfully and wonderfully 
 
z. 
 
 made ; " yet our knowledge is sufficient to guard us 
 from blasphemously attributing the sufferings of mankind 
 to the will of God. 
 
 The sentence pronounced upon Adam : '^ In the sweat 
 of thy face shalt thou eat bread,"* misrepi'esented as a 
 curse, is but the assertion of a law which we can only 
 neglect or disregard under penalty of bringing upon 
 ourselves painful consequences. Did we but follow this 
 primaeval teaching, and live and work in the open air, 
 Avith our bodies so clothed as to allow the skin literally 
 "to breathe," a healthy balance of the functions would 
 be maintained, and disease would become, comparatively 
 speaking, rare. But our so-called civilization imposes 
 such restraints upon us, obliges us to follow such un- 
 natural callings, and withal environs us with surroundings 
 so opposed to health, that our existence must be taken as 
 the strongest possible evidence of the aboriginal strength 
 of the race. Upon no organ do the present unnatural 
 modes of living produce more certain effect than the 
 skin. 
 
 The man who follows an employment entailing great 
 physical exertion in the open air is rarely a diseased man. 
 His labour excites the skin, and what would otherwise 
 become poisonous and productive of disease is eliminated 
 from the system. As an evidence of this — his shirt, 
 worn, as is the usual custom, for a week, smells 
 abominably ; but if the man's shirt is dirtier than that 
 of his employer, who performs no physical labour, his 
 body is so much the cleaner — his health immeasurably 
 better, and, all other things being equal, his life will be 
 longer. 
 
 Cowper, with the fineness of observation which 
 
 * Genesis iii. 19. 
 
XI. 
 
 marks the true poet, in directing attention to a man 
 healthfully employed, asks us to — 
 
 — - — " See him siceating over his bread 
 
 Before he eats : — 'Tis the primal curse, 
 
 But softened into mercj' : made the pledge 
 
 Of cheerful days, and nights Tvithout a groan ; " 
 
 a condition to be envied above all others by the 
 dyspeptic, who never enjoys an hour's ease, but whose 
 life is a burden ever increasing as it '' drags its slow 
 length along." 
 
 With the evils incident to our civilization clinginof 
 to US, and with no immediate prospect of their being 
 removed by a general return to a strict observance 
 of nature's laws, it remains for us to do the best with 
 the materials at our command. The art of preserving 
 and restoring health by artificially inducing a natural 
 action of the skin, has, at various periods, received a 
 large amount of attention ; but of all the means that 
 have been . resorted to, there are none which have 
 equalled in point of efficacy the application of water in the 
 various forms of bathing practised throughout the world. 
 
 As a custom, bathing is as old as humanity. In 
 fact, the desire to bathe for the purpose of refreshing 
 and strengthening the body is as ingrained in man 
 as almost any other animal instinct. The babe crows 
 with delight when put into the bath ; the youth takes 
 to the water like a young duck ; the adult bathes 
 his limbs after the toils of the day with the most 
 unfeigned pleasure.- The savage or semi-civilized man 
 seeks the pellucid brook, the river, or the sea, as 
 instinctively as he provides for any other natural 
 want. Thus, in a natural state of society, sensation, 
 in lieu of knowledge, serves as a guide to health. 
 When, however, in consequence of the increase of 
 
XII. 
 
 population, large and densely crowded cities have, by 
 inducing vitiated habits and artificial tastes, perverted 
 the natural instincts, the invariable result has been 
 disease and physical deterioration, until knowledge has 
 taken the place of ignorance. Thus it arose, doubtless, 
 that amongst nearly all early peoples, the lawgivers, 
 seeing the inseparable connection of personal cleanliness 
 with health, and perceiving also that the very circum- 
 stances which tended to augment the power and 
 prosperity of the state militated against the physical 
 well-being of the people, saw fit to make periodical 
 lustration a religious observance. Be that, however, 
 as it may, certain it is that in nearly all ancient 
 nations we find the bath occupying a prominent place 
 amongst their other institutions, it being regarded not 
 only as a luxury, but as a means for the maintenance 
 of health and the prolongation of life. 
 
 Amongst no people was this so marked as with the 
 Greeks, who, above all others excelled in the art of 
 corporeal development. Physical culture (or gymnastic) 
 was their first and foremost branch of education, and, 
 as might be expected, the bath was one of the principal 
 means employed for attaining their end. We can 
 scarcely turn over the pages of any of the writers on 
 Greece without being struck with the importance 
 which was there attached to bathing. In Homer we 
 find frequent mention of it, both as a luxury and as 
 a method of refreshing the mind and strengthening 
 the body. When Ulysses and Diomed return from 
 their night expeditions 
 
 "They cleanse their bodies in the neighbouring main: 
 Then in the polish'd bath, refresh'd from toil, 
 Their joints they supple with dissolving oil." 
 
 Iliad, Booh x. 
 
XIII. 
 
 In the '-Odyssey," we read of Ulysses bathing in Arie's 
 palace : — 
 
 *' An ample vase receives tlie smoking wave ; 
 And in the bath prepared, my limbs I lave : 
 Eeviving sweets repair the mind's decay, 
 And take the painful sense of toil away." 
 
 We are told, also, that Vulcan, or, according to 
 another version, Minerva, discovered certain liot baths 
 to Hercules, that he mifjht renew his strength after 
 undergoing severe exertion and fatigue. According to 
 Homer, the PhoBdrians laid great stress upon the 
 importance to the health and happiness of man of 
 frequent changes of apparel, comfortable beds, and 
 hot baths. And it has been hinted by Lord Bacon, 
 that the tradition of Jason being restored to youth 
 by means of the medicated caldron of Medea, was, in 
 fact, an allegorical representation of the effects of the 
 warm bath in retarding the approach of old age. 
 
 What the bath was to the Greeks, it became also 
 to the Romans. Amongst the latter people it attained 
 proportions never reached before, nor since, in any 
 country; so that there is probably considerable truth 
 in Mr. Urquhart's observation, that " Kome was 
 indebted to her strigil* as well as her sword for the 
 conquest of the world." In later times, when their 
 habits in other respects were not such as to be conducive 
 to health, the bath served as an antidote to their 
 manner of life. By keeping the skin free and active, 
 they provided the means of relieving the system 
 from any evil consequences that might result from 
 
 * An instrument like a blunt knife, used by the liomans to scrape 
 off the perspiration induced by the hot bath, much as ostlers scrape 
 the sweat from horses with an iron hook. Specimens may be seen in 
 the British Museum. 
 
XIV. 
 
 the excesses in wliicli they indulged. Without 
 any great or exact knowledge of the physiology 
 of man, both the Eomans and the Greeks, as well 
 as other early nations, thoroughly understood the 
 philosophy and appreciated the advantages of bathing. 
 By its. regular and sedulous use they unquestionably 
 aided the development of the physical frame, secured it 
 against the ravages of disease, and so added to the 
 comfort and duration of life. 
 
 With the decay of ancient civilization the bath relapsed, 
 more or less, into disuetude ; consequently, during the 
 middle ages, dreadful plagues frequently occurred, and 
 decimated entire populations,-'-- a result attributable, to 
 
 * I am content to state this fact broadly and in general terms. Dr. 
 Lyon Playfair — no mean authority on the subject — boldly asserted in his 
 famous Glasgow speech (October 5th, 1874), that, " For a thousand 
 years there was not a man or woman in Europe that ever took a bath. No 
 wonder that there came the wondrous epidemics of the middle ages, 
 which cut off one-fourth of the population of Euroj)e — the spotted plague, 
 the black death, sweating sickness, and the terrible mental epidemics 
 which followed in their train — the dancing mania, the mewing mania, 
 and the biting mania." 
 
 Any one who is curious in such controversies will find this wholesale 
 charge of uncleanliness against mediasval Europe met by a spirited reply 
 by a certain Father Bridgett, in the February number of last year's 
 Contemporary Bevieiv, under the title of " The Sanctity of Dirt." This 
 reverend gentleman denies the existence, as an historical fact, of the 
 "dirty millennium" described by Dr. Playfair, and, secondly, defends 
 the Roman Catholic Church from the charge of having forbidden or 
 discouraged baths. He certainly succeeds in showing that Dr. Playfair 
 had been guilty of hyperbole, but he admits the substantial accuracy of 
 the indictment when he distinguishes between the ascetics and the 
 seculars, and remarks that the church commended the former for not 
 being too delicate and fastidious. With regard to " St. Thomas of Canter- 
 bury," at the thought of whose underclothing Dr. Playfair shudders, 
 Father Bridgett naively tells us that when those who lived with him 
 found at his martyrdom that his body was covered with a hair shirt 
 which had remained long unchanged, they were " iilled with admiration 
 
XV. 
 
 a large extent, to tlie lack of that appreciation of the 
 advantajres of the bsith which had led the enlio;htened 
 nations we have mentioned to dedicate it to the divinities 
 of medicine, strength, and wisdom. 
 
 This neglect is the more wonderful when we consider 
 that immersion in water was used for centuries in one of 
 the ordinances of Christianity. In modern times, consider- 
 able attention has been paid to the subject; but, in the 
 care we bestow upon our bodies, we still fall far short of 
 both the Greeks and the Romans, which is all the more 
 surprising when we consider our extended acquaintance 
 with the bodily organism and its various and complicated 
 functions. 
 
 In the evidence given before the Sanitary Commission 
 for Inquiring into the State of Large Towns and Popu- 
 lous Districts, the appointment of which was the first 
 step in the way of sanitary improvement in this country, 
 great stress was laid on the necessity of personal and 
 domestic cleanliness. Dr. Southwood Smith, who was 
 one of the principal medical men examined, thus ex- 
 
 at the circumstance." No wonder! The key-note having been struck 
 by Dr. Lyon Playfair, at Glasgow, in October, we find the i:clto news- 
 paper a month later (November 3rd, 1874), chiming in with the Pro- 
 fessor, in an article on the " Management of Hospitals," from which I 
 quote the following : — " The monks and hermits and nuns, who presented 
 to mankind in the dark ages the ideal of sanctity combined with dii-t, 
 have to answer for the hideous plagues and black deaths which destroyed 
 half the human race in the eleventh and twelfth centuries and for 
 immeasurable woes and sufferings ever since. When St. Parian solemnly 
 exhorted the early Christians to decline, as unholy and abominable, the 
 heathen proposition of taking a bath, and St. Bernard, of Clairvaux, 
 excited the frantic devotion of his followers, bj' displaying under his 
 robe his scraggy and filthy chest, the fanatics laid the foundation of 
 habits, the fertile parents of diseases destined to torment mankind for 
 centuries — even after Protestantism had once more taught the nations to 
 respect the wondrous structure which composes the human organism." 
 
XYI. 
 
 pressed himself: "I have ahxady, more than once, 
 expressed my conviction that the humanizing influence 
 of habits of cleanhness, and of those decent observances 
 which imply self-respect, the best, indeed the only real 
 foundation of respect for others, has never been sufficiently 
 acted upon. A clean, fresh, and well-ordered house 
 exercises over its inmates a moral, no less than a physical, 
 influence, and has a direct tendency to ihake the members 
 of a family sober, peaceful, and considerate of the 
 feelings and happiness of each other; nor is it difficult 
 to trace a connection between habitual feelings of this 
 sort and the formation of habits of respect for property, 
 for the laws in general, and even for those higher duties 
 and obligations, the observance of which no laws can 
 enforce; whereas, a filthy, squalid, unwholesome dwell- 
 ing, in which none of the decencies common to society, 
 even in the lowest stage of civilization, are, or can he, 
 observed, tends directly to make every dweller in such a 
 hovel regardless of the feelings and happiness of each 
 other, selfish, and sensual. And the connection is obvious 
 between the constant indulgences of appetites and 
 passions of this class, and the formation of habits of 
 idleness, dishonesty, debauchery, and violence." 
 
 The importance of cleanliness in this respect cannot be 
 too highly estimated ; nor is it giving expression to a 
 new or doubtful truth to say that physical and moral con- 
 ditions stand in an unvarying relation to each other, and 
 that to act upon the one you must act upon the other. 
 As I have said before, disease is not a visitation of God, 
 but the direct result of a violation of physical laws. The 
 natural conclusion, therefore, is, that to be free from 
 disease we must become enlightened with reference to 
 those laws, and render implicit obedience to them. Now 
 there is no one thing more emphatically impressed upon 
 
XVII. 
 
 our mincls by the facts of physiology than the necessity 
 of corporal cleanliness. Without this it is impossible to 
 enjoy perfect health. Among nearly all ancient peoples/" 
 who had a knowledge of this great fact, ablution was a 
 religious duty. Our Western civilization, however, amidst 
 its many other anomalies, has until late years almost 
 ignored the bath. We English flatter ourselves we are 
 a clean people, but, judged by the Eastern standard, we 
 are exceedingly dirty. " Cleanliness is a matter of self- 
 examination, not of external seeming. You must acquire 
 the ideal standard of cleanliness before you can acquire 
 the habits of that refined people from whom you are 
 endeavouring to adopt this practice." 
 
 It is generally admitted that dirt, disease, and de- 
 moralization are natural and ever-recurrent concomitants, 
 therefore 1 maintain that the use of the bath would prove 
 to the body, what the moral influences of the Bible are 
 to the soul, and their combined action would be attended 
 with the greatest possible happiness ; degradation would 
 be materially arrested. In a city or neighbourhood 
 where there is a deficiency of baths and other means of 
 personal or domestic cleanliness, and consequently a 
 predominance of dirt and filth, you will be sure to find 
 disease and degradation there rampant. 
 
 *'A large class of crimes," say the Commissioners 
 in their second leport, " arising from intemperance 
 and the indulgence of vicious propensities, is fostered 
 
 * In the capital of the Roman Empire, according to Fabricuis, there 
 were not fewer than 8-56 public baths, some of which were siifFiciently 
 large to contain at once 1800 persons. These establishments M-ere regu- 
 lated by the Legislature. Here, according to the historian of the 
 <' Decline and Fall" "the meanest Roman could purchase with a small 
 copper coin (half-farthing) the daily enjoyment of a scene of pomp and 
 luxury which might excite the envy of the Kings of Asia." 
 
XVIII. 
 
 by the low state of physical comforts, Avhich leads to 
 the use of stimulating drinks, and to other methods 
 of imparting false strength to the reduced system. 
 These act with the greatest intensity on the inhabitants 
 of those places where filth and absence of facilities 
 for its removal depress the energies and engender disease 
 and death." 
 
 I have found that when an intelligent artlzan has once 
 become acquainted with the advantages of any of the 
 appliances of civilization, he is not slow to avail him- 
 self of their aid ; and habits of cleanliness, once 
 formed, quickly effect a transformation in a man's 
 mode of living ; his sensibilities become improved 
 to such an extent that he will not live in a room 
 which is unhealthy, or in a house that has bad drains, 
 &c. The first step towards making a people 
 healthy, is to make them cleanly in their person, 
 or to quote once more from Dr. Playfair, " The 
 sum and substance of all our sanitary science, accumulated 
 by ages, may be summed up in the pregnant advice 
 of the prophet — ' wash and be clean.' It is the simple- 
 ness of a remedy, as a cure for the public ills which 
 so grievously affect us, that prevents its public 
 recognition." 
 
 Simple as it is, however, the remedy cannot be 
 applied unless adequate and comfortable baths and 
 washhouses are supplied within an easy distance and in con- 
 venient situations. The general habits of the poor, their 
 daily occupations, and the nature of their employments, 
 are such as render frequent bathing necessary to the 
 maintenance of health ; and unless every possible 
 facility is afforded to this end, they are very liable to 
 become insensible to its importance. Any obstacles 
 in the way of personal or domestic cleanliness give 
 
XIX. 
 
 rise to habits of carelessness and drunkenness, wliich 
 rapidly lower both the moral and physical condition. 
 
 At present, to the great mass of the poor the bath, 
 as a means of comfort, luxury and health, is hardly known 
 even in name, and to this ignorance is due the preva- 
 lence of so much disease. No sane person will dispute 
 the imperative necessity of keeping the cutaneous surface 
 in a perfectly clean condition, as a means of preserving 
 health. It will be my endeavour to point out the best 
 method of effecting this object, and to impress upon public 
 authorities the desirability of providing adequate and 
 appropriate means for promoting the cleanliness of the 
 people. 
 
 Cleanliness is said to be next to godliness ; but, like 
 other near neighbours, they are not always found to 
 agree. The Church Congress has been endeavouring to 
 prove that there is a necessary oiewus between religion 
 and sanitary regulations, one clergyman, indeed, affirming 
 that " health of body seemed almost a prerequisite tp 
 health of soul," and that " religion and soundness of 
 body were united, as it were, by a marriage bond." Now 
 this is a beautiful theory, and we would rather overlook 
 historical and existing objections to it. People say, of 
 course, that if pilgrims had been as cleanly as they were 
 pious, there would have been less cholera in the world ; 
 and some folks, looking at the condition of our own cities, 
 hint that certain sections of the population there outrival 
 their neighbours in faith much more than in the purity of 
 their linen. Perhaps it would be better to admit tliat 
 cleanliness and godliness are very good things in their 
 own way, without seeking to prove their interdependence. 
 
 I cannot conclude this present chapter better than by 
 directing the attention of my readers to the forcible 
 lan^uMgeof that eminent thinker and writer, Professor 
 
XX. 
 
 Alexander Bain : " Next to eating and sleeping, the 
 bath may be ranked among the very foremost of the 
 necessaries and supports of life. It is of far higher 
 consequence, and of more general utility, than any kind 
 of manual exercise, gymnastic or sport. It affects the 
 system more powerfully than these^, even in the very 
 points wherein their excellence consists, and it is 
 applicable in a thousand circumstances where they are 
 not. It does not supersede, but it ought to come before, 
 these other practices. A place should be therefore found 
 for the bath among our regular occupations of life ; it ought 
 to be a permanent institution, ranking immediately after 
 the prime necessities of our being. Either daily, or 
 several times a week, should every one repair to it, in 
 some shape or other, either at morn, mid-day, or evening, 
 according to strength and leisure. There certainly does 
 not exist a greater device in the art of living, or a 
 greater instrument for securing a vigorous and buoyant 
 existence. It is one of the most powerful diversions to 
 the current of business occupations ; it can suspend for a 
 time the pressure of our pursuits and anxieties, and 
 return us fresh for the enjoyment of our other delights. 
 To the three varieties of state which our bodies pass 
 daily through — eating, working, sleeping — it would add 
 a fourth, luxurious in itself, and increasing the relish for 
 all the rest. It contributes to realize the perfect definition 
 of a good animal existence, which is, to have the appetite 
 cdicays fresh for whatever is hefore us. The health of the 
 mind must be based, in the first place, on the health of 
 the body ; mental occupation and refined enjoyments 
 turn into gall and bitterness if they are not supported by 
 the freshness and vigour of the physical frame." 
 
BATH AND WASHHOUSE , 
 MOVEMENT. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 ElSE AND PrOGEESS OF THE BaTH AND "WaSHHOUSE , 
 
 Movement in England. 
 
 " The necessity of cleanliness of late has become a household truth, 
 and the spread of those admirable institutions, the Public Baths and 
 "Washhouses, proves that the value of cleanliness is as much appreciated 
 by the poor as by the rich. It is too little to say that these institutions 
 are calculated to carry cleanliness into the humble abodes of the labour- ' 
 ing classes ; they do infinitely more than this — they poiu- forth a stream 
 of health, of happiness, of loyalty, of thoughtfulness ; they elevate the 
 moral position of those whom they succoiir, and the numberless benefits 
 ■which they confer are not only enjoyed by those who receive, but are 
 reflected upwards and around upon society at large. The Public Baths 
 and "Washhouses are among the noblest of the institutions of this favoured 
 country, as they are one of the greatest discoveries of the present age. 
 May they meet with the support they deserve!" — Erasmus "Wilson on 
 " A Healthy Skin." 
 
 THE history of few moA^ements in connection with Historical, 
 sanitary reform in this country is more interesting or 
 instructive than an account of the rise and progress of 
 Baths and Washhouses for the people. In this civilized 
 Christian country it will hardly be believed that thirty 
 years ago the only means for cleansing the body within 
 the reach of the working and lower middle class was the 
 
 B 
 
2 [Chap. I. 
 
 hand basin in the sleeping apartment, or some equally- 
 inefficient appliance which ingenuity might have devised 
 for the purpose. 
 
 With such accommodation for corporal sanitary ablution, 
 one need not be surprised at the fact that the operation of 
 ■washing the body thirty or forty years ago had almost 
 become extinct. The dirt of the human body of course 
 corresponds with that of the dwelling, and the state in which 
 the homes of the poor were found in those days was even 
 far more deplorable than it is at present. Medical men, 
 clergymen, city missionaries, parochial officers, and all who 
 were led by professional duty or benevolence to enter the 
 dwellings of the very poor, the degraded, and the outcast, 
 however their opinions differed in other respects, were at 
 least unanimous in declaring that those dwellings exhibited 
 a degree of dirt and squalor with which health and morality- 
 were alike incompatible. The official reports of surgeons 
 and registrars urged the absolute necessity of immediate 
 attention to the matter, in order to ward off or mitigate 
 the attacks of fever and pestilence. That the evil was not 
 confined to large centres of population was shown by the 
 sickening details published in the various local reports of 
 the Superintending Inspectors of the Board of Health, 
 and in the reports of the Registrar- General. J. B. 
 Martin, Esq., one of the commissioners appointed by 
 Her Majesty for inquiring into the *' State of Large 
 Towns and Populous Districts in England and Wales," 
 says : "It may savour of caricature were it asserted 
 that, in respect to the labouring poor, it is only 
 when the infant enters upon breathing existence, and 
 when the man has ceased to breathe — at the moment 
 of birth and the hour of death — that he is really well 
 washed ; yet such a statement would not be so far 
 removed from truth as may at first appear. To the 
 
CiiAP. I.] 3 
 
 great mass of the people, and from the dawn to the term 
 of life, the bath, as an article of comfort, luxury, and 
 health, is hardly known, even in name." To remove this 
 evil and others, many remedies were suggested, several of 
 which were carried into execution. 
 
 It is to the Corporation of Liverpool that the honour g^^'^J ''^ 
 belongs of having taken the first step in this branch of 
 sanitary reform. The first Public Baths and Washhouses 
 set on foot in this country were those of Liverpool, the 
 original cost being defrayed by money raised upon rates, 
 and that borough now possesses several of these bathing 
 establishments, including washhouses. 
 
 St. George's Pier Head baths were opened as long ago 
 as 1828, but only supplied with salt-water. This was the 
 first indication of a desire on the part of parochial authorities 
 to supply, and on the part of the public to use, a popular 
 means of ablution. The original cost of the building was 
 £24,772. No doubt it was partly owing to the appreci- 
 ation shown by the people that the same Corporation were 
 induced, some twenty-one years later, to erect another 
 bathing establishment in Frederick Street provided 
 with fresh water. This was in the year 1842, and 
 owes its origin chiefly to that friend of the poor, the 
 late William Pathbone, whose son is now one of the 
 members for the borough. It may be said that the Baths 
 and Washhouses Movement, so far as the provision of 
 warm baths are concerned, dates from the opening of 
 the establishment in Frederick Street, as in the former 
 place there were no baths for cleansing purposes. 
 
 In 1849 the Corporation of Liverpool again increased 
 tlieir bathing and washing accommodation by the erection 
 of two new establishments — one in Paul Street and the 
 other in Cornwallis Street. The latter is undoubtedly the 
 finest of its kind in Liverpool. These w'ere designed on a 
 
4 [Chap. T. 
 
 much larger scale than those in Frederick Street and 
 contained all the more modern improvements which 
 l^ractical experience had suggested; in fact, so perfect 
 were they considered that, I believe, there have been 
 but few additional improvements in those of more recent 
 erection. 
 
 The success of the Baths and Washhouses Movement in 
 Liverpool first directed the attention of the Commissioners 
 for "Inquiring into the Sanitary Condition of Large 
 Towns and Populous Districts " to the advisability of 
 recommending in their second report " that every facility 
 should be afforded to furnish ample supplies of water, and 
 Baths and Washhouses for the poorer classes," in which 
 report (published in 1845) they state that public attention 
 had of late been very generally attracted to the importance 
 of this subject, and that the success of the baths and 
 laundries erected at Liverpool had stimulated private 
 individuals in other towns to pursue a similar course. 
 Vnhsi- In September, 1844, the Lord Mayor presided at a 
 Y^d^ meeting at the Mansion House convened for the formation 
 public of an " Association for Promoting Cleanliness among the 
 People." As the result of this meeting, one of the first 
 public Baths and Washhouses in London was established 
 in a large building in Glasshouse Yard, in the midst of a 
 dense and poor population near the London Docks, and it 
 was not a little surprising and gratifying to the promoters 
 of the movement to find that the advantages offered were 
 so thoroughly appreciated by the working classes. 
 
 It will be seen fi'om the following statement of one year's 
 business, ending June, 1847, that the number of bathers, 
 washers and ironers, amounted to 84,584. The articles 
 washed and dried numbered nearly a quarter of a million. 
 There were, in round numbers, 35,000 bathers, 38,000 
 washers and diyers of clothes, and 11,000 ironers. The 
 
 Eaths 
 
Chap. LJ 6 
 
 bathers and washers cost the Association about one penny 
 each, and the ironers about one farthing each ; the whole 
 year's expenditure by the Association being over and 
 above the receipts about £300, which included the 
 items of fuel, soap, soda and whitewash, with pails, 
 bruslies, &c., which were lent to the people for use in 
 their own homes. 
 
 The effect of the unexpected success of their benevolent Goulstoa 
 scheme was evidently to over-stimulate the hopes of its Baths, 
 promoters, who were induced to build a large model 
 establishment in Goulston Square, Whitechapel, near to 
 Glasshouse Yard. The great success of their first 
 atterupt, coupled with that of the Liverpool Baths, 
 naturally led them to believe that they would meet 
 with still greater success had they at their command 
 a more imposing and commodious establishment like 
 the one then just opened in Cornwallis Street, Liver- 
 ))ool ; they accordingly erected a model institutior,, 
 hoping that it might have the effect of stimulating philan- 
 thropy in the south of England to carry the work on more 
 victoriously. These baths were built by voluntary con- 
 tributions. The first stone was laid by the late Prince 
 Consort, and they were opened in the year 1851 or 1852. 
 They occupied an area (exclusive of washhouses) of 63 by 
 40 feet, or 2520 square feet. The idea of adding a 
 swimming bath was not carried out, although a piece of 
 the adjoining land was allotted for that purpose. There 
 were 95 private baths, viz., 47 first-class men's, 3G 
 second-class men's ; 6 first-class women's, 5 second-class 
 women's, and 84 washing compartments. The Glasshouse 
 Yard Baths were merely several large rooms fitted up 
 with the simplest possible arrangements, and consequently 
 worked at a comparatively small cost. No doubt, how- 
 ever, the novelty of cheapbaths had something to do 
 
6 [Chap. L 
 
 witli their first two years' success, and when this had 
 somewhat wore off, as a natural consequence, there was 
 a proportionate falling off in the receipts. The business 
 was transferred from Glasshouse Yard to the Goulston 
 Square Baths, 5'et notwithstanding this they were worked 
 at a considerable loss for a number of years. They 
 gradually fell into a dilapidated condition, and were 
 eventually closed. The Vestry of Whitechapel at last 
 purchased the establishment, and in so dding discharged 
 a duty which they should have undertaken twenty years 
 ago. 
 
 On the 11th of December last I sent a gentleman to 
 make inquiries respecting these baths, and he reports 
 that they present the most dilapidated condition, being 
 surrounded with hoarding, and all the windows demolished. 
 He inquired of a poor woman, living directly opposite, 
 how long the baths had been closed ? She replied, " Some 
 years, xvovse luck, I wish they would open them for I have 
 no place to wash and dry my children's clothes." No 
 doubt the same reply would be made by thousands who 
 reside in the immediate neighbourhood. On inquiring 
 at the Vestry Offices, Great Prescott Street, he was 
 informed that it would be at least two years before the 
 baths would be opened to the public. This is another 
 instance of the tardiness of the Vestrymen of Whitchapel 
 in supplying their poor with an essential sanitary agent. 
 
 It ought to be unnecessary to remark, but I feel it is 
 my duty to emphasize the obvious fact, that, wherever 
 personal cleanliness is impossible, physical, mental and 
 moral deterioration of the people is inevitable. We may 
 have sad but unmistakable evidence of this, if any were 
 needed, in a tour through the slums of the East End. 
 While there may be parishes within the metropolitan area 
 where the demand for baths and washhouses is less 
 
Chap. I.'J 7 
 
 urgent, tliey are absolutely indispensable to sanitary 
 efficiency in such a poor and densely populated parish as 
 Whitechapel. 
 
 It is indeed surprising that, when the Goulston Square 
 Baths were rapidly deteriorating, the parochial authorities 
 did not then come forward and volunteer their assistance 
 which would have come with a better grace than their 
 tardy acceptance of a duty forced upon them by strong 
 expressions of public opinion. One would have supposed 
 it to be quite impossible for sanitary authorities to delay 
 the construction of Public Baths and Washhouses until 
 delay was no longer open to them. That such, however, 
 was the fact, will be gathered from the following extract 
 from the Daily Neivs, of August, 1873 : — 
 
 This now dismantled and dingy establisliment started in the world -^'"'y 
 
 JVcivs on 
 with mighty eclat. It was the original model, and the first erected of Q.Q„isfnn 
 
 London's Public Baths and Washhouses, and we were highly pleased Square 
 with ourselves because of the introduction of this new lever for human- Baths, 
 izing the East end, and for increasing the general healthiness of London . 
 Leading articles were written about the place, its purposes, and their 
 advantages ; these themes were the bui-dens of sermons, in which, no 
 doubt, occurred with great frequency the aphorism, that "cleanliness is 
 next to godliness." It is just twenty years ago that its foundation stone 
 was laid ; laid, not by an obscure vestrj'man or unknown churchwarden, 
 but by the now dead Prince who was the consort of our gracious Queen. 
 On the platform in the shabby square there stood round the Prince Con- 
 sort, as he laid the stone and wished the enterprise God-speed, such men 
 as the then Bishop of London, Lord Shaftesbury, the late Lord Over- 
 stone, and Sir Anthony Eothschild. On the committee there was a list 
 of the best-known public men of the day, and among the subscribers 
 were the Queen and her husband. Men will tell you that we have 
 advanced many stages since then. Two streets off there rises a great 
 pile of building which, under the auspices of the London School Board, 
 is to be devoted to educational purposes. "\^Tiich takes precedence in the 
 road to civ-ilization — education or cleanliness P Look round such a neigh- 
 bourhood as this, and the problem will smite you shrewdlj-, whether 
 education bestowed on a being doomed to Live amid such surroundings is 
 not rather a curse than a blessing. 
 
8 fCHAP. I. 
 
 It seems to tlie writer that, to the impartial sense of a critical foreigner 
 the present condition of Goulston Square Baths and Washhouses would 
 go far to prove that we have retrograded since 1852, alike in enlighten- 
 ment, in a realization of the value of sanitary reform, in common sense, 
 and in zeal for the moral and social amelioration of our population. 
 
 If the stigma galls, it is not difficult to wipe it out ; and there arc 
 others whom the ahatement of temptation to a dirt-fed epidemic will 
 touch nearer the quiet. The establishment cost £16,000 to erect, part of 
 which money was borrowed. The place having been shut up through 
 neglect and mismanagement, the dilapidated carcase is now in pawn, so 
 to speak, for this borrowed money. To extinguish the debt £2500 is 
 required. For £3000 more, as estimated by professional gentlemen of 
 eminence, the establishment can be restored to perfect repair, and swim- 
 ming baths added. The debt once wiped out, the place rehabilitated, 
 there is no fear that its present fate will again befal it, for the Vestry of 
 Whitechapel are prepared to undertake its future management and main- 
 tenance. Already £2000 have been subscribed, and it seems hardly con- 
 ceivable that such a work should stand over indefinitely for lack of £3500 
 more. We have pleasure in adding that subscriptions may be paid into 
 the Temple Bar branch of the London and Westminster Bank to Baths 
 and Washhouses Account. 
 
 H. M. This laudable attempt to obtain subscriptions from the 
 
 Letter to Public was not fullj realized, although the responses were 
 The Times, exceedingly creditable. Mr. H. M. Clifford, in a letter 
 which appeared in the Times recently, states that : — 
 
 The Committee for re-opening the Baths and Washhouses in Goulston 
 Square, Whitechapel, have the gratification of announcing that the 
 premises were duly conveyed to the Vestry of Whitechapel on the 4th 
 inst., together with the sum of iJloOO towards the necessary repairs, as 
 agreed. The Vestry will now at once proceed to render the Baths and 
 Washhouses fit for use, which will be re-opened with as little delay as 
 possible, to the great satisfaction and benefit of the large and poor popu- 
 lation of the district. The whole amount raised was £4671 12s. 6d., 
 including a very gratifying collection of over £100, raised by a committee 
 formed among the Jewish working classes of the neighbourhood. Having 
 now come to the end of their labours, the Committee beg to tender to the 
 various contributors their best thanks for their liberality, without which 
 the beneficial purpose the Committee had in view could never have been 
 effected. 
 
 In August, 1846, another bathing establishment was 
 
Chap. I.J 9 
 
 thrown open to the public by a private association, in Geoiga 
 George Street, Euston Square, in St. Pancras parish. Euston 
 The principal mover in this scheme was Sir C. Scudamore, ^quar.- 
 who contributed largely to the cost. The ground upon 
 which the baths were built belonged to the New Eiver 
 Company, and adjoined one of their reservoirs. The 
 undertaking was greatly aided by the liberality of this 
 company, the water for the baths being supplied 
 gratuitously. 
 
 This establishment, founded upon benevolent principles, 
 was open for two or three years, and was closed in conse- 
 quence of the New River Company abolishing their 
 reservoir. The success of the undertaking is testified to 
 by Mr. Erasmus Wilson, who in his work on a " Healthy 
 Skin " (1849), quotes from a report of the working of 
 this establishment, from the day of its opening (August 3, 
 1846) to November 12, 1848, showing that the number 
 of visitors who have enjoyed its benefits, that is to say, 
 have obtained the incalculable blessing of clean skins or 
 clean linen, to which may be added also another feature 
 of the institution, clean and wholesome dwellino-s, 
 amounted to no less than G74,866. Of this surprising 
 number 284,994 were bathers, and 96,468 washers, 
 while a separate report from the departinent for " Cleans- 
 ing, Purifying, and Disinfecting the Dwellings of the 
 Poor," showed that during those last ten months upwards 
 of one thousand purifications had been effected. 
 
 Tiie ground where the reservoir was is at present 
 known as Tolmers Square, and the site of the baths is 
 now occupied by the Rev. Arthur Hall's chapel, in the 
 centre of the square. 
 
 In the year 1835, Mr. James Silk Buckingham, a dis- J. Silk 
 tinguished pioneer of many moral, social and political ^jjjjg'^fil 
 reforms— whose numerous works upon the questions 
 
10 [Chap. I. 
 
 affecting tlie interests of linmanity are too much neglected 
 bj the present generation — foreseeing the necessity for 
 some legislative enactment enabling local authorities to 
 provide baths and other social and sanitary institutions, 
 introduced into the House of Commons a Bill of a very 
 comprehensive character to effect these purposes ; but he 
 failed to carry his proposed measure, owing, as he states, 
 to the persistent opposition of a distinguished Whig 
 statesman. 
 
 Mr. Buckingham had travelled extensively in Eastern 
 countries, indeed, no other man of his time was so well 
 acquainted with the manners, customs, and habits of the 
 Orientals, His mind being essentially cosmopolitan, we 
 find him prepared to learn even of those whom we still 
 regard as being uncivilized, but the ample facilities afforded 
 for bathing in these countries, and the general use and 
 appreciation of them by the inhabitants, must have 
 impressed him with the value of bathing for promoting 
 health and preventing those diseases which are so prevalent 
 in this country, and led him to make the attempt to supply 
 his own countrymen with such a desirable sanitary 
 agency. 
 
 A few years after, public opinion had considerably 
 
 advanced upon the question, and the friends of the 
 
 movement became more and more impressed with 
 
 the belief that if any permanent and extensive good 
 
 was to be effected it must be the result of legislative 
 
 enactment. Hence arose the question, how could such 
 
 an object be made part of a general and legalized 
 
 system ? 
 
 Bishop of One of the circumstances that tended to bring the 
 
 Petition to subject again under the notice of the Legislature was the 
 
 House of presentation of five petitions by the Bishop of London to 
 
 the House of Lords on the 8th June, 1846. These 
 
Chap. I.] 1 1 
 
 petitions, praying that tlic Legislature \you1cI adopt some 
 means to increase tlie facilities for cleanliness available for 
 the mass of the people, were signed by many of the 
 parochial clergy of the metropolis, by statesmen, by 
 bankers and merchants, and many other persons of 
 influence. His lordship, after alluding to the importance 
 of personal purity, not only as a physical, but as a moral 
 agency, referred to the efforts which had, u}) to that time, 
 been made towards the establishment of Baths and 
 Washhouses for the poor. 
 
 On the 19th of the same month. Sir G. Grey obtained Sir G. 
 permission to introduce a Bill for promoting the voluntary Bin. 
 establishment in boroughs and parishes in England and. 
 Wales of Public Baths and Washhouses. The obiect was 
 to enable parishes desirous of having an institution of 
 this kind to defray the cost of the building out of the 
 poor rates, and for this purpose to borrow money, which 
 was to be repayable over a given number of years. The 
 Bill i^assed through the House of Commons by the end of 
 July, and on the second reading in the House of Lords, 
 lie Marquis of Lansdowne called attention to the fact 
 hat such establishments as those to which the Bill had 
 reference need not be unprofitable oven in a pecuniary 
 sense, in Liverpool they paid 3^ per cent, on the 
 capital expended. " All therefore," said he, ''that was 
 meant by the present Bill was to give a stimulus 
 to private enterprise ; not to crush enterprise where 
 it had already taken place : not to extinguish those 
 establishments which were now Avorking beneficially for 
 the advantage of the public." 
 
 The Bill received the Coyal assent on the 26th of Massing of 
 August, 1846. By this Act (9 and 10 Vic, c. 74) the Act.^""*^ 
 council Ol any borough are empowered to adopt its pro- 
 visions if they are so disposed, and to defray the expenses 
 
12 [Chap. I. 
 
 out of tlie borough fund. In parishes, on the requisition 
 of ten or more ratepayers, a vestry meeting must be called 
 at which the adoption of Baths and Washhouses may be 
 determined on ; and if this resolution is carried, informa- 
 tion thereof is to be sent to the Secretary of State, and a 
 commission of ratepayers is to be chosen to carry it into 
 effect. The commissioners account to the Vestry for their 
 proceedings, and the expenses are defrayed out of the/ 
 poor rate. T^YO or more parishes may unite in their 
 operations, if desirable. 
 ^/th^ A°^ Although the Act is put into operation by the Vestry, 
 and the commissioners have to go to the Vestry for power 
 to borrow money, yet when once this power is conceded 
 the Vestry have no control whatever over either the ex- 
 penditure of the money or the actions of the commis- 
 sioners. 
 
 The council (in a borough) or the commissioners (in a 
 parish) are to regulate, not only the construction, but the 
 management of these institutions. 
 Aniencl- rpj^jg j^^^^ ]-|.g many other measures hurriedly passed 
 the Aft. into law, was found to be defective when put into operation, 
 and consequently it was referred back to Parliament for 
 amendment."' In the following session Sir George Grrey 
 introduced a Bill to amend the Act, and obtained larger 
 powers. 
 
 In the first Act the maximum charge for a bath 
 was 4d., but in the second this was increased to 
 6d. It is obvious that this alteration met the require- 
 ments of a large class of persons above the status of 
 labourers, who were glad to avail themselves of the 
 more select class of baths secured by the extra pay- 
 ments. These have been much resorted to, and have 
 
 * The amendment was construed into the original Act. 
 
Chap. L] 13 
 
 contributed a large item towards making the baths 
 remunerative. 
 
 The framers of the Act evidently endeavoured to guard 
 against the possibility of these institutions becoming rather 
 commercial speculations than sanitary agencies, by enact- 
 ing that two-thirds of the bath accommodation provided 
 in every establishment should be apportioned to the third- 
 class bathers. 
 
 In tlie Act 9 & 10 Vic, chap. 74, the charges are 
 restricted, but it is remarkable that Baths erected under 
 Towns Improvement Acts, although no doubt compelled 
 to comply with the Bath and Washhouse Act, so far as 
 the provisions for the poorer classes is concerned, yet 
 there is no restriction against the managers charging 
 what they please for the higher class baths ; for instance, 
 the Liverpool Corporation's Baths were built under the 
 powers conferred by a local Act of their own, and they 
 charge as high as 2s. 6d. for some baths, and may if they 
 choose charge £1, whereas by the Act 9 & 10 Vic, chap. 
 74, they are restricted in their charges for the first-class 
 baths, a fact that must hitherto have escaped the notice of 
 the Legislature, or it would certainly have imposed the same 
 restrictions in all cases. We have the right to assume 
 that in legislative enactments one of the objects of the 
 Government is to guard against any tendency to interfere 
 with the commercial bearings of the subject dealt Avith, 
 and consequently they insert certain adequate clauses. 
 But if these restrictions are removed, a very different 
 construction might be put upon the Act; and when the 
 mental calibre of the men who almost invariably have the 
 
 ,. ^ , Ai'ii • ^'''" Tunes 
 
 working ot these Acts is taken into account — men like and t:d/io 
 those whom the 2'imes recently characterized (speaking of ^'owir^'f 
 Local Boards of Health) as " petty tradesmen, who Hcaltli. 
 cannot be expected to take wide views of tlieir responsi- 
 
14 [Chap. L 
 
 bilities, or to have any higher aim than to effect a present 
 saving of money," and the Echo says, " The average town 
 councillor, or member of the Local Board, is a person whom 
 it is very difficult to teach the way he should go in sanitary 
 matters. The average ratepayer does not care greatly 
 liow much the death-rate may go up, provided the other 
 rates, which have to be paid in coin, are low. We wish 
 we could convince minds of this type that disease and 
 death are exceedingly costly." It is not difficult to arrive 
 at the conclusion that the end they have in view in the 
 administration of these Acts is not so much efficiency as 
 profit, and that they consider not so much whether a thing 
 is really needed, as whether it is possible to get on without 
 it, and so avoid the expenditure of money. 
 
 It will be seen in reference to the statistical and 
 financial information in the following chapter, to what 
 extent the Act 9 & 10 Vic, chap. 74, has been exercised. 
 The majority of the Baths in the provinces having been 
 built under their Local Towns Improvement Acts, which 
 include clauses for that purpose, and in many instances 
 they have borrowed money for the improvement made 
 from the Works Loan Commissioners. 
 
 ^^^^?^^ (1 ^'^^^ ^'■^^^^ °^ charges prescribed by the Amended Act 
 
 by the 10 & 11 Vic, chap. 61, is as follows : — 
 
 Act. 
 
 1.— EATHS FOR THE LABOUEINa CLASSES. 
 
 Every bath to be supplied with clean water for eyery person bathing 
 alone, or for several children bathing together, and in either case with 
 one clean towel for every bather. 
 
 For one person above eight years old : — 
 
 Cold Eath, or cold shower bath, any sum not 
 
 exceeding One Penny 
 
 Warm Bath, or warm shower bath, or vapour 
 
 bath, any sum not exceeding Twopence 
 
Chap. I] ^ 15 
 
 For several children, not atove eight years old, nor 
 exceeding four, bathing together : — 
 Cold Bath, or cold shower bath, any sum not 
 
 exceeding Twopence 
 
 "Waim Bath, or warm shower bath, or vaj)our 
 
 bath, any sum not exceeding ... Fom-pence 
 
 2.— BATHS OF ANY HIGHEE CLASS. 
 Such charges as the council and the commissioners respectively think 
 fit, not exceeding in any case three times the charges above-mentioned 
 for the several kinds of baths for the labouring classes. 
 
 3.— WASHHOUSES FOE THE LABOURING CLASSES. 
 
 Every washhouse to be supplied with convenience for washing and 
 drying clothes and other articles. 
 
 For the use by one person of one washing tub or trough, and of a 
 copper or boiler (if any), or, where one of the washing tubs or 
 troughs shall be used as a copper or boiler, for the use of one 
 pair of washing tubs, or troughs, and for the use of the con- 
 veniences for drying : — 
 For one hour only in any one day, any sum not 
 
 exceeding One Penny 
 
 For two hours together in any one day, any sum 
 
 not exceeding Thi-eepence 
 
 Any time over the hour, or two hours respectively, if not exceedin"- 
 five minutes, not to be reckoned. 
 
 For two hours not together, or for more than two hoiu-s in any "one 
 day, such charges as the council and the commissioners respectively think 
 5t. 
 
 For the use of the washing conveniences alone, or of the dryino- con- 
 veniences alone, such charges as the council and the commissioners 
 respectively think fit, but not exceeding in either case the charges for the 
 use for the same time of both the washing and the drying conveniences. 
 
 4.— WASHHOUSES OF ANY HIGHER CLASS. 
 
 Such charges as the council and the commissioners respectivelj- think fit. 
 
 5.— OPEN BATHING PLACES. 
 
 "Where several persons bathe in the same water, for one person One 
 Halfpenny. 
 
 By this time public attention had been directed to Y^f^^^. 
 the efficacy of the Vapour and Russian Baths in the Bath^'^ 
 
16 [Chap. I. 
 
 treatment of disease ; but from the expense of these 
 baths they were beyond the means of the poorer classes 
 to whom they were quite as indispensable as to their 
 richer brethren. It is creditable to Sir G. Grey and 
 his coadjutors that he brought this bath within the 
 reach of the most humble classes, by making provision 
 in the second Act for its use in baths and washhouses, 
 and making tlie minimum charge 4d. and the maximum 6d. 
 In concluding what I have to say on this subject, let 
 me observe that whilst the baths and washhouses move- 
 ment originated in the domain of philanthropy, legislation 
 removed it into a wider and more permanent sphere, by 
 enabling (I wish I could say compelling) parochial 
 authorities, where necessary, to erect such establishments 
 at the cost of the ratepayers. The Act of 1846 has now 
 been in operation thirty years ; and while it is gratify- 
 ing to know that some ten of the eighty -seven metro- 
 politan parishes have availed themselves of its powers ; yet 
 on the other hand it is to be deplored that its provisions 
 have not been more generally adopted. 
 Late The late Canon Kingsley, in an able article on a pure 
 
 ivingsley water supply, which appeared in Good Words, March, 
 on the 1874, in discoursing on the benefit of towns having a 
 ]3;itlis. constant supply of water provided by civic authorities, 
 thus wisely speaks on the necessity of baths : — 
 
 " In cacli district of each city, and the centre of each town, we may 
 build public baths and lavatories, where the poor men and women may get 
 their warm baths when they will ; for now they usually never bathe at all, 
 because they will not, and ought not, if they be hard-worked folk, to bathe 
 in cold water during nine months of the year. And there they shall wash 
 their clothes, and dry them by steam, instead of washing them as now, 
 at home, either under back sheds, where they catch cold and rheumatism, 
 or too often, alas! in their own living rooms, in an atmosphere of foul 
 steam, which drives the father to the public-house and the children into 
 the streets ; and which not only prevents the clothes from being thor- 
 
Chap. L] 17 
 
 oughly dried again, but is, my dear boy, as you will know wben you are 
 older, a very hot-bed of disease. And they shall have other comforts, 
 <i'nd even luxuries— these public lavatories ; and be made in time graceful 
 •and refining, as well as merely useful. Nay, we will even, I think, have 
 in front of each of them a real fountain ; not like the drinking fountains 
 though they are groat and needful boons, which you see here and there 
 about the streets M'ith a tiny dribble of water to a great deal of expensive 
 stone ; but real fountains, which shall leap, and sparkle, and plash, and 
 gurgle, and fill the place with life, and light, and coolness, and sing in 
 the people's ears the sweetest of all earthly songs — save the song of a 
 mother over her child — the song of 'The Laughing Water.' " 
 
 " But will not that be a waste ?" 
 
 " Yes, my boy. And for that very reason, I think we, the people, 
 will have our fountain ; if it be but to make our governments, and cor- 
 porations, and all public bodies and officers, remember that they all — save 
 her Majesty the Queen — are our servants, and not we theirs ; and that 
 we choose to have water, not only to wash with, but to play with, if we 
 like. And I believe — for the world, as you will find, is full not only of 
 just but of generous souls— that if the water supply were set really right, 
 there would be found in many a city many a generous man who, over 
 and above his compulsory water rate, would give his poor fellow-towns- 
 men such a real fountain as those which ennoble the great square at 
 •Carcasonne and the great square at Nismes, to be ' a thing of beauty, 
 and a joy for ever,' 
 . "And now, if you want to go back to your Latin and Greek, you 
 fehall translate for me into Latin — I do not expect you to do it into 
 ■Greek, though it would turn very well into Greek, for the Greeks knew 
 all about the matter long before the Eomans — what follows here ; and 
 ypu shall verify the facts and the names, &c., in it from your dictionaries 
 of antiquity and biography, tbat you may remember all the better what 
 it says. And by^that time, I think, you will have learnt something more 
 useful to yourself, and, I hope, to your country hereafter, than if you 
 had learnt to patch together the neatest Greek and Latin verses which 
 have appeared since the days of Mr. Canning. 
 
 " I have often amused myself by fancying one question which an old 
 Eoman emperor would ask, were he to rise from his grave and visit the 
 sights of London under the guidance of some minister of state. The 
 august shade, would, doubtless, admire our railroads and bridges, our 
 ■cathedrals and our piublic parks, and much more of ■svhich we need not be 
 ashamed. But after awhile, I think, he would look round, whether in 
 London or in most of our great cities, inquiringly and in vain, for one 
 class of buildings, Avhich in his empire were wont to be almost as con- 
 spicuous and as splendid, because, in public opinion, almost as necessary 
 
 C 
 
18 [Chap. I. 
 
 as the basilicas and temples ; ' And where,' he would ask, ' are your pub- 
 lic baths ? ' And if the minister of state who was his guide should 
 answer — ' 0, great Caesar, I really do not know. I believe there are soma 
 somewhere at the back of that ugly building which we call the National 
 Gallery ; and I think there have been some meetings lately in the East 
 End, and an Amateur Concert at the Albert Hall, for restoring, by 
 private subscriptions, some Baths and Washhouses in Bethnal Green^ 
 which had fallen to decay. And there may be two or three more about 
 the metropolis ; for parish vestries have powers by Act of Parliament to 
 establish such places if they think fit, and choose to pay for them out of 
 the rates,' — then, I think, the august shade might well make answer — 
 * "We used to call you in old Eome northern barbarians. It seems that 
 you have not yet lost all your barbarian habits. Are you aware that in 
 every city in the Eoman empire there were, as a matter of course, public 
 baths open, not only to the poorest freeman, but to the slave, usually for 
 the payment of the smallest current coin, and often gratuitously ? Are 
 you aware that in Eome itself, millionaire after millionaire, emperor after 
 emperor, from Menenius Agrippa and Nero down to Diocletian and Con- 
 stantino, built baths, and yet more baths ; and connected them with 
 gymnasia for exercise, with lecture rooms, libraries, and porticoes wherein 
 the people might have shade and shelter and rest ? I remark, by the 
 bye, that I have not seen in all your London a single covered place in, 
 which the people may take shelter during a shower. Are you aware 
 that these baths were of the most magnificent architecture, decorated 
 with marbles, pairtings, sculptures, fountains — what not? And yet I 
 had heard in Hades down below that you prided yourselves here on th& 
 study of the learned languages ; and, indeed, taught little but Greek and 
 Ijatin at your public schools ? ' 
 
 " Then, if the minister should make reply — ' Oh, yes, we know all 
 this. Even since the revival of letters in the end of the fifteenth century 
 a whole literature has been written — a great deal of it, I fear, by old 
 pedants who seldom washed even their hands and faces — about your" 
 Greek and Eoman baths. "We visit their colossal ruins in Italy and 
 elsewhere with awe and admiration ; and the discovery of a new Eoman 
 bath in any old city in our isles sets our antiquaries buzzing with 
 interest.' 
 
 " * Then why,' the shade might ask, ' do you not copy an example 
 which you so much admire ? Surely England must be much in want 
 either of water, or of fuel to heat it with ? ' 
 
 " ' On the contrary, our rainfall is almost too great ; our soil so damp 
 that we have had to invent a whole art of subsoil drainage unknown to 
 you ; while, as for fuel, our coal-mines make us the great fuel-exporting 
 people of the world.' 
 
Chap. L] 19 
 
 " Wliat a quiet sneer miglit curl the lip of a Constantine as lie replied 
 — ' Not in vain, as I said, did we call you, some fifteen hundred years 
 ago, the barhai-ians of the north. But tell me, good barbarian, whom I 
 know to be both brave and wise — for the fame of your young British 
 empire has reached us even in the realms below, and we recognize in you, 
 with all respect, a people more like us Eomans than any which has 
 appeared on earth for many centuries — how is it you have forgotten that 
 sacred duty of keeping the people clean, which you surely at one time 
 learnt from us ? When your ancestors entered our armies, and rose, some 
 of them, to be great generals, and even emperors, like those two Teuton 
 peasants, Justin and Justinian, who long after my daj's reigned in my 
 own Constantinople ; then, at least, you saw baths, and used them, and 
 felt, after the bath, that you were civilized men, and not ' sordidi ac 
 fmtentes,'' as we used to call you. when you were fresh out of your 
 bullock-waggons and cattle-pens. How is it that you have forgotten that 
 lesson ? ' 
 
 " The minister, I fear, would have to answer that our ancestors were 
 barbarous enough, not only to destroy the Roman cities and temples, 
 and basilicas and statues, but the Eoman baths likewise, and then 
 retired, each man to his own freehold in the country, to live a life not 
 much more cleanly or more graceful than that of the swine which were 
 his favourite food. Bat he would have a right to plead as an excuse, 
 that not only in England, but throughout the ■ whole of the conquered 
 Latin empire, the Latin priesthood, who in other respects were, to their 
 honour, the representatives of Roman civilization and the protectors of 
 its remnants, were • the determined enemies of its cleanliness ; that they 
 looked on personal dirt — like the old hermits of the Thebaid — as a sign 
 of sanctity, and discouraged — as they are said to do still in some of the 
 Komance countries of Europe — the use of the bath, as not only luxurious, 
 but also indecent. 
 
 " At which answer, it seem to me, another sneer might curl the lip of 
 the august shade, as he said to himself, ' This, at least, I did expect, 
 when I made Christianity the State religion of my empire. But you, 
 my barbarian, look clean enough. You do not look on dirt as a sign of 
 sanctity ? ' 
 
 " * On the contrary, sire, the upper classes of our empire boast of 
 being the cleanliest — perhaps the only perfectly cleanly — people in the 
 world — except, of course, the savages of the South Seas. And so far from 
 dirt being a thing which we admire, our scientific men — than whom the 
 world has never seen M'iser — have proved to us for a whole generation 
 past, that dirt is the fertile cause of disease and drunkenness, misery and 
 recklessness.' 
 
 " ' And, therefore,' replied the shade, ere he disappeared ' of discontent 
 
20 [Chap. I. 
 
 and revolution, followed by a tyranny endured, as in Kome and many 
 another place, by men once free, because it will at least do for them what 
 they were too lazy, and cowardly, and greedy to do for themselves. 
 Farewell, and prosper, as you seem likely to prosper, on the whole. But 
 if you wish me to consider you a civilized nation, let me hear that j'ou 
 have brought a great river from the depths of the earth, be they a thou- 
 sand fathoms deep, or from your nearest mountains, be they five hundred 
 miles away, and washed out London's dirt — and your own shame. And 
 till then, abstain from judging too harshly a Constantine, or even a 
 Caracalla ; for they, whatever were their sins, built baths and kept their 
 people clean. But do your gymnasia, your schools and universities, 
 teach your youth nought about all this ? '" 
 
 One of my chief objects in preparing this work is 
 to show how fair the Act has been utilized. In prosecuting 
 inquiries for this purpose, it was found that Government 
 possessed but little information on the subject, and, with 
 the exception of a return obtained at the instance of Mr 
 P. Tajlor, by the House of Commons in 1865, there 
 were no other statistics available, and these, on examin- 
 ation, were found to be incorrect ; therefore, the informa 
 tion, given in the following chapter, has been procured 
 direct from the respective parochial authorities, and 
 will show to every reader that the question has not 
 received that general attention which it eminently de- 
 serves, and which has been bestowed upon all other 
 sanitary matters. The statistics will exhibit the progress 
 and. position of the Baths and Washhouses movement 
 since its commencement. When the pioneers of the move- 
 incnt unfolded their scheme it was undoubtedly regarded 
 as purely philanthropic; such, indeed, it was, and like 
 every effort for the moral or physical elevation of a people, 
 such it must remain ; but philanthropy does not 
 necessarily imply charity. Though not, perhaps, consti- 
 tutinsc the most lucrative' and desirable investment for 
 capital from a commercial point of view, thirty years' 
 experience of the advantages of the Baths and Washhouses 
 
Chap. I.] 21 
 
 reform shows that they can be made to produce results 
 (pecuniary and otherwise) not altogether inappreciable in 
 annual balance sheets. But of this I shall have more to 
 say further on ; as also to show that the direct profits 
 might be materially increased by the adoption of the 
 Turkish Bath and the warm lavatory as a substitute for, 
 or in addition to, the warm bath. 
 
 It was from a consideration of these facts that, when it Proposal 
 was proposed to erect Public Baths and Washhouses for Hot-air 
 the parish of Paddington, I argued that a very beneficial ^^\f^ ^"^^ 
 deviation might be made from the usual plan of such Wash- 
 establishments by the addition of hot-air baths. I there- '^°^^^^'^- 
 fore submitted to the Paddington Vestry, March 19th, 
 1872, the following resolution, which was referred to the 
 Commissioners : — * 
 
 That, inasmuch as sanitary matters are at present occupying the 
 serious attention of the Legislature, with a view to the better protection 
 of public health, and it being generally admitted that the use of hot-air 
 baths has materially conduced to the health of the people, it be referred 
 to a special committee to furnish a report upon the desirability of this 
 Vestry recommending the Commissioners for Baths and Washhouses 
 making arrangements for the erection on the site about to be purchased 
 by them of a suitable Turkish Bath for the use of the working classes. 
 
 To obviate any doubt as to the legality of adopting Letter 
 these Baths, I obtained the following letter from thcGovn-n-' 
 Local Government Board : — ^^"^*, 
 
 Board. 
 Local Government Board, Whitehall, 
 I2th February, 1873. 
 SiK, — I am directed by the Local Government Board to acknowledge 
 the receipt of your letter of the 22nd ultimo, with reference to the pro- 
 
 * Ko exertion on my part was omitted to mtike my colleagues 
 understand the benefits to be derived from the addition of Hot-air 
 Baths, both in a sanitary and financial point of view, but thej'-, 
 acting upon the ancient aphorism, " Where ignorance is bliss 'tis folly to 
 be wise," determined not to acc[uaint themselves with the subject or 
 entertain it-s adoption. 
 
22 [Chap. I. 
 
 posal of the Commissioners of Baths and "Washhouses for the parish of 
 Paddington to erect a Turkish Bath. 
 
 In reply to your inquiry, I am directed to state that, in the opinion of 
 the hoard, for large populations, such as that of Paddington, the Turkish 
 Bath may reasonably be regarded as a sanitary agent — that is to say, 
 that for certain portions of the population, such a bath might conduce to 
 the preservation of health. 
 
 Looking at the proposal from a legal point of view, the Board direct me 
 to state that, although the statutes to which you refer contain no defini- 
 tion of baths, the schedule to the statutes 10 and 11 Vic, cap. 61 
 recognizes a vapour bath, and the Board therefore apprehend that there 
 would be no legal objection to the establishment of a Turkish Bath. 
 
 The schedule referred to, however, limits the rate of charge for the 
 admission to the bath provided by the commissioners, fixing twopence as 
 the maximum charge for labouring classes, and sixpence for higher 
 classes of persons, so that, apparently, the bath must be supplied at a 
 
 loss. 
 
 I am, Sir, your obedient servant, 
 
 H. FLEMMING, Secretary. 
 
 But, though the proposition to establish baths and 
 washhouses was finally adopted, mj resolution to render 
 them more efficient was rejected. 
 
Chap, n,] 23 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Baths and Washhouses erected on the Rates under 
 
 THE PROVISIONS OF THE BaTH AcT, 9 AND 10 VlC, 
 
 Cap. 74, with a complete financial return of 
 their original cost and working expenses since 
 the date of opening each establishment. 
 
 (meteopolitan.) 
 
 "" Only in a strong and clean body can the soul do its message fitly. 
 The praises of cold water seem to me an excellent sign of the age. 
 They denote a tendency to the true life. "We are now to have, as a 
 remedy for ills, not orvictan, or opium, or any quack medicine, but 
 plenty of air and water, with due attention to warmth and freedom 
 in dress and simplicity of diet. Every day we observe signs that the 
 natural feelings on these subjects are about to be reinstated, and the 
 body to claim care as the abode and organ of the soul, not as the tool o'f 
 servile labour or the object of voluptuous indulgence," — Marqaeet 
 Fuller, American Authoress. 
 
 THE information in this and the following chapter has Introduc- 
 been collected and arranged with great care; it presents marks. 
 a concise view of the whole question, and will enable the 
 reader to see almost at a glance what has been done in 
 the direction of providing baths and washhouses for the 
 people, the original cost of the various metropolitan and 
 provincial establishments, the relative receipts and ex- 
 penditure in working them, and the measure of support 
 they have received. 
 
 No pains and perseverance have been spared on the part 
 of the author to obtain correct returns, while the names of 
 those from whom the information has been obtained arc 
 
U [Chap. II. . 
 
 published with a view to making them responsible for 
 its accuracy. The difficulty experienced in obtaining^ 
 these returns has been very great indeed, in fact 
 it has taken me four years to get them in their 
 present complete form. My inquiries were met with 
 all kinds of objections, which I can only under- 
 stand by supposing that the Bath accounts have 
 been mixed up in almost inextricable confusion with '\<} 
 general parochial accounts. While I could, as a rule, 
 readily get a portion of the required information, it was 
 only by repeated applications made by myself, or indi- 
 viduals employed by me for the purpose, that I succeeded 
 in bringing the information to its present completeness. 
 In some cases local friends of influence succeeded where I 
 had altogether failed ; for example : Mr. William Hoyle, 
 the philanthropic statistician, obtained the desired informa- 
 tion relating to the Bury baths after I had been flatly 
 refused it. Seeing that the Act provides that a separate 
 set of books should be kept for the accounts, it is obvious 
 that the intention was that the accounts should be so kept 
 as to show, at a glance, the financial condition at any 
 period during which the baths had been in operation, and 
 it is somewhat. surprising that the Auditor appointed by 
 Government should not have insisted upon this plan being 
 adhered to, and a imiform system adopted throughout the 
 country. W^ere this the case, not only would the informa- 
 tion be available to the public, but it would be most 
 valuable to the Commissioners or to any other authority 
 which might be working the Act. 
 
 The Government spares no labour or expense in pro- 
 curing and publishing information, often of the most 
 minute and elaborate kind, respecting the condition and 
 occupation of the various peoples of the earthy civilized 
 and uncivilized, wherever our consular system extends. 
 
Chap. II.] 25 
 
 In these directions we get " tons of Blue Books," and 
 the information may possibly be of some remote interest 
 or even use, but I would suggest that home matters arc 
 of the greatest importance to us. 
 
 It seems strange, indeed, that the accounts to which I 
 have been referring, together with the accounts of all 
 other sanitary departments, are not regularly and 
 periodically deposited at some central office where the 
 information might be tabulated for public inspection, if 
 not published annually. I would suggest that in each 
 county the information should be collected and deposited 
 with the county authorities for use and reference by the 
 respective inhabitants, and that in the metropolitan 
 district the Registrar- General should be the depository 
 and custodian of these annual statements. 
 
 I have every reason to believe that the metropolitan 
 returns are in the main correct, but in some of the 
 provincial I am afraid that neither tlie appeal made 
 nor the interest of the subject was sufficient to induce 
 the authorities to take much trouble with the accounts ; 
 consequently I am disposed to think that some of the 
 returns are not so correct as they might be. Of course, 
 this is only a surmise on ray part, as I have had no 
 other means of drawing this inference except from 
 communications obtained piece-meal, but whatever the 
 shortcomings may be, it is but just to say that this is 
 the first attempt, officially or otherwise, to collect a 
 correct financial statement of the question, and I do 
 not despair of being able to effi^ct my object before I 
 issue a second edition. I must say considerable credit 
 attaches to the various authorities for the trouble they 
 have taken in the matter, and I hope I am not ungrate- 
 ful for such information as they have supplied. 
 
 The population is given from the last census, with a 
 
26 [Chap. II. 
 
 view of showing the ridiculous inadequacy of the Bath 
 and Washhouse accommodation provided for the masses. 
 
 METROPOLITAN BATHS. 
 
 St. Maeylebone. 
 
 Baths opened December I8tli, 1849. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths ... £23,671 
 
 Total amount raised from rates 21,450 
 
 Receipts since date of opening 80,987 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... 70,049 
 
 Accounts made up to March, 1875. 
 
 E. S. FOOT, Superintendent. 
 
 Maryle The parish of Marylebone has a popuhition of 150,254, 
 
 and the rateable value is £1,304,898. 
 
 The baths are situated in the Marylebone Road, at the 
 extreme* border of the parish, in close proximity in the 
 north to Lisson Grove, Bell Street, &c., a thickly populated 
 neighbourhood, and on the west (in the adjoining parish 
 of Paddington), Hall Park, Edgware Road — a large block 
 of middle- class houses, with an artizan population of about 
 3000. 
 
 The baths have an area of 21,672 square feet, and 
 comprise 4 swimming baths, viz. : — a first-class, 24 by 
 45 feet, which holds 31,464 gallons ; a second-class, 
 21 by 67 feet, holds 37,887 gallons; a third-class, 21 by 
 67 feet, holds 37,887 gallons ; and a new bath, 72 by 26 
 feet, holds 56,000 gallons. 24 first-class and 57 second- 
 class men's baths, 12 first-class and 14 second-class 
 women's baths, ironing and drying rooms, 240 washers 
 can be accommodated daily. 
 
 The receipts have exceeded the working expenditure by 
 £10,938, which has been applied in paying interest, and 
 in making improvements and additions to the baths. 
 
Chap. IL] 27 
 
 This was the first bath opened in London erected under 
 the Act, and it may be regarded as the parent or model 
 institution, as but little deviation has been made from its 
 plans and arrangements by the projectors of other baths 
 and washhouses in the metropolis. Being the first, it 
 Jiad necessarily many difficulties to pass through ; never- 
 theless, it has been very successful in a pecuniary point of 
 view, which may in measure be attributed to the excellent 
 management of the superintendent, who has been connected 
 with it since its commencement. 
 
 There are no less than four excellent swimming baths 
 provided, one of which has only lately been opened, and 
 is one of the most artistic in London. 
 
 After the Stingo Lane improvements were completed, 
 the Commissioners purchased from the Metropolitan 
 Board of Works, at an extravagant outlay, the site for 
 this swimming bath, which, including the ground, cost 
 upwards of £7000. It may be observed that this addi- 
 tional bath accommodation was quite unnecessary for the 
 neighbourhood, the more especially as Paddiugton had 
 already erected an establishment not more than a mile 
 west of it, and, consequently, the number of bathers was 
 more likely to diminish than increase. 
 
 It would have been more prudent on the part of the Com- 
 missioners if they had added £5000 to the £8000 expended 
 uselessly on the fourth swimming bath, and erected a 
 second establishment in the neighbourhood of Maryle- 
 bone Lane, nearly in the centre of the parish, provided 
 with washhouses and warm water baths only. They would 
 have supplied a want much needed by the people, and at the 
 same time obtained fresh support from those who would 
 never use the present establishment on account of the 
 distance ; and in a pecuniary view they would have 
 proved equally as successful, but now they have sunk an 
 
28 [Chap. IL 
 
 additional £7000 or £8000 without the prospect of 
 increasing their returns one penny, in fact, with every 
 probability of their returns being reduced. 
 
 St. Margaeet and St. Joitis", Westminster. 
 
 Baths opened May, 1851. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building ...' £15,C00 
 
 Total amount raised from rates 20,460 
 
 Eeceipts since date of opening 50,900 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... 50,37S 
 Accounts tnade up to March, 1876. 
 
 W. EOGEES, Cleric. 
 
 St. Mar- The parishes of St. Margaret and St. John,¥7'estminstery 
 W^3 hn*^ ^^^^'® ^ population of 66,050 and the rateable value is 
 West- £521,811. The baths are situated in Great Smith Street, 
 mins er. -^yijigij jg ^ very low and crowded neighbourhood — a more 
 suitable spot could not be found — and it is encouraging to 
 find that the people have appreciated the baths to such a 
 large extent. The returns show that this establishment has 
 been conducted and maintained with great efficiency and 
 economy. The authorities have not been tempted into 
 extravagant expenditure in alterations and so called 
 improvements, as is the case in some other parishes, 
 thus violating the spirit of the Act. The baths have 
 an area of 152 by 122 feet, they are all on tlie ground 
 floor, and comprise 28 first and 40 second-class bath?,. 
 a first-class swimming bath 24 by 32 feet, and a 
 second-class 24 by 42 feet. There are 65 washing tubs. 
 The original cost of the building has been repaid. Tlie 
 receipts exceed the expenditure by £522, and, con- 
 sidering the cash has been chiefly derived from the poorer 
 classes using the baths, the financial result is very good 
 indeed, and shows that the poor, huddled together more 
 like pigs than Christians, only require a good institution 
 placed before them and they will avail themselves of the 
 advantages it ofi^ers, 
 
Chap. II.] 29 ^ 
 
 St. James, Westminstek. 
 
 Baths opened June, 1852. (Site Frccliold. 
 
 Original cost of building baths £21,000 
 
 Total amount raised from rates .. . * ... ... ... ..• 20,476 
 
 Amount of Loan remaining unpaid 6,133 
 
 Receipts since date of opening 67,473 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... 66,602 
 Accounts made tip to J)cceinher, 187o. 
 
 EGBERT KERE, Clerk. 
 
 This parish has a rateable value of £567,771, and a St. James, 
 . West- 
 
 population of 15,610. minster. 
 
 The baths are situated in Marshall Street, Golden 
 Square, one of the most desirable localities of any in the 
 metropolis, amidst a densely populated and unhealthy 
 neighbourhood. 
 
 The baths comprise 25 first and 46 second-class men's 
 baths, 15 first and 18 second-class women's baths, and a 
 swimming bath 42 by 38 feet, 84 washing tubs, drying 
 and ironing rooms. The returns do not depend npon 
 tie patronage of the first-class bathers, but the second- 
 class, a class the Act was intended to benefit. The financial 
 results here again point to the fact that if baths are 
 brought to the homes of the poor they will use them. The 
 receipts exceed the expenditure £871. The costs of altera- 
 tions and additions to the baths have been consider- 
 able, and are included in the working expenditure. Up 
 to this date £26,476 has been raised from the rates for 
 principal and interest, and £0133 remains to be paid off 
 the original loan for building. 
 
 Poplar. 
 
 Baths opened July 15th, 1852. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths ^ll.oOo 
 
 Total amount raised from rates 14,740 
 
 Receipts since date of opening 25,383 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 29,728 
 
 Accounts made up to March, 1876. 
 
 E. COLEMAN. 
 
30 [Chap. II. 
 
 Poplar. The parish of Poplar has a population of 48,611, and 
 
 the rateable value is £294,193. 
 
 The baths are admirably situated in the East India 
 Dock Road, in the midst of a population comprised of 
 sailors, ship-carpenters and smiths, dock-porters and 
 labourers, sugar-refiners and others of a similar character. 
 With such a population it is difficult to understand the 
 Avant of appreciation as shown by the receipts unless it 
 arises from mismanagement, or a want of greater accom- 
 modation in the summer. In the winter months these estab- 
 lishments are AYorked at a loss, while in summer, during^ 
 the hot weather, they are crowded to suffocation ; hence 
 it is desirable that there should be very large accommoda- 
 tion to meet the requirements in summer so as to compen- 
 sate for the losses in the winter ; therefore I am inclined 
 to believe that one of the reasons why these baths show 
 such a bad financial return is that they are too small. 
 Had they been one-third larger, which in the first instance 
 would not have cost more than £5000, it would have made 
 a favourable difference in the returns, while the actual 
 working expenses would not have been perceptibly 
 increased. 
 
 The baths have an area of 120 by 120 feet, and contain 
 12 first and 24 second-class men's baths, 6 first and 6 
 second-class women's baths ; a first-class swimming bath, 
 42 by 26 feet; a second-class swimming bath, 42 by 26 
 feet ; 48 washing tubs ; ironing and drying rooms. 
 
 The original cost has been paid, but the expenditure 
 has exceeded the receipts £4345, which has to be made 
 up from the rates, so that this establishment has hitherto 
 proved a failure in a financial point of view, although 
 the expenditure has been distributed over a period of a 
 quarter of a century. 
 
Chap. II.] 31 
 
 St. Giles-in-the-Fields a]s"d St. Geoege Bloomsbury. 
 
 Baths opened in 1854. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of huilding baths ... £20,857 
 
 Total amount raised from rates since date of opening 14,000 
 
 Receipts since date of opening 79,230 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening... ... 70,579 
 
 Accounts made up to March, 1876. 
 
 J. EOBINSON, Eon. Sec. 
 
 These parishes have a popuhxtion of 47,556 and the St. Giles- 
 rateable vahie is £332,602. The baths are situated in Fields 
 
 Endell Street, in the immediate neiojhbourhood of ^^ ^*" 
 ' _ ^ George 
 
 Holborn, Drury Lane, Seven Dials, and other very Blooms- 
 crowded districts ; a large proportion of the inhabitants ^ ' 
 are very poor, Avith many small middle-class trades- 
 men. The building contains 18 first and 31) second-class 
 men's baths, 8 first and 8 second-class women's baths ; 
 A first-class swimming bath, 36 by 24 feet, holding 25,000 
 gallons ; a second-class swimming bath, 40 by 24 feet, 
 holding 30,000 gallons ; 54 washing tubs ; drying and 
 ironing rooms. 
 
 The original loan has been repaid, £8651 having been 
 contributed from the profits towards it. The financial 
 result of this establishment is another evidence of the 
 appreciation of baths by the lower classes. 
 
 Bekmondsey. 
 
 Baths opened June 24th, 1854. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £16,500 
 
 Total amount raised from rates ... ... ... ... ,., 20,650 
 
 Keceipts since date of opening ... ... ... ... ... 49,664 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... 42,768 
 Accounts made np to March 26th, 1876. 
 
 "W. COENWELL. 
 
 This parish has a population of 80,429, and the rateable Bermcnd- 
 value is £357,042. The baths are situated in Spa Eoad, 
 in the midst of tanners, curriers, leather dressers, skinners, 
 
32 
 
 [Chap. II. 
 
 and other extensive and obnoxious trades. They comprise 
 20 first, 31 second-dass men's baths, 6 first and 8 second- 
 dass women's baths, and 2 swimming baths, 30 by 29 feet. 
 The financial results show that this establishment has 
 been well patronised. The bathers number, suice date of 
 opening, 2,229,447, and washers, 073,3.35. The original 
 loan has been repaid and the receipts exceed the expendi- 
 ture £6896. It will be seen that the accommodation is less 
 than any other, except Poplar, yet it has yielded more tha^i 
 any other bath with the same capital expended, which is 
 mainly due to its economical and excellent manage- 
 ment. The Commissioners have given the people all tliey 
 require in regard to bath and washhouse accommodation ; 
 and have avoided useless expenditure upon ornamentation, 
 always holding in view that the object of these institutions 
 is mainly to meet the wants of those of their poorer 
 brethren who have no accommodation at home for washing 
 and drying their clothes, and cannot aflPord to pay more 
 than 2d. for a warm bath; thus rigidly keeping within 
 the meaning of the Act of Parliament. 
 
 St. Geosge, Hanovee Squaee. 
 
 Baths opened 1855. (Site Leasehold to the Ycstry.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths ... £33,861 
 
 Raised from rates .. . ... ... ... ... ... ... 57,608 
 
 Loans borrowed ... ... ... ... ... ^5,000 
 
 Eeceived for rents... ... ... ... ... ... ... 2,056 
 
 Repayments to Vestry and rents 19,798 
 
 Repayment on account of loan 47,448 
 
 Receipts from baths since date of opening 95,036 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... 88,-591 
 Accounts made up to March, 1875. 
 
 J. n. D0GC4ETT. 
 
 fit.Gcorgc, rpi^g parish of St. George, Hanover Square, has a popu- 
 '•^quarc. lation of 89,677, and the rateable value is £1,499,954. 
 
CriAr. IL] 33 
 
 This is a very ricli parish and the poor-rates are 
 merely nominal. No other metropoh'tan parish contains 
 so small a relative proportion of working classes, 
 hence it liad less necessity for baths than any other parish. 
 There are two establishments in this parish one for the out- 
 ward and one for tlie inward wards. Davies Street Baths, in 
 the inward, comprise 14 first and 18 second-class mesi's 
 baths, 7 first and 8 second-class Avomen's baths, and 3G 
 washing tubs. It is situated at the border of the parish, 
 and so far as the support given by the poor is concerned, 
 much of it must come from the Marylebone parish in the 
 neighbourhood of Marylebone Lane district, &c. Tho baths 
 in Buckingham Palace Road in the outward ward have 16 
 first and 1 7 second-class men's baths, 6 first and 8 second- 
 class women's baths, and 44 washing tubs ; they are much 
 resorted to by the residents in Pimlico and Chelsea imme- 
 diately contiguous. 
 
 It is difficult to understand the accounts as presented to 
 us. We find £57,608 has been raised from the rates in 
 addition to loans amounting to £35,000, and yet the repay- 
 ments on account of loan are only £47,448, It is therefore 
 impossible to determine the amount of loan remaining 
 unpaid. It is, moreover, a curious fact that the lease of 
 the premises in Davies Street will expire Lady Day, 1881, 
 and that of Buckingham Palace Eoad, Lady Day, 1886, in 
 both instances before the last instalments of original loan are 
 due. The only way we can account for tho this is that 
 the baths are leased from the Yestry, as an item of 
 £ 19, 7 98 has been repaid to that body. I believe both 
 establishments must be worked at a loss, but unless tho 
 cost of building and repayment of loans are included in 
 the receipts and expenditure, the rcturiis show a 
 profit. 
 
 It is always pleasing to see public bodies give the people, 
 
 D 
 
34 [Chap. II. 
 
 both rich and poor, all requisite sanitary institutions, but of 
 all the metropolitan parishes, St. George's is the one that 
 least required baths and washhouses, and yet it has spent 
 more upon them than any other excepting Paddington; how- 
 ever, being a very rich parish the ratepayers can afford 
 to pay for it. I am sorry to say we have had many pain- 
 ful instances where local authorities have put in motion 
 Acts of Parliament relating to other sanitary depart- 
 ments thereby involving the ratepayers in enormous debts 
 when not actually required. I do think it is wrong of the 
 Government to allow any petty authority to adopt an 
 Act, and create enormous debts upon the people, with- 
 out appointing an inspector to regulate the expenditure 
 to the ratepaying capabilities of the parish, especially in 
 new neighbourhoods. 
 
 St, Martins- iN-THE-FiELDS. 
 
 Baths opened 1856, (Site Leasehold from the Crown.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £21,000 
 
 Total amount raised from rates .. . ... ... ... .,. 2-5,155 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid 5,700 
 
 Eeceipts since date of opening ... 44,388 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... 46,022 
 Accounts made up to December Z\st, 1875, 
 
 J, DANGEEFIELD, ClorJc. 
 
 St. Mar- This parish has a population of 21,238 and the rateable 
 thcMds ^'al^^e is £350,710. The baths are situated in Hemming's 
 Row, St. Martin's Lane, a very appropriate site, having 
 Leicester Square on the north, and the Strand district to 
 the east, a very densely populated neighbourhood. The 
 baths have an area of 100 by 40 feet and comprise 18 men's 
 first and 34 second-class, 5 women's first and 7 second- 
 class baths, and 61 Avashing tubs; ironing and drying 
 
Chap. II.] 35 
 
 rooms. This establishment has alwaj's boon worked under 
 disadvantages, with a heavy ground rent of £80 per 
 «nnum. So far as concerns washing the clothing and 
 bodies of the people, these baths have, notwithstanding all 
 the drawbacks, succeeded better than any other institu- 
 tion of the kind, both in a sanitary and pecuniary point 
 of view. 
 
 Swimming baths are generally considered the most 
 lucrative of all, and St. Martin's having none sustains this 
 loss, hence the receipts represent the return upon the 
 cleansing baths and washing clothing, a wholesome fact 
 worthy the notice of sanitar!/ reformers and to he I'emem- 
 hered ivheii adoocatlng the adoption of this branch of 
 science. There can be no question that the first outlay was 
 relatively too large for the accommodation afforded, the 
 -commissioners commenced crippled for room, with a heavy 
 ground rent, minus one of the most lucrative branches of 
 the business, viz., the swimming bath, and have been but 
 meagrely supported by first-class bathers. The expen- 
 ■diture exceeds the receipts £1634, the loss is, however, 
 relatively small when we consider the number of years it 
 ^.vtends over, and the great boon conferred upon thousands 
 of human beings of all nationalilies livino- in the neio-h- 
 bourhood. 
 
 St, Pangeas. 
 
 Baths opened May lOtli, 1868. (Site FrccliolJ.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £23,000 
 
 Total amount raised from rates .. . ... ... ... ... 10,085 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid 13, .525 
 
 , lleceipts since date of opening ... ... ... ... ... 2-), 206 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... 18,292 
 
 W. KEID. 
 
 The parish of St. Pancras has a population of 22r,46<3 St. Pan- 
 and the rateable value is £1,299,913. The baths arc " ' 
 
 D 2 
 
 eras. 
 
SQ [CnAr. II. 
 
 situated in King Street in the very centre of a densely 
 populated neighbourhood. This parish has attained some 
 little notoriety in its parochial management, but it is 
 more than probable that it has been much villified by the 
 public press, ^vhen we consider that it is one of the largest 
 and poorest parishes in London ; and it requires nO' 
 little dexterity to manage the affairs of such great magni- 
 tude with efficiency, with a board necessarily composed of 
 such infinitely varied opinions. It is, however, pleasing to 
 observe in the management of the baths as shown by the 
 financial statements, that the functionaries of St. Pancrasare 
 not such bad bvisiuess men as they have been represented. 
 
 The loan was borrowed from the Public Works Loan 
 Commissioners at 5 per cent, repayable in 20 years. The 
 baths have an area of 9550 feet, have only been opened 
 8 years, and the receipts exceed the expenditure £7080, 
 which is by far the largest profit made by any estab- 
 lishment erected under the Act. There are 2 (J men's 
 first-class and 57 second-class baths, 8 first and 10 
 second-class women's baths, swimming baths, and 63 
 v/ashing tubs. The bathers number 1,407,759, and'washers 
 199,11^. 
 
 The Commissioners have purchased a site for a 
 second establishment in Fitzroy Market, Tottenham 
 Court Poad. Tenders for plans were sent out, and 
 the one by Mr. Grundy accepted. The cost will be 
 about tlie same as their other baths, also designed by 
 the same architect. Judging from the dense population 
 in this neighbourhood, there is every reason to believe 
 that this second establishment will be equally successful. 
 This is the course that ought to have been followed 
 by the St. Marylebone Commissioners, instead of adding 
 another s\\'imming bath as they have done. 
 
 This second venture is, no doubt, in a measure owing to 
 ihe great success of their first establishment. 
 
CuAP. IL] 
 
 Paddingtox. 
 
 Baths opened June, 137-1. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths i'48,000 
 
 liaised from rates ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 2,570 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid ... ... ... ... 48,000 
 
 Jieceipts since date of opening ... ... ... ... ... 7, 036 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... C,093 
 yLccouuts m:idc up to December, 1875. 
 
 J. TAYLOR. 
 
 The parish of Paddington has a popuhitiou of 93,813, ^adlinj 
 ■anA the rateablo value is £1,078,700. The baths are 
 situated in the Queen's Road, Westbourne Grove, sur- 
 rounded by very respectable inhabitants, and quite away 
 i'rom any pcor population. The establishment of these 
 baths Avas energetically supported by F. Powell, Esq., 
 iate M.P. for the N.W. Riding of Yorkshire, and 
 E. G. Davenport, Esq., now deceased, who was M.P. , 
 for St. Ives. Both were members of the Vestry at the 
 time. The baths have an area of 280 by 137 feet, and 
 comprise: — a first-class swimming bath, 90 by 40 feet ; 
 a second-class, 57 by 30 feet; a third-class, b;> by 30 
 feet, and a women's swimming bath, 68 by 30 feet ; 28 
 first-class and 4G second-class men's warm baths, 10 
 first and 12" second-class women's warm baths, and 3G 
 washing tubs. The receipts in eighteen months were £7036, 
 and expenditure (working expenses) £60J3 ; showing a 
 nett profit of £943, a result which must necessarily have 
 proceeded from the patronage of first-class bathers in 
 the swimming baths, and not from the warm water 
 baths. 
 
 The building and plant cost the ratepayers the 
 enormous round sum of £48,000, a sum more than treble 
 that expended in some other metropolitan parishes. 
 
38 - [Chap. II. 
 
 "When the Commissioners went before the Yestry for 
 the money to purchase the site there were a great many 
 objections urged against the large amount asked for, and 
 it was only granted through the plausible statement that 
 they could recoup themselves at least one half by letting 
 or selling a portion of the frontage for shops, still leaving; 
 sufficient room for the erection of baths behind. Curiously 
 enough, however, after the Commissioners obtained the 
 concession, they made no efforts to fulfil their promises,, 
 and the Vestry had no power to compel them to do so. 
 
 Tenders were sent out for building the baths, and out 
 of some nine competitors, the lowest, £23,500, was. 
 accepted, which provided for the present baths with the- 
 exception of the ladies' swimming bath. The amount was- 
 not considered excessive ; but what is most extraordinary 
 nearly £20,000 more was spent for extras, which is a 
 circumstance, I think, unprecedented not only in bath 
 establishments, but in any undertaking built under 
 contract. 
 
 Extravagances of this kind reflect great discredit upon 
 any public body, and frighten ratepayers in other parishes 
 from incurring even necessary expenses, so that sani- 
 tary and other improvements are often retarded in 
 consequence. 
 
 The commissioners might have provided all the ac- 
 commodation necessary for a sum not exceeding £30,000, 
 including site and swimming baths, and recouped them- 
 Belves at least £5000 by re-selling a portion of the ground 
 as at first contemplated, and the financial issue, so far a& 
 the receipts are concerned, would have proved as much 
 as it is on the £48,000. 
 
 If the commissioners had been so disposed they might 
 have expended the extra money very judiciously in pro- 
 vidinir a second establishment with warm water baths and 
 
Cjiap. II.J 39 
 
 ■waslihouses in the nciglibourhood of Lock Bridge, Harrow 
 ]Ioad, the very centre of the artizan and poor popuhi- 
 tion of tlie parish, wliich "would not only have conferred a 
 benefit npon the people, but have gi'eatly aided the 
 sanitary authorities in improving the condition of the 
 neighbourhood, which is much required. 
 
 After all, £943 over and above the working expenses for 
 eighteen niontlis does not show a very healthy return with 
 a capital of £50,000 sunk, even with all the pushing the 
 establishment has had since it has been opened. It is 
 self-evident to every intelligent mind who knows anything 
 of the wants of the poor of Paddington, that such an 
 outlay was not needed, especially in the neighbourhood of 
 Wcstbourne Grove ; in fact, every principle of economy has 
 been violated, as well as the Act of Parliament perverted. 
 The institution is just as much a trading speculation as 
 their next door neighbour's, Mr. Whiteley, the " universal 
 provider." 
 
 As a ratepayer of the parish of Paddington my advice 
 is, seeing that Mr, Whitelev Iias a mania for buying up 
 everybody's business in Westbourne Grove, the most wise 
 and best course to adopt would be to get that gentleman to 
 buy them out, and commence do novo, in a more suitable 
 neighbourhood and not invest all the money in one 
 concern. 
 
 At the very outside, Paddington only comprises about 
 19,000 of the labouring classes whose wants are required to 
 be met ; the major portion of this class reside from three- 
 quarters to two miles distant from the baths, hence this 
 establishment must always depend for its chief support 
 from persons whose social position does not need the 
 local authorities to provide them with baths and places to 
 wash their clothing at the expense of the ratepayers, 
 any more than with providing tliem with clothing or food. 
 
40 [CiiAP. II. 
 
 The original debt and interest of tliese batlis will no 
 doubt have to be paid by the ratepayers, and if baths and 
 wash-houses are to be erected by the Artizans' Dwellings 
 Company, on the Queen's Park Estate, Harrow Iload, 
 Avhich is intended to accommodate 10,000 souls, I am 
 inclined to think that the Paddington Baths will be loss 
 likely to pay tlieir working expenses. 
 
Chap. II.J 
 
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42 [Chap. II. 
 
 Remarks It is ndmitted by both Conservative and Liberal politi- 
 politaV ' cians that there is no branch of sanitary science of greater 
 Buiha. importance, or calculated to be productive of more real 
 good, than providing the people with ample baths and 
 washing tubs, especially when such institutions can be 
 made lucrative, a result not to be effected in other 
 branches. The foregoing financial statement shows that 
 a capital of £234,000 expended piecemeal over a period 
 of thirty years, has yielded a profit of £35,000 over and 
 above the working expenses^ notwithstanding the extrava- 
 gance in the original cost, while the plant and premises, by 
 additions, &c., have increased in value at least 10 per cent., 
 making, in round numbers, the profits £50^000. This 
 must be gratifying to every ardent supporter of a move- 
 ment set in motion for the better purification of the bodies 
 and clothing of a section of the community who cannot 
 individually help themselves. 
 
 Millions of pounds have been spent in sanitary im- 
 provements, from which no pecuniary return can be ex- 
 pected except what might be gained through the 
 reduction of the Poor Rate by the improved health of 
 the people. Yet the Bath and Washhouse Movement 
 has scarcely been recognized, although quite as im- 
 portant in the promotion of the peojjle's health, and 
 capable of yielding a direct profit to the ratepayers on 
 the money invested, as is shown by the financial returns. 
 Surely then it is an institution which commends itself to 
 every social reformer, and should have received greater 
 attention and if necessary the Act made comjjulsory. 
 
 It is marvellous what great boons may be conferred 
 upon the people by a system of co-operation, which has 
 been shown by the gigantic sanitary improvements the 
 Metropolitan Board of AVorks have effected, and are 
 still effecting, at a comparative small cost to individual 
 ratepayers of the metropolitan area. 
 
Chap. 1L] 43 
 
 A rate of Gil. in tlie pound upon an assessment of 
 £8,000,000, the rateability of the parishes which have 
 adopted the Act, has been sufficient to put into cfperatlon 
 ten large bathing establishments. It must be admitted 
 that this is a very meagre sum to be expended for wash- 
 ing a population of 846,712, compared with expenses in- 
 curred in other sanitary improvements ; yet these parish 
 authorities have done more than their neighbours, and, 
 in many instances, were less justified in incurring extra 
 expenses upon their fellow ratepayers. 
 
 Although the gross outlay has been borne by the ten 
 parishes, the support the establishments have met with is 
 as much due to adjacent parishes as their own. There 
 are a great number of persons residing in other parts of 
 the parish, whose wants the establishments ought to have 
 met, who are precluded from the benefits in consequence of 
 the distance. It appears to me one of the great hindrances 
 to the adoption of the Act, is the expense falling upon 
 individual parishes, and, after careful examination of the 
 question, I have come to the conclusion that the cost 
 of erecting baths shouhl be met from a rate levied ujion the 
 whole of the metropolitan area — a rate so insignificantly 
 small that it would never be felt. Baths are sanitary 
 necessities for the people, and should be placed In suitable 
 localities, regardless of the boundaries of any parish. 
 This arrangement would remove local burdens and every 
 obstacle out of the way of the adoption of the Act. 
 
 In erecting these sanitary institutions the wealthier 
 portion of the community often escape the tax by living 
 in a neighbourhood or parish where the Bath Act is 
 never likely to be enforced, and it must be evident to 
 every sound politician, that to effect any great good, the 
 rich should bear part of the burden. About twenty more 
 establishments, in addition to the ten already existin 
 
44 [CiiAr. ir. 
 
 would reach the requirements of the artizau population of 
 London. Eighteen-pence in the pound would cover the 
 Avhole cost, supposing the debt to be discharged at once, 
 but if the money was borrowed by the Metropolitan Board 
 of Works over a long period at a small interest, the present 
 financial results of the existing establishments show, 
 (notwithstanding many have been erected without regard 
 to expense or economy) that the profits over and above 
 the working expenses would pay principal and interest 
 in sixty years, this may be illustrated by taking the 
 returns of 4 baths, viz., St. Margaret's and St. John's 
 Westminster, St. James's AVestminster, St. Giles' 
 Bloomsbury, and Bermondsc}', where the major portion 
 of the money has been received from 2d. baths, their 
 original cost amounts to £73,357, receipts -£247,267, and 
 expenditure £230,327, leaving a profit of 16,940 towards 
 the original cost over and above working expenses, cost 
 of additions, &c,, which may be computed at 10 per 
 cent, upon the whole receipts, making the profit at least 
 £25,000 in twenty-five years, and there is no disputing 
 the fact that the sv.-imming baths at these establishments 
 are very small ; if they had greater accommodation 
 in this department, the receipts would be sufficiently 
 augmented to cover the original debt in sixty years. 
 
 It is a disgraceful fact, unworthy of the 19th century, 
 considering the march science has made in every other 
 direction, that the wisdom that governs parochial afRxirs 
 of the metropolis has only seen fit to provide 840 warm 
 baths, and about as many w^ashing tubs, for the poor 
 amongst 3 ,500,000 people, located within an area of 
 75,000 acres or 122 square miles. This is, to say the 
 least of it, a neglect of the essential creature comforts 
 of a section of the community who were born with 
 abihties that will only command such a remuneration as 
 
CiiAT. IT.] 45 
 
 enables tlicm to provido llieir daily bread, and whose 
 habitations must necessarily be restricted in healthful 
 accommodation. 
 
 Tlie working of the Baths and Washhouses Act is 
 vested in a Commission of '' not less than three or more 
 than seven persons being ratepayers of the parish,"' they 
 are appointed by the Vestry, though not necessarily from 
 among its members. This Commission duly constituted 
 is independent of the Vestry, acting solely and entirely on 
 its own responsibility, except that it has to apply to and 
 receive from the Vestry all such moneys as are necessary 
 to the carrying out of the Act ; but once having obtained 
 those moneys it is as regards its disbursement in no way 
 subject to the control of the Vestry, beyond being bound 
 to submit its accounts annually to the inspection and 
 examination of two persons (not being commissioners) 
 appointed by the Vestry for that purpose. 
 
 It may be urged that the Commissioners for Public 
 Baths and Washhouses are open to criticism, and if not 
 approved others would be appointed in their place, but 
 only one-third of the members go out of office annually, 
 so that the Board cannot be entirely renewed under three 
 years, during this time great and irreparable mischief may 
 be done, and is done, especially at the commencement of 
 a new enterprise. 
 
 It is useless to expect that baths and waslihouses can 
 be erected economically so long as they are under the 
 control anil supervision of sucli an anomalous governing 
 body as that Avhich has the direction of them at pre- 
 sent. They ought to be placed under the jurisdiction 
 of parishes, in the same way as lighting, paving, 
 sanitary matters, and other parish affairs are, or some 
 other more competent authorities, such as the Metro- 
 politan Board of Works, and until this is done we may 
 
43 [Chap. IL 
 
 look for other eucli exliibitioiis of incapacity as have 
 been presented in the case of Paddington Baths and 
 Washhoiises. The ratepayers' money will be squan- 
 dered in the most lavieh and reckless manner on gilding 
 and stucco, -svhile plans and suggestions for economy arc 
 entirely disregarded. 
 
 I may observe, in conclusion, that of the ten parishes 
 ■where the Act has been exercised, the population is 
 about 1,000,000, hence it will be found that there is but 
 one bath provided for each IGOD persons; and assuming 
 the Act was rot intended to benefit more than one half 
 of these, it would take at least a month before each 
 bather's turn would come round again, supposing the 
 baths to be open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. This is a state 
 of things discreditable to the Government of a civilized 
 Christian country. 
 
 Dr. Tidy, Medical Officer of Health for Islington, 
 who must be rcgaided as an authority, remarks in his 
 last report : — 
 
 " It is an instructive fact, and it is no use for us to shut our eyes to it, 
 or to tiy and blind other people's ej-es. The two points I am desirous of 
 making clear to you arc these : 1. That, so far as mortality is concerned, 
 the records of the piast twenty years show little or no marked improve- 
 ment, and that therefore your chances of living and dying in 1876 are 
 pretty nearly the same as they were in 1856. 2. That, although wc 
 have in a measure stopped the ravages of some diseases, still, in order to 
 hring up the death rate to what I may call its normal per-centage, other 
 
 diseases must have, and have increased in a like ratio If at 
 
 every church and chapel (for here we ought to find the true spirit of 
 work and progress) Sanitary Organization Societies (not Charity Organ- 
 zation Societies) were started, what an immense work they might effect. 
 Ignorance is the parent of filth, and filth is the parent of disease ; know- 
 ledge is the parent of cleanliness, and of the love of the beautiful, and 
 these bring forth health. We may be ceitain of this, that in sanitary 
 measures, even so simple a thing as cleanliness requires to be learnt just 
 as much as the Latin grammar ; and similarlj", too, its use is not always 
 appreciated at the time it is being learnt. "Where else can we look for it 
 to be taught, but to recognized teachers ? 
 
CuAP. IL] 47 
 
 The editor of tlie Globe, of lOfch October, sensibly 
 remarks on Metropolitan Lethargy. 
 
 " Next in importance to providing the wording classes in towns with 
 more decent dwellings, comes the need of public baths. A little has 
 already been done in London to supply this vrant, but nothing, as we 
 have repeatedly poin ted out, in comparison with public requirements. 
 Until every unit of the metropolitan population has within easy reach, 
 such means of ablution, it cannot be said that London even approaches 
 the ideal of hygienic perfection. Nor does there seem any valid reason 
 why the good work should not be made to return a reasonable rate of 
 interest on the capital expended. The baths at Manchester, which the 
 corporation of that town are now thinking of purchasing for the public, 
 have so far showed a fair balance sheet. After deducting expenses, the 
 balance of profit suffices to pay about 3 per cent, on the amount sunk in 
 construction. It is true this moderate interest would not tempt private 
 capital into the venture. But the obligations of the Metropolitan Board 
 of Works are growing into greater favour with the public year after year, 
 the present price of their 3j per cent, stock being over par. Assuming 
 that they will soon be able to borrow at 5 per cent, less, and that a 
 system of public baths could be so arranged as to return a steady 3 per 
 cent, per annum, the loss on the operation would be very trifling in 
 comparison with the benefits resulting to the community. Moreover, it 
 is said that the Manchester baths were built in a very extravagant 
 fashion, involving a large expenditure of capital more than was really- 
 necessary. One authority goes so far as to assert that equal accommodation 
 might have been provided for a quarter of the sum expended. If this be 
 true, London could, perhaps, be supplied throughout without involving 
 any increased charge on ratepayers. Be that as it may, the work is one 
 that ought to be taken in hand on a comprehensive scale without delay. 
 In matters of this sort, it is the province of the metropolis to set a good 
 example to other centres of population. London, unfortunately, seems 
 generally disposed to lag behind in the race, as is seen in the sluggishness 
 of its movements in connection with the Artizans' and Labourers' Dwell- 
 ings Act." 
 
48 [Chap. IIL 
 
 CHAPTER IIL 
 
 PROVINCIAL BATHS AND WASHHOUSES. 
 
 ■ Bedfordshire. 
 
 Area of the County, 305,293 acres; population in 1871, 151,539. 
 
 LUTON. 
 
 Batlis opened Jane 3rJ, 1872. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths ,£1,250 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid 1,125 
 
 Receipts since date of opening 541 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... 1,160 
 
 Eeqiiired from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 619 
 Accounts made up to May, 1876. 
 
 I.uton. fpHE borough of Luton is situated 18 miles S.E. of 
 X Bedford. It has a population of 22,000, and the assess- 
 ment is £75j070. Manufactures, straw hats and bonnets. 
 The baths were erected by the Loeid Government Board, 
 and comprise a first and ,tecond-cl:tss swimming bath, 
 each 50 feet in length : S first and 3 second-class warm 
 batl'.Sj and 2 shower bath-;. 
 
 The expenditure has exce3.'ed the receipts £619 during 
 the four years the baths have been o] 'cned. They have either 
 been worked at a very great lo.'-s, or a considerable 
 sum expended in alterations and additions must be 
 included in the working exjicii.-es. Luton is a very 
 healthy town, and although bnths for the people at large 
 are essential for sanitary purposes, tiiey are not so much 
 required here as in towns where the occupations of the 
 inhabitants are of a less cleanly nature. 
 
CnAP. III.] 49 
 
 Berkshire. 
 
 Ai-ea of the county, 553,968 acres; ijoioulation in 1871, 226,268. 
 NEWBURY. 
 
 The borough is situated on the Kennett, 15 miles S.W. ^ewLuiy, 
 of lleMding. It was formerly famous for woollen manu- 
 factures, but now little is done besides corn crindincj and 
 malting. It is in the midst of a rich agricultural district, 
 and is one of the smallest towns which has adopted the 
 Bath Act; the assessment is £20,822, and the population 
 is 6602. There are two baths, which cost £300, and the 
 site is held on lease for ninety-nine years from the 
 Charity Trustees, at £1 per annum. The baths were 
 opened in 1870 ; their cost has been entirely repaid from 
 the receipts and other sources, although no charge is made 
 at one bath, it being free. The receipts since date of 
 opening exceed the expenditure by £160, and after paying 
 expenses the excess is applied in aid of the rates. This 
 presents a striking and gratifying contrast in the 
 financial result to Luton. Although both are healthy 
 towns, and their labouring classes healthfully occupied, it 
 also indicates that baths are appreciated by agricultural 
 communities, a class hitherto almost totally unprovided 
 
 with such accommodaton. 
 
 S. JOHNSON". 
 
 Cheshire. 
 
 Area of the county, 691,752 acres ; iDopulation in 1871, 539,785. 
 
 CHESTER. 
 
 Baths opened January 11th, 1850. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths ,£1,135 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid ... 90O 
 
 Receipts since date of opening 1,120 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of Oldening 1,468 
 
 ^Required from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 318 
 Accounts made uj) to August, 1875. 
 
 J. WALKER. 
 
 E 
 
50 [Chap. III. 
 
 Chester. This ancient city is situated 16 miles S.W. from Liver- 
 pool. It has a population of 35,000, and the assessment 
 is £124,129. Shipbuilding is carried on to a large extent, 
 and it has a considerable export trade in cheese, cast iron, 
 coalj and copper plates. 
 
 The baths cover an area of 342 yards, and comprise 3 
 first-class, 2 second-class, and 1 third-class baths, with a 
 room for shower baths. 
 
 The buildings were erected by public subscription, and, 
 on the adoption of the Bath Act in 1850, the council pur- 
 chased them from the subscribers for £700, and expended 
 £200 more, but the total cost appears to be £1135. The 
 expenditure exceeds the receipts £348, and the original 
 debt on the establishment is unpaid. Seeing the baths have 
 been in the hands of the Corporation nearly sixteen years, 
 it is difficult to believe that the financial return for the 
 wliole period has been rendered correctly. Mr. Walker, 
 who sends the information, is responsible for the accuracy 
 of the figures. The baths have been very meagrely 
 patronized, consequently the people of Chester must be 
 very dirty. The establishment is small for the size of 
 the town, but large enough considering the support it 
 has received. 
 
 MACCLESFIELD. 
 
 Batlis opened by the Corporation in 1870. (Sitp Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building hatha .- ... ... £350 
 
 Keceipts since date of opening ,.. , S19 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 1,003 
 
 Eequired from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 184 
 
 Accounts made up to Aicgust 1875. 
 
 J". 3IAY. 
 
Chap. III.J 51 
 
 The borough of Macclesfiekl is situated on the river Macclcs- 
 Bollen, 18 miles S.E. from Manchester. It has a popula- 
 tion of 35,570, and the assessment is £75,9G0. The 
 manufactures are chiefly cotton and silk fabrics. The 
 area of the baths is 755 superficial yards, they comprise 
 8 first-class 13 second-class baths, and 2 vapour baths. 
 
 The buildings were erected seventeen years ago by public 
 subscription, but five years ago were handed over to the _ 
 Corporation; the purchase money, £350, was paid by 
 the Duke of Westminster. The expenditure has exceeded 
 the receipts £184 during the five years the baths have been 
 worked by the Corporation. No pains have been spared 
 here by philanthropists to make the poor inhabitants 
 " wash and be clean," but the financial result shows that 
 this kindness has not been properly appreciated. 
 
 STOCKPORT. 
 
 Baths opened June, 1859. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £1,500 
 
 Receipts since date of opening 2,368 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... ... 5,057 
 
 Required from rates to make up deficiency 2,689 
 
 Accounts made up to August, 1875. 
 
 W. HYDE. 
 
 The borough of Stockport, the largest town in Cheshire, gtockport 
 is situated on the Mersey, 6 miles S.E. of Manchester. 
 It has a population of 53,000, and the assessment is 
 £170,000. Manufactures : woollen, cotton, and silk 
 fabrics, machinery, brass and iron goods, brushes, 
 spindles, and shuttles. The baths are small, only cover- 
 ing an area of 51-9 square yards, and comprise 4 first- 
 class, 4 second-class, a family bath, and a swimming 
 bath 50 by 33 feet. This establishment has been worked 
 at a loss: the accounts show that the orioinal cost has 
 
 £ 2 
 
Derl)y. 
 
 52 [Chap. III. 
 
 been paid, but the expenditure exceeds the receipts £2689. 
 It is quite possible it includes payment on account of the 
 loan, which should have been kept distinct from the 
 working expenses. The occupations and dwellings of 
 the labouring classes of Stockport are such as ought to 
 make baths and washhouses verj desirable; but seeing 
 the small establishment has been poorly patronized, 
 corporal cleanliness is not so raucli appreciated as it might 
 be, consistent with the laws of health, and a favourable 
 reduction of the rate of mortality, which is generally 
 high. 
 
 Deebyshire. 
 
 Area of tlae county, 501,702 acres ; population in 1871, 324,900. 
 
 DERBY. 
 
 Baths opened in 1858. (Site Freehold of the Corporation.) 
 
 Original cost of baths £6,000 
 
 Eaised from rates for payment of loan and interest 2,400 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid ... ... ... ... ... 3,800 
 
 Eeceipts since date of opening ... 6,6u3 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... ... 7,381 
 
 Required from the rates to make up deficiency in ■working 
 
 expenses 748 
 
 Accounts made up to end of financial year, 1875. 
 
 JOS. JOXES. 
 
 Derby, the chief town in the county, is situated on the 
 Derwent, 35 miles N.E. of Birmingham. It has a popu- 
 lation of 62,333, and the assessment is £184,759. Manu- 
 factures: silk and cotton fabrics, hosiery, ribbons, lace, 
 iron, porcelain, lead pipes, shot, white and red lead, 
 soap, &c. 
 
 The buildings occupy an area of 1025 square yards, and 
 comprise 30 baths and 2 shower baths. The accommo- 
 
Chap. III.] 53 
 
 elation provided is described as being very complete ; the 
 premises were formerly an old town house, but converted 
 into baths and offices by the Corporation. The Urban 
 sanitary autliority pay an annual rental of £50 for tlie 
 offices, and there is a residence for the manager. The 
 baths are all on the ground floor. They have not paid 
 financially, there being a deficit of £748 in seventeen 
 years. M. T. Bass, Esq., M.P., presented his consti- 
 tuents with free swimming baths, he no doubt saw the 
 defect in not having them provided by the Corporation, 
 and conferred this boon upon the people. 
 
 Devonshire. 
 
 Area of county, 1,643,343 acres ; population in 1871, 606,102. 
 
 PLYMOUTH. 
 
 Baths opened in 1856. (Site Freehold). 
 
 Original cost of building baths £1-,000 
 
 Total amount raised from rates for principal and interest ... 2,400 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid 1,600 
 
 Eeceipts since date of opening 3,087 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... ... 4,076 
 
 Ecquired from rates to make up deficiency of working expenses .989 
 Accounts made up to March 25th, 1876. 
 
 A. MARTIX. 
 
 This borougli, on account of its docks and harbour, is one Plymouth 
 of the most important maritime places in the kingdom. It 
 is situated at the head of Plymouth Sound, and has a 
 population of 70,000, and assessment of £175,120. Manu- 
 factures: sailcloth, ropes, glass, soap, starch, &c. There are 
 foundries for forging anchor.«j, and the victualling establish- 
 ments of the dockyard, are on a very large scale. 
 
54 [CuAP. III. 
 
 The batlis were established in 1853 bj private enterprise 
 but transferred in 1856 to the Local Board of Health to 
 ■whom they now belong. There are 23 baths provided, 
 which have at no time proved remunerative, and for fifteen 
 months previous to October, 1874, were let rent free; 
 since that time they have been relet at £40 per annum, 
 the sanitary authority spending a considerable sura in 
 repairs, I suppose to make them worth £40 a year. The 
 expenditure exceeds the receipts £989. It is presumed the 
 returns are made up to the date the baths were let, and 
 although established twenty years ago, nearly one-third of 
 the original loan remains to be paid. It is melancholy to see 
 this result, and difficult to undei'stand how it arises if the 
 baths are efficient and conveniently situated. It may be 
 the Corporation do not take sufficient interest in corporal 
 cleanliness, as judging from other towns with a similar 
 pojiulation these baths ought to be highly appreciated. 
 
 Durham. 
 
 Area of the county, 784,401 acres; population in 1871, 742,205. 
 
 DUEHAII. 
 
 Batlis opened August, 18-55. (Site Freeliold.) 
 
 Original cost of building batlis £6,287 
 
 Total amount raised from rates for principal and interest ... 5,675 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid 4,454 
 
 Eeceipts since date of opening ... ... ... ... ... 4,441 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 11,207 
 
 Required from rates to make up deficieccy in working expenses 6,766 
 Accounts made iqi to Septemher, 1875. 
 
 FREDERICK S. BRTINTON. 
 
 Durham. This episcopal city is situated on the river Wear, 
 15 miles S. from Newcastle -on-Tyne ; it has a population 
 of 14,406, and the assessment is £38,560. Manufactures : 
 woollens, hats, paper, leather, iron and brass goods. The 
 
Chap. III.] 55 
 
 area of tlie buiLlin^s is 1530 square yards. There are 
 6 first-class and 10 second-class men's warm baths, 4 
 women's second-class baths, 2 swimming baths, 5 shower 
 baths and 1 vapour bath ; and 19 svasliing tubs. 
 
 The money for the erection of tlie baths was borrowed 
 from Loan Commissioners, George Hudson, Esq., of Sunder- 
 land and the executors of the late R. Davison, Esq.* Only 
 £1833 appears to have been paid off. The expenditure 
 exceeds receipts £6766 during the twenty years the baths 
 Lave been in existence ; this is a large amount upon such 
 a small assessment, and shows a great want of manage- 
 ment or appreciation of the benefits of the baths by the 
 population. 
 
 GATESHEAD. 
 
 Baths opened February, 1855. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original co.st of building baths ... ... ... ... ... £5,685 
 
 Total amounts raised from rates for principal and interest ... 4,970 
 
 Receipts since date of opening ... ... ... ... ... 7,142 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... ... 7,647 
 
 Kaised from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses ... 505 
 Accounts made up to December Zlst, 1875. 
 
 J. W. SWINBUENE. 
 
 The borough of Gateshead is a suburb of Newcastle- Gatesheai 
 on-Tyne, with which it is connected by a bridge over the 
 Tyne. It has a population of 48,627, and assessment of 
 £90,537. Manufactures : glass, soap, paper, and cordage, 
 and there are extensive iron and coal works and docks for 
 shipbuilding. Many skilled mechanics and others reside 
 here whose occupation is on the other side of the river ; 
 nevertheless it is a grim, smoky, and dirty neighbourhood, 
 rendering washing appliances very desirable and necessary 
 for health and cleanliness. The baths have an area of 803 
 square yards, and comprise 6 first and 12 second-class 
 
 * I presume a portion of the loan was borrowed from the Loan Commis- 
 sioners and part from private individuals. 
 
56 [Chap. IIL 
 
 men's batliSj 2 first-class and 3 second-class Avomen's batliSy 
 and extensive laundries. The original cost lias been 
 entirely repaid ; £2185 was raised from a direct assess- 
 ment on the rates, and the remainder borrowed from the 
 Public Loan Commissioners for twenty years at 4 per cent. 
 The baths and laundries were let by the Corporation from 
 May 23rd, 1868, to September 9th, 1871 : during these 
 years no accounts are furnished. Considering the time the 
 Corporation have worked the baths the small deficit of 
 expenditure over the receipts is a very trifling matter when 
 compared with the great boon the establishment has been 
 to the community. 
 
 It is difficult to understand why the authorities of this 
 borough let the baths for three years, as the financial results 
 show that they have been appreciated. 
 
 STOCKTON-ON-TEES. 
 
 Baths opened June, 1859. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths ... ^3,000 
 
 Total amount raised from rates for principal and interest ... 3,960 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid ... ... ... 450 
 
 Eeceipts since date of opening 4,536 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 4,550 
 
 Eequired from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 14 
 Accounts made vp to April, 1876. 
 
 GEORGE HAERISON. 
 
 Stockton- This borough is situated on the Tees, 18 miles S.E. from 
 ees. j)^.}^,.^,^!^ Jt has a population of 36,000, and assessment of 
 £98,796. Manufactures : sail cloth, earthenware, damask. 
 Diaper and Huckaback linens, and there are boiler 
 factories, iron works, rope walks, large dry docks and 
 yards for shipbuilding. An extensive foreign and coast 
 trade is also carried on. 
 
 The baths have an area of 1120 yards and comprise 2 
 first and 2 second-class men's baths, 1 first-class and 
 2 second-class women's baths, and a swimming bath,, 
 
Chap. III.] 57 
 
 48 by 2G feet. The loan was borrowed from Public Works 
 Loan Commissioners, at 5 per cent., repayable by twenty 
 instalments of £150 each, and only three remain unpaid. 
 These baths have been opened seventeen years, and, Laving 
 paid their way, the financial results are satisfactory. 
 
 SUNDERLAND. 
 
 Ballis opened, Ucndon. Eoad, 1851. Halgarth Square, 1855. High 
 Street, 1860, (Sites Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £13,800 
 
 Total amount raised from rates for principal and interest ... 7,180 
 
 Amount of loans remaining unpaid 6,620 
 
 Eeceipts since date of opening 42,009 
 
 Expenditure (-working expenses) since date of opening ... 43,215 
 
 Eequired from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 1,206 
 Accounts made tip to August, 1875. 
 
 JOUN H. BEOWN". 
 
 This borough and seaport is situated near the month of gu^^^.^.. 
 the Wear, on the North Sea, 13 miles N.E. from Durham, land. 
 it is connected with the town of Monkwearmouth on the 
 opposite side of the river by an iron bridge of one arch. 
 Manufactures : flint and bottle glass, earthenware, cop- 
 peras, coal tar, cordage, cliaiu cables, sail-cloth and 
 chemicals. Shipbuilding is carried on to a great extent. 
 Coal is the chief export. It is much frequented by visitors 
 during the summer months for the sake of sea-bath- 
 ing. The population of the borough is 104,400, and tlie 
 assessment £300,000. It has three bath establishments — 
 Ilendon Road, covering an area of 975 square yards, and 
 containing 6 first, and 8 second-chiss baths ; Halgarth 
 Square, covering an area of 794 square yards, and con- 
 taining 4 first and 8 second-class baths ; High Street, 
 covering an area of 13l)0 yards, and containing 6 first and 
 15 second-class baths, and a spacious swimming bath; the 
 largest part of the area is occupied by washing stalls, 184 
 in number. The bathers average 45,1G0 yearly. The 
 
58 [CnAr. III. 
 
 expenclitiire exceeds tlie rGcei})ts £1206 in twentj-four 
 years. The management mnst liave been good and eco- 
 nomical, considering the borough has three small bathing 
 establishments, situated in different parts of the town, 
 that necessarily augment the working expenses at least 25 
 per cent., which would more than absorb the excess of 
 expenditure over the receipts, if there was only one 
 establishment ; therefore the financial results show that the 
 baths are appreciated in this seaport, which presents a 
 striking contrast to some other towns where the occupa- 
 tions of the inhabitants are similar. 
 
 Glamoeganshiee. 
 
 Areaof tte county, 606,356 acres ; population in 1871, 405,698. 
 
 CARDIFF. 
 
 Baths, opened May, 1873. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of baths £3,305 
 
 Eeceipts since date of opening 1,400 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 1,469 
 
 llequired from rates tt) make up deficiency in working expenses... 64 
 
 Accounts made lit) to August 31, 1875. 
 
 F. E. GEEENHILL. 
 
 Cardiff, Cardiff is a parliamentary borough and seaport in 
 
 Wales, situated on the TaflP, 11 miles S.W. from Newport. 
 It possesses most magnificent docks, and is the principal 
 shipping town on the western coast. The exports are 
 chiefly coal and iron. It has a population of 60,000, and 
 the assessment is £150,000. 
 
 The baths cover an area of 1705 square yards, and 
 comprise 5 first and 5 second-class warm baths, a Turkish 
 Bath, used on certain days as a second-class bath, a first 
 and second-class swimming bath. 
 
 The baths originated in a private speculation, but did 
 not succeed financially, as shown by the accounts, from 
 
Chap. III.J 59 
 
 May 1, 1866, to November, 1871. The total receipts 
 from the Turkish Bath were £1207 18s., while the 
 expenses, including interest on mortgage, law expenses, 
 and every item of outlay, were £1219 6s. 7d. ; the loss 
 during the 5 J years being £11 8s. 7d. During the 
 same term, £778 3s. Id. was received for warm baths, 
 and £862 14s. lOd. was expended in the same, the loss 
 being £84 lis. 9d., which is much greater in proportion 
 than that on the Turkish Bath. 
 
 Since these baths have been purchased by the Corpora- 
 tion, they are in a better financial condition, being free 
 from rates and taxes, and the cost of water is less than 
 one-half. During 1873 they were attended by 23,694 
 persons, the income was £506 6s. 7d., and expenditure 
 £374 6s. 9d. The interest of the purchase money, 
 repairs, painting, and furniture make the expenditure 
 equal to £512, showing that the loss had been only £6 
 on the year. Thus, it will be seen, there is a prospect 
 not only of the Cardiff baths paying for themselves, but 
 allowino: of a fair dividend. 
 
 Gloucesteeshire. 
 
 Area of the county, 715,776 acres ; population in 1871, 488,700. 
 
 BRISTOL. 
 
 Baths opened on the Weir, in 1850. IMayor's Paddock, 1873. (Sites 
 
 Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building haths ... ... £21,600 
 
 Total amount raised from rates for principal and interest ... 10,138 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid 11,945 
 
 E,eceii5ts since date of opening ... ... ... 16,781 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 21,511 
 
 Required from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses... 4,730 
 Accounts made tip to August 1875. JOHN HARFOlvD. 
 
 Bi-istol a city, borough and seaport, 112 miles W. from ^™toI. 
 London situated on the river Avon which is here joined by 
 
CO [Chap. III. 
 
 the Fronie. It is one of the most ancient and opulent 
 cities in England and lias long been engaged in a very 
 extensive foreign trade, chiefly with the AVest Indies, 
 Ireland, and the United States. About a mile west of the 
 city is Clifton hot wells, a suburb with about 21,000 inhabi- 
 tants, a place much resorted to. Bristol has a population 
 of 182,000 and the assessment is £625,256. There are 
 two very large bath establishments covering an area of 
 . 2080 square yards. The baths situated on " The Weir " 
 contain 16 first and 32 second-class men's baths^ 6 first 
 and 10 second-class women's baths, and 35 washing com- 
 partments. The second establishment situated at Mayor's 
 Paddock, opened in 1873, contains 15 first and 34 second- 
 class men's baths, 5 first and 10 second-class w^omen's 
 baths ; 2 swimming baths, each 37 by 22 feet, containing 
 25j000 gallons, 64 washing compartments, and 2 galleries 
 for ironing. 
 
 The expenditure exceeds the receipts £4730, so that in a 
 financial view they have not paid, but there were no swim- 
 ming baths before 1873 ; these increase the receipts very 
 much, and will no doubt in time cover all expenses. 
 
 Hampshike. 
 
 Area of the county, 105,291 acres ; population in 1871, 526,142. 
 WINCHESTER. 
 
 Winches- Is a city and borough situated on a hill gradually sloping 
 *^^* to the river Itchin, 60 miles S.W. from London. It has 
 
 very little trade^, but the Cathedral and college ensure to 
 it the residence of a large number of clergy and their 
 families. The population is 14,705, and the assessment 
 £63,156. 
 
CiiAP. III.j '61 
 
 The Batli Act was adopted in 1873, and the authorities 
 are not yet in a position to furnish a financial statement of 
 accounts. The only information received is given in the 
 following letter': — 
 
 2\th January, 187G. 
 
 Sin. — The information I can give you with, reference to the Warm 
 Eaths here M'ould, I am afraid, be of little use to you so far as the cost is 
 concerned. The Baths themselves were supplied by Jennings, of Lambeth, 
 and cost =£9 10s. each. There are nine of them, and the pipes, farnaco 
 and tanks cost me something like £200. The building, the divisions of 
 the Bath rooms, the fittings of the Baths, all the woodwork, floors, gas 
 fittings, W.G., were all done j)artly by builders and partly by my own 
 workmen, that I really do not know at the present moment what they did 
 cost. 
 
 I handed the Baths over, when completed, to a "Working Committee 
 and know nothing myself of the Working Expenses, but will hand over 
 your letter to the Committee,* who will no doubt answer your inquiry. 
 
 Yours faithfully, 
 
 Richard Moss. 
 Nprthgate, Winchester. 
 
 Kent. 
 
 Area of the county (extra metropolitan), 978,988 acres ; population in 
 1871, 629,126. 
 
 CANTERBURY 
 
 Is a borough and city, and the county town, situated on Cantcr- 
 the Stour, 50 miles S.E. from London. Tlie dignity of ^'^^^'" 
 being the metropolitan archiepiscopal see of all Eno-land 
 belongs to it. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the first 
 peer of the realm and takes precedence next the royal 
 
 * The Committee were never polite enough to reply to my communica- 
 tion. I hope their silence has been owing to pressure in the direction of 
 advancing the ma hincry Mr. Moss so generously put in motion for the 
 comfort and well-being of his poorer brethren. 
 
G2 [Chap. III. 
 
 family and crowns the sovereign in Westminster Abbey. 
 
 It has a population of 20,691, and an assessment of 
 £54,206. Considering the importance of this city, it being 
 the seat of the Archbishop, and its having a large number 
 of highly cultivated resident gentry and clergy, and seeing 
 that " cleanliness is next to godliness," it would have 
 reflected more credit upon the authorities had they given 
 the poor people an opportunity of washing themselves. 
 
 Mr. E. W. Flint officially informs us that " the Bath 
 Act was adopted some years ago, and some schemes have 
 been attempted, but none have come to maturity." It 
 will be seen that the authorities have recognized the 
 necessity of baths, or they never would have adopted the 
 Act ; if the same lethargy exists in other sanitary matters 
 as it does in providing baths, the ratepayers of Canterbury 
 will remain in the mire a long time. 
 
 MAIDSTONE. 
 
 Baths opened May 19th, 1852. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building Laths £5,000 
 
 Total amount raised from rates for principal and interest of original 7,094 
 
 Receipts since date of opening 5,999 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 11,428 
 
 Required from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 5,429 
 Accounts made up to August, 1875. 
 
 G. HOAE. 
 
 Maidstone- Is a borough and market town 29 miles S.E. from 
 London on the Medway, which is navigable here for vessels 
 of 50 or 60 tons. The principal productions of the neigh- 
 bourhood are fruit and hops, it is indeed the first hop 
 market in the kingdom. Its manufactures are felt, paper, 
 and coarse woollen goods, and there are extensive artillery 
 barracks in the town. 
 
 It has a population of 27,000 and the assessment is 
 
Chap. III.] 63 
 
 £106,237. The batlis comprise 3 first and 6 second-class 
 and 12 third-class men's baths ; 3 first-class and 6 second- 
 class women's baths, 2 shower baths, 1 vapour bath and 
 a swimming bath 33 by 20 feet. The original cost of 
 building has been repaid, but the expenditure exceeds 
 the receipts £5429 ; it may be a part of this has been 
 applied to pay the loan and interest, as the sum is exces- 
 sive considering the total receipts during twenty-three 
 years have only reached £570 more. 
 
 Lancashiee. 
 
 Area of tlie county, 1,307,162 acres; population in 1871, 2,849,259. 
 
 ASHTON-UNDER-LYNE. 
 
 Baths opened September 6th, 1870. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original c: st of building baths £17,505 
 
 Total amount raised from rates for principal and interest ... 858 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid 16,647 
 
 Eeceipts since date of opening 3,562 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 8,744 
 
 Kequired from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 5,182 
 Accounts made up to August Zlst, 1875. 
 
 HENRY GAETSIDE. 
 
 Ashton-under-Lyne is a borougli and flourishinof Ashton- 
 market town, situated on the river Tame, 6 miles east Y!\nT 
 from Manchester, the population is 37,389 and the assess- 
 ment £109,305. Manufiictures, principally cotton, but 
 there. are woollen, silk, and hat factories ; besides iron and 
 brass founding, brick making, machine making, bleaching, 
 dyeing, and basket making which are carried on to a con- 
 siderable extent. It is immediately connected with and 
 surrounded by Stalybridge, Mossley, Hyde, Dukinfield, 
 anf^ fthfr places, which have a united population of over 
 
6i [Chap. III. 
 
 55,000, all of wliicli are prlncipall j occupied in the cotton 
 manufacture and machine making. The manor of Ashton- 
 under-Lyne alone contains upwards of 170 factories and 
 80 coal pits. The occupations of the inhabitants being 
 necessarily of a dirty character, and the running water of 
 the vicinity polluted by the refuse from factories and other 
 works, they had no other means of cleanliness but the 
 domestic basin previous to the establishment of tlie Baths. 
 
 The baths are erected under the Ashton Improvement 
 Act, of 1849, but were not opened until 1870 ; they cover 
 an area of 1800 square yards, and comprise 6 first-class, 
 and 9 second-class baths ; a large swimming bath for men, 
 100 by 40 feet, and one for women, 27 by 15 feet ; and a 
 range of Turkish or Hot-air Baths, judiciously arranged 
 and cheaply administered, thus promoting this most 
 efficient and agreeable mode of bathing. 
 
 The expenditure exceeded the receipts £5182 in about 
 five years, which appears excessive ; but it is possible 
 a portion of this sum has been placed to the working 
 expenses instead of the loan account. 
 
 BLACKBUEN. 
 
 Baths opened July 11th, 1868. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building Laths ... £o,l7'i 
 
 Receipts since date of opening 2,472 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 4,448 
 
 Required from rates to make up deficiency in •working expenses 1,976 
 Accounts made up to June 20l/i, 1875. 
 
 W. E. L. GAINE. 
 
 Black- Blackbiu'n is a large and important manufacturing 
 
 town and borough, 20 miles N.W. from Manchester, and 
 25 S.E, from Lancaster. The manuf\ictures are muslins 
 and cotton goods, and there is a considerable quantity of 
 coal and lime in tlie neighbourhood. The population is 
 82,920, and the assessment amounts to £229,492. The 
 
Chap. Ill] 65 
 
 baths have au area of 973 square yards, and contain 12 
 men's first-class and 10 second-chiss baths, 7 women's 
 first-chxss baths, and a plunge bath 60 by 33 feet. The 
 cost of the buildings was borrowed from the Public Works 
 Loan Commissioners at oh per cent, repayable in thirty 
 years. The expenditure has exceeded the receipts £1976 
 in a period of eight years — a result not very encouraging. 
 
 BURY. 
 
 Baths opened Maj-, 1864. (Site Leasehold.) 
 
 Cost of huilding- £2,937 
 
 Eeceipts since date of opening 3,884 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... ... 5,365 
 
 Kequired from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 1,481 
 Accounts made v]) to March, 1876. 
 
 H. GRUNDY. 
 
 Bury is a Parliamentary Borough situated on the river Eury. 
 Irwell, 8|- miles N. from Manchester. Its manufactures 
 consist of cotton and woollen goods, and machinery. 
 There are bleaching and calico-printing establishments, 
 and some extensive iron works and coal mines in 
 the neighbourhood. 
 
 The population is 43,000, and the assessment £160.408. 
 
 The baths were commenced by a company, but only 
 one-third of the necessary funds were raised when they 
 were handed over to the local authorities. The cost of the 
 buildings was paid from the profits arising on gas, and has 
 not to be repaid, but they are subject to a ground-rent of 
 £30 per annum. They occupy an area of 2500 square 
 yards, and contain 10 first-class and 10 second-class warm 
 baths, 2 private baths, a first and second-class swimming 
 bath, a vapour bath, and a Turkish Bath. 
 
 The expenditure exceeded the receipts £1481 in twelve 
 years, a result difficult to account for, as the number of 
 bathers for one year ending March 31, 1876, was 18,248. 
 
 P 
 
66 [Chap. III. 
 
 lilVERPOOIi. 
 
 Pier Head (Salt Water.) 
 
 Baths opened in 182S. (Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £27,722 
 
 Receipts since date of opening ... ... ... ... ... 73,938 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 64,645 
 
 jLccounts made up to August Zlst, 1875. 
 
 CoRNWALLis Street. 
 
 Baths opened May, 1851. (Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £18,553 
 
 Receipts since date of opening ... ... ... ... ... 60,923 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 61,113 
 
 Required from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 190 
 
 Accounts made up to August Zlst, 1875. 
 
 Margaret Street. 
 
 Baths opened June 13, 1863, and the extension in 1868. (Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £11,191 
 
 Receipts since date of opening 15,428 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 12,225 
 
 Accounts made up to August 3lst, 1875. 
 
 Paul Street. 
 
 Baths opened November, 1846. (Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of builidng baths £8,470 
 
 Receipts since date of opening 23,572 
 
 Expenditare (working expenses) since date of opening... ... 31,832 
 
 Rtquired from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 8,260 
 Accounts made up to August Z\st, 1875. 
 
 Steele Street. ■ 
 
 Baths opened April 1874. (Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £14,500 
 
 Receipts since date of opening 1,779 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... ... 1,949 
 
 Required from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 170 
 Accotmts made up to August 31st, 1876. 
 
Chap. III.] 67 
 
 FuEDEEiCK Street. 
 
 Baths opGned in 1842. Rebuilt in 1854. (FrooliolJ.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £4,350 
 
 Eeceipts since date of opening 12,058 
 
 Exp3nditi:re (working expenses) since date of opening ... ... 23,987 
 
 Ecquired from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 11.929 
 Accounts made uji to August Z\st, 1875. 
 
 J. HATNER. 
 
 Liverpool is a borongli and one of the principal trading Liverpool. 
 and seaport towns in the kingdom, situated on the Mersey 
 about 4 miles from the Irish Sea. It is about 5 miles in 
 length and 2\ miles in breadth, its docks and basins have an 
 aggregate area of more than 300 acres. The trade is most 
 extensive, and it is to this rather than to manufactures 
 that it owes its importance ; it has, however, sugar re- 
 fineries, rope walks, glass works, brass and iron foundries, 
 soda Avorks, manufactories for watches and jewellery, 
 and shipbuilding is carried on to a large extent. Nearly 
 all the raw cotton imported into this country is landed 
 here. It has a population of over 500,000, and the 
 assessment reaches £2,248,277. It was the first town 
 which established public baths from money raised from 
 the rates. 
 
 The baths at the Pier Head were opened nearly half 
 a century ago, as Salt Water Baths, long before the 
 Act of Parliament came into force ; the situation is well- 
 chosen, as vast numbers of workmen are emploj'ed in 
 the neighbourhood. The area is 3825 square j'ards. It 
 contains ]3 warm baths, including 2 vapoiu' baths; a 
 first-class swimming bath, 46 by 27 feet; and a second- 
 class, 30 by 27 feet. Charges vary from 3d. to 2s. Gd. 
 The cost of building was £27,772. 
 
 The second estabiishment was opened in 1842, and 
 rebuilt in 1854. It is situated in Frederick Street ; the 
 
 F 2 
 
68 [Chap. III. 
 
 outlay for building was £4350^ but it is not stated in 
 the information supplied whether this includes the cost of 
 rebuilding. The area is 240 square yards. It is now 
 only used as washhouses, and contains 60 washing stalls 
 and 180 tubs. The charge on Mondays is Id. per hour^ 
 other days l^d. per hour, and closed on Saturdays, 
 The expenditure has exceeded the receipts by £11,929, a 
 result attributable no doubt to its exclusive use as a 
 washhouse. 
 
 Paul Street Baths were opened in 1846, and occupy 
 1028 square yards. There are 45 warm (including 
 4 vapour) baths, 2 swimming baths, 27 ft. 6 in. by 16 ft. 
 in., and 21 ft. 3 in. by 17 ft. 8 in. Charges Id. cold to 
 Is. vapour. It has also 88 washing tubs ; charges, 6d. per 
 day, including tub, dolly, and maiden. The building cost 
 £8470. The expenditure exceeds the receipts £8260. 
 
 Cornwallis Street Baths were opened in 1851 and cost 
 £18,553. The area is 1692 square yards; it has 63 Avarm 
 (including 3 vapour) baths ; 3 swimming baths ; a first- 
 class, 57 by 40 feet 9 inches ; a second-class, 42 by 27 feet ; 
 and a third 40 by 27 feet. Charges, Id. cold to 2s. vapour. 
 The expenditure exceeds the receipts £190. 
 
 Margaret Street Baths were opened in 1863 and 
 extended in 1868; they cost £11,181. The area is 
 1849 square yards. It has 25 warm (including 4 vapour) 
 baths ; 2 swimming baths, 67 ft. 6 in. by 34 ft. each. The 
 receipts have exceeded the expenditure £3203. 
 
 Stable Street Baths are more recent, having been opened 
 in 1874, showing that the authorities are not weary of 
 their work. The area is 2477 square yards, and the 
 buildings cost £14,500 ; it contains 40 warm baths and 
 3 swimming baths, one 50 ft. by 35 ft. 9 in., one 52 ft. by 
 37 ft. 9 in., and one 40 ft. by 28 ft. 9 in. Charges, Id. 
 cold to Is. warm. It has also 54 washing tubs — charge, 
 
Chap. III.] 69 
 
 1(1. per hour, and if more than one hour, ^d. is charged 
 including the first Id. The expenditure exceeds the 
 receipts £l70. 
 
 The total cost of building the six baths was £84,836, 
 find the expenditure has exceeded the receipts by £8053. 
 
 OLDHAM. 
 
 Baths opened Jul}-, 1854. (Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £4,900 
 
 Total amount raised from rates (principal and interest) ... ... 4,000 
 
 Receipts since date of opening ... ... ... ... ... 7,041 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 14,392 
 
 Kequired from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 7,351 
 Accounts made up to September, 1875. 
 
 H. BOOTH. 
 
 The borough of Oldham is situated on the Medlock, Oldham. 
 near its source, 7 miles N.E. from Manchester. The 
 manufactures are fustians, cotton goods, iron and brass 
 "ware, machinerj, hats and silks. The population is 
 100,000, and the assessment £309,250 ; there is also a 
 large population immediately surrounding the town, 
 which might be expected to use the baths, as well as 
 those within its limits. The area of the buildings is 1015 
 square yards, but, including the yard, is 2600 square 
 yards. It contains 3 first, 8 second, and 7 third-class 
 men's baths ; 2 first, 2 second, and 3 third-class women's 
 baths, a vapour bath, and a swimming bath. The original 
 cost has been paid, £4000 from the rates and £900 from 
 " The Peel Testimonial Fund." The expenditure exceeded 
 the receipts £7351 during the twenty-one years the baths 
 have been established. The operatives in this district 
 evidently do not appreciate the sanitary value of a 
 bath. 
 
70 
 
 [Chap. Ill 
 
 Preston. 
 
 PRESTON. 
 
 Baths opened September 1, 1851. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £11,217 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid 11,217 
 
 Eeceipts since date of opening ... 8,808 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... ... 11,947 
 
 Required from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 3,139 
 Accounts made iqj to August Z\st, 1875. 
 
 E. NEWALL. 
 
 The borough of Preston is situated about 15 miles from 
 the sea, on the river Ribble, and 22 miles S. of Lancaster. 
 Manufactures, linen and cotton fabrics, and brass and iron 
 goods. It has a population of 85,427, and the assessment 
 is £231,445. The baths cover an area of 2186^ superficial 
 yards, and contain 16 first and 31 second-class men's 
 baths ; 8 first and 8 second-class women's baths ; a large 
 first-class swimming bath, and a small second-class 
 swimming bath. The building was originally fitted up 
 as baths and washhouses, but the latter were discontinued 
 in 1870. None of the original cost has been repaid, and 
 the expenditure exceeded the receipts £3139 in twenty- 
 four years. 
 
 ROCHDALE. 
 
 Baths opened June, 1868. 
 
 Original cost of building baths 
 
 Total amount raised from rates for principal and interest 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid 
 
 Eeceipts since date of opening 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 
 
 Eequired from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 
 Accounts made up to March, 1876. 
 
 Z. MELLOR 
 
 £8,500 
 3,950 
 7,292 
 3,948 
 4,761 
 813 
 
 Eochdale. The parliamentary borough of Eochdale is situated en 
 the river Roche, 11 miles N.E. from Manchester. Manu- 
 factures flannels, kerseys, coarse calicoes, baizes, fustians; 
 
Chap. III.] 71 
 
 hats and machinery. It has a population of 44.556, and 
 the assessment is £287,815. The baths comprise a first 
 and second-class swimming bath, each 57 by 27 feet, a 
 third-class swimmiflg bath, 30 by 15 feet ; 7 first and 
 7 second-class men's baths ; 3 first and 4 second-class 
 women's baths ; 2 first-class Turkish Baths for men, and a 
 first class Turkish Bath for women. The swimming baths 
 are highly appreciated, as the water in the river is polluted 
 with the refuse from dye works. 
 
 Only £1208 has been paid off the loan, and the 
 expenditure exceeded the receipts £813 during the eight 
 years they have been in existence. 
 
 STALYBRIDGE. 
 
 Baths opened May 7th, 1870. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Receipts since date of opening £2,9.58 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... ... 4,039 
 
 Eequired from rates to make up deficiency in -working expenses 1,081 
 Accounts made up to March, 1876. 
 
 H. BUCKLEY. 
 
 This borough is in the parish of Ash ton-under-Lyne, Staly- 
 and situated on the borders of Lancashire and Cheshire, "^ °°' 
 7 miles E. from Manchester. Manufactures are princi- 
 pally cotton fabrics, but woollen goods, articles in brass 
 and iron, and machinery, are also made. It has a popula- 
 tion of 21,043 and assessment £80,G91. 
 
 The baths were presented to the borough by R. Piatt, 
 Esq., of Stalybridge, and the Corporation spent about 
 £1000 in making additions. The buildings have an area 
 of 900 yards, and contain 5 first and 6 second-class baths, 
 2 swimming baths and a Turkish bath. 
 
 The expenditure exceeded the receipts £1081 in about 
 six years, a deficit which is rather excessive. 
 
72 [Chap. III. 
 
 Lincolnshire. 
 
 Area of county, 1,731,801 acres. Population in 1871, 428,075. 
 
 GRANTHA-M. 
 
 Baths opened May, 1854. 
 
 Original cost of"l)uilding baths ... £1,000 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid 950 
 
 Eeceipts since date of opening 1,672 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of oj)ening 2,875 
 
 Eequired from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 1,203 
 Accounts made up to June, 1874. 
 
 HENRY BEAUMONT. 
 
 Grantham. Grantham is a parliamentary borougli, situated on tlio 
 river Witham, 23 miles S.W. from Lincoln. The popu- 
 lation is 5028, and the assessment, £44,684. 
 
 The bathing establishment comprises 4 first, 4 second, 
 and 2 third-class baths, and a swimming bath. Up 
 to the time the accounts were furnished, it appears 
 that only £50 has been paid off the original loan, and 
 the expenditure exceeds the receipts £1203 in twenty 
 years. 
 
 Mr. Beaumont readily supplied me with the information 
 in 1874, but on July 20th, 1876, he refused, and stated 
 that " The information you ask" (which was that he should 
 merely correct the information previously given, Avhich 
 appears above, by bringing it down to the date of the 
 last audit of the borough accounts) " not being required 
 by any Government order, I am not disposed to give it. 
 There is no objection to your publishing your paper, 
 omitting this town from it," and on August the lOth, in 
 reply to a note remonstrating with him, he says, ^' You 
 must really consider my letter of July 20th final. There 
 
Chap. III.] 73 
 
 is ho desire to have the information you ask for published, 
 and you must excuse my answering any further letters 
 upon the subject." Now it may be true that " there is 
 no objection to omitting this town," and " no desire to 
 have the information published " on the part of the Town 
 Clerk, but perhaps there may be burgesses of Grantham 
 who possess a sufficient amount of public spirit to take a 
 different view of the matter. These will be annoyed to 
 find that in consequence of the conduct of their servant, 
 the general public are' precluded from getting complete 
 information on this question, and I trust some resident 
 ratepayer will exercise his undoubted right, and obtain the 
 information for me to embody in a subsequent edition. I 
 may mention, howcA'er, that an application to the Mayor 
 fared no better, as that functionary informed me on the 
 4th of September, that he had " no communication to 
 make respecting the Grantham Baths." 
 
 NoTTINGHAMSnirwE. 
 Area of tlie county, 600,421 acres. Population in 1871, 355,404. 
 
 KANSFIELD. 
 
 Act adopted 1852, (Site Leasehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £l,-"00 
 
 Kecoipts since date of opening 284 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 975 
 
 Ee(iuired from rates to make up deficiency 691 
 
 R. PAESONS. 
 
 This town is situated 14 miles N. from Nottingham on Mansfield, 
 the borders of Sherwood Forest. Manufactures, cotton 
 
74 [Chap. III. 
 
 fabrics, hosiery and lace, and it lias a large trade in 
 malt. It has a population of 11,000 and the assessment 
 is £33,419. 
 
 The site for the baths was granted by His Grace the 
 Duke of Portland, at the nominal rental of 10s. per annum. 
 The original cost of building with interest has been paid 
 off at the rate of £50 per annum, which, with the 
 necessary expenses for maintenance, was raised from the 
 rates. 
 
 The receipts being exceedingly small, we presume the 
 parish authorities could only have retained the manage- 
 ment of the baths for short time, as they are let rent 
 free, a circumstance which shows that they are not 
 sufficiently interested in them to make them popular, 
 and will account for the present unsatisfactory state of 
 things. 
 
 Although repeated applications have been made, we have 
 been unable to obtain more complete returns, not even the 
 number or quality of the baths and the date they were 
 opened. 
 
 NOTTINGHAM:. 
 
 Baths opened 1850. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths ^4,700 
 
 Total amount raised from rates for principal and interest ... 4,905 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid ... ... ... ... ... 4,700 
 
 Eeceipts since date of opening 1,436 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... ... 1,585 
 
 Eequired from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 149 
 Recounts made up to December Blst, 1855. 
 
 S. G. JOHNSON. 
 
 Notting The borough of Nottingham, the chief town of the 
 
 ^^^™" county, is situated on a rocky eminence in a line with the 
 
 course of the Trent, 13 miles N.E. from Derb}-. Manu- 
 factures, silk and cotton stockings, lace for veils and shawls. 
 
Chap. III.] 75 
 
 It Las also several silk mills, dje-works, wire-Avorks, &c., 
 but lace is its great staple, being the cliief centre of this 
 manufacture. The population is 86,000 and assessment 
 £280,023. The baths occupy an area of 2 acres 8 poles, 
 and contain 8 first-class, 13 second-class, and 15 third- 
 class baths ; 2 first-class, 1 second-class, and 2 third-class 
 swimming baths. The cost of the buildinif has been 
 entirely repaid; financially the results are satisfactory. 
 Since 1855 the baths have been leased to a tenant at £100 
 per annum. 
 
 Nottingham, Avithout doubt, has greater bathing facilities 
 provided than any other town in the kingdom of its size. 
 There are open-air baths free of charge, and the charges 
 for swimming baths are from one halfpenny. 
 
 NORTHUMBEELAXD. 
 Area of the county, 1,290,312 acres; population in 1S"1, 383,646. 
 
 NEWCASTLE-ON-TYNE. 
 
 Baths opened 1862. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £7,000 
 
 Total amount raised from rates for principal and interest ... 10,466 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid ... ... ... ... ... 1,775 
 
 Receipts since date of opening ... ... ... ... ... 16,767 
 
 Expenditure since date of opening ... ... ... ... ... 23,585 
 
 Accounts made up to July Z\st, 1876. 
 
 E. S. PHILIPSON. 
 
 Newcastle is a borough and river port, and the chief New- 
 town in the coHnt3% It is situated on the Tyne, 14 miles Tyne. 
 N. of Durham. It has a population of 128,443 and 
 assessment, £367,442. The manufacture of locomotives, 
 tools, and all sorts of railway appliances, first introduced 
 
76 [Chap. III. 
 
 by George Stephenson, Mr. Pease of Darlington, Mi-. 
 Backhouse, and other railway celebrities, have continued 
 to flourish here, and it has become a great mechanical 
 centre. The whole neighbourhood both on the ISTorth- 
 umbrian and Durham side of the river is studded with 
 iron works and coal pits — the latter supplying tlic vast 
 consumption of London. 
 
 There are two baths establishments — one situated in 
 Gallowgate has an area of G52 square yards, and contains 
 G first, 8 second-class baths, 2 first and 2 second-class 
 shower baths ; the second establishment is much larger, 
 and is situated in the New Road, it covers an area of 
 1033 square yards ; it contains 12 first-class and 10 second- 
 class baths. The expenditure exceeds the receii)ts £6818, 
 but I am informed that this includes payment of principal 
 and interest of loan, so that, financially, these baths are 
 very successfid. 
 
 TYNEMOUTH, 
 
 Batlis opened August, 1854. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building batlis £4,000 
 
 Total amount raised from rates for principal and interest ... 6,336 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid 2,000 
 
 Keceipts since date of opening 7,355 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 9,697 
 
 Required from rates to make up deficiency in woiking expenses 2,342 
 Accounts made tcj> to August Zlst, 1875. 
 
 T. G. CLARKE. 
 
 Tyne- The borough of Tynemouth is situated at tlie mouth of 
 
 the Tyne, about 1 mile W. from North Shields, with 
 which it is united, and included within the limits of tho 
 borough. It is much resorted to during the summer 
 months, by all classes from Newcastle and Gateshead, for 
 pleasvire and bathing. The population of the town proper 
 is inconsiderable, but, including North Shields, is 41,000, 
 
Chap. IIL] 77 
 
 and the assessment is £85,905. The baths are conveniently 
 situated in Churchway, and cover an area of 4,699 square 
 feet, tliey contain 5 first and 12 second-chiss baths ; 20 
 washing stalls and 29 drying closets, the latter are much 
 used by the residents of the dark, dingy, and dirty streets 
 in the lower part of the town. 
 
 The expenditure exceeded the receipts m twenty-one 
 years £2342, so that financially these baths have not paid. 
 
 Staffordshire. 
 
 Area of the count}', 752,995 acres ; population in 1871, 877,425. 
 
 BILSTOJJ". 
 
 Baths opened August 6th, 1870. 
 
 Original cost of building baths £1,100 
 
 Total amount raised from rates for principal and interest ... 379 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid ... ... ... ... ... 917 
 
 Receipts since date of opening ... ... ... ... ... 489 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... ... 551 
 
 Tiequired from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 62 
 Accounts made iqj to May, 1875. 
 
 S. D. WASSELL. 
 
 Bilston is a large market town and borough 3 miles Bilston. 
 S.E. from Wolverhampton. It has large iron works and 
 numerous manufactories for japanned and enamelled 
 goods, coarse earthenware, and ironware. The population 
 is 24,000, and assessment £00,888. The inhabitants 
 are principally firemen, puddlers, colliers, nailmakerSj and 
 others, whose employment must necessarily be of a dirty 
 kind, indeed the whole line of country to "Wolverhampton, 
 in one direction, and West Bromwich and Birmingham in 
 the other, is inhabited by similar classes, rendering the 
 use of the bath a necessity for cleanliness and health. 
 
78 [Chap. III. 
 
 The baths here originated with a company at a time 
 when the town was most prosperous, and the working- 
 classes earning fabulous wages, but they did not succeed, 
 and were sold to the Township Commissioners for £700, 
 who expended a further sum of £400 for repairs. 
 
 The accommodation provided is 6 women's baths and 
 17 men's baths, and a swimming bath 53 by 27 feet. 
 
 The expenditure exceeded the receipts £62 in five years 
 — a financial result very encouraging under the new 
 management. 
 
 HANLEY. 
 
 Baths opened April 16th, 1874. (Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £10,000 
 
 Total amount raised from rates for principal and interest ... 654 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid 9,797 
 
 Receipts since date of Oldening ... '. 1,117 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 996 
 
 Accounts made up to August Z\st, 1875. 
 
 A. CHALLINOE. 
 
 Hanlcy. The borougli of Hanley is situated 2 miles from New- 
 castle-under-Lyne, and the chief manufactures are earth- 
 enware and paper. The population is 41,000, and the 
 assessment £96,790. Adjacent, are other populous towns, 
 so that probably 100,000 persons might be expected to 
 resort to these baths. Their pursuits are laborious, and 
 frequent ablutions are necessary for cleanliness and health. 
 The men's portion of the bath was opened in April, 1874, 
 and the women's section, which includes a swimming 
 bath, was opened in April, 1875. The area is 1400 square 
 yards. There is a first-class swimming bath, 60 by 29 
 feet ; a second-class, 56 by 27 feet, 4 men's first-class, 1 
 second-class, and 6 third-class baths, 3 vapour baths, a 
 Turkish Bath used as first, second, and third-class at 
 
Chap. III.] 79 
 
 different times of the day ; 2 first, 2 second, and 2 third- 
 class women's warm baths, and a women's swimminrir 
 bath, 20 by 16 feet. During the year there has been 
 upwards of 40,000 bathers. The receipts exceeded the 
 expenditure £121 in little more than a year. These baths 
 are very promising and bid fair to be a great success. 
 
 SUEREY. 
 
 Area of county (extra metropolitan), 451,027 acres. Population in 1371, 
 
 36o,27P. 
 
 CROYDON. 
 
 Baths opened June, 1866. (Site Leaseliold. ) 
 
 Original cost of building tatlis £5,612 
 
 Receipts since date of opening ... ... ... ... ... 4,204- 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... ... 5,078 
 
 Required from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 874 
 
 Accounts made up to March 2bth, 1876. 
 
 E. J. CHEESWRIGHT. 
 
 Croydon is a market town 11 miles S. of London; it Croydon, 
 lias a reputation for being healthy, owing to a good water 
 supply, excellent drainage, and its salubrious situation. 
 The population is computed to be 55,602 and the assess- 
 ment, £350,526. 
 
 The baths are erected on a site held on lease for 999 
 years, at an annual rent of £35. The area is 432 square 
 yards. There are 13 private baths, a swimming and a 
 shower bath. 
 
 The original loan is to be repaid in 30 years, and bears 
 interest at 5 per cent. The expenditure exceeded the 
 receipts £874 in 10 years. 
 
80 [Chap. III. 
 
 Sussex. 
 
 Area of tlie county, 948,257 acres. Population in 1871, 420,910. 
 
 BRIGHTON". 
 
 Baths opened October 29tli, 1869. 
 
 Original cost of 'building baths £5,500 
 
 Total amount raised from rates for principal and interest ... 586 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid ... ... ... ... ... 5,395 
 
 Receipts since date of opening 2,636 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 2,657 
 
 Required from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 21 
 Accounts made up to August Blst, 1875. 
 
 J. A. FEEEMAN. 
 
 Brighton. Bn'gliton IS a parliamentary borough, and the fashion- 
 able watering place of England ; and is 47 miles South 
 of London. 
 
 The establishment contains 39 baths, -vvhich are now 
 undergoing enlargement at a cost of £4000. A series of 
 loans were raised at the commencement amounting, in the 
 aggregate, to £5,500, of which a very small amount has 
 been repaid. They were opened in October, 1869, since 
 which time only £586 has been raised from the rates. 
 The receipts and expenditure nearly balance. The popula- 
 tion exceeds 100,000, and the assessment amounts to 
 £459,331. There are 8 men's first-class, and 15 second- 
 class baths ; 1 women's first-class, and 8 second-class 
 baths ; 2 shower and 2 vapour baths, and a private 
 bath. 
 
 It must be borne in mind that Brighton is an excep- 
 tional town, there being great facilities for bathing in the 
 the sea, free of charge; it has, besides, numerous and 
 extensive private baths of every description. 
 
Chap, TIL] 81 
 
 AVarwickshire. 
 
 Area of county, 610,587 acres. Population in 1871, 630,472. 
 
 BIBMINGHABlT. 
 
 Kent Street. 
 
 Batlis opened in 1849. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £23,000 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid ... ... ... ... ... 6,050 
 
 Keceipts since date of opening ... ... ... ... ... 39,156 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... ... 40,816 
 
 Required from rates to make up deficiency in -working expense3 1,660 
 
 Woodstock Stkeet. 
 
 Baths opened in 1860. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £12,000 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid ... ... ... ... ... 5,000 
 
 Keceipts since date of opening 9,636 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... ... 11,617 
 
 liequired from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 1,981 
 
 Northwood Street. 
 
 Baths opened in 1862. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths ... £11,500 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid ... ... ... ... ... 10,500 
 
 Receipts since date of opening ... ... ... ... ... 16,978 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 14,609 
 
 Accounts made up to December 3lst, 1875. 
 
 E. J. HAYES. 
 
 Birmingham is a parliamentary borough, returning three r.'aran- 
 members to Parliament, and is one of the principal manu- ""'' 
 facturing towns in England, about 99 miles N.W. from 
 London. It has a population of 343,787, and its assess- 
 ment is £1,284,167. 
 
 G 
 
8-2 [CoAP. III. 
 
 HuttoHj in Lis history of the town, gives some curious 
 descriptions of the way in which workmen were sullied 
 by the numerous trades they followed, in his time; he is 
 especially graphic in describing how the operations of the 
 brass founders told upon them, and it is well known that 
 every trade leaves its peculiar mark upon the craftsmen. 
 This great centre of industry is not unhealthy, the 
 suburbs are salubrious, especially the neighbourhood of 
 Edgbaston ; which is attributed to its being built on 
 the sandstone rock, and it is in consequence naturally 
 dry. 
 
 The first bath establishment was opened in Kent Street, 
 and covers an area of 33GG yards. It contains 29 first 
 and 24 second-class men's baths, 6 first and 7 second-class 
 women's baths, 2 Jewish baths, a women's plunging bath, 
 and a first and second-class men's swimming bath, and 
 washhouses for thirty-two persons. 
 
 The Bath in Woodstock Street has an area of 2200 
 square yards, and contains IG first and 16 second-class 
 men's baths, 6 first and 8 second-class women's baths, a 
 plunge bath for women, and first and second-class swim- 
 ming baths for men. 
 
 The Bath in Northwood Street has an area of 2300 
 square yards, and contains 12 first and 13 second-class 
 men's baths, G first and 6 second-class women's baths, a 
 ])lungc bath for women, and a first and second-class 
 swimmino; bath for men. 
 
 The Corporation, in 1672, purchased a site for another 
 suite of baths in Shepcote Street at a cost of £2500. 
 
 There has been great judgment exercised in selecting 
 the sites of the several baths — the neighbourhoods arc not 
 the very lowest, yet they are convenient even for the 
 humbler class of operatives. The higher-priced batlis are 
 much used by both sexes. 
 
CnAr. IILJ 83 
 
 COVENTRY. 
 
 Baths opened 1852. (Site Freetold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths ... X5,C00 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid ... ... ... ... ... 5,000 
 
 Eeceipts since date of opening 4,815 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... ... 8,016 
 
 Required from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 3,201 
 Accounts made up to August, 1875. 
 
 J. BROWETT. 
 
 Coventry is a borough 18 miles S.E. from Birmingliam, Covenlrj-. 
 long famous for the manufacture of watches, but still more 
 so for that of ribbons, and it is an important military 
 depot and thoroughfare. The population is 41,000, and 
 the assessment £141,182. 
 
 The baths have an area of 1,500 square yards, and 
 contain 4 first and 9 second-class men's baths ; 2 first and 
 4 second-class •women's baths ; a first-class swimming 
 bath 60 by 30 feet, and a second-class swimming bath GO 
 by 60 feet. 
 
 None of the original loan has been repaid, and the 
 expenditure exceeded the receipts £3201 in seventeen 
 years. 
 
 The institution was opened in 1852, but the authorities 
 report that the borough accounts are not in a condition to 
 enable them to supjjly the information previous to 1858 ; 
 no reason is given, but the accounts must have been 
 audited by the Government Accountant, it is therefore 
 presumed the books have been destroyed. 
 
 C 2 
 
84 [Chap. III. 
 
 WOECESTERSHIRK, 
 
 Area of the county, 434,325 acres. Topulation in 1871, 836,270. 
 
 KIDDERMIN STSR. 
 
 Eaths opened 1851. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original cost (if tuilding baths ... X'3,325 
 
 Total amount raised from, rates for principal and interest ... 4,575 
 
 Receipts since date of opening ... ... ... ... ... 1,790 
 
 Expenditure since date of opening... ... ... ... ... 3,272 
 
 Required from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 1,482 
 Accounts made up to September 1, 1875. 
 
 JAMES MORTOX. 
 
 Xiducr- The borougli cf Kidderrainster is situated on the river 
 
 Stour, by whicli it is divided into two unequal parts, 15 
 miles N. from Worcester. It was long famous for the 
 manufacture of broadcloth, linsey-woisey, woollen and 
 Avorsted draperies, and flowered stuff's. But carpet manu- 
 facture has proved of the greatest importance to the town, 
 and has greatly assisted in raising it to its present wealth 
 and prosperity. It has a population of 19.416, and the 
 assessment is £53,028. 
 
 The baths contain 4 first and 8 second-class men's baths, 
 2 first and 2 second-class women's baths ; a swimming- 
 bath, a plunge bath, and a Turkish Bath. 
 
 The authorities of this borough wex'e among the first to 
 avail themselves of this aid to civilization. The original 
 loan has been entirely repaid, but the expenditure exceeded 
 the receipts £1482 in twenty-four years. 
 
 WORCESTER. 
 The "Act "was adopted in 1£4'j. Eaths and Washhouscs are not 
 provided, but there is a public bathing place on the river -with a bath- 
 ing bar, and attendant, which costs about £-33 per annum. 
 
 THOS. SUNUALL. 
 
 AYorcc-tT The ancient city of Worcester is a parliamentary 
 borough and county town, beautifully situated on the E. 
 bank of the Severn, 25 miles S.W. from Birmingham. 
 
Chap. Ill] 85 
 
 Manufactures gloves, lace, porcelain, Icatlier, spirits, 
 British wines, vinegar, horsehair, cloth, boots and shoes, 
 nails, artificial manures, cast-iron goods, and turned wares, 
 and has a large trade in hops and corn. The population 
 is 33,221, and the assessment, £143,243. 
 
 Yorkshire. 
 
 Area of the county 3,702,834 acres. Population in 1871, 2,31)5,669. 
 
 BARNSLEY. 
 
 Baths ofeaed June 1.5th, 1874. (Site Freoliold.) 
 
 Original cost of building Laths £4,000 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid ... ... ... ... ... 4,000 
 
 Receipts since date of opening ... ... ... ... ... 722 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 1,137 
 
 Required from rates to make up deficiency of working expenses 415 
 Accounts made vp to December Zlsf, 1875. 
 
 S. VT. ATKINSON. 
 
 Barn.sley i.s a market town in the West Hiding, 14 miles Bamsley, 
 N. from Sheffield. The poinilation is 23,021, and assess- 
 ment £77,512. It is one of those industrial centres 
 Avhcre means for cleanliness to both person and apparel 
 are especially requisite. The town employs a considerable 
 number of workpeople in the woollen, coarse linen, and 
 iron manufactures, and is surrounded by a dispersed popu- 
 lation whose employments are similar, and also by colliery 
 employes. Tlie site was bestowed by J. E. Tajdor, Esq., 
 J. P., constituting an area of 817 yards freehold. There 
 are 23 ])rivate or slipper baths, of which 7 are '' ladies 
 baths," where the charges are 9d. and Gd.; IG are "gentle- 
 men's baths,'' and one swimming bath ; the gentlemen's 
 baths are charged 6d. and 4d,, and the swimming bath 
 Gd., 4d. and 2d. No part of the original loan has been 
 
86 [Chap. III. 
 
 repaid, and the expenditure exceeded the receipts £415 in 
 eighteen months. 
 
 BRADFORD. 
 
 liaths opened July 22, 1865. (Site Freeliold.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths ^7,700 
 
 Total amount raised from rates for principal and interest ... 2,533 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid ... ... ... 6,167 
 
 Receipts since date of opening 15,615 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 18,496 
 
 Eequired from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 2,881 
 Accounts made up to December 31, 1875. 
 
 W. T. McGOWEN. 
 
 Bradford. Bradford is a parliamentary borough in the West Eiding 
 of the county, 8 miles W. of Leeds. It is the principal 
 seat of the stuff and woollen yarn manufacturers of England. 
 The population is 145,000 and the assessment £451,293. 
 
 The building was originally used as Waterworks offices^ 
 and was transferred to the Baths Committee free of charge. 
 The loan to defray the cost of plant and alterations was 
 borrowed from various persons under the General Baths 
 and Washhouses Act. The baths have an area of 1100 
 square yards, and contain 15 first and 26 secoud-tlass 
 baths, 3 swimming baths, and a Turkish bath. 
 
 The expenditure exceeded the receipts £2881 in twenty 
 years. 
 
 DEWSBURY. 
 
 Baths opened July 17, 1871. (Site Freehold.) 
 
 Original co^t of buHding baths £1,700 
 
 Amount remaining unpaid 1,700 
 
 Keceipts since date of opening 629 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... ... 1,180 
 
 Eequired from rates to make up deficiency in working expenses 641 
 Accounts made up to Septcmlcr 30, 1875. 
 
 JESSE SMITH. 
 
Chap. III.] 87 
 
 Tho borourfU of Dewsbuiy is in the West Ridiug of the Dcwslxiry 
 county, 31 miles S.W. from York; manufactures, blankets 
 and woollen stuffs generally. The po])ul:ition is 28,000, 
 and the assessment £85,158. The baths have an area of 
 only 30 yards, and comprise 14 warm baths, a swimming 
 bath, and 2 shower baths. 
 
 Tho institution originated with a company, but was 
 afterwards transferred to the corporation, nnd has been 
 worked at a loss. The expenditure during the four years 
 has exceeded the receipts by £551. No part of the original 
 loan has been repaid. 
 
 Eaths opened April, 18-50. (Site FrecliolJ.) 
 
 Original cost of building baths £13, -331 
 
 Total amount raised on rates for principal and interest ... ... 8,124 
 
 Amount of loan remaining unpaid .. . ... ... 2,400 
 
 Keceipts since date of opening ... 4,511 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening ... ... 11,182 
 
 liequired from rates to make up deflciency in working expenses 6,671 
 Accounts made up to SejJtcmhcr 20t/i, 187-3. 
 
 C. S. TODD. 
 
 Hull, or King£ton-on-IIull, is a seaport and borough Hull. 
 in the East Hiding of the county, situated on the great 
 inlet of the Humber, at the point where it is entered by 
 the river Hull, 34 miles S.E. of York. It is the outport 
 ibr ShefBeld, Leeds, Bradford, &c., the great manufactur- 
 ing centres of the county ; and an immense trado is 
 carried on in Foreign and Colonial produce. Tiic popu- 
 lation about 40 years ago was 50,000, during the following 
 decade it reached G0,0U0, and is now 123,400 ; the a.sscis- 
 ment is £376,672. 
 
 The baths are on an important scale, and suited to the 
 requirements of such a large population. Tlic area is 
 
88 [CHAr. IIL 
 
 1,127 square yards, and comprise 17 first, and 30 second- 
 class men's baths ; 9 first, and 8 second-class women's 
 baths ; 3 vapour baths, and a swimming bath. 
 
 The expenditure exceeded tlie receipts £6671 in 25 years, 
 which shows that the baths have not been largely patronized . 
 
 SHEFFIELD. 
 
 Bulbs opened September 7th, 1869. (Site FroehoM.) 
 
 Totul amount raised from rates for building ballis ^'2,411 
 
 Eeceipts since date of opening ... ... ... ... ... 3,691 
 
 Expenditure (working expenses) since date of opening 3,644 
 
 Accounts made tip to Ai'gust, 187'5. 
 
 J. YEOMANS. 
 
 Sheffield. Sheffield is a large parliamentary borough and manu- 
 facturing town in the West Riding of the county, 
 situated at the confluence of the rivers Sheaf and Don^ 
 both of which are crossed by several bridges, 43 miles 
 S.W. from York. It is fiiraous for its cutlery and all 
 kinds of iron and steel goods, plated wares, metallic 
 instruments and files. Coal is abundant in the neigh- 
 bourhood. 
 
 The population is 239,916, and the assessment £794,206. 
 The baths occupy an area of 366 square yards, and contain 
 8 first-class and 12 second-class baths, and a swimming 
 bath, 55 by 35 feet. 
 
 The cost of building was charged on the borough rate,, 
 and transferred to the credit of the baths account, con- 
 sequently there is no debt. The baths have been well 
 supported, and, under good management, have paid their 
 wav. 
 
Cii.vF. III.] 89 
 
 SCOTLAND. 
 
 GLASGOW. 
 
 Public bnllis were opened in this city on July 1st, 187G. Glasgow. 
 The Baths are erected under the provisions of a section 
 of the Glasgow Police Act, and the city is mainly in- 
 debted for this boon to the exertions of Bailie Wilson, 
 and Mr. William Wilson, of the Victoria Hot-air Baths 
 Company. 
 
 The Easterie Baths, London Road, were purchased, and 
 have been entirely remodelled at a cost of £2000. They 
 are provided with a neat clean swimming pond, 50 by 25 
 feet, and 25 porcelain warm baths, the whole interior is 
 tastefully painted and varnished; the place is largely 
 patronized. 
 
 The Board are erecting, another bathing establishmsnfc 
 in the Green Park, at a cost of £14,000 ; the site has 
 been granted by the Corporation. The accommodation will 
 comprise a swimming bath for ladies, 45 by 25 feet, and a 
 SAvimming bath for gentlemen, 8 J by 40 feet, 100 dressing 
 boxes, G private hot baths, a washhouse of 34 compart- 
 ments, each provided with three tubs having hot and cold 
 water attached, and a drying stove. All the latest improve- 
 ments are being adopted for washing, drying, mangling, 
 dressing, &c. 
 
 The Bath Committee purpose building similar establish- 
 ments in various districts of the city, so that shortly 
 Glasgow will be exceedingly Avell supplied with baths 
 and washhouses. 
 
90 
 
 [CriAP. ITT. 
 
 COUNTIES IN WHICH THE BATHS AND WASH HOUSES 
 ACTS HAVE NOT BEEN ADOPTED. 
 
 
 Area. Acres. 
 
 ropulat'cn. 
 
 Buekinghamshiie 
 
 404,040 
 
 155,007 
 
 Camluidgeshii-c 
 
 573,095 
 
 192,033 
 
 Cornwall ... 
 
 885,541 
 
 358,356 
 
 Cumberland 
 
 970,161 
 
 220,253 
 
 Dorsetshire 
 
 610,582 
 
 189,000 
 
 Essex 
 
 975,038 
 
 440,880 
 
 Herefordshire 
 
 507,647 
 
 120,723 
 
 Hertfordshire 
 
 428,143 
 
 194,612 
 
 Huntingdonshii'C. . . 
 
 204,632 
 
 58,046 
 
 Leicestershire 
 
 534,149 
 
 275,171 
 
 MonmoTithshire ... 
 
 432,906 
 
 219,708 
 
 Norfolk 
 
 1,306,544 
 
 430,638 
 
 Northamptonshire 
 
 632,002 
 
 248,234 
 
 Oxfordshire 
 
 475,542 
 
 178,329 
 
 Eutlandshire 
 
 107,352 
 
 23,385 
 
 Shropshire ... ... 
 
 924,130 
 
 267,003 
 
 Somersetshire ... 
 
 l,06G,-290 
 
 482,652 
 
 Suffolk 
 
 929,859 
 
 347,210 
 
 Westmoreland ... 
 
 503,073 
 
 65,130 
 
 "Wiltshire 
 
 775,414 
 
 241,667 
 
 North and South Wales (except- 
 ing Glamorgan, the only- 
 county in which the Act has 
 been adopted) 
 
 4,086,080 
 
 796,264 
 
Chap. III.] 
 
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CuAP. IlLl 95 
 
 THE GRAND TOTALS OF THE STATISTICAL AND 
 
 FINANCIAL SUMMARY OP PROVINCIAL EATHS 
 
 AND WASHH0USE3 ARE AS FOLLOWS:— 
 
 Population, 2,741,843. Number of warm water baths, 1,208. 
 
 Original cost of building baths ... ... ... ... ... £320,694 
 
 Receipts 444,889 
 
 Expenditure 535,946 
 
 Assessment 9,970,^39 
 
 The gross financial results of the provincial baths and 
 washhouses present a striking difference to those of 
 the metropolitan, from causes that will not be difficult 
 to explain. 
 
 In the metropolitan district there are nearly 4,000,000 
 people, with only ten bathing establishments, situated 
 in densely popuLited neighbourhoods ; while iu the 
 provinces there are forty establishments scattered over 
 an immense acreage, with only about one-half the popu- 
 lation, tlie working expenses must therefore be relatively 
 much greater. 
 
 The expenditure represents £100,000 in excess of the 
 receipts, yet I am inclined to think, in many instances, 
 the repayment of the original loan has been included in 
 the working expenses ; so that it may be fairly assumed 
 that the gross working expenditure has not exceeded the 
 receipts more than £50,000, which is a small item when 
 
9a [Cjiap. til 
 
 ■Nve take into consideration tlio many dilTioultios imder 
 "which tho provincial bath establishments labour. 
 
 In a number of small establishments in the outlying 
 districts the aggregate outlay has been out of proportion 
 to the accommodation afforded, with .no washing appli- 
 ances, making it almost impossible the baths could 
 become self-supporting, but in such towns as Liver- 
 pool, Birmingham, Bri^itol, and other large centres of 
 population, the baths have been supported very nearly, 
 if not to the same extent, as those in the metropolis, and 
 will favourably compare in the financial results. 
 
 Although baths are essential everywhere, in many 
 country places the people have the privilege of bathing 
 in rivers, and more home conveniences, consequently 
 public baths are less required. Also indiscretion in 
 selecting sites, as well as the inappropriatencss of the 
 capital expended, has all told against their financial 
 success, when compared with the large towns. 
 
 Bathing in winter is very unpopular, owing to the 
 discomforts attending it, which I have discussed in 
 Chapters V. and VI. In the metropolis, the swimming 
 baths are resorted to by thousands in summer, and 
 forms a large source of their income, which, in a measure, 
 compensates for the loss sustained in winter, while many 
 of tlie provincial establishments are not provided with 
 swimmino" baths, consequently their receipts are not in 
 the same way augmented in summer to compensate them 
 for the loss in winter. 
 
 In looking over the returns, many will wonder how it 
 is the baths have not been better patronii^ed in the iron 
 and coal districts, but to those who know the habits of 
 the people the circumstance is easil}' exidained. Nearly 
 every arti.-an has a house to himself and is provided with 
 ample washing accommodation. Coals being about one- 
 
Cjiap. III.] 97 
 
 lialf the price they are in the Soutli cf England, the poor 
 are able to effect their ablutions and washing at home 
 Avithout inconvenience at a comparatively small cost. 
 
 The occupations of tlie men are essentially dirty, and 
 they require daily ablutions and change of clothing. 
 It would be inconvenient and fatiguing after a hard 
 day's work for a man to take a change of clothing to 
 the bath, besides the occupation of many is very ener- 
 vating, and an immersion in a hot bath would 
 tend to further enervate them ; at home, with a few- 
 gallons of water before a fire, th.ey are able to perform 
 their ablutions in comfort, without any extra trouble or 
 fatigue, hence the people wash more in the North than 
 the South. 
 
 It is to be regretted the Act lias i;ot been more gene- 
 rally adopted in the provinces. Oat of the metropolitan 
 area it has only been exercised in 40 towns, the capital 
 expended amounts to £329,694, the total inadequacy of 
 the present bath accommodation in the provinces is 
 shown from the fact that there are only 1,200 warm baths 
 provided for the poor of a population of upwards of 
 14,000,000. 
 
 The expense of the forty bath establishments has 
 been charged on 2,740,000 people. If the money liad 
 been levied on the counties it would have been divided 
 amongst 14,000,000 people, and over an acreage of 
 area, including property upon it, cf 19,000,000. A 
 rate of Id. in the pound would have met the expenses if 
 it had been levied on the counties, but having been raised 
 on the pari.shes where the Act is adopted, it cost thorn 
 8d. in the |)ound. 
 
 It will he observed the Bath Act has been adopted in 
 twenty out of the forty counties in England. I have 
 6uggc\-to.d that the money required to establish baths in 
 
 H 
 
98 [Chap. III. 
 
 the metropolis should be raised on the whole metropolitan 
 area. The same principle should be applied to the 
 provinces, and the money raised on the counties, so that 
 the oppulent should contribute their moiety towai-ds this 
 essential sanitary agent, and not, as at present, leave the 
 expense to be borne by the parish in which the bath is 
 situated. If baths were established in all suitable 
 localities, and the money levied upon the counties, it 
 ■would be only just, as the residents in rural districts are 
 dependent upon the large towns for a market for their 
 productions, and the inhabitants of towns being com- 
 pelled to live in less healthy situations, it is but right 
 the rural population should contribute towards their 
 means of healtli ; the well-being of one depends upon 
 the other, consequently their interests are identical. 
 
 Each county should ascertain the bathing necessities 
 of the poor people, just in the same way it does other 
 sanitary matters, and then borrow the money required 
 from the Loan Commissioners on the security of the 
 county rates, repayable in sixty years, which would be 
 giving the people what is necessary, at the same time 
 oppressing none. 
 
 At Plymouth and Mansfield the authorities let their 
 baths and washhouses, which they are impowered to do 
 under their local Acts. This I venture to say is very ob- 
 jectionable, for immediately the baths are let the authorities 
 have no further control over them, and the tenant charges 
 what he pleases, they become trading cencerns, established 
 at the cost of the ratepayers, and the Act becomes a dead 
 letter. Charges are another objection. In Liverpool and 
 other towns their local Acts allow them to charge what 
 they please ; this is unjust, because public money should 
 never be used to compete with private enterprise. 
 Luxurious and elaborate baths can always be obtained 
 
Chap. III.] 99 
 
 by those in a position to pay for tliem ; besides^ the 
 same terms should be enforced as in the Act 9 & 10 
 Yic. cap. 74. 
 
 The Act has not been adopted in jSInnchester, never- 
 theless it is pleaelr.g to find that when the candidates for 
 municipal honours were seeking election, they advocated 
 the desii'ability of erecting public baths and washhouses, 
 and it is quite evident those gentlemen who sought to 
 be elected would not discuss a topic if the parishioners 
 were not pleased with it; hence it is fair to assume the 
 Bath and Washhouse movement is occupying the atten- 
 tion of the people of Manchester. The town is exceed- 
 ingly well supplied with numerous bathing establishments, 
 and the charges are such as to come within the reach of 
 the artizan classes. i\Iy experience has led rae to the 
 conclusion that as long as baths are doing well and 
 maintained in efficiency it is not wise to adopt the 
 Act 
 
 The Bath Act has not been adopted in Ireland, for 
 what reason I cannot say, except it is that the Turkisli 
 Bath has been generally extended throughout the 
 country ; and although these are private institutions, yet 
 in every instance provision is made for the poor by small 
 charges, but none are refused a bath who cannot pay. 
 Some particulars of a working-man's Turkish Bath in 
 Cork is given in the chapter on " Economics," and if 
 establishments in other districts are as well patronized 
 as this, the people of Ireland do not require the Bath 
 Act. 
 
 In Scotland the Act has only recently been adopted, 
 or rather a clause in their Police Act enables them to 
 raise money for the purpose on the poors' rate. The 
 baths will be managed by Police Boards, and the efficient 
 manner in which they are being administered in Glasgow 
 
100 rCiiAP. IIL 
 
 indicates that their adoption will soon hecoine general 
 throughout the country. 
 
 In taking up the question I trust the authorities in 
 other towns will endeavour to secure all the appliances 
 which experience points to as being likely to add to the 
 popularity, efficiency, and success of these establish- 
 ments. In the following chapters I have demonstrated 
 that liot-air bathing is by far the most efficient mode, 
 and that its administration is less costly than that com- 
 monly in vogue, while, for reasons which appear to me 
 to be conclusive, the system I advocate would rapidly 
 become popular, and, by rendering bathing equally prac- 
 ticable all the year round, a uniform and profitable in- 
 come would be secured. I trust, therefore, that Scotland, 
 especially, will benefit by the experience of English 
 establishments, together with the suggested improve- 
 ments and additions which I have thrown out, and 
 which are the result of much thought and inquiry and 
 not a little experience. 
 
Chap. IV.] 101 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Re-Inteoduction of the Tuekish Bath, with Obser- 
 vations ON THE Vapour Bath. 
 
 THERE can be no doubt that the Bath and Waslihouse Ilyuro- 
 Movement received a cj^reat stimulus throuirh the E^^''-^\"' 
 introduction of Hydropatliy into this country, and the to Baths & 
 consequent dissemination of the curative virtues of water houses 
 appliances, and sanitary reformers saw the necessity of 
 personal cleanliness in order to ensure perfect health. 
 
 A year or two previous to the establishment of the first 
 public bath in England, Captain Claridge, followed by 
 others, published his experience in regard to the principles 
 and practice of Vincent Priessnitz, the fothcr of " the 
 water cure ; " and it was to the attention thus drawn to 
 the subject, that gave a further stimulus to the movement 
 which resulted in the passing of the Baths and Wash- 
 houses Act of Sir George Grey, in lu46, himself a zealous 
 advocate of hydropathj-. 
 
 In like manner, to one of the followers of Priessnitz must Mr. Urqr 
 be accorded the chief honour in connection v.ith the re- ^'^^^' 
 introduction of the Turkish Bath into the United Kingdom. 
 As a fact Mr. David Urquhart was the first to call 
 attention to the subject by a work in which he published 
 :m account of the Bath, in 1848, entitled " The Pillars 
 of Hercules," being a description of his travels in tlic 
 
 B 
 
102 [Chap. IV. 
 
 ).. Barter. East. But some eight years afterwards, tlie late Dr. 
 Barter, Hydropathic Practitioner of St. Ann's Hill, Cork, 
 having seen Mr. Urquhart's account of the hot-air bath^ 
 with his usual keenness of perception observed the im- 
 portance of its introduction as a therapeutic agent. Dr. 
 Barter had for years previously adopted the Vapour and 
 Lamp Bath, as an impidvernent upon the blanket-sweating- 
 process of Priessnitz, for inducing perspiration and heating 
 purposes, a method which was still open to further im- 
 provement when an opportunity presented itself. He ac- 
 cordingly wrote to Mr. Urquhart, offering to place men^ 
 money, and material at his disposal, if he would superin- 
 tend the erection of baths on the improved principles. 
 Mr. Urquhart consented, and after very, numerous altera- 
 tions and additions, the first Turkish Bath in the United 
 Kingdom was completed and opened in 1856, at St. Ann's 
 Hill, Cork, 
 [mprovcd It is as well to state here that one feature of the bath, a.s 
 Tui^ish ^^gg^ jj^ Turkey, and introduced by Mr, Urquhart, was the, 
 presence in it of steam. Dr. Barter soon observed, however, 
 that an atmosphere loaded with moisture was oppressive^ 
 and that his bathers were not able to endure a temjoera- 
 ture higher than 125°. He accordingly, with his usual 
 acuteness, tried the bath uithovf moisture, and found that 
 they could bear a temperature of 160° with perfect ease. 
 Hence we are indebted to him for what is called the " im- 
 proved Turkish Bath," i.e., a hot-air bath without any 
 sensible vapour beyond that which is naturally intro- 
 duced by the process of ventilation. In pursuing his im- 
 provement he derived considerable aid from theexamination 
 of the remains of Eoman hot-air baths in various parts ot 
 Britain ; and the bath, as improved by Dr. Barter and now 
 established among us, although called the Turkish Bath, 
 is in reality the Eoman Baih. 
 
Chap. IV.] 103 
 
 No sooner was the bath in operation at St. Ann's Hill, Opposition 
 than it called forth the most violent opposition. Dr. Bar- 
 ter, however, was not a man to be turned from his course 
 when he found he Avas supported by important facts. He 
 possessed a spirit that was proof against ridicule and 
 calumny, and although at first his patients rapidly 
 decreased in number, he persevered until his efforts were 
 crowned with more than ordinary success. 
 
 Having thus practically demonstrated the utility of the 
 bath as a medical and sanitary agent, he spared neither 
 time, labour, nor money, in making known its virtues. 
 He gave public lectures in various parts of Ireland and 
 England, inviting medical men, sanitary reformers, and 
 philanthropists to investigate the subject themselves. As 
 a matter of course his eflbrts were opposed with the utmost 
 virulence. A few, however, who Avere above the petty 
 motives of supposed professional interest, did investigate 
 and acknowledge the hot-air bath to be of the greatest 
 importance as a therapeutic agent. 
 
 Eventually the bath made its Avay into public cstima- FiibtTur- 
 tion, and in the year 1862 the first institution of the kind, fo^the'^ 
 after that at St. Ann's Hill, was erected in the city of poor. 
 Cork for the use of the poor. That city was mainly 
 indebted, for the establishment and successful carrying 
 out of the SA'stem, to Mrs. Donovan, aided by other 
 benevolent persons, and no one has done more than she 
 has for the sanitary condition of that large and important 
 city. She was liberal in her expenditure of means and 
 time in promulgating knowledge as to the means of ])rc- 
 serving health, and especially the usefulness of tho 
 Turkish Bath. Her works entitled, " Simple Questions 
 and Sanitary Facts," and " Illness, its Cause and Cure," 
 should be read by all persons who have not given the 
 fullest attention to this subject. In " riccollections of Dr. 
 
104 [Chap. IV. 
 
 Barter," the same author gives an interesting sketch of a 
 remarkable life. 
 Turkish Notwithstanding severe but ignorant opposition and 
 nlar in prejudice, the bath rapidly commended itself to the public 
 Ireland, jjiind. In the year 1868 there w^ere not less than fourteen 
 public Turkish Baths in full operation in the county 
 of Cork alone. Dublin possessed three and Bray two, 
 chiefly through the liberality and zeal of the late 
 William Dargan. Those erected at Bray (county of 
 Wicklow) were especially commodious, convenient, and 
 architecturally well designed and elegant. Waterford 
 Limerick, and Sligo, have each two baths. Belfast and 
 other large centres of population are also well provided 
 with accommodation for hot-air bathing. The nobility and 
 gentry throughout the country, more particularly in Lein- 
 ster and Munster, erected Turkish Bath rooms in connec- 
 tion with their mansions ; and many manufticturers in 
 Dublin, its neighbourhood, and in Ulster, provided them 
 in or adjacent to their factories, for the exclusive benefit 
 of their workpeople. 
 
 From Ireland the movement extended to England, 
 where the first bath was established at Bradford ; and 
 now there is scarcely a town of any importance or hydro- 
 pathic establishment without its Turkish Bath. London 
 alone possesses twenty, and many private persons have 
 hot-air baths attached to their residences. Bradford pos- 
 sesses two ; Manchester, four ; Leeds and Oxford, three. 
 Liverpool, Birmingham, and Bolton two. There is one 
 in each of the following places : Blackburn, Bury, Bristol, 
 Brighton, Bath, Clifton, Cambridge, Cheltenham, Derby, 
 Droitwich, Guildford, Luton, Leamington, Margate, New- 
 castle-upon-Tyne, Peterborough, Plymouth, Southampton, 
 Scarborough, Stroud, Hull, Skipton, Southport, Sheffield, 
 Windsor, Wakefield, Windermere, and Worcester. Tho 
 
Chap. IV.] 105 
 
 following hydropathic esfcablishments have Turkish Baths 
 attached : Ilkley - Wells, Ben Rhydding, Llangollen 
 Limpley, Stoke, Malvern, Barnet, Paddington Green, 
 Sadbrook Park, Beulah Spa, and Thrale Hall, 
 
 That the Turkish Bath has received the same apprecia- Turlviiili 
 tion in Scotland v.'ill be apparent from the following gootland. 
 quotation from a letter from Dr. Munro, Melrose Hydro- 
 pathic Establishment: "There are," he saj^s, "six 
 Turkish Baths under my care here. I know of two in 
 Edinburgh, one in Leith, and three or four in Glasgow. 
 These are all I know open to the public in our towns. A 
 number of private families have now got them into their 
 bouses, using Scriven's Patent Stove for heating purposes. 
 It is undoubtedly the best means of heating that I have 
 ever met with. The various hydropathic establishments 
 in Scotland have, I think, all Turkish Baths. There is 
 one at Rothesay, one at Bridge of Allan, one at Crieff, 
 and one at Cluny Hill, Forres. I suppose there must also 
 be one at Skelmorlie on the Clyde." There is also a 
 Turkish Bath in a hydropathic establishment near 
 Aberdeen. 
 
 It is very gratifying to be able to state that although 
 the system has been introduced scarcely twenty years, 
 there are over 100 Turkish Baths open to the public in the . 
 United Kingdom, and over 1,000,000 persons recognize 
 the efficacy of the Bath as a medical and sanitary agent, 
 superior to any other in hygienic science. 
 
 Such is a brief sketch of the re-introduction of the Batlis 
 so-called Turkish Bath ; for Ave have abundant evidence to ^nownto 
 prove that this form of bathing was known to the early Ancients, 
 inhabitants of Britain, it having been brought hither by 
 the Romans. In fact wherever Roman remains are found, 
 there we find traces of the Bath. After the departure of 
 the Roman legions, its use appears to have rapidly 
 
106 
 
 [Chap. IV. 
 
 Cieclined, imiil at last it "vvas forgotten. It is however 
 remarkable that during the reign of Charles II., it was 
 partially revived. Three or four Bagnios, as they were 
 then called, were established in London, the chief of 
 which was in Long Acre. They are described as being 
 after the Turkish model, and only intended for the 
 wealthier classes. They were used in the first instance 
 for curative purposes, for sweating, hot bathing, and 
 cupping ; but they soon became the resort of disre- 
 putable persons, and fell into discredit, so that the 
 very name was for a long time a synonym for a 
 house of ill fame. They do not seem to have survived 
 the dissolute Prince in whose reign they were intro- 
 duced. 
 
 About the middle of last century, the Vapour Bath 
 was introduced into England by an Italian physician 
 into Eng- named Dominicelli, who gained considerable repute 
 for his cures, and Avas patronized by Sir John Fielding ; 
 and at the beginning of the present century, Vapour 
 Baths were also introduced by two persons, the one Mr. 
 Basil Cochrane, and the other Sake Deen Mahomed, 
 who styled himself Shampooing 
 established baths at Brighton, 
 by George IV., as well as by 
 the chief of the nobility. His system included sham- 
 pooing and the use of medicinal herbs.* Mr. Cochrane, 
 whose method was more after the Russian — Vapour Baths 
 pure and simple — devised apparatus for the appli- 
 cation of the bath to all classes, from the private 
 liouse to the Army and Navy. He thought it especially 
 
 Vapour 
 Baths in- 
 troduced 
 
 a native of India, 
 Surgeon. Mahomed 
 and was patronized 
 
 * la 1838, Mahomed, then in his 89th year, puhlished a third edition 
 of his interesting little hook on the haths, in which he gives a number 
 of cures, and the names of some hundreds of subscribers to his baths. 
 Ilis longevity is itself a testimonial to the value of the baths. 
 
CfiAP. iv-i lor 
 
 valuable to our merchant service, and dedicated his 
 work on the subject to the then First Lord of 
 the Admiralty, Viscount Melville. He constructed baths 
 on his improved system in his house in Portman 
 Square, Avhere he treated many poor people gratis, M-ith 
 xrreat success. These baths and models were tested and 
 examined by some of the foremost physicians of the day, 
 ■who, in the work above mentioned, append their names to 
 the statement that " There are few diseases in which they 
 may not, at one stage or another, be useful ; and in the 
 prevention of disease, as well as during the periods of 
 convalescence, they will also produce effects highly 
 beneficial." 
 
 Dr. William Forbes contributed a paper to the EcUnhurgh Dr. Wm. 
 Medical and Surgical Journal in 1810 (pnge 313) upon ^'^'''^^s o'^ 
 the Steam Bath, with an account of its effects in a case of Baths. 
 Gastritis. He gives clear instructions for tlie construction 
 of the bath, and a diagram exhibits a very ingenious adap- 
 tation of a common slipper bath to the purpose. He con- 
 cludes his paper thus: — '' The advantages of the vapour 
 bath consists in the readiness with which it may at all 
 times be used ; the ease with which the temperature can 
 be regulated ; and the patient's running no risk of catching 
 cold." 
 
 In 1838 Dr. Charles Whitlaw published ^' Code of j^^^ ch^^g^ 
 JJealtli^'' in which he states that '' twenty years experience Whitlaw 
 lias convinced me of the beneficial results arising from the Bath'sf 
 use of the Vapour Bath," and he gives a formidable list of 
 diseases he had successfuly treated by it. A committee 
 was formed on the 24th of April, 1837, for the purpose of 
 establishing a Vapour Bath Institution, for the hmefit of 
 the poor, on the medical principles of Mr. Whitlaw, and 
 an address, calling attention to the question, and inviting 
 co-operation and pecuniary support, was issued by the 
 
108 [Chap. IV. 
 
 Hon. Sec, tlie eminent nonconformist preacher, tlie Rev. 
 Alexander Fletcher, M.A. 
 Kew York Mr. Whitlaw informs us " That in America, tlie insti- 
 Eath Co. tution of Vapour Baths has been attended with amazing 
 success. To the Committee of the New York Vapour 
 Bath Company, t]ie physicians who superintended the 
 baths, among Avhom was Dr. William Ireland, reported 
 the successful treatment of two hundred and twenty-seven 
 cases, in the quarter ending October 1825, with a list of 
 the various diseases with which they were afflicted. Out 
 of a number of cases submitted to the bath, it was proved, 
 that in acute and chronic inflammation, more benefit had 
 been derived from its use in tv,'enty-four liours, than had 
 ever been witnessed in a month's most successful practice 
 — amounting to 
 
 Cured 468 
 
 Eelieved... ... ... ... 186 
 
 Not relieved 27 
 
 681." 
 Vapour But though these effbrts gave the Vapour Bath a 
 
 popular, temporary prominence, they failed to establish it as a 
 national, or even a popular institution. Perhaps in a 
 land which is naturally subject to so much moisture and 
 vapour, there may be a native instinct against the Vapour 
 Bath, and as strong a predilection in favour of the hot-air 
 system. Be that as it may, the revival of the Boman 
 Bath in the United Kingdom has met with a support 
 which, considering the natural slowness of the English 
 mind to adopt innovations, is highly gratifying. 
 
 The Turkish Bath is the most effective, if not the most 
 ancient of sudorific processes, and, although its origin is 
 veiled in obscurity, doubtless the idea of warm water 
 and vapour baths may be traced to natural hot springs, 
 
Chap. IV.] 109 
 
 and so may that of hot-air batlis to the effects of solar 
 
 heat on objects, animate or inanimate, exposed to it- 
 
 Goinor as far back as existino- records Avill carry lis, ^^^i^^^'^y 
 o ^ _ '' ' of tno 
 
 Ilomer, the father of Greek poetry, describes his heroes Bath. 
 as refreshing themselves with the warm bath during the 
 Trojan War (b.c. 1194); and we know that the hot-air 
 bath was systematically employed in the renowned Greek 
 Gymnasia, as part of the admirable system of physical 
 training there practised. Greece probably derived her hot- 
 air bath from Asia, but of that there is no certainty. She 
 caused it to form part of her unrivalled national institu- 
 tions, yet, strange to say, never thought of it as a house- 
 hold convenience, fur we find the father of physic, 
 Hippocrates, was prevented from prescribing it in some 
 cases because of the difficulty of obtaining it. The 
 Romans who borrowed it with its concomitants, rubbing, 
 anointing, &c., from the Greeks, not only adopted its public 
 use, but made it subservient to private convenience. In 
 the days of the Empire, the baths, public and private, 
 presented marvellous specimens of architectural magnifi- 
 cence ; especially such were those of Nero, Titus, Caracalla, 
 and Diocletian. They were not only of prodigious extent 
 and august grandeur, but were decorated with the most 
 precious marbles, statues, paintings, jewels, and the most 
 varied works of art. 
 
 G. Worthington, Esq., in liis work on '' Dathing; its 
 
 Uses and Advantages," has the followino- : O. Worth- 
 
 ington. 
 
 " As tlie wealth of the Roman Empire increased, tho edifices erected 
 for the purpose of bathing became most luxurious and costly. At the 
 time of Augustus, and subsequent to his reign, the Baths were finished 
 and decorated in a style of magnificence almost incredible. The pipes 
 that conveyed the water were made of silver, the walls elaborately stuc- 
 coed in imitation of painting, basins made of rare stone, and marble in 
 profusion ; ;ind to such an extent did theii- extravagant tastes lead them, 
 that the ladies had their private baths even paved with silver." 
 
no [Chap. IV. 
 
 Roman ^lie Romans called tlicir batlis Thermge, from tlie Greek 
 
 Thermos (heat), and set the highest value upon them as 
 means of health and pleasure. No doubt the Thermje 
 were abused in the degenerate days of the Empire, especi- 
 ally when deprived of the patronage of the emperor and 
 the nobility upon the removal of the seat of empire to 
 Constantinople. They then became the lounging resort of 
 an idle and dissolute rabble. In Constantinople, and 
 throughout the Eastern Empire, the change in the seat of 
 power, led to a period in which the Thermse flourished 
 exceedingly; and when these fair regions were overrun 
 by the Turks, they not only spared such establishments, 
 but adopted and patronized them, and have preserved 
 them until now, much to their own benefit, and haply 
 to ours also. Of late, many travellers in the East have 
 experienced their advantages, and have pressed the con- 
 sideration of them upon the attention of western Europe. 
 
 Origin of Somc are disposed to regard the Phoenician cities of, 
 Tyre and Sidon as the original home of the hot-air bath, 
 at all events so hv as the civilized world may claim the 
 origin. From those Phoenician cities a knowledge of the 
 Bath would fmd its way along the southern shores of 
 the Mediterranean to Egypt and North Africa, ds far as 
 the Pillars of Hercules; and on the northern side of 
 of the " Great Sea," to Greece, Italy, and Spain. On 
 the landward side the line of caravan communication 
 would transmit it to Asia Minor, Persia, Central Asia, 
 and Ilindostan. Thence to China, the art may have 
 been conveyed, if not previously known. Diverse 
 as have been the forms and details of the bath processes 
 in these regions severally, the principle has throughout 
 been one. Indeed, so likely is this pnnciple to commend 
 itself to the human mind, that if the foregoing theory of 
 the spread of the institution be rejected, it is no great 
 
 Baths. 
 
Chap. IV.] Ill 
 
 stretch of imagination to conceive as the alternative that 
 the idea arose independently, in various nations, and in 
 different ages, and took the form which convenience or 
 opportunit}^ dictated. It is quite certain, that with sh'ght 
 modifications, it was known to cities and nations not far 
 removed from savage Hfe, and by nearly all the histori- 
 cally known peoples of antiquity. Musa, in his account of 
 the Scythians, has the following passage, which we quote 
 from Rawlinson's translation of Herodotus : — * 
 
 " They make a booth by fixing in the ground three 
 sticks, inclined towards one another, and stretching 
 around them woollen felts, which they arrange so as to 
 fit as close as possible. Inside the booth a dish is placed 
 upon the ground, into which they put a number of red- 
 hot stones. Taking some hemp -seed, and creeping under 
 the felt coverings, they throw it upon the red-hot stones ; 
 immediately it smokes, and gives out such a vapour as no 
 Grecian vapour-bath can exceed. The Scyths, delighted, 
 shout for joy." 
 
 The form of bath employed in countries bordering the Eastern 
 shores of the Mediterranean — Turkey, Egypt, Morocco, Ha'"™^"^ 
 .&c. — is that which has become familiar to us as the 
 Eastern Hammam. A light and elegant cooling room 
 for undressing first receives the bather. From thence, 
 duly robed, he proceeds to the hot room, which is often 
 so filled with vapour that he can scarcely breathe. 
 Perspiration is here evoked, and the bather is forthwith 
 soaji-lathered with a rough glove of camel's hair, soused 
 with hot water, shampooed, and scraped.. Conducted to 
 the cooling room, he is offered coffee and sherbet, and 
 reclines in a state of comfort described as truly elysian. 
 Tlie Easterns regard the bath as their greatest comfort and 
 luxury, and their one welcome resource in illness, ftitio-ue, 
 or mental distress. Its beneficial action is enhanced 
 
112 [Chap. lY. 
 
 by the pleasures of social intercourse, for wliicli tlie bath 
 
 gives most welcome facilities, and the oriental taste for 
 
 architectural magnificence and grandeur is frequently 
 
 gratified by the style and decorations of the building. 
 
 The Bath Going "westward to Ireland and America, we find a 
 in Ireland, "- . . . , , , , i i 
 
 lorm or batii more primitive, but constructed on the same 
 
 principle. The Irish bath was generally built of basalt 
 stones, plastered with mud or mortar, and shaped like a 
 bee-hive, having a hole at the top, and another near the 
 ground, by which the bather gained entrance. The 
 interior was large enough for one person to seat himself, 
 and the place was heated after the manner of a baker's 
 oven, with a large turf fire. The fire was left until burnt 
 quite doAvn, when its remains were removed, and the 
 floor strewn with rushes. The bather then crept in and 
 seated himself, and the sod Vvhich had been placed over 
 the hole at the top to keep in the heat was removed to 
 allow him to breathe. Here he remained until the beads 
 of perspiration rolled off in abundance, he was then 
 taken out, bathed, wrapped in blankets, and conveyed 
 home. These erections were called, in the Keltic tongue, 
 Tif^ AUin, or sweating houses. They were for the most 
 part placed on the banks of rivers, lakes, or ponds, for 
 facility of after bathing. 
 
 These '^ (Sweating Houses " are used in Ireland to this 
 day, especially in the province of Connangiit, the most 
 ]irimitive part of the island. More particularly this mode 
 of cure is used in the northern counties ot the province, 
 Leitrim, Sligo, and Roscommon. The peasantrj^ of the 
 baronies of Liney, Gcevah, and Tirrerah, consider them an 
 infallible cure for colds, fevers, agues, pulmonary com- 
 plaints and dropsies, 
 rrimitivc By whatever means the aborigines of America became 
 Baths. acquainted with tlicrmal bathing, it is certain that in 
 
Chap. IV.'J 113 
 
 their own primitive vray they employed it for the cure of 
 their distempers. In North America the native sweating 
 house resembled a large oven, with a small door on 
 either side, one for the bather to creep in by, and the 
 other for introducinof red-hot stones. On these stones 
 water was sprinkled to raise a steam, there the bather 
 sat, until, having undergone a thorough perspiration, he 
 was taken out, reeking hot, and plunged into the stream Penn, 
 hard by. The following is an extract from a letter byp^™*^^j^°^ 
 William Penn, the founder of Pensylvania, to Dr. Bay- vania, on 
 nard, the author of a work on cold bathing, describing the ^^^ ind^-^' 
 bath of the North American Indians : — ^^^ 
 
 " As I find the Indians on this continent more incident to fevers than 
 any other distempers, so they rarely fail to cure themselves by great 
 sweating, and immediately plimging themselves into cold water, which 
 they say is the only way not to catch cold. I once saw an instance of it, 
 with divers more in company. For being upon a discovery of the back 
 part of the country, I called upon an Indian of note, whose name was 
 Tenoughan, the captain-general of the clans of Indians in those parts. 
 I found him all of a fever, his head and limbs much affected with pain, 
 and at the same time his wife preparing a bagnio for him. The bagnio 
 resembled a large oven, into which he crept by a door on one side, while 
 she put several red-hot stones in at a small door on the other side thereof, 
 and then fastened the door as closely from the air as she could. Now, 
 while he was sweating in this bagnio, his wife (for they disdain no ser- 
 vice) was cutting with an axe a passage into the river (being the winter 
 of 1683, the frost great, and the ice very thick), in order to the immersing 
 himself after he should come out of the bath. In less than half-an-hour 
 he was in so great a sweat that when ho came out he was as wet as if he 
 had come out of a river, and the reeking steam of his body so thick that 
 it was hard to discover anybody's face that stood near him. In this con- 
 dition he ran to the river, which was about twenty paces, and ducked 
 himself twice or thi-ice therein, and so returned (passing only through the 
 bagnio to mitigate the stroke of the cold) to his own house, perhaps 
 twenty paces further, and, wrapping himself in his woollen mantle, lay 
 down at his length near the long (but gentle) fire in the middle of his wig- 
 wam or house, turning himself several times till he was dry, and then he 
 rose and feU to getting us our dinner, seeming to be as easy and well in 
 health as at any other time." 
 I 
 
114 
 
 [Chap. IV. 
 
 Form of 
 Bath in 
 Mexico. 
 
 Baths in 
 Eussia, 
 Japan, &j 
 
 Sometimes this oven-bath was constructed of poles 
 covered vv^ith skins, so as to be perfectly air-tight, and 
 sometimes a hollow square of six or eight feet deep was 
 formed in the river bank, by damming up the other three 
 sides with mud, and covering the whole over, except an 
 aperture of about two feet in diameter at the top for the 
 bather to enter. The use of these sweating-houses was 
 
 o 
 
 common among all the Indian tribes, from the Atlantic to 
 the Pacific coast of what may now be called Anglo-Saxon 
 America. 
 
 In Mexico a similar form of structure was used, but 
 built of bricks and provided with a furnace, having " a 
 mouth " to receive the fuel, and a hole at the top for the 
 smoke to be emitted. Within was placed a mattress upon 
 which the bather reclined, a pitcher of water and some 
 sweet smelling herbs. When the bath (or Termazcalle, as 
 it was called,) was duly heated, the bather entered, accom- 
 panied by an attendant, the entrance was closed, and the 
 attendant sprinkled water upon the hot stones around the 
 furnace until the whole place was filled with vapour, 
 while the bather reclined on the mattress, beat the ailing 
 part with herbs dipped in the water which by that time 
 had become slightly warmed. The Mexican found this a 
 remedy in various diseases, especially in cases of bites by 
 poisonous reptiles. 
 
 Tracing the bath eastward from its supposed source on 
 the Syrian shores of the Mediterranean, we find it flourish- 
 ing in Russia, Tartary, China, and Japan. The Russian 
 Bath has been so often described that many of my readers 
 will be familiar with the description. In St. Petersburg, 
 Moscow, and other large towns, both in European and 
 Asiatic Russia, the public baths are numerous, and are 
 frequented by all classes, especially by the poor, who are 
 'nfluenced by the observance of religious rites as well as 
 
Chap. IV,] 115 
 
 hy considerations of health and personal enjoyment. On 
 (Sunday evenings in St. Petersburgh may be seen crowds of 
 mechanics, labourers, soldiers, women, and children with 
 birch twigs in their hands and towels under their arms, 
 their direction being a door over which is written, " En- 
 trance to the Baths : " here they take their tickets, males 
 and females proceeding to separate compartments where 
 they undress. Beyond the undressing rooms are air-hot 
 chambers, which are filled with vapour, caused by throw- 
 ing hot water from pipes over heated stones or bricks. 
 Around the apartments extends a range of steps reaching 
 from floor to ceiling, and the heat is in proportion to the 
 ascent. Into this vapour-filled chamber as many bathers 
 crowd as can find accommodation, and arrange themselves 
 in tiers upon the ascending gradation of steps. Each is 
 furnished with a small pailful of hot water with which to 
 souse his body now and then as he switches it with the 
 birch twigs. After working themselves up to a high heat 
 iind profuse perspiration, the bathers finish in summer by 
 ablutions of soap and cold water ; and in winter, by rush- 
 ing out and rolling themselves in the snow. The Russians 
 take gfreat delio;lit in this bath, believino- it to be a 
 sovereign remedy for many diseases, while its effect in 
 strengthening their constitutions is too evident to admit of 
 doubt. "The eyes of a Russian gentleman gladden with 
 rapture when he speaks of the bagnio, it is his ne plus ultra 
 of mortal bliss." 
 
 Dr. Clarke, in the account of his travels in Russia at Dr. 
 the beginning of the present century, makes mention of P?^"^-'^'^ 
 the Russian Bath, and describes a visit he paid to onetionofa 
 with the vicAv of being relieved from a rheumatic pain, Bath?^ 
 brought on by a sudden change of weather which took 
 place in Moscow. After describing the general appear- 
 ance of the interior, he notices that in the middle of the 
 
116 ■ [Chap. IY. 
 
 room was a step to a platform elevated above the floury 
 and on each side of the platform a stove, the upper sur- 
 faces of which were covered by reeds, the bed of reeds 
 being in turn covered by a sheet. He then proceeds : — 
 
 " Iwas directed to mount upon one of these stoves, and to place myself 
 at full length on the sheet ; having done which, I found myself nearly 
 elevated to the roof of the bath, and the heat of ascending vapour threw 
 me immediately into a most profuse perspiration. According to Storch,. 
 the heat varies from 104 to 122 degrees of Fahrenheit ; and some- 
 times, upon the upper stages near the roof, it is twenty degrees above 
 fever heat. Thus situated, a man began to rub me all over with a woollen 
 cloth, made into a bag, covering one of his hands, till the exterior surface- 
 of the skin peeled off. As soon as he had finished the operation with the 
 woollen cloth, he bade me descend, and poured several vessels of warm 
 water on my head, whence it fell all over my body. He then placed me 
 on the floor, and washed my hair with his hands, scratching my head in 
 all parts with his nails — a great luxury to the Russians, and for reasons- 
 it is not necessary to explain. After this, he again made me ascend the- 
 stove, where once more stretching me at length, he prepared a copious 
 lather of soap, with which, and a woollen cloth, he again rubbed my 
 body, when I descended a second time, and was again soused with vessels 
 of water. I was next desired to extend myself on the stove for the third 
 time, and informed that the greatest degree of heat would be given. To 
 prepare for this, they cautioned me to lie on my face, and keep my head 
 down. Birch boughs were then brought, with their leaves on, and dipped 
 in soap and hot water, with which they began to scrub me afresh ; at the 
 same time, some hot water being cast upon red-hot cannon balls, and 
 upon the principal stove, such a vapour passed all over me, that it came 
 like a current of fire upon my skin. If I ventured to raise my head an 
 instant, it seemed as though I was breathing flames. It was impossible 
 to endure this process for any length of time ; therefore, finding myself 
 unable to cry out, I forced my way down from the stove, and was con- 
 ducted to the lower part of the room, where I seated myself on the floor, 
 and the doors being opened, soon recovered suflS.ciently to walk out of the 
 bath. 
 
 "Eminent physicians have endeavoured to draw the attention of the 
 English government to the importance of public baths, and of counte- 
 nancing their use by every aid of example and encouragement. While 
 we wonder at their prevalence among all the Eastern and Northern 
 nations, may we not lament that thej' are so little used in our own 
 country ? We might, perhaps, find reason to allow that erysipelas, 
 
€hap. IV.] 117 
 
 surfeit, rheumatism, colds, and a iiundred other evils, particularly all 
 sorts of cutaneous and nervous disorders, might be alleviated, if not pre- 
 ■vented, by a proper attention to bathing. The inhabitants of countries 
 in -which the bath is constantly used, anxiously seek it, in full confidence 
 of getting rid of all such complaints, and they are rarely disappointed- 
 I may add my testimony to theirs, having, not only upon the occasion 
 which gave rise to these remarks, but in cases of obstructed perspiration 
 much more alarming, during my travels, experienced their good effect. 
 I hardly know any act of benevolence more essential to the comfort of 
 the community, than that of establishing, by public benefaction, the use 
 of baths for the poor, in all our cities and manufacturing towns. The 
 lives of many might be saved by them. In England they are considered 
 only as articles of luxury ; yet throughout the vast empire of Kussia, 
 through all Finland, Lapland, Sweden, and Norway, there is no cottage 
 80 poor, no hut so destitute, but it possesses its vapour bath, in which all 
 its inhabitants, every Saturday at least, and every day in cases of sickness, 
 (experience comfort and salubrity." 
 
 Speaking then of the benefit that would accrue to this Benefits 
 country from the establishment of warm and vapour baths, g°^ 
 lie continues : — 
 
 " Perhaps at some future period they may become general ; and statues 
 may perpetuate the memor j^ of the patriot, the statesman, or the sovereign 
 to whom society will be indebted for their institution N^Tien we are told 
 that the illustrious Bacon lamented in vain the disuse of baths among 
 the Europeans, we have little reason to indulge the expectation. At the 
 same time, an additional testimony to their salutary effects, in affording 
 longevity and vigorous health to a people otherwise liable to mortal 
 diseases from a rigorous climate and an unwholesome diet, may contribute 
 to their establishment. Among the ancients, baths were public edifices 
 under the immediate inspection of the government. They were con- 
 sidered as institutions which owed their origin to absolute necessity, as 
 well as to decency and cleanliness. Under her emperors, Rome had near 
 a. thousand such buildings, which, besides their utility, were regarded as 
 masterpieces of architectural skill and sumptuous decoration. In Russia, 
 they have only vapour-baths, and these are, for the most part, in 
 wretched wooden hovels. If wood is wanting, they arc formed of mud, 
 or scooped in the banks of rivers and lakes ; but in the palaces of the 
 nobles, however they may vary in convenience or splendour cf materialt;, 
 Mxc plan of construction is always the same." 
 
 In Finland the bath is generally attached to the houses 
 
118 [Chap. IV. 
 
 of the peasantry, and consists of one small cliamber, witb 
 a kind of oven filled with round stones, which are heated 
 until they become red. There are two rows of seats, one 
 near the ground, and one in the hotter region near the 
 roof. While in the bath the Finlanders rub themselves, 
 and switch their bodies with the twigs of the birch tree. 
 Having done this to their satisfaction, they finish with 
 Gold water or a roll in the snow in the true northern 
 style. The great objection to these Russian and Finnish 
 baths is their oppressive amount of vapour and their 
 defective ventilation. But though far from perfect, they 
 are vastly better than no bath at all, and as constructed 
 and managed, for example, by Dr. M. Roth in London, 
 they are in certain states of body eminently serviceable. 
 Baths in In far east Tartar}^, whither the victorious arms of 
 ^^^ ' Russia have now penetrated, the soldiers of the Czar 
 have an opportunity of bathing on the hot-air principle, 
 which they find more agreeable, it is to be presumed, 
 than their own stifling vapour. The baths of Bokhara, 
 the Tartar capital, and there are sixteen of them, consist 
 of four compartments, of which two are for dressing and 
 sipping tea, and two for the perspiring, shampooing, 
 and bathing processes. The two latter are heated from 
 below, after the Greek and Roman method. In the first 
 chamber, the bather doffs his outer garments ; in the 
 second, which has a slightly higher temperature, he 
 completes his disrobing. Girding himself with his bath- 
 ing costume, he enters the third and hottest room, where 
 he reclines until he has sufiiciently perspired. Proceeding 
 then to the fourth room he gives himself up to the sham- 
 pooer, who manipulates with such skill as he has, rubs 
 him with a coarse hair cloth, and finishes by pouring cold 
 or cool water over him. He then returns to recline 
 and sip his tea in the first or second apartment. These 
 
CuAP. IV.] 119 
 
 Tartar baths, althongli not so good as the Turkish, are a 
 great improvement upon the Russian. 
 
 The Chinese baths approach nearer to the Russian type, Chinese 
 being vaj^oiw, not hot-air baths. As a fair specimen of '^ ^" 
 them, those of Shanghai may be taken, which have been 
 described as follows : — Each bathing establishment has 
 two outer or cooling rooms for toilet purposes, one large 
 public room for the poorer classes, and one smaller and 
 private room for the respectable. Down the middle and 
 along the sides of these rooms are ranged rows of small 
 boxes, or lockers furnished with lock and key, into which 
 the bathers put their clothes. At the further end of the 
 building is a small door by which they enter into the 
 bathing room, which is about thirty feet by twenty, and 
 is filled with hot steam or vapour. The entire floor, except a 
 narrow space round the sides, is occupied by a hot-water 
 bath from one to eighteen inches deep. The furnace is 
 outside, and the flues are carried under the centre of the 
 bath. In the hazy light of this room may be seen the 
 perspiring Chinamen disporting themselves in the shallow 
 water, until, when cleansed to their satisfaction, they 
 return to the cooling room, there to regale themselves 
 with cups of tea and pipes of tobacco. All classes of 
 Chinese frequent these bathing establishments. Mr. Ellis, Mr. Ellis 
 in his "Journal of the Embassy to China (1816)," says of ^^, i^g^^^^ 
 this Chinese cleansing apparatus, that it is " disgusting," 
 and " worthy of this nasty nation;" but says Mr. Erasmus 
 Wilson, " What would Mr. Ellis say of a country in which 
 there existed no cleansing ai'^paratus whatever? For 
 example, his own." Thanks, however, to Mr. Urquhart 
 and Dr. Barter, this home question has now lost some- 
 thing of its point and unpleasantness. 
 
 In Japan the bathing place is usually built at the back Japanese 
 of the gardens of private dwellings, and is got rcadj- 
 
 Baths. 
 
120 [Chap. IV. 
 
 eTery evening, as the Japanese regard it as a necessary 
 refreshment after the fatigues of the clay. Their bath is 
 either a vapour or warm water one, sometimes both. The 
 sweating house is nearly nine feet square and about six 
 feet in height, besides having the floor raised three feet 
 from the ground. The floor is of planed laths, set a few 
 - inches apart to let the vapour in, and the water out. Two 
 shutters, one on each side, are provided to let out the 
 superfluous vapour,. and there is a small door by which the 
 bather creeps in. The empty space between the floor and 
 the ground is walled in to prevent the escape of vapour by 
 the sides. The furnace stands out towards the yard, but 
 under the sweating house is the boiler with the necessary 
 water, to which is added odoriferous plants. There are 
 placed near him two tubs, one of warm and one of cold 
 water, that he may wash himself after the sweating process. 
 Baths in The sweating house of the New Zealander is a round 
 New ea- j^^j^ ^^^ ^^ ^^-^q ground, into which hot stones are thrown, 
 and the patient being let down and covered up, remains in 
 the hole until he has perspired enough for his purpose, 
 when he is taken out and plunged into a stream of 
 water. 
 BaLhing, a In all these different constructions and modes of operation, 
 inetinct. however primitive, the same great principle predominates, 
 to flush out the pores of the skin to an extent which would 
 be impossible in a mere warm-water bath. None of the 
 other forms of bath described here come up in magnifi- 
 cence or efficency to those of Greece and Rome. Never- 
 theless, rude and imperfect as some of them are, they are a 
 benefit, and indicate a natural instinct in the human race, 
 under whatever savage or civilized condition it may exist, 
 to bathe and be clean. Erasmus Wilson has some remarks 
 so apropos on this point, in his work entitled the " Eastern, 
 or Turkish Bath," that I cannot refrain from -citing them. 
 
Chap. IV.] 121 
 
 *' The bath," he saj'S, "is an animal instinct, and, par 
 cixellejice, a human instinct ; it is as much a necessity of 
 our nature as drink. We drink because Ave thirst — an 
 interior sense. We bathe because water, the material of 
 drink, is a desire of the outward man — an exterior sense. 
 An animal, whether beast or bird, pasturing or straying 
 near a limpid stream, first satisfies the inward sense, and 
 then delights the outward sense. A man, be he savage or 
 civilized, can no more resist the gratification of bathing 
 his wearied limbs in a warm transparent pool than he can 
 resist the cup of water when athirst. Instinct bids him 
 bathe and be clean. To inquire — Who invented the act of 
 drinking ? would be as reasonable as to ask — Who invented 
 the bath ? " 
 
 On the continent of Europe the revival of the Turkish Revival of 
 Bath was hailed with enthusiasm, and is known in some Baths oa 
 parts of Germany as the Irish Bath — doubtless arising the Conti- 
 from its introduction to that country from Ireland. It 
 has been introduced with uniform, if not with equal 
 success, into all parts of the world. Wherever the Anglo- 
 Saxon race is established, the hot-air bath is a necessity. 
 In the United States and Canada there are few important 
 cities that do not possess these Therma3. They havo 
 lilvcwise been erected in the large towns of Australia, New 
 Zealand, and other English colonies. 
 
 That which is now offei-ed to the attention of the English Improved 
 people is superior to the others already described. ''It is Bath. 
 the Roman Bath without the anointing, and the Turkish 
 Bath wnthout its undue moisture." Anointino- is no 
 longer required for the purposes for which the Romans 
 used it, and the moisture of the Turkish and other baths 
 has been found to be an injurious imperfection. The 
 ^'improved Turkish Bath" is one of pure atmospheric air 
 properly heated, having its due proportion of oxygen^ 
 
122 [Chap. IV. 
 
 making respiration pleasant, oxyclation of tlie blood 
 perfect, evaporation and depuration complete, and exalting 
 the tonic iii^fluence of the subsequent cold appliances. 
 " Under the influence of pure heated air," says Dr. 
 Barter, " free from visible steam, and continuously renewed 
 by a perfect system of ventilation, no one feels the distress 
 which so frequently accompanies other heating appliances, 
 for while perspiration is more fully obtained, the pulse is 
 seldom found to rise much above its normal standard." 
 This is the great feature of the Improved Turkish Bath, 
 and one on which its perfect safety and curative property 
 will be found mainly to depend. 
 
 The saturation of the atmosphere with moisture interferes 
 with the free transpiration from the lungs and skin, and 
 thus impedes the process which nature provides for cooling 
 the body. Steam fills the space which vital air should 
 occupy, and thus from both causes nature is placed in a 
 difficulty in regard to the heat. Nature did not intend 
 man to live in an atmosphere of vapour or water. Pure 
 air is man's proper medium ; and if it be pure and dry it 
 can never do harm. 
 
 It is a matter of experience that when a feeling of 
 discomfort occurs in a season of heat, it is always in 
 proportion to the amount of moisture present in the 
 atmosphere. When the thermometer stands at 60 the 
 atmosphere, if dry, is agreeable, but if saturated with 
 moisture, it will be raw and cold. If the atmosphere be at 
 80 and dry it will not be oppressive, whereas if moisture 
 be present it will be very disagreeable. In tropical 
 countries the greatest discomfort from heat is experienced 
 when the atmosphere is loaded with moisture. Thus 
 higher temperatures can be borne with less oppression in 
 dry inland regions than on the sea coast or along the 
 courses of large rivers. 
 
Chai^ IV.] 123 
 
 If, then, a person wants to command perspiration witli- 
 out distress or discomfort ; if lie desire to produce an 
 impression of temperatm-e on the surface without injury 
 to the system ; if it be his object to prepare the body for 
 atmospheric changes with impunity — use the improved 
 Turkish Bath. 
 
 The extensive use of the hot-air bath lias served to When a 
 explode the nonsense entertained about the danger of ouo-ht^'^not 
 bathing while the body is hot and perspiring. There are, ^° ^^ 
 indeed, conditions of body in which a cold bath ought not 
 to be taken : — 
 
 1st. When the body is chilly. 
 
 2nd. When it is exhausted. 
 
 3rd. When the stomach is full of undigested food. 
 
 4th. When the respiration is unduly disturbed by over- 
 exhaustion. 
 
 But in respect of mere heat of body there cannot be too Warmtn. 
 much ; if not glowing or perspiring, it ought always to be 
 comfortably warm, prior to cold douching, or immersion. 
 Warmth, preparatory to the cold morning ablution, is 
 secured by the heat of the bed. At other times different 
 means may be adopted ; the most natural method is 
 exercise — a smart walk, the gymnasium, or an athletic 
 game will serve the purpose very well. But for the lame, 
 the delicate, and all persons who from any cause are pre- 
 vented from raising the temperature of the body bv the 
 expenditure of nervous force, recourse must be had to 
 passive means. 
 
 That there was a necessity for a more perfect method of Necessity 
 bathing than existed before the introduction of the Turkish JfeVTm?-' 
 system, is patent from the rapid progress the latter has ish BatLs. 
 made, for it is the only mode capable of supplying tlus 
 necessity, and were it brought within the reach of tlw 
 working classes, we should soon see gratifying results m 
 
124 [Chap. 1Y. 
 
 the cleanliness, and healtli superinduced. The Legisla- 
 ture accomplished a most beneficial work in passing the 
 Baths and Washhouses Act, resulting as it did in a great 
 advancement of personal purity. 
 Swim- Swimming baths are popular, and have proved a great 
 Eaths. sanitary advantage, and the most lucrative department of 
 such institutions. No one who witnesses the fine athletic 
 forms of the men who frequent these plunge or swimming 
 baths can doubt the benefit which accrue from their use 
 to the youth of the working classes, with whom it is the 
 only exercise obtainable apart from that which belongs to 
 their daily labour, which too often strengthens one part of 
 the body at the expense of the other members of it. The 
 warm baths have proved a failure, financially^ so that 
 as far as a bath for cleansing purposes is concerned, there 
 is decided need for reform, especially when they can bo 
 made profitable. This can in no way be so effectually 
 applied as by the introduction of the Turkish Bath, or 
 such a modified form of it as I shall describe in an ensuing 
 chapter. All agree who have investigated and given 
 the subject impartial consideration, that neither legislation 
 nor public nor private enterprise could be employed to 
 better advantage than in supplying the poor with a cheap 
 Hot-air Bath, one of the greatest sanitary wants of the age. 
 It may not be out of place here to introduce a letter 
 which I recently received from Dr. E. Sheppard, medical 
 superintendent of the Middlesex County Lunatic Asylum, 
 Colney Hatch, who has given much attention to the 
 subject. 
 
 "Dear Sir, — Knowing you are one of the Local Sanitary Board for 
 Paddington, and ttat it is in contemplation to erect baths and wash- 
 houses for the district, I venture to suggest to you the importance of 
 combining therein the hot-air or vapour bath. With your experience of 
 these great adjuncts to health, it is not necessary to point out the 
 
Chap. IV.] 125 
 
 immense advantage to the community of such a combination. But I may- 
 mention a fact which may have some influence upon your colleagues. A 
 large number of my patients quitting the asylum, restored both in body 
 and mind, have only one regret in doing so, and that is that they ai-e 
 relinquishing one of those luxurious means which has largely helped to 
 their recovery. ' We cannot afford,' they say, ' to pay Is. 6d. a week for 
 a Turkish Bath.' Could not some means be devised for bringing this 
 great eliminator of blood-poison within the range of the lower orders ? 
 The matter is well worthy of consideration, and you would confer an 
 inestimable boon upon the public if your board would initiate the same 
 in your district." » 
 
126 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 Hot Air, versus Warm- Water Baths. 
 
 Turkish 
 Baths for 
 the 
 -working 
 
 classes. 
 
 Turkish 
 
 Bath and 
 
 warru 
 
 lavatory 
 
 V. ordinary 
 
 ■warm 
 
 baths. 
 
 ALTHOUGH the Hot-air or Turkish Bath has, as I 
 have shown in the previous chapter, rapidly grown 
 into public favour, it has hitherto been mainly confined to 
 the middle and upper ranks of society. Few efforts have 
 as yet been made to bring it within the reach of the 
 lower classes, and the only Towns which have adopted the 
 Turkish Bath under the Act are Ashton-under-Lyne, 
 Bradford, Bury, Cardiff, Hanley, Kidderminster, and 
 Stalybridge, notwithstanding that the poor, who are ill- 
 clad, worse fed, and, as is too often the case, compelled to 
 live in badly ventilated and densely crowded houses, with 
 scarcely any accommodation for washing their clothing or 
 cleansing their bodies, are more in want of the boon than 
 the other ranks of society. Surely there can be no valid 
 reason why a blessing so real, so urgently required, and 
 of such proved utility should not be made available for the 
 working man and his family. 
 
 In this chapter I propose to discuss the comparative 
 merits of the Turkish Bath the warm lavatory system, 
 and the warm- water bathing provided in the baths and 
 washhouses for cleansing the bodies of the labouring 
 classes. I shall base my arguments upoH physiological 
 grounds, trusting that I may be fortunate enough to 
 convince my readers that those adduced are sound. 
 
Chap. V.] 127 
 
 There is among the crowded populations of towns and Physical 
 cities, a constant tendency to physical deterioration — a tion"^^'^" 
 perpetual gravitation of the standard of vitality to a lower 
 level — a depressing influence continually at work to impair 
 physical organization and stunt mental growth ; hence the 
 necessity for a counteracting power to arrest this downward 
 course, by operating on the causes Avhence it proceeds. 
 Now, one of the most valuable results of sound sanitary 
 knowledge, is a thorough conviction of the preventi- 
 bility in a large degree of the vast mass of diseased 
 condition which physically and mentally depresses the 
 working population ; in short, a conviction tliat 
 the health of a community is in proportion to its 
 cleanliness. 
 
 In deciding therefore the character of the bath best Merits of 
 adapted to promote the comfort, health, and welfare of the baih.° ^^ 
 people, we must be guided solely by the qualities it 
 may inherently possess as a prophylactic agent. That the 
 merits of the Hot-air Baths in this respect are such as to 
 admit of no rivalry, I think I can submit sufficient 
 evidence to prove. 
 
 The more enlightened portion of the public is fully alive 
 to the value of the Turkish Bath, and pretty nearly every- 
 thing that private speculation can do to place it at the 
 service of the people is being done. It only remains for 
 parochial enterprise to finish the good work, by adding it 
 to their Baths and Washhouses where they exist, and 
 establishing them conjointly where they do not. 
 
 Let us look for a moment at the condition, occupation, 
 and circumstances of the working man. He is subject to 
 many disadvantages. Although, living as he does from 
 hand to mouth, can least afford to be laid up, his 
 position is such that he is the most exposed to the 
 attacks of disease. His calling, residence, and mode of 
 
128 [Chap. V. 
 
 living all tend to produce discomfort and ill-health to a far 
 greater extent than is the case with the middle and upper 
 classes; he is exposed to the inclemency of weather, or 
 else subjected to the debilitating influences of sedentary 
 occupations, with but little or no opportunity or inclina- 
 tion for those outdoor sports and recreations which form 
 so large a proportion of the pastimes and pleasures of 
 those above him in social position, and yet he is- 
 deprived of the use of the bath so conducive to his 
 comfort and well-being. The working classes are 
 ' — judging from practical experience of the effect of 
 hot air upon animal life — far more likely to benefit 
 from the use of this bath than those whose habits, avoca- 
 tionSj and residences are more in accordance with the laws 
 of health. 
 The Bath The object of a bath for sanitary purposes is to remove 
 for sani- ^]^g natural excretions which adhere to the skin, and which, 
 poses. if allowed to accumulate, clog up the pores, and prevent 
 the free action of this important membrane. This a 
 warm- water bath cannot possiblj^ effect; the most sensible 
 benefit derived from it is a false sensation of surface 
 cleanliness. Acting solely and simply on the surface it 
 cannot afford much relief to the skin, by the removal of 
 the dead, effete matter whicli impedes its action and so 
 obstructs it in the performance of its vital functions. "It 
 i.«," to use the comparison of Mr. Dunlop, author of ' The 
 Philosophy of the Bath/ '' only like removing filth from 
 the mouth of a sewer, instead of fiusMng the whole sewer 
 itself ; " that is, it does not cause the skin to eliminate the 
 impurities of the system, and to relieve the congestion of 
 other organs. Besides, it acts as a powerful relax ative, and 
 to a certain extent nullifying the good effect it might other- 
 wise have had. Such is not the case with the hot-air bath, 
 which, by keeping the pores of the skin open, frees the blood 
 
Chap. V.] 129 
 
 of its irapmuties, and relieves tlie congested condition of 
 other organs. '• It is in the myriad vessels thus described 
 (the capillaries), whose duty it is to carry away the 
 major portion of old, worn-out^ or useless materials of the 
 body," says Mrs. Donovan, " that the principal, or 
 at least the most demonstrable, seat of action of the 
 Turkish Bath exists. Its grand effect is thoroughly 
 to open and cleanse the capillary tubes and drains : to 
 clear out their obstructions, and freely to circulate 
 the blood through them, preparing the body to receive 
 the healing and strengthening effects of the cold or cool 
 iipplication." 
 
 I know it is urged by some opponents of the Hot-air. 
 Turkish Bath that the inhalation of hot and dry air is 
 very deleterious ; carrjdng off" the moisture that ought 
 to lubricate the - wind-pipe and air passage of the lungs. 
 Bat in answer to this it can be demonstrably maintained 
 that where there is adequate ventilation the air cannot be 
 utterly dry ; and the most eminent physiologists have 
 shown that the inhaled hot dry air of the Turkish Bath 
 becomes moist and cool ere it reaches the lungs ; it cannot 
 therefore injure them by its heat and dryness. It does 
 not unduly raise the heat of the body which always 
 maintains its normal temperature of 98 degrees when 
 evaporation from the lungs and skin takes place, and the 
 hotter and drier the air the greater is this evaporation. 
 Dr. Cummins '^ says it is impossible to take hot dry air j^^. q^^^^^ 
 into the lungs. The exhalation from the mouth, fauces, mins cm 
 and large bronchial tubes, renders the air moist, at the ' 
 same time that it robs it of caloric, long before it reaches 
 the air cells ; in point of fact the only air that can be 
 taken hot into the lungs is air saturated ivith moisture, and 
 W'hich cannot be rendered cool by evaporation." This 
 is also well illustrated by the celebrated physiologists 
 
 K 
 
180 [Chap. T. 
 
 Effects of Drg. Todd and Bowman, and Dr. Carpenter. The 
 
 moist and . 
 
 dry air. former tell us that all the effects of excessive temperature 
 on the body are much more apparent with a moist than 
 with a dr7/ atmosphere; because, in the case of a dry 
 atmosphere, a greater amount of evaporation takes place? 
 and hence a greater quantity of heat is removed from 
 the skin. It would be impossible without inconvenience 
 to sustain a vapour bath at a temperature of 110°^ 
 to 120° for more than ten minutes, whereas, it ha& 
 been proved, the body may be without danger ex- 
 posed for the same time to a dr7/ temperature twice as 
 high, or more.* Erasmus Wilson, in his work " On the 
 Management of the Skin," speaks of the influence of a 
 moist atmosphere, at an elevated temperature, on the 
 human system. I may adduce the effects occasioned to a 
 gentleman who recently visited the Baths of Nero, near 
 Pozzuoli, the ancient Posidianse. To reach the bath, he 
 had to pass along a narrow winding passage of about 120 
 yards in length, and seven feet high, by about three in 
 breadth. A little within the mouth of the passage, the 
 temperature was 104° in the upper stratum of the atmo- 
 sphere, and 01° near the ground ; further on, the air was 
 filled with a dense vapour, of a temperature of 118° above. 
 
 ♦The experiments related by Drs. Watson and Carpenter are truly 
 wonderful. One girl remained in an oren for ten minutes, with the 
 thermometer at 280 deg. ; another for five minutes, while it rose to 325 
 deg., or 113 deg. above the boiling point of water. Others remained in 
 while eggs were roasted quite hard in twenty minutes, and beefsteaks were- 
 dressed in thirty-three minutes, and when air was blown upon the meat by 
 means of bellows it was sufficiently cooked in thirteen minutes. In all 
 these experiments it was found that the animal heat, as ascertained by 
 thermometers placed under the tongue, was scarcely increased at all, and 
 none of the experimenters were in the smallest way injured. We are told 
 also by Dr. Carpenter, that Chabert, called " the Fire King," was in the habit 
 of entering an oven, the temperature of .which was from 400 to 600 deg. 
 
Chap. V.] 131 
 
 and 111° below ; and over the bath it was 122°, the heat 
 of the spring being 185°. After proceeding for about 
 one-third the length of the passage, he began to feel a 
 sense of oppression and discomfort, his pulse rising from 
 70 to 90 beats in the minute. A short distance further, 
 the oppression increased, his breathing became rapid and 
 panting, and he was under the necessity of stooping his 
 head frequently to the earth, in order to obtain a chestful 
 of air of a less suffocating temperature. His skin at this 
 time was bathed in a profuse perspiration, his head throb- 
 bing, and his pulse beating 120 in a minute. Continuing 
 his progress, the sensation of suffocation became insup- 
 portable ; his head felt as though it would burst ; his 
 pulse was so rapid as to defy calculation ; he was ex- 
 hausted, and nearly unconscious, and it required all his 
 remaining power to enable him to hurry back to the open 
 air. On reaching the mouth of the passage, he staggered, 
 and nearly fainted, and was very uncomfortable until 
 relieved by a bleeding from the nose. During the rest 
 of the day his pulse remained at 100 ; he had uneasy 
 sensations over the surface of the body, and did not re- 
 cover until after a night's repose. The same gentleman 
 bore a temperature of 176° in dry air without incon- 
 venience. Dr. Carpenter says that a heated atmosphere, Dr. Car- 
 loaded with moisture, interferes with the cooling influence j^eated at" 
 of perspiration, and by the heat of the body pulsation be- mosjpiiere 
 comes injuriously augmented ; and, again, that a moist- 
 heated atmosphere obstructs the elimination of excremen- 
 titious matters from the blood through the lungs and skin. 
 With the hot-air bath, the immediate action on the skin 
 is at once felt. Slight perspiration is induced without 
 bodily fatigue or relaxation, whilst a genial, exhilarating 
 influence is diffused over the Avhole system. In this way 
 the skin is assisted, and not obstructed, in the perform- 
 
132 Chap. Y.] 
 
 ance of its vital functions, while the whole of the bodilj 
 organism is benefited, both from a medical and sanitary- 
 point of view. 
 
 Advanta- Besides, properly administered, the hot-air bath has 
 gesofhot- ,, . -, 1 . o , . . . 1 . 
 
 ail- bath, the smgular advantage of combining with its own peculiar 
 merits all that is valuable in water bathing, because 
 practically it is a hot-air, a warm-water, and a cold- 
 water bath — the virtues of all three combined in one 
 — hot air being the medium for all forms of water 
 applications. It is also equally applicable to the healthy 
 and the infirm ; neither youth nor age circumscribes its 
 titility ; and there are few individuals whose constitutional 
 peculiarities or idiosyncrasies would render its action in 
 their case at all dubious. The temperature for all its 
 applications can be modified so as not to be injurious to 
 the most delicate and susceptible constitution. It is this 
 singularly happy characteristic which renders the hot-air 
 bath so suited to become, as regards the additional 
 requirements of society, an institution for all classes. 
 
 There is, however, a very prevalent opinion that the 
 hot-air bath is not so applicable to the working classes as to 
 those above them, on account of its supposed weakening 
 effects ; an expenditure which the former, subjected as 
 they are to the daily waste of bodily tissues, can ill afford, 
 ^ow, there can be no stronger counter proof to this than 
 the fact that the sick become strong and healthy from its 
 use, and that those who indulge in it after a hard and 
 fatiguing day's labour feel refreshed and invigorated on 
 coming out of it. 
 jfeDono- Mrs. Donovan, in her little work, " Illness : its Cause 
 opiDion. and Cure," says : " We confidently promise our readers 
 they will lose nothing in the bath that it would be benefi- 
 cial to retain, and that, whatever may be their state of 
 health, its certain tendency is to make them stronger, 
 
Chap. Y.] 133 
 
 more vigorous, and less liable to disease." Dr. Andrew Dr. A. 
 
 Combe says: "The Turkish Bath increases, instead of ^°/"?'*''^ 
 1 . . 1.1 opinion. 
 
 exhaustmg, the strength, and by escitmg the vital action 
 
 of the skin gives rise to a power of reaction which enables 
 
 the body to resist the cold much better than before." Mr. 
 
 Urquhart is of the same opinion. He asks, " Is extreme 
 
 perspiration weakening? Is very profuse perspiration 
 
 »veakening ? because these objections are raised by people 
 
 who are ignorant. Assuredly not. No substance goes 
 
 out from you by perspiration except the noxious matter 
 
 that you ought to get rid of." 
 
 " If you go into the bath heavy and jaded," says Dr. 
 Brereton (proprietor of a magnificent Turkish Bath in ton's 
 Sydney, Australia), ^' even though you have been up and opuuon. 
 working all night, you come out refreshed ; if from grief 
 or care you are desponding when you enter, your heart is 
 lightened before yoxx leave, for it is impossible to resist 
 the exhilarating effects of oxygen : if, on the other hand, 
 from the reaction of over-excitement, you are restless and 
 unable to sleep, the bath becomes a narcotic. It is only 
 the experienced physician who knows how many forms of 
 disease originate in these so common, but now so easily 
 obviated causes." " Thus the bath," as Dr. Thudichum, 
 one of the physicians of St. Thomas's Hospital, observes, 
 " is an engine for the production and maintenance of 
 health." I think, therefore, from the evidence on this point, 
 that we may rely with some confidence on the conclusion 
 indicated by common sense, namely, that which tends with 
 such potency to restore and maintain health, cannot pos- 
 sibly have, at the very same time, a directly contrary 
 effect. 
 
 If tlie admitted action of the bath, properly employed, I^ath prc- 
 indubitably is to preserve health — as all competent authori- hcdfi. 
 ties unanimously testify ; surely it is needless to occupy 
 
134 [Chap. Y. 
 
 time in proving so self-evident a proposition that sucli 
 action is wholly incompatible with another diametrically 
 the reverse, with imputed tendencies to weaken and 
 impair vital functions ! The two actions or tendencies 
 could not co-exist. It would be absurd beyond expres- 
 sion to suppose, that at the same time the bath could 
 weaken and strengthen, preserve health and impair it, 
 operate as a debilitating drain on vitality, and prove a 
 source of recuperative energy and enjoyment. Yet this 
 preposterous conclusion would be imposed on us by those 
 who, unacquainted with the subject, allow prejudice to 
 override reason, and without judgment affirm that the 
 bath process has a debilitating eifect. 
 Value of In confirmation of this view, and in further proof of the 
 Baths to value of the bath to the working classes, I may here refer 
 |'^"^ to the experience of a gentleman who is an extensive 
 
 liaDourers- . t i i i i ^ ^ l n • 
 
 aoriculturist m Ireland, and whose knowledge or its 
 merits induced hiin to construct one on his farm for the 
 benefit of his stock, and ultimately it was made use of for 
 his farm labourers. His remarks are: — ''At first my 
 labourers declined to go in, on the ground that they had 
 lost enouo-h by work, and could not stand any more 
 perspiration. One of them broke down on a hot day 
 when mowing. I said to him, ' Now you are done for a 
 week or so, you may as well try the bath.' He went in 
 and had a vigorous shampooing. The next day he took the 
 lead in the 7neadow. That night the space could not 
 accommodate the applicants. The preservation of health 
 among farm labourers is no small matter. My farm 
 servants often work willingly through wet, windy days, 
 well knowing that an hour in the hot room will send them 
 home in dry clothes. This habit gives them also the 
 power of enduring cold. Many have dispensed with 
 flannel, even some at advanced ages. All find themselves 
 
Chap. V.] 135 
 
 in better health, freer from rheumatic pains, and firmer in 
 muscle." 
 
 But even suppose the hot-air bath was as weakening as Turkish 
 it is erroneously imagined to be, the objection has no coSaiti'Jn 
 force, it forms no part of my proposition to be always ^J^J^*^^ 
 giving a working man a sweating bath. What I iious-iS. 
 advocate is the addition of the Turkish Bath to the baths 
 and washhouses which exist or may exist under the Act 
 of Parliament which sanctions their establishment, as 
 an invaluable sanitary agent, to which the working 
 classes would soon learn to resort in incipient disorders, 
 instead of having recourse to nostrums and quack remedies, 
 which, if they do no actual harm, allow a malady 
 to become so inveterate as to throw the sufferer into the 
 hospital, and perhaps his ftimily upon the parish. For all Bathers 
 -ordinary purposes of ablution, a modification of the Turkish late the 
 Bath in the form of a warm lavatory, at a temperature of^^^P®^'^" 
 from 110° to 115° is suggested, in which the bather is 
 supplied with plenty of hot and cold water, so that, if 
 ■desirous, he can graduate his bath to suit himself, and 
 finish off with a tepid or cold spray bath. By this means 
 he obtains a thorough wash, in absolute comfort, and free 
 from any risk of taking cold. No doubt tlie first sensa- 
 tion of warmth imparted by the heated water is very 
 agreeable, but this soon subsides with the falling tempera- 
 ture of the bath, and is followed by an acute sense of 
 ■discomfort which can only be relieved by a renewed 
 supply of water at a higher temperature, which process 
 must be continued so long as the bather remains in the 
 water ; and such repeated changes of temperature are 
 frequently attended with unpleasant consequences. 
 Besides, a bath of this kind has a decided tendency to 
 induce relaxation and lassitude, rendering the system 
 highly susceptible to the influence of cold, a state of 
 
136 [Chap. V. 
 
 things which working men, less than any others, can 
 support. 
 Disadvan- Let US for a moment glance at some of the disadvantages 
 the Warm ^f taking a warm bath. It can be had for tw^o pence, 
 Water which is of course a great boon in a pecuniary point of 
 view ; but a person goes to take a warm bath say, on a. 
 cold, wet, disagreeable night in winter ; he is shown into- 
 a room scarcely large enough for him to turn round in, 
 at a temperature perhaps of 50° ; here he undresses him- 
 self, and gets into a bath containing about fifty gallons of 
 water at a temperature of from 98° to 100°. This is very 
 grateful to the poorly fed body, and he feels inclined to 
 prolong his enjoyment ; but the time arrives for him to 
 get out, when, during the operation of drying and dressing 
 himself he is again exposed to a temperature of 50° ! His 
 system being considerably relaxed by being twenty minutes 
 in warm water, he is really less able to endure the cold 
 than before he bathed. The consequence is that he 
 shivers and shakes while dressing, and goes into the wet 
 chilly air trembling with cold. Returning home thoroughly 
 uncomfortable, and with a rooted antipathy to the bath, if 
 nothing worse occur. Every reasonable person must 
 admit that no bath is preferable to one under such condi- 
 tions ; therefore, the cheap warm bath, eight months in 
 the year, practically becomes a dead letter. 
 
 The disadvantages attending the warm bath for men, 
 are still more marked in the case of women, from their more 
 delicate organization, their sedentary habits, and their 
 readier susceptibility to climatic influences. This may 
 account in a measure for the difficulty experienced 
 by Mrs. Donovan and other benevolent ladies in pre- 
 vailinof upon them to submit to periodical ablutions; 
 in fact, the sudden alternations of temperature to 
 which tl'e hot water bath exposes them are extremely 
 
Chap. V.] 137 
 
 dangerous, and have been known to prove fatal. There 
 is another reason no less potent with the female sex 
 for not taking advantage of the bath, viz., the supposition 
 that, from the nature of their occupations, and from 
 not perspiring so freely as men, skin cleansing is not 
 so necessary — an opinion as prejudicial as it is fallacious. 
 If there could be any degree of comparison in a matter 
 of such necessity, I would say that women require the 
 purification obtained by the bath even more than men, 
 both on account of their sedentary habits and occupa- 
 tions, and the natural peculiarity of their organizations. 
 Nor is a proper bath less beneficial than grateful to 
 women; and when their prejudices against bathing are 
 removed, they become its ardent admirers. Not only 
 have the fair sex found it advantageous with reference 
 to those ailments and idiosyncrasies to which they are 
 subject, but a great enhancer and perpetuator of their 
 good looks, and we know of no means so effectual 
 for rendering the complexion more delicate and brilliant. 
 In countries where the Turkish Bath is a national 
 institution, the hair of the women is peculiarly beautiful 
 and luxuriant. 
 
 We have pourtraycd the working man presenting Comforts 
 himself for a warm bath ; now let us compare the aij, \yl^^i^ ' 
 warm lavatory process. The same individual, under f°^ t^^ 
 the same conditions, presents himself at the lavatory, man. "* 
 After undressing, he is introduced to a room having 
 a temperature of 110° to 115°, and is provided with 
 soap, towels, hair-brush, &c. The w-arm and genial 
 atmosphere is grateful to him, so that he can give 
 himself a thorough good scrubbing with an ease and 
 comfort which none can understand but those who have 
 experienced them. "While in this room his system is pre- 
 pared for the application of colder water, say at 75° or ^O"", 
 
138 [Chap. Y. 
 
 or as liis inclination suggests. Tliis causes a reaction, and 
 produces a contraction of the pores of the skin. He now 
 takes his towels, returns to the room in which he left 
 his clothes, and, having dressed, walks forth into the open 
 air with a perfect feeling of comfort, reaches home 
 warm, invigorated, clean, and enchanted with the bath, 
 saying, in his own mind, '' I will repeat the operation once 
 or twice a week." 
 
 ^thsTan "^^^^^ ^^^^^ ^'"^^ ^® "^^^ ^^^ *^^® J^^^^ round with comfort 
 be used and benefit, and presents a striking contrast to the 
 seasons, warm water process. In fact, there are virtually but 
 four months in the year when a warm bath can be 
 taken with comfort; so that in this respect alone the 
 system of the warm lavatory possesses an advantage 
 which, from a pecuniary point of view, would warrant its 
 introduction into all baths and washhouses. During the 
 winter months, in consequence of the low temperature, 
 the skin is lethargic, and deleterious substances are 
 retained within the system; or, if thrown on to the surface 
 of the skin, they are re-absorbed, hence, at that season 
 of the year, more than at any other, frequent and thorough 
 bathing is necessary ; and, to be effective, it must be of a 
 kind to meet the requirements of the case. The cuticle 
 must be softened, and the whole skin gently stimulated 
 into action by hot air, before the impurities can be 
 removed by washing. In summer, the skin is much more 
 active, and the deleterious substances retained are less in 
 quantity ; consequently, bathing can be dispensed with 
 less danger and inconvenience than in winter ; and 
 yet, because the baths provided are so unsuitable, the 
 Avorking man is precluded from bathing at the very season 
 of the year when it is most required ! Within my own 
 experience, the upper and middle classes use the 
 Turkish Bath much more in the winter season than 
 
Chap. V.] 139 
 
 in the summer ; and it is only reasonable to suppose that, 
 if equal facilities were offered to the working classes, 
 who, from the nature of their employment, need the bath 
 more than any other class, the same result would be 
 obtained. 
 
 It is urged in many quarters that cold bathing while T'allacy of 
 the body is hot is injurious ; indeed it is veiy commonly when the 
 supposed, even by medical men, that such a practice, when ^o^yis 
 the body is considerably heated either by exercise or other 
 exertion, is highly dangerous ; and accordingly it is a 
 general custom with bathers who find themselves over- 
 heated to wait until they become cool before they plunge - 
 or bathe in cold or even cool water. 
 
 Years ago Sir Arthur Clarke, in his essay on bathing, 
 examined the objection and showed its fallacy ; instancing, 
 in support of his opinion, the flict " that in Dublin it was 
 common, in his time, for workmen in glass-houses and 
 other manufactories near the Liffey, exposed to extra- 
 ordinary degrees of temperature, and enduring for 
 some time the consuming heat of the furnaces, to plunge 
 into the river — a practice which they found in no way 
 injurious, but preserved their health." Edgar Sheppard, Dr. Shep- 
 M.D., referring to the same notion, says "Now, wishing ^g^*^°^2i- 
 in sober seriousness to point out to English men and ins- 
 women of the upper and middle classes what they are 
 really doing to lay the foundations of disease in their young 
 families, let us accompany them to one of our fiishionable 
 seaside watering places. Hither come the young and 
 delicate to drink in health from the breezes, and new life 
 from the waters of the sea. Down to the bathine machines 
 day by day, in all weathers alike, under care of father and 
 mother, or governess, or nurse, troop these poor creatures, 
 to be soused by some remorseless old mermaid draped in 
 blue serge. The cruel and ignorant, but well-meant 
 
140 [Chap. V. 
 
 injunctions of parents are complied with, each little bather 
 being thoroughly cooled before he is subjected to that 
 which will make him shiver for hours afterwards. In 
 other words, instead of acquiring caloric, wherewith to 
 meet the depressing shock of cold wjlter, he is made to 
 part with as much caloric as possible, because tradition 
 has written with her iron fingers upon the nursery tablets, 
 TJiou shalt not bathe when thou art hot. What is the 
 result ? See it immediately in the chattering teeth, the 
 blanched cheeks and fingers, the numbed feet of the 
 young bathers, as they walk for hours afterwards upon 
 the beach or esplanade — the strongest, perhaps, success- 
 fully, the weakest unsuccessfully — to restore the power 
 of vigorous circulation. Every internal organ has been 
 congested for varying periods, and the skin, which, by 
 a well-regulated bath should be brought into the highest 
 play, has been shrivelled up into dry and functionless 
 parchment. See the result afterwards on the return 
 home, in chlorotic looks, in constipated bowels, in 
 susceptibility of cold, in general langour, in vitiated 
 appetite, in scurfy and unsecreting skin." This is no 
 exacrgerated picture. This is actually and absolutely the 
 bath of the great majority of the upper and middle classes 
 during a few months every summer. Where the means 
 and opportunities of getting to the seaside do not present 
 themselves, the boys of each family resort to rivers and 
 ponds and observe the same rules under the strictest 
 Bathing in parental injunction. And when some unlucky youth 
 nvers and fg^urns home shivering and complaining of pain and 
 langour — when the seeds of his deadly sowing are 
 beginning to crop up in pleurisy, or pneumonia, or 
 peritonitis — he is reproached with not having followed 
 the advice given him, to cool himself thoroughly before 
 getting into the water. Poor boy ! he followed it too 
 
Chap. V.] 141 
 
 closely, and tlicreby perilled his young life. Had he 
 plunged into the stream when hot, he would have 
 treasured up for himself boundless health and vigour. 
 We have witnessed this over and over aorain in our 
 younger days. It is only where the use of the Turkish 
 Bath is known that there is a chance of society being 
 rescued from the perilous tradition to which we have first 
 directed the attention of our readers. 
 
 There is another objection urged against the availa- Time, an 
 bility of the Turkish Bath for the labouring classes, Jo-J^Srsk 
 viz., that it takes too much time — that the working man Baths for 
 cannot afford to spend from an hour and a half to two classes!"^ 
 hours in the bath. This objection had in the onset pre- 
 sented itself very strongly to my mind, but considering 
 that, in the case of the artizan, the time may be reduced 
 to the same period as in taking a warm bath, all those 
 accessories and accompaniments which mainly consume - 
 the time in taking the bath can be dispensed with, with- 
 out in the least affecting its efficacy. In Turkey and 
 other Eastern countries where the use of the bath is 
 both a habit and a religious duty among all grades, 
 but especially so with the working classes, the latter 
 do not occupy more time in bathing than our London 
 working men could well spare for that purpose once or 
 twice a week, were they so disposed. Dr. Millingen, 
 Physician to the Sultan, informs us that " the working 
 classes among the Turks — for such classes (though in 
 England you appear to ignore it) do exist, and are as 
 numerous and fully more hard- working than elsewhere — 
 know of no other means of prevention, on feeling indis- 
 posed, but the bath After over-exertion, again, 
 
 the bath is had recourse to If a Moslem enters 
 
 the bath for the object of ablution, half an hour is amply 
 sufficient. Have, forsooth, the English no 
 
142 
 
 [Chap. V. 
 
 Shampoo- 
 ing not a 
 necessary- 
 process. 
 
 holidays ? Do they never find time for coffee-houses, 
 taverns, and gin-palaces ? " 
 
 Without insisting on the fact that the working classes 
 do spend n>!ich time in taverns and public-houses, I doubt 
 if it is the question of time which deters them from the 
 bathj but the discomfort attending it. If warm lavatories 
 or Turkish Baths were added to the Baths and Wash- 
 houses, this superior method of bathing would induce the 
 labouring poor to take a sweating bath occasionally, 
 thus procuring free perspiration counteracting the influence 
 of their unhealthy occupations, and preventing an incredible 
 amount of disease and consequent destitution. The whole 
 process need not occupy more than an hour.* 
 
 It is often asserted that the shampooing process is a 
 necessary accompaniment of the Turkish Bath, and to 
 leave it out would be to do away with an essential part of 
 the system ; such, however, is not the case. That it 
 
 is an operation of 
 
 great 
 
 sanitary value, and, under 
 
 certain conditions, highly beneficial, cannot be denied. 
 For instance, where from infirmity or other cause 
 there is an indisposition or inability to take exercise, 
 judicious, scientific shampooing may in a measure supply 
 the deficiency. It also tends to fortify the system where 
 there is enervation induced by indolence or luxurious 
 living. Mr. Urquhart accounts for the fine physique of 
 the chiefs of the Sandwich Islands by the fact that, 
 although sunk in sloth and immorality, they are in the 
 constant habit of being shampooed after every regular 
 meal, and oftener if desirable or expedient. In the case of 
 English workmen there is little if any need for such forti- 
 fication. The artizan is generally subject to far different 
 influences than those arisinor from too little work and too 
 much food ; his daily labour necessitates bodily exer- 
 
 * See Medical Chapter, 
 
Chap. V.] 143 
 
 tion sufficient without liaviug resort to artificial means to 
 keep up the tone of the system. It would only be neces- 
 sary to resort to the shampooing process in case of sick- 
 ness. The beneficial effects of warm lavatories or the 
 Turkish Bath can be secured at a small cost if divested of 
 the luxuries and superfluities. 
 
 It is from a consideration of these facts, based as they 
 are on medical science and extensive experience, that I 
 have come to the conclusion, that for all purposes, either 
 of a sanitary or recreative nature, this form of bath is 
 superior to the ordinary warm w^ater one. Hence, I 
 consider that the former is peculiarly adapted to meet the 
 requirements of the working population and ought in 
 consequence to become a national institution, the people's 
 bath par excellence. 
 
 We have thus seen that, not only is the Turkish Bath Turkish 
 the most perfect means of ablution, and, consequently, of ^j^^^^J^^^g 
 cleanliness, but also one of the most powerful hygienic working 
 and prophylactic agencies that we know of; and that, as a ' 
 natural result, it affords a most potent means of acting 
 upon the unfavourable conditions by which the artizan and 
 labouring classes are surrounded, and so of elevating them 
 physically and morally. Mrs. Donovan, one of the most 
 active and disinterested pioneers of this movement in 
 Ireland, thus speaks in reference to the Turkish Bath for 
 the poor of Cork : " It is our pleasing duty to record the 
 success of an experiment, the adoption of which through- 
 out the land would act as a mighty lever to elevate the 
 masses, and a grand educational agency to enlighten their 
 minds as to the nature and necessities of their bodies. 
 Filthy habits and ignorance, the grand and inseparable 
 correlates of disease and immorality, have at last found an 
 antagonist fit to grapple with their giant power. Legis- 
 lation and Philanthrophy have hitherto trained and 
 
144 [Chap. y. 
 
 cultivated the effect, while no scheme of sufficient 
 thoroughness has been propounded to deal with the cause. 
 We believe this desideratum is supplied by the experience 
 of our indomitable friends in Cork. If it is desired to 
 improve the individual, operate upon his circumstances, 
 especially his physical organism — that nearest relation to 
 the soul immortal, the intellectual faculties and moral 
 feeling — cleanse his body without and within, and the 
 purposes of life will at once wear a new aspect to him. 
 
 No person has a right to live in filth, engender 
 
 disease, and endanger the health of the neighbourhood. 
 Nor has society any right to allow it. They are the worst 
 enemies of the public weal who would obstruct or stand 
 aloof from such a work as this." 
 H.M's In- Her Majesty's Inspector, in his report of. St. Patrick's 
 Schools. Reformatory School, Upton, Cork, says : *' The Turkish 
 testimoET. gath also is a valuable adjunct, in a sanitary point 
 of view ; and considering the class from which the 
 inmates are derived, and the condition in which they 
 are admitted, often covered with skin-disease, I would 
 wish to see such an appliance in every similar establish- 
 ment." Dr. Cummins, of Cork, author of a pamphlet 
 on the Turkish Bath, thus writes : " The bath is largely 
 
 made available by the lower orders in Cork 
 
 I can also speak in favour of its effect upon their 
 general habits and constitutions ; although it is 
 now twelve years since my pamphlet was published, 
 increased experience has confirmed almost every- 
 thinof it contains, and has made me value it more and 
 more." 
 Eccom- Such then, is the general testimony in favour of the 
 
 menda- Turkish Bath, of the sanative properties it possesses, and 
 its adaptability to meet the ablutionary wants of the people 
 at large. That it offers advantages attainable by no other 
 
Chap. V.] 145 
 
 means is admitted by those who, having tested its merits, 
 are best acquainted with their vahie; assuredly the 
 most direct, effective^ and economical way to promote the 
 health, comfort, and welfare of our industrial population 
 would be to construct warm lavatories and hot-air 
 chambers in connection with the public baths that arc 
 already established. This would involve little cost, 
 be a good commencement towards having proper baths 
 erected in every dispensary district, and prove an 
 invaluable boon to the people. In an address to the 
 London Medical Society, Dr. Thudichum said respecting Dr.Thudi- 
 the bath : " A boon to mankind, your nation, and every testimony, 
 individual in this room, hot air, combined with cold 
 affusions, with shampooing, Avitli exposure of the body to 
 light and air, await your approval as medical agents, and 
 your application to those who are under your care. I 
 hope you will seize the opportunity, and secure for this 
 society a share in the merit, similar to that of which 
 Hippocrates was proud, of having introduced the bath in 
 the treatment of disease." 
 
 When we consider that these observations, so justly The Bath 
 eulogistic of the therapeutic virtues of the bath, are ^yg ao-ent 
 eqiially true of its invaluable merits as a powerful prophy- 
 lactic agent in repelling the approaches of disease, surely 
 it cannot be held consistent with the practical intelligence 
 and philanthropic aims of our day, that so potent, so 
 genial, so economical, and so salutary an agent for good 
 should be- overlooked or neglected by those who are 
 charged with the responsibility of attending to the sanitary 
 condition of the people. Health is the working man's 
 capital, in the preservation of which society at large is 
 deeply interested ; and by what better means can health 
 be protected than by the prevention of disease ? There is 
 little wisdom in " locking the stable door when the steed 
 L 
 
146 [Chap. V. 
 
 has been stolen." Yet something akin to this guides 
 our municipal and parochial affairs. 
 Turkish I have endeavoured to set forth in as brief a manner as 
 the people possible the advantages which would result from the 
 .at Netting addition of warm lavatories, and hot-air baths in connection 
 with public baths and washhouses. The arguments here 
 maintained are not the issue of mere theorizing and idle 
 speculation, but the result of the study and experience of 
 years. I am thoroughly convinced of the necessity of 
 this form of bath as a means of improving the sanitary 
 condition of the labouring population, -and have been 
 for years endeavouring to impress the public mind with its 
 importance. It was with this aim that I, at considerable 
 inconvenience, opened a Turkish Bath at " The Ragged 
 Castle and Workman's Hall," Netting Hill, in connection 
 with an Hydropathic Dispensary, twelve years ago. 
 Although this bath was discontinued at the end of eighteen 
 months, on account of fear being entertained that the^ 
 flue would set fire to the building, and the usual prejudice 
 and opposition to a new thing, nevertheless, the results 
 were such as to convince me more than ever of the in- ' 
 calculable benefits that would accrue from the establishment 
 of commodious Turkish Baths adapted to the wants and 
 means of artizans and labourers. The facts of this case 
 are open to investigation, and I am sure that any one who 
 will take the trouble to inquire into them will come to the 
 conclusion that we could not confer a greater boon on the 
 working population, and the community at large, than by 
 establishing such baths, both for sanitary and medical 
 purposes. 
 Summary To sum up briefly, I advocate the use of the hot-air 
 l[eason. bath, or the lavatory, a modification of it, as admirably 
 fitted to be a bath for the people, principally for the 
 following reasons :— 
 
Chap. V.] 147 
 
 Because, as a general rule, it is congenial to the 
 constitutional peculiarities of all mankind, and therefore 
 capable of beneficial uses, without any fear of such 
 injurious consequences as too frequently follow from water 
 bathing. 
 
 Because it does not debilitate or weaken in any way, 
 but exercises a restorative, strenorthening, inviororatins: 
 influence over the wearied body, soothes nervous irritability, 
 and imparts a buoyant, healthful influence to the whole 
 system, with great pleasurable feeling, promptitude, and 
 certainty. 
 
 And, finally, because, independent of its acknowledged 
 therapeutic and prophylactic merits in the treatment 
 of disease, it is the very best agent that has yet been 
 discovered for the preservation of health. Its habitual use 
 fortifies the system to repel deleterious influences that are 
 always more or less active in propagating disease — such as 
 the baneful influences arising from malaria, generated by 
 defective drainage or sewerage, from contagious poisons 
 and atmospheric impurity, as well as from more ordinary 
 effects. A knowledge of these facts will account for the 
 confidence here expressed in the hot-air bath nor will any 
 regard it as other than the expression of a genuine feeling. 
 
 This thermo-electrical influence, combined with the Eoman 
 gymnastics of the Roman Thermse, made the Eoman ^'^enn». 
 soldiers great in strength and endurance, whether on the 
 march or in the battle-field. Nothing can tend more to 
 develop muscle, expand the frame, and promote the Turkish 
 general strength, so as to put the man in the best condi- Baths pro- 
 tionfor running, fighting, wrestling, or any other form of ™i°en^th. 
 physical exertion. '^ Wind, limb " and general condition 
 depend on the quality of the blood, and that upon the 
 rapidity with which it is decarbonized, oxj^genized, and 
 the watery portions of it changed, all which processes are 
 
148 [Chap. Y. 
 
 facilitated by the batli in a remailable degree, owing to 
 
 its action upon the blood through the skin. The entrance 
 
 of the air through the millions of opened pores, signally 
 
 aids the action of the heart and lungs, increasing the 
 
 *' wind" power, so valuable to the athlete. 
 
 These facts are fully understood by the horse trainer,, 
 
 ■who now directs much of his attention to keeping th& 
 
 animal's skin and wind in good order by means of the 
 
 bath, the use of which supersedes the necessity for excessive 
 
 exercise, so sparing the vitality of both horse and jockey. 
 
 Pugilists also, however objectionable their calling, show 
 
 their sagacity by employing the bath in their training, aa 
 
 likewise do pedestrians, all bearing testimony to the fact 
 
 that the thermo-electrical and gymnastic powers of the bath 
 
 are appreciated by those most interested, and from their 
 
 experience, most competent to judge. 
 
 Effects of The health and muscular development of our soldiers 
 
 the Turk- ^^^ ^f ^^q^i importance to the nation, that it is agreeable 
 
 ish Batn , . . , . , -i • ,i 
 
 on the to find that a beginning has been made to brmg the army 
 
 ^^y- under the influence of the Thermae as part of their train- 
 ing. It will promote the psycho-physical health and 
 athletic energy of the men, and so make them better fit 
 for the fatigues and energies of war, as well as elevate 
 their morals, by preserving them from certain enervating 
 and ruinous habits, the result of ennui and idleness. It 
 would prevent the necessity of Acts of Parliament, author- 
 izino- the inspection of certain classes, whose contact with 
 soldiers leads to the decimation of the army by prevent- 
 ible diseases. 
 
 Condition. I" truth, for the promotion of personal cleanliness^ 
 imparting buoyant sensations, and keeping the bodies of 
 men and animals in that state known as condition — a state 
 wherein there is a healthy balance of the nutritive 
 functions, an exact equipoise of the solids and fluids, and 
 
[Chap. V. 149 
 
 of the fatty and musculai' tissues, together with a just 
 equilibrium of the supply and waste — the Turkish Bath is 
 unrivalled. As a means of preserving health amongst the Health is 
 pent-up inhabitants of towns, who, generally speaking, ^^^^'^^^'' 
 do not have air and exercise sufficient, either in quantity 
 or quality, to properly decarbonize or oxygenize the blood, 
 its value is beyond calculation. It does much to compen- 
 sate for deficiency of air and exercise, giving appetite 
 strengthening digestion, and imparting elasticity to mind 
 and body. It affects the system more powerfully than 
 any kind of manual exercise, or gymnastic or sport, even 
 as to the points wherein the excellence of these consists, 
 and can be frequently enjoyed when these cannot. 
 
 Disease is prevented by hardening the body against the Disease 
 effects of variations and vicissitudes of temperature, which 
 is of incalculable advantage in a climate so variable as 
 ours ; also, by imparting power to resist miasmatic and 
 zymotic influences, and by strengthening the system 
 against the aberrations of nutrition, and the prolific train 
 of evils that follow the disturbance and derangement of the 
 nutritive functions ; and, furthermore, by correcting, 
 eradicating, or keeping in subjection, inherited predis- 
 positions to disease. 
 
 The Malaise, brought about by over excitement of the Malaise 
 brain, combined w^ith underworked limbs, lungs, and appear, 
 skin, by indolence and luxury, and by the demons of 
 liypochondriasis, biliousness and dyspepsia, would disappear 
 were Turkish Baths to become thoroughly national, and 
 ordinary water baths would be superseded to a great 
 extent in our public bathing establishments. The 
 cadaverous look of the overwrought and anxious citizen 
 would be exchanged for the ruddy hue of health. The 
 poor would find a solace which would deprive the gin 
 palace of its attractions. Skin diseases would be entirely 
 
150 [Chap. V. 
 
 prevented, consumption and gout would be as rare In 
 England as in Turkey, medical men's services would be as 
 seldom called for in London as, for many centuries, they 
 were in ancient Rome. Fewer hospitals would suffice for 
 the public wants, and lunatic asylums would be deprived 
 of half their inmates. The Thermse would prove to the 
 body what the Bible is to the soul, and the influence of 
 both combined would make, nearly universal amongst all 
 classes of the commonwealth, the greatest of all the 
 sources of happiness, mens sana in corpere sano. 
 
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 WABM LAVATORY FOR CLEANSING 
 
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Chap. VI.] 151 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 ECONOMICS OF THE HOT-AIR BATH. 
 
 " Economy is half the battle of life ; it is not so hard to earn money 
 as to spend it well." — Spuhgeon. 
 
 H 
 
 AYING glanced at the history, philosophy, and Financial 
 prophylactic virtues of the Turkish Bath, with a view ao-es of'the 
 
 of showing its superiority over every other system of ^ot-aii- 
 bathing, I now propose to discuss the financial advantages 
 to be derived by the addition of tlie hot-air or Turkish 
 Bath to the people's baths and washhouses, making thera 
 more lucrative concerns than they have been hitherto, or 
 can become under their present arrangement. 
 
 My scheme for the adaptation of the hot-air bath to the 
 needs and circumstances of the working classes compre- 
 hends, as already stated, two separate features, namely, 
 first, to give an ordinary Turkish Bath for sixpence — 
 a sura quite within the reach of the Avorking classes ; 
 and, secondly, to provide the facility for a perfectly 
 cleansing ablution in a lavatory, heated to from 100? to 
 115°, for twopence. The plan appended to this chapter 
 will give the reader a better idea of the improved bath 
 for tlie working classes than any explanation, unac- 
 compailied by it, could possibly do. It will be seen 
 on reference to the plan, that the washing rooms of 
 the lavatory and Turkish Bath are each divided into 
 
152 [Chap. VI. 
 
 fourteen compartments or stalls, which are provided with 
 a basin and supplied with hot and cold water. The 
 bather is thus enabled to take his soap washing apart 
 and to adjust the temperature of it exactly to suit his 
 taste or requirements ; he can then finish oflF with a spray 
 or shower-bath, which may either form a part of the 
 appurtenances of each stall, or be fitted up in a com- 
 partment to itself, arvailable for all bathers. 
 Cost of The Turkish Bath, as erected and administered in this 
 
 TurHh ^ country, has always been considered costly, and associated 
 Bath and with a large expenditure of time, a luxury the poor cannot 
 Lavatories possibly indulge in ; and this has always been broached 
 as one of the chief obstacles to the success of this scheme 
 for working classes. The first outlay, it is argued, would 
 preclude any parochial authority from providing Turkish 
 Baths upon the poor rates, because the Act limits them 
 to the maximum charge of sixpence for each person: a 
 price which, it is thought, would never recoup them for 
 the original cost. If, however, I can show that a bath, 
 in every way efficient, can be built and maintained at a 
 much less cost than those erected on the present system, 
 then, I think, all such arguments must fall to the ground. 
 Estimate The following estimate for building a Turkish Bath in 
 in„ a ' accordance with the plan has been carefully prepared 
 
 Turkish jjy ^ builder of considerable practical experience and 
 Bath and . -^ ^ *■ 
 
 Warm judgment : — 
 Lavatories 
 
 ESTIMATE. 
 
 To excavate the entire area to the depth of one foot, and the foundation 
 three feet, put in nine inch glazed stoneware drain-pipes and all 
 the necessary branch pipes throughout. 
 
 The foundations to he laid on concrete one foot thick and twice the width 
 of the wall, ccn?rete the floors of warm lavatory, hot room, tepid 
 room, and washing room, with six inches of good concrete on sound 
 bottom. 
 
Chap. VI.] 153 
 
 To Luild all the walls witli proper footings, and tlie damp course in slate Estimate 
 and cement, cutting all arches, mitres, &c., as specified on the plan, foi" tuild- 
 and supplying the necessary scaffolding. „» , . , 
 
 To excavate the stoke-hole, and build furnace and flue with best fire Bath. 
 , bricks, tiles, and fire clay. 
 
 To construct roof over the building as may be required to cover in the 
 cisterns. 
 
 The girders and zone to be of sufficient strength to carry the large tanks, 
 and all floors under the cisterns to be lined with stout zinc. 
 
 To pave the hot room, tepid room, washing room, and warm lava- 
 tory, with red and black lozenge-shaped tiles neatly jointed, and 
 line the walls to the height of 6 feet with Eafford's white glazed 
 bricks, neatly pointed in cement. 
 
 The dressing-rooms to have 1 j inch yellow batten lining laid upon 4 by 2;^ 
 inch joists, and 4 by 3 inch oak sleepers, upon 4^ inch sleeper walls. 
 The walls to be battened and lined with 3 J inch yellow matchboard, 
 and the divisions between the compartments to be 2 inch framed 
 partitions, double panels with narrow boards tongued and champered, 
 champered framing with circular headed front. Mahogany curtain 
 poles and rings, and deal seat to each compartment. 
 
 The divisions between the washing compartments to be of slate 1 inch 
 thick, properly fixed to rails at the top ; each compartment to be pro- 
 vided with marble or other basin for washing, and supplied with 
 hot and cold water, and a spray or shower bath. 
 
 The whole of the inside wood work to be carefully stained and twice 
 varnished, the outside wood work to have four coats of paint, oak 
 grained and twice varnished. 
 
 The windows to be sashed and glazed with ground or matted glass. 
 
 Sir, 
 
 I have carefully considered the plans and specifications for building 
 a Turkish Bath and Warm Lavatories, and I am aware of the necessity 
 of solidity of workmanship, good drainage and water supply, as well as 
 the costly nature of the materials required, having had twenty years 
 practical experience in the working of your Baths. 
 
 The Bath can be built, and be satisfactory in ever}' detail, for the 
 sum of £2500, or with a second story added to be used as washing and 
 drying rooms for £.500 extra, exclusive of fittings, making £3000. The 
 two story building completely fitted with necessary pipes, trays, &c. 
 £3500. 
 
 CHARLES FRENCH. 
 
 68, Lisson Grove, Marylebone. 
 
154 [Chap. Yl. 
 
 In the builder's estimate of £3500 provision is made for 
 an upper story which would accommodate about twenty- 
 washing tubs, and corresponding rooms for ironing and 
 drying. 
 
 While I have every reason to believe that the figures 
 named by Mr. French are fairly accurate, yet experience has 
 proved that it is best to leave a large margin for extras. 
 I have, therefore, allowed £1500, making the cost £5000, 
 but if Turkish Baths were erected in connection Avith Warm 
 Baths I have no doubt the building would be completed 
 for the price named in the builder's estimate. 
 Capabili- Baths erected upon the plan would be capable of bath- 
 Bath.^*^^ ing from 1530 to 2000 per week with ease, whereas, 
 warm water Baths erected at the same cost, would not 
 bathe more than one-fourth of the number I have named. 
 Bathdeco- In the first place I would observe that generally 
 ra ions. -^j^gj^ public bodies commence an undertaking of this 
 kind, too much attention is paid to collateral advan- 
 tages — site, external appearance, decoration, &c., and too 
 little to the actual and immediate uses of the building as 
 such. Experience has taught me — and I don't think 
 I am peculiar in this respect — that, Avhether in building 
 or in clothino", it is the adornment that costs so much. 
 A woman may dress very neatly and becomingly for a 
 very modest sum, but add all the gimp, lace, and fur- 
 belows necessary to make her a lady of the period, and you 
 soon double or treble the amount, yet the inherent 
 value of the Immanity under either adornment is the 
 same. So it is in building : a plain, substantial edifice 
 may be built for one-half the amount that might be 
 expended — to sum the matter up in one word — on 
 stucco. 
 
 You might expend either £1500 or £3000 in the erec- 
 tion of an institution of a given size ; or, in other words, 
 
Chap. VL] 155 
 
 it is possible to spend on decorations, &c., a sum equivalent 
 to the cost of the building itself. In doing this you might 
 add greatly to its external beauty, but not one whit to its 
 internal utility. As a Turkish Bath, the one costing £1500 
 would be equal in efficiency to that costing £3000. It is 
 all very well, if a parish can afford,* to double the expendi- 
 ture for the sake of securing a beautiful edifice ; but it 
 must not be expected that a bathing establishment will 
 pay for the superfluous ornamentation, in addition to the 
 necessary outlay for a substantial building. It is generally 
 admitted that thousands of pounds are annually squandered 
 away on our public buildings, that might be saved and 
 still give all the internal comfort and accommodation they 
 were designed for ; and in my opinion Baths and Wash- 
 houses are no exception to this rule. In discussing the 
 desirability of making Baths and Washhouses self-support- 
 inof and remunerative institutions, it must be borne in 
 mind that regardless of any financial consideration they 
 are essentially sanitary institutions, exercising a powerful 
 influence upon the public health, tending to make hospitals, 
 asylums, and workhouses in less demand, and should be 
 classed with other sanitary agencies. 
 
 There are no baths that have cleared off the first cost Testimony 
 of erection from their profits ; but if they have not paid in ^f Turkiph 
 one way they have in another. Mr. W. H. Green, of the Baths. 
 Town Council, Kidderminster, writing on Turkish Baths, 
 says — "Financially our baths have not paid, though they 
 have done much better than the most sanguine 
 expected, and we consider we have received a hio-li 
 per-centage in the good done to the poor." To the same 
 effect is the evidence of the manager of the Cardiff Baths 
 Company. He says, " I could give dozens of instances 
 in Avhich men and women have been kept off the rates 
 
 * As is the case in Paddington and St. George's, Hanover Square. 
 
156 . [Chap. VI. 
 
 tlirongh the means of the Turkish Bath : people who oould 
 not afford to pay a doctor, but who could, and did, 
 manage to come to the Turkish Bath, and got cured of 
 various forms of disease, principally rheumatism. Now, if 
 parish authorities wish to keep the poor from applying 
 to the parish doctor for common ailments, let them build 
 and encourage the use of Turkish Baths ; if there should 
 be a small loss in the working expenses, they will find 
 that to be more than balanced by the increased health 
 of the inhabitants, and the consequent decrease in the 
 number of hona-fide working men applying for parish 
 relief." 
 Rate- Thus, in calculating the returns of a bath, it is necessary 
 
 shouM ^^ ^^^® ^"^^^ account not only the direct but also the in- 
 advocate direct gains accruing. The experience of the managers of 
 Tuikish the Cardiff and Kidderminster Baths is not by any means 
 13aths. unique ; it is but the counterpart of that of all concerned 
 in the management of such establishments. If, therefore, 
 the annual balance-sheet of a bath does not show a large 
 actual nett profit to be placed against the original outlay 
 on the building, it will result in such an increase of health 
 as to considerably lighten the rates, by keeping the poor 
 from falling sick and so becoming dependent upon the 
 parish. In this way, if not by direct profits, such baths 
 as proposed would soon pay for themselves, besides adding 
 considerably to the comfort and happiness of the working 
 classes. Looked at in this light the ratepayer should 
 advocate their erection, not merely on the ground of a 
 benevolent desire to benefit his fellow-townsmen, but on 
 the ground that by paying a little more for the prevention 
 of sickness and ill-health he would be going the right way 
 to reduce the claim upon him for the support of pauperism. 
 The Paddington Commissioners were asked to erect a plain 
 Turkish Bath and lavatory ; and the plan before alluded to 
 
Chap. VI.] 
 
 157 
 
 ■v\'as submitted to them, tliat tliey might form an idea of 
 Avliat might be done at a small cost. In their wisdom this 
 was rejected, and, as a consequence, when the Turkish Bath 
 comes to be added to their baths (as I feel sure it will be at 
 no distant period to all baths and washhouses), the expense 
 will be very great, while the internal arrangements of the 
 building as a whole can never be so uniform and complete 
 as it might have been made in the first instance. My 
 desire was not to injure the baths and washhouse move- 
 ment, but to secure its popularity, b}'" increased success, 
 both financially and sanitarily. 
 
 In order to show the advantage possessed by the Turkish o/t^^cogt 
 Bath over the ordinary mode of bathing from an economical of Bathing 
 point of view, I have carefully prepared an estimate for sons, 
 bathing 1000 persons by the two methods, assuming 
 the amount of capital required in each case to be £5000. 
 
 Estimate for bathing 1000 persons in warm-water 
 baths : — 
 
 Beceipts. 
 250 bathers at 6d. each ... 
 ;50 bathers at 2d. each ... 
 Discount on soap 
 
 £ s. d. 
 
 6 5 
 
 6 5-0 
 
 5 
 
 £12 15 
 
 EXPESDITrRB. £.8.(1 
 
 60,000 gallons of water at Gd. per 
 1000, equal to 60 gallons for 
 
 each bather 1 10 
 
 Heating water, 10 chaldrons of 
 
 coke at 14s 7 
 
 Attendance and linen 2 10 
 
 Wear and tear ... ... ...10 
 
 Soap -... ... 2 1 8 
 
 Interest on capital 2 17 8 
 
 Estimate for bathing 1000 persons in the hot-air 
 baths and warm lavatories : — 
 
 Eeckipts. £. s. d. 
 
 250 hot-air baths at 6d. each ... 6 5 
 
 750 warm lavatory baths at 2d.each6 5 
 
 Discimnt on soap 2 
 
 £12 12 
 
 EXPEXnTTUBT?. 
 
 20,000 gallons of waterat Gd. per 
 1000 ... 
 
 Heating bnth and water, 2\ chal- 
 drons of coke at 14s. ... 
 
 Attendance and linen ... 
 
 Soap 
 
 Wear and tear 
 
 Interest on capital 
 
 £ 3. 
 10 
 
 15 
 15 
 2 17 
 
 £11 12 S 
 
158 [CiiAr. VI. 
 
 Pecuniary It will be perceived, from the estimates, that while 
 
 •!^e^of'tte t^^® warm water system of bathing is worked at a loss of 
 
 Turkish £4 4si. 4c|.^ the Turkish, or hot-air system would leave 
 
 Ilot-air a profit of 19s. 4d. But all the pecuniary advantages 
 
 Bystem. -which would result do not appear in the above estimate. 
 
 The surplus heat from the flues and hot rooms might be 
 
 exhausted into a drying room to dry all the linen and 
 
 towelsj and sufficient water heated to supply at least 
 
 thirty warm baths of sixty gallons each per day, in 
 
 addition to that required for use in the Turkish Bath and 
 
 lavatories. At the lowest computation this would be 
 
 worth at least £2 ; now supposing that a week is occupied 
 
 in bathing 1000 persons in each case the one would give a 
 
 clear profit of £2 I9s. 4d. or £154 5s. 4d. yearly, which 
 
 is equal to 3 per cent, on the capital, while on the other 
 
 hand the warm water system entails a loss of =£219 5s. 4d. 
 
 per annum. This, it must be admitted, is a very serious 
 
 Time consideration for the ratepayers of any parish, besides, 
 
 saved by ^i^q^q -sYOuld be a considerable saving of time in bathing a 
 the Waim *-■ <-> 
 
 Lavatory large number of persons by the warm lavatory system as 
 «}sem. compared with warm water bathing. Any one who has 
 visited a bathing establishment for the working classes, say 
 on a Saturday night, must have been struck by the slow- 
 ness of the process, and the consequent discomfort and loss 
 of time to those who are waiting their turn. When a bath 
 room is vacant the attendant has to run off the dirty water, 
 clean out the bath, probably wipe up the floor, and then 
 wait till some sixty gallons of water at a suitable tempera- 
 ture has accumulated before he leaves. The bather in 
 addition to the time taken up in the process of ablution, 
 occupies from ten to twenty minutes in undressing and 
 reclothing himself; meanwhile perhaps twenty persons are 
 waiting. In the warm lavatory system the bather would 
 undress in a room for the purpose, and the time occupied 
 
Chap. VI.] 159 
 
 in the mere process of bathing would not be more than 
 ten minutes at the most. Nor would there be any time 
 lost in cleaning and arranging the bath ; no sooner would 
 one finish washing and leave the lavatory, than another 
 would be undressed and ready to take his place ; so that 
 it would not be stretching a point to say that treble the 
 number of persons could be bathed in an hour by the one 
 process than by the other. 
 
 If the number of undressing compartments adjoining 
 the lavatories were doubled, namely, twenty-eight instead 
 of fourteen, there would be practically scarcely any limit 
 to the number of bathers who could be accommodated, and 
 the waste of time consequent upon waiting for their turns 
 would be very little even at the busiest seasons. 
 
 These considerations point to the fact that if bathiuof Hot-air 
 
 . . Baths 
 
 establishments with warm lavatories and Turkish Baths more used 
 attached, were made as attractive as our gin palaces, without J^ Wmter 
 the intoxicating liquors, they could be made financially Summer, 
 successful. Some one may say that this is a mere matter of 
 opinion, or random statement of an enthusiast, who allows 
 his zeal to obscure his common sense. I must confess that 
 all persons who are advocating any particular hobby lay 
 themselves open to such criticism, especially from pedantic 
 individuals who have neither inclination nor brains enough 
 to investigate any subject out of their ordinary course, and 
 the invariable policy of such cold-hearted people is to " pooh 
 pooh ! " everything they do not understand. I beg to 
 remind such critics that the statements I have adduced have 
 been so carefully thought over, anticipating severe criticisms, 
 that I am prepared to stake my reputation upon their accu- 
 racy, and what is moi'e, I defy successful contradiction. I 
 believe that were the lavatories in use at the baths and 
 washhouses there would be as many bathers in the winter as 
 in summer, which would further increase the revenues ; in 
 
160 
 
 [ClTAP. VI. 
 
 fact, judging from the experience of over twelve years of the 
 
 habits of the upper classes, more hot-air baths are taken 
 
 in winter than in summer, and I have no doubt the result 
 
 would be the same amongst the working classes had they 
 
 the opportunity. 
 
 Number of ^\^q falling off in the number of water bathers during the 
 
 Water winter months will be seen from the following returns, ob- 
 
 •iecreasein twined from several Metropolitan Baths and Washhouses : — 
 
 "Winter. — — — ~ 
 
 Name of Bath. 
 
 Bermondsey t>« 
 
 St. Pancras 
 
 All Saints, Poplar 
 
 St. Marylebone ■ 
 
 St. Margaret's and St. John's, We&tminstGr 
 St. George's 
 
 Total 
 
 No. of 
 Baths in 
 Summer. 
 
 39,544 
 23,585 
 17,700 
 72,842 
 66,502 
 34,862 
 
 255,035 
 
 No. of 
 
 Baths in 
 
 Winter. 
 
 16,918 
 7,930 
 6,050 
 39,869 
 23,981 
 18,487 
 
 113,235 
 
 The statistics of the Liverpool public baths and wash- 
 houses tell the same tale. At Coruwallis Street Baths, the 
 daily receipts range from 45. ^d. to £53 65. hd. This wide 
 difference represents pretty accurately the proportion of 
 bathers in winter and summer respectively. In a work 
 entitled " Baths and Washhouses," by Messrs. Ashpitel & 
 Whichcord, which contains some very valuable statistics, 
 we read that at the Birmingham baths and washhouses, 
 during some of the summer weeks, there has been 11,000 
 bathers, and the receipts £150 weekly ; while for the 
 week ending December of the same year, the receipts 
 from bathers amounted to £13 4s. 6d. 
 
 This great diminution in the number of bathers during 
 the winter season must, of course, drain away the whole 
 of the profit made in the summer months ; but if the 
 warm lavatory system was adopted, it would equalize the 
 number of bathers, and consequently the receipts, all the 
 
Chap. VI.] 161 
 
 yeai' round. The unpopularity of bathino- durinof the ^iscom- 
 ■svinter need hardly cause surprise, when we consider the present 
 
 discomfort attendin;^ the system of bathino- now in voixue. ^^^J^^^^S 
 o J o o system. 
 
 The risk of '' catching a chill " is too great for the 
 working classes generally to run ; whereas if bathing were 
 made more comfortable and attractive, as it would be in a 
 warm room, the body would be brought into an atmosphere 
 congenial to the senses, and where all the effete matter is 
 easily removed from the skin. The unpopularity and the 
 scarcity of bathers in winter would be done away with ; 
 bathing would become a luxury as well as a highly 
 sanative agent; the one great difficulty in the way of the 
 universal establishment of such institutions throughout the 
 land would be overcome, as well as the fear that they could 
 hardly bemade to cover their working expenses, to say nothing 
 of recouping the ratepayers for the original outlay on their 
 construction. By making habits of cleanliness more 
 general among the working classes, as well as by render- 
 ing the bath agreeable and inviting winter and summer, 
 the direct profits would be augmented to such an extent as 
 both to clear the expenses of management and to leave 
 such a balance as would in a few years' time pay off their 
 first cost. 
 
 Having argued upon philosophical principles the advisa- ^f ^^^"^ 
 bility of adding hot-air baths to the baths and washhouses, Turkish 
 both as regards comfort and their financial success, Itachcd'to 
 should have been better satisfied to have practically illus- ^^'^^^ ^^^^ 
 trated their working in detail. But there are so few houses. 
 towns where the hot-air bath has been erected on the rates, 
 that I have failed to obtain much reliable information, 
 although such as I have obtained tends to show that 
 when hot-air baths are brought within the means of 
 the working classes, they use them freely, and that 
 warm-water bathing greatly diminishes. I have thought 
 
 M 
 
162 
 
 [Chap. VL 
 
 it desirable to adduce some information from the Cork 
 working-man's bath, set in motion bj Mrs. Donovan 
 and the late Dr. Barter, A glance at the tabular state- 
 ment will show that the working classes take as many- 
 Turkish Baths in the dead of winter as they dp in summer. 
 
 PEOPLE'S BATH, CORK. 
 
 From November IZth, 1871, to November 2nd, 1872. 
 
 WORKING EXPENSES, &C. 
 
 Dates. 
 
 No. of 
 Baths. 
 
 Keceipts. 
 
 Payments. 
 
 
 
 £ s. d. 
 
 £ S. d. 
 
 Weekending November 13, 1871 
 
 292 
 
 4 2 10 
 
 2 15 6 
 
 20 „ 
 
 188 
 
 2 4 9 
 
 2 17 6 
 
 ,, December 3 „ 
 
 289 
 
 3 17 9 
 
 2 8 2 
 
 9> J> ^ J> 
 
 320 
 
 4 9 5 
 
 2 15 2 
 
 16 ,. 
 
 292 
 
 4 2 4 
 
 2 7 6 
 
 IJ )> 23 ,, 
 
 307 
 
 3 19 6 
 
 2 17 10 
 
 .30 „ 
 
 206 
 
 2 19 
 
 2 12 10 
 
 For the six montbs ending June 
 
 
 
 
 30, 1872. From half-yearly 
 
 
 
 
 balaoce sheet ... 
 
 7,690 
 
 101 14 11 
 
 86 19 7 
 
 Week ending July 6, 1872 
 
 321 
 
 4 3 5 
 
 3 2 6 
 
 13 „ 
 
 302 
 
 3 16 8 
 
 3 4 6 
 
 20 „ 
 
 280 
 
 3 13 
 
 3 4 6 
 
 27 „ 
 
 289 
 
 3 16 3 
 
 2 18 6 
 
 „ August 3 „ 
 
 284 
 
 3 14 6 
 
 2 19 3 
 
 10 „ 
 
 266 
 
 3 9 8 
 
 3 11 9 
 
 17 „ 
 
 279 
 
 3 12 11 
 
 3 10 6 
 
 24 „ 
 
 275 
 
 3 12 11 
 
 4 6 
 
 31 „ 
 
 317 
 
 4 5 8 
 
 4 6 
 
 „ September 7 „ 
 
 252 
 
 3 8 11 
 
 4 6 
 
 14 „ 
 
 280 
 
 3 17 4 
 
 3 5 10 
 
 21 „ 
 
 229 
 
 3 2 4 
 
 3 5 10 
 
 28 „ 
 
 278 
 
 3 16 
 
 3 5 6 
 
 ., October 5 ,, 
 
 245 
 
 3 6 7 
 
 3 13 6 
 
 12 „ 
 
 258 
 
 3 8 5 
 
 3 15 6 
 
 19 ., 
 
 278 
 
 3 15 2 
 
 3 15 6 
 
 ,. 26 „ 
 
 287 
 
 3 15 10 
 
 4 14 6 
 
 ,, November 2 „ 
 
 263 
 
 3 11 
 
 3 19 6 
 
 
 14,667 
 
 193 16 11 
 
 170 9 
 
 
 Soap ar 
 
 id towels ... 
 
 5 12 6 
 
 
 
 175 13 3 
 
 
 Profi 
 
 t 
 
 18 3 8 
 
 
 £193 16 11 
 
Chap. VL] 163 
 
 It is a remarkable fact tliat in this small establishment, Success of 
 over 2000 baths M'ere given in the months of November People's 
 and December ; this is a very gratifying resnlt, and a Turkish 
 practical illustration of my argument, viz., that by making Coik- 
 bathing attractive, the people will appreciate the advan- 
 tages all the year round. The support during the winter 
 months the people's baths at Cork have received is a 
 striking contrast to that of the metropolitan baths, and if 
 further weight of evidence was required to persuade the 
 functionaries who have the management of parochial 
 affairs to adopt the institution, I would lose no time in 
 supplying an overwhelming amount in favour of hot- 
 air over warm-water as a bathing medium for the 
 masses. 
 
 When advocating People's Turkish Baths, it is always 
 necessary to remember the amount of prejudice to be 
 overcome, so that the success of the Bath in question 
 must be attributable to the benefit derived, as well as to 
 the superior comforts provided, as there is nothing in tlio 
 people of Cork to make them more cleanly than the 
 population of manufacturing towns in England. 
 
 The Cork bath shows what can be done with a 
 comparatively small capital, the first cost of the building 
 did not exceed £500, which is remarkable when compared 
 with the enormous sums expended on gigantic establish- 
 ments in this country. 
 
 On physiological grounds, bathing in winter is more Eathin^ 
 essential. The heat and warmth of tJie sun will promote ^^'^^'^ 
 
 '■ cssontial 
 
 the action of the skin sufficiently in summer when in Winter 
 cold bathing is found more invigorating and refreshing yummcr 
 than warm water bathing ; — whereas during the inclement, 
 wet, and cold weather of our English climate, the skin is 
 chilled, and insensible perspiration checked; to counteract 
 this condition of the skin, it requires to be exposed 
 
 M 2 
 
164 [Chap. VI. 
 
 to Lot air at least once a week, to open the pores again 
 and give free action to the circulation, which Avill prevent 
 the development of disease. This is just what warm 
 lavatories and hot-air baths are intended to accomplish, 
 and I shall ever continue to advocate this plan of bathing 
 for the labouring classes until public authorities recognize 
 the system and its salutary results. 
 Opening^ The People's Turkish Bath at Cork was opened on the 
 Turkish 23rd of February, 1863, for men and women. Its ex- 
 gaths, istence is due to the energy and enterprise of Mrs. C. Gr. 
 Donovan, who, with the assistance of the late Dr. Barter, 
 aided by a gift of £50 from the late Mr. J. F. Maguire, 
 M.P., and £100 from the Corporation of Cork, succeeded, 
 after nearly two years' labour, in collecting sufficient funds 
 for the building. The charges for admission have heen 
 reduced, and are now uniform : — 3d. for men and women, 
 and 2d. for children. 
 
 Mrs. Donovan says : — " In a city which boasts of its 
 
 Sanitary Association, surely such an agent of cleanliness 
 
 cannot be over-looked without ignoring all physiological 
 
 law. It is vain to vrash the outside of the platter — which 
 
 street and house cleaning may be said to represent — and 
 
 leave the many ignorant of the dangers which lurk under 
 
 a dirty skin." 
 
 Tiuldsh Fortunately for society, the question is gradually taking 
 
 ^ T^'hv 11 ^^^ proper place in cultivated minds, as we may judge 
 
 gaining from the words of a distinguished English philanthropist, 
 
 pojju ail y ^^i^Q^ after supposing the ghost of a Eoman emperor to 
 
 visit our cities, describes him as saying : — " No doubt we, 
 
 the barbarians, had no hospitals or reformatories in our 
 
 time, but still I cannot help asking why you are spending 
 
 so much money in locking tlie stable door when the steed 
 
 is stolen. Instead of spending money in endeavouring 
 
 to cure people of disease after they have got it, and to 
 
Chap. VI.] 165 
 
 sxistore people's self-respect after they have lost it, don't 
 you think it would be better to spend money in an en- 
 -deavour to prevent disease and a loss of self-respect, by 
 means of public cleanliness ? " 
 
 If the august ghost who speaks so wisely would con- 
 descend a visit to Cork, surely his indignation at seeing 
 the struggling existence of one of the most honoured of 
 lioman institutions would at least win for us the small 
 l)Oon oifree loater. But it is not the dead alons who speak, 
 we have also the indirect evidence of medical men who 
 still remain unconscious of the blessing they overlook. 
 Contrast not only the relief from suffering, but all the 
 other benefits derived from the hot-air bath, with the 
 following picture, drawn by an eminent lecturer in a 
 London hospital : — "At this moment there are hundreds 
 of patients waiting the arrival of the medical attendant to 
 inject a grain or two of morphia beneath the skin. Only 
 four hours ago they had a similar dose ; four hours hence 
 they will have another. They declare they cannot enduro 
 a rheumatic neuralgia, and they implore of you to give 
 them frequent and increasing doses of morphia, which 
 carry them still further from real help, and eventually add 
 to their misery and degradation." .... The in- 
 telligent Hygiest, with his stupe, his wet bandage, and 
 his bath, may well thank God he is not such an one ; no 
 helpless sufferer, vainly seeking lielp from dangerous 
 palliatives, for his better sense, and that calm confi- 
 dence which experience gives, have taught him how to 
 relieve pain without resorting to the miserable subterfuo-e 
 of deadening scns{bilif>/. 
 
 Too many think that to found a charity is the highest 
 form of Christian benevolence ; but there are other acts, 
 80 wide spread in their benefit, that individual effort — 
 though not forgotten of God — is lost in the greatness of 
 
166 
 
 [Chap. VI. 
 
 the result. Surely among sucli may be classed those that 
 -work and those institutions which save society from the 
 burthen of the widow and the orphan, lessen physical and 
 moral evils, and help to teach that knowledge of the 
 necessary conditions for insuring health and happi- 
 ness, which will eventaally efface even the memory of 
 that abject poverty which now sliocks every feeling of 
 self-respect. 
 Mrs. Mrs. Donovan fully corroborates my assertion with 
 
 ^''rurkish ^sg^^d to winter bathing. She says that both rich 
 J3aths. and poor in Cork frequent the bath oftener in winter 
 than in summer, and adds that it is only the ignorant 
 who could compare warm water with hot-air baths, either 
 for safety, enjoyment, or capacity for meeting the 
 requirements of the many. She calculates that 100 a 
 day could be easily accommodated in the Cork bath, 
 provided they came in parties of about twenty or thirty ; — 
 a fact which, if realized, would, with its other benefits, 
 soon solve the vexed question of expenditure. 
 
 202,919 have used the baths, and it is believed that 
 the numbers might be doubled if employers, looking to 
 their own interest, as well as that of their workmen, 
 took advantage of the tickets printed for their special 
 use, at 2s. the book of 12, thus enabling them to give 
 a full Turkish Bath for the small sum of 2d. 
 
 The People's Bath at Cork represents the first attempt 
 that was made in Europe to supply the working classes, 
 with a Turkish Bath. Much prejudice and opposition 
 had to be overcome in its establishment. But its success 
 — as a sanitary medium, if not financially — soon became 
 so transparent a fact that it was useless to cavil. 
 Several other towns, therefore, soon followed the example 
 of Cork, None of them have, however, brought this bath 
 so thoroughly within reach of the working man as the 
 
 First 
 People's 
 Turkish 
 Bath in 
 Europe. 
 
Chap. VL] 
 
 1G7 
 
 directors of tJie Cork Bath. Bradford, it will be seen, 
 lias come the nearest, the prices there being 6d. and Is. 
 This is sufHciently low for a complete Turkish Bath ; but 
 a great improvement w^ould be made by the addition of 
 the warm lavatory, at 2d. This would be sufficient for all 
 ordinary cleansing purposes, — especially with the addition 
 of an occasional free perspiration in the hot-air bath, — 
 and would soon be highly appreciated by the poorer 
 portion of the population. 
 
 The following statements of the results of the working 
 of the Turkish Bath for the artizan classes have been 
 received from Bradford, Cardiff, Hanley, Kidderminster, 
 and Stalybridge, which, in addition to the arguments I 
 have adduced will, I hope, bring conviction home to every 
 unprejudiced mind. 
 
 THE BRADFORD CORPORATION BATHS. 
 In 1867 the Bradford Corporation added the Turkish Bradford 
 Bath to their excellent system. Mr. John Howarth, the tionBaths 
 very efficient superintendent of the baths, has favoured 
 me with the following statistics, which show that the 
 Turkish Bath is increasingly popular with the working 
 classes of that important manufacturing town : — 
 Number op Turkish Bathers, 
 
 Year. 
 
 Is. Baths. 
 
 6d. Baths. 
 
 Receipts. 
 
 
 
 
 £ s. d. 
 
 1867 ... 
 
 1812 
 
 3350 
 
 174 7 
 
 1868 ... 
 
 1962 
 
 3055 
 
 174 9 6 
 
 1869 ... 
 
 2228 
 
 2968 
 
 185 12 
 
 1870 ... 
 
 3096 
 
 3178 
 
 234 5 
 
 1871 ... 
 
 3707 
 
 3448 
 
 271 11 
 
 1872 ... 
 
 4-297 
 
 3835 
 
 310 14 6 
 
 1873 ... 
 
 4681 
 
 3822 
 
 329 12 
 
 
 21,783 
 
 23,658 
 
 £1680 11 
 
168 
 
 [Chap. VI. 
 
 The cost for attendance and washing, &c., is estimated 
 at £525, Avhicli shows a profit of £514 14s, 6d. The item 
 of fuel is not accounted for, it being difficult to arrive at 
 its actual cost, as it is capable of being used in heat- 
 ing water for the warm baths and in maintaining the 
 temperature of drjing rooms. This saving of heat applies 
 also in all cases where the Turkish Bath is in use in con- 
 junction with other systems of baths. But at Bradford, 
 even when the fuel is wholly charged against the Turkish 
 Bath, a handsome profit remains. 
 
 Mr. Howarth writes : "As a cleansing agent, pure and 
 simple, there is no comparison between the Turkish and 
 the ordinary warm bath ; because a person may take a 
 warm bath and still not be clean, as may be proved by his 
 taking a Turkish Bath immediately afterwards. There is 
 no more danger in the Turkish than in the warm bath, if 
 the person taking it is in good health ; but, the conditions 
 under which it can he 'pro'peTly used are much more limited in 
 the former than in the latter case. It is by far the most 
 powerful, comprehensive, and efficient agent, if applied 
 under intelligent supervision." 
 
 H A N L E Y. 
 
 Hanlev 
 Turkish 
 Baths. 
 
 In this town Turkish Baths have been added to the 
 baths and washhouses at a cost of £1000; they are 
 increasing in popularity with the artizan and labouring 
 classes, and will continue to do so in proportion as their 
 prejudices are overcome. The prices are 6d., Is,, and 
 Is. 6d. 
 
 The number of Turkish Baths taken from April, 1874, 
 to April, 1875, is 5117, and from April, 1875, to April, 
 1876, 5767, showing an increase on the year, 650, 
 
Chap. VI.] 169 
 
 The number of Turkish Baths taken 1374 i875 1876 
 from April to September ... 2,605 3,060 5,159 
 
 „ September, 1874, to April, 1875 ... 2,512 
 
 „ „ 1875, to „ 1876 ... 2,707' 
 
 These results contrast most favourably with those of 
 the warm water baths, as shown in the tabular statement 
 in page 160. 
 
 There has been a very fair attendance at the warm 
 water baths during the periods mentioned above, but it 
 decreases now the Turkish Baths are becoming more 
 appreciated. 
 
 EDWIN MOOEHOTJSE, 
 
 Siqjcrintendent. 
 
 KIDDERMINSTEE. 
 
 The prices charged for Turkish Baths in this town are Kiddcr- 
 too high for the majority of the artizan classes, the Turkish 
 lowest price being one sldlling. They are more appre- Baths, 
 ciated by the poor than the warm water baths, and would 
 be extensively used if brought within their means. We 
 are informed that if the Corporation could be induced to 
 give the baths at 6d., they would become very popular ; 
 as it is, the Turkish Baths are much more patronized in 
 winter than in summer. 
 
 STAYLYBRIDGE. 
 
 The Turkish Baths in connection with the Corporation Staly- 
 Baths are much resorted to ; the number of bathers for Tilrkf-b 
 the year ending October, 1876, reached 5314, and in ^^^t'^s- 
 addition to these there are forty season ticket holders, some 
 
170 [Chap. VI. 
 
 of them bathing two and three times a week. We have 
 been unable to obtain statistics of previous years, but the 
 superintendent informs us the difference in the number 
 of bathers in summer and winter vary so little as " not 
 to be worth mentioning." 
 
 In closing this Chapter I must just observe that 
 although the hot-air baths and warm lavatories are 
 advocated as the best bathing mediums, they are re- 
 garded as powerful curative agents, and if they were 
 attached to the bathing establishments the medical 
 profession would have no excuse for not recommending 
 them to their poor patients which would cause them to 
 be largely resorted to, and prove a lucrative source of 
 income the present bath establishments are deprived of. 
 
Chap. YII.] 171 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 On the Recipients of Medical Charities and the 
 Value of the Hot-air Bath as a Medicinal 
 Agent for the Poor. 
 
 " I beseech all persons not to degrade themselves to a level with the brutes 
 or the rabble, by gratifying their sloth, or by eating and drinking promis- 
 cuously whatever pleases their palates, or by indulging tbeir appetites of 
 every kind. But whether they understand physic or not, let them consult 
 their reason, and observe what agrees and what does not agree with them, 
 that, like wise men, tbey may adhere to the use of such things as conduce 
 to their health, and forbear everything which, by their own experience, 
 they find to do them hurt ; and let them be assured that, by diligent 
 observation and practice of this rule, they may enjoy a good share of 
 health and seldom stand in need of Physic or Physicians." — Dr. G-alek. 
 
 IN the previous chapter I endeavoured to confine my Turkish 
 observations as much as possible to the use of warm remedial 
 lavatories and the Turkish Bath as sanitary and prophy- ^°^°*' 
 lactic remedies^ as well as the best known batliing mediums 
 for the working classes. I will now draw attention to the 
 value of the hot-air bath as a remedial agent, and I hope 
 my readers will pardon me for reiterating at times what 
 I have already insisted on, namely, the necessity of paying- 
 more attention to the prevention of disease, and less to 
 its cure, and the advisability of providing all large centres 
 of population with the means, as far as practicable, of 
 maintaining health and avoiding disease, instead of allow- 
 
172 [Chap. VII. 
 
 ing tlie poor blindly and recklessly to destroy health, and 
 then patch np the evil by resorting to hospitals and 
 dispensaries. It must not be understood that I altogether 
 ignore the desirability of such institutions, under existing 
 circumstances they are a necessity of the age. But it is 
 surely time to protest against the continually increasing 
 expenditure of public money in such a manner, when it 
 must be patent to every one that public health is not 
 thereby augmented or improved, nor can it ever be im- 
 proved by a system of merely treating results : one might 
 as well attempt to divert the course of the Thames at London 
 Bridge by the use of a bucket. What can it avail to be 
 continually building larger and grander hospitals, so long 
 as we allow '^ fever nests " and " cholera gardens " to exist 
 in our midst ? or What does it profit to have a large and 
 wealthy class of medical men in our midst if the great 
 masses of the people are allowed to live on, ignorantly and 
 blindly, violating the laws of health, and thereby en- 
 gendering disease and multiplying infirmity? 
 E^^ils I M'^iy be pardoned for introducing here some remarks on 
 
 attending q-^^j, hospitals and dispensaries, I do so with a view of draw- 
 
 hospitals. . '■ , n T -I jj I- 
 
 mg attention to some oi the evil consequences attendmg 
 them, and to show that some of the recipients of medical 
 charity avail themselves of such institutions when they 
 have no right to do so. The increase of disease is an 
 evidence of the incompetency of the remedial measures 
 now administered to meet poor people's ailments. 
 
 While charitable medical, and other relief, may be 
 necessary in a good many instances, and cannot very well 
 be dispensed with, it trenches upon the independence 
 of the recipients ; and its influence upon society at 
 large is very pernicious, requiring to be checked rather 
 than encouraged. 
 
 At present the charters of the hospitals will not 
 
Chap. VII.] 173 
 
 admit of patients paying for advice. To be poor is 
 fortunately no crime nor a proof of improvidence, 
 neither is being rich a proof of provident habits or 
 honesty. These conditions and positions are generally 
 governed by circumstances over which the individual 
 has little or no control. (Excepting of course such as 
 are caused by intemperance, idleness, &c., and these 
 exist in all classes of society), but to be poor is no 
 reason for being subjected to the degradation of acceptino- 
 charity when medical advice is necessary because it is 
 impossible to afford the usual fees. 
 
 A shilling to a poor man is as much in value to 
 him as a guinea is to another in better circumstances, 
 and I would suggest that a small charge should be made 
 at our hospitals to the out-patients, which many would be 
 willing to pay rather than incur obligations, and risk their 
 manly principles and pride by accepting gratuitous advice, 
 SjC. I am happy to learn from the Rev. Dawson Burns, 
 Hon. Sec, London Temperance Hospital, Gower Street, 
 that a fee of Is. is charged the patients at each visit; this 
 appears to be a stop in the right direction, and, I hope 
 will be followed by other institutions. In Turkey and 
 what we call barbarous countries they have no Charitable 
 Institutions, the poor pay what they can afford, there beino- 
 no fixed charge. We pride ourselves on our civilization 
 and prosperity, yet there is no country on the face of the 
 globe where there are so many pauper institutions as in 
 England. 
 
 In the year 1830, when there were but eio-ht Increase 
 hospitals in the metropolis which supplied advice patients in 
 and medicines to out-patients, the total number of such I^o^pit^^s, 
 patients was 46,435 ; but in 1869 the number had risen 
 to 277,891. This more than five-fold increase had taken 
 place during a period in which the population had only a 
 
174 [Chap. VII. 
 
 little more than doubled. This fact is fallj borne out 
 hy the statistics of the different hospitals. St. Thomas's 
 and St. George's may be taken as instances. Until 
 1834, St. Thomas's Hospital was without an out-door 
 department; at that date, however, the practice of 
 l^rescribing for, and supplying medicine to out-patients 
 was began ; and the number of patients increased so 
 rapidly that, in 1842, it was found necessary to add to 
 the professional staff a second assistant surgeon and two 
 assistant physicians. In 1858 the total number of out-' 
 patients at this hospital was 38,268 ; in 18G1 the number 
 was nearly 42,000 ; and in 1869 it had reached nearly 
 66,000. During the seven years between 1863 and 1870, 
 the number of out-patients at St. Greorge's Hospital rose 
 from 14,853 to nearly 20,000, being an increase of 30 per 
 cent. 
 Increased Such is the enormous extent to which medical relief 
 formeciical ^^^^ increased, in London alone costing many thousand 
 relief. pounds a year, exclusive of the value of the lands and 
 buildings occupied in working it; and it still goes on 
 augmenting in the same or nearly the same ratio. The 
 fact we have to look in the face is, that despite our 
 continually enlarged expenditure on medical charities, 
 disease and the number of medical paupers are steadily on 
 the increase ;• as though the evil grew by what it fed on, 
 the increased supply of charitable medical institutions are 
 augmenting, and the money demand for their maintenance 
 must increase. It is difficult to comprehend this demand 
 for medical relief considering the enormous sanitary im- 
 provements that have taken place within the last ten years. 
 Evils and abuses grow up out of charities : it is 
 found, when the social position of some of the appli- 
 cants for medical aid is inquired into, that relief is 
 administered to persons occupying positions in the 
 
Chap. VII.] 175 
 
 social scale which become gradually higher as time 
 advances; so high indeed, that were it not for the repeated 
 observations of those whose judgment and veracity are 
 indubitable, we should be slow to believe that ^^ersons whose 
 incomes enable them to command many luxuries, are in the 
 habit of obtaining all the medical aid they require from a 
 hospital or dispensary. That such abuse does prevail in 
 the Metropolis and in other large towns of Great Britain 
 to a disgraceful extent is unfortunately beyond doubt ; 
 and the question naturally arises : Does this special 
 kind of medical charity tend to induce pauperism on a 
 scale sufficiently large to cause any appreciable rise in the 
 poor-rates ? It might perhaps be impossible to adduce 
 absolute proofs that it does, but facts and considera- 
 tions bearing on the subject cannot, I think, but compel 
 every one who gives due attention to it, to conclude that 
 the habit of receiving gratuitous medical and parish relief 
 stand to each other, in a vast number of instances, in the 
 relation of cause and effect. I am perfectly convinced, 
 from personal observation, that many patients visit dispen- 
 saries and the out-door departments of hospitals chiefly for 
 the purpose of persuading, if possible, the physicians who 
 prescribe for them to give certificates that they are not 
 in a fit state to work, and that they are in urgent need of 
 specially nourishing food, wine, etc., which they after- 
 wards solicit from the benevolent. 
 
 It is readily conceivable that those who have become Medical 
 habitual recipients of medical charity, and who have lead" U) 
 thus deadened their feelings of independence, are easily c^epen- 
 tempted to take the further step of applying for pecuni- 
 ary relief, which is the stepping-stone to dishonesty. 
 " The workman," it has been very justly said, " has 
 often learned at the hospital his first lesson of depen- 
 dence. He begins by taking physic, and then food, 
 
176 
 
 [Chap. VII. 
 
 Hospitals 
 a weakness 
 and dis- 
 grace. 
 
 Out- 
 patients' 
 waiting 
 rooms in 
 London 
 Hospitals 
 
 from cTiarity." In the report of one of the hospitals 
 occurs the following passage : — " For some years there 
 has been a growing conviction amongst philanthropists 
 that incliscrimina-te medical charity tends to pauperize 
 classes who would not think of receiving any other form 
 of benevolent assistance, and that, by gradually under- 
 mining their independence, it leads them afterwards to 
 solicit pecuniary aid, which career too often ends in the 
 AvorkhoiTse or the gaol." 
 
 Can any one, calmly reflecting on this state of things, 
 do other than conclude that our charitable medical institu- 
 tions, of which we are so proud, are, in reality, a weakness 
 and a disgrace ? But the probable effect of this system of 
 thoroughly pauperizing all ranks of the community, is 
 not its worst attendant evil. There is another ; and it 
 is one which demands our most earnest attention, both 
 as politicians and Christians. It is involved in the 
 answer to the question ; In how far do these institutions 
 tend to foster and extend disease instead of checking and 
 eradicating it ? We need only, I think, look at the 
 system which is carried on in most of our large hospitals, . 
 to arrive at the conclusion that the present practice of 
 administering out-door relief is a mockery and a 
 delusion. A writer in the Fall Mall Gazette says: "The 
 out-patients' waiting-rooms of the different institutions, 
 unless exceptionally large and exceedingly well venti- 
 lated, are, as a rule, crowded to excess, and during tha 
 summer months almost to suffocation. The so-called 
 ' casualty ' (or cadging) patients who attend St. Bartholo- 
 mew's Hospital arc now attended in a new building, con- 
 sisting of a large, well-ventilated room, capable of seating 
 600 patients, but even this large room is often so over- 
 crowded in summer that the heat and unpleasant atmosphere 
 are much complained of. . . . The crowding at the 
 
Chap. VII.] 177 
 
 "Children's Hospital at Great Ormond Street, is reported 
 to be such that it has been necessary to prohibit the 
 patients from sitting on the steps of the adjoining 
 
 hDuses." 
 
 A correspondent recently writing in the Eclio, says : — 
 
 *' During the last few weeks I have made it my business to inquire into 
 the manner in which out-patients are received and treated at some of our 
 Metropolitan hospitals. My examination discloses a state of things at once 
 unsatisfactory and unjustifiable. I do not intend to mention here the names 
 of the institutions I have visited, for the simple reason that their authorities 
 will easily see to whi;h I allude, and that lam not desirous of injuring them. 
 "Were I to distinguish any one of the hospitals I have visited by giving their 
 names, I am positive that the public would cease to support it ; and, 
 however badly certain dispensaries are managed, far be it from my intention 
 to damage their interests, and indirectly in this manner deprive the poor of 
 medical treatment. I will not enter here into the functions of the Charity 
 Organization Society, but I do think that the scope of its labours might be 
 extended so as to include the visitation and examination of those charities 
 which profess to succour the distressed poor. Benevolence, in my humble 
 opinion, loses half — nay, nearly all — its charms when dispensed in a cold 
 and nerveless manner, and it is a great pity that this fact is not borne in 
 mind by those who are empowered by the wealthy to distribute their alms. 
 It is unfortunate that philanthropists cannot always personally supervise 
 the appropriation of their largesse ; if this were done, and it is not 
 impossible, there might be some little chance of reforming our charity 
 system, and especially the method of hospital treatment of out- 
 patients. 
 
 " Hospitals have certainly no particular profit in encouraging sickness, 
 yet it appears to me that the managers of one particular institution are 
 desirous of so aggravating the disorders of out-patients so as to qualify 
 them for admission as in-patients. Poor sickly persons, many moaning with 
 pain, are compelled to be at the hospital doors some time before they open, 
 and, whether it rain or no, the porter or beadle, who is, no doubt, enjoying a 
 comfortable breakfast, will not admit them to shelter. Some weeks ago, at 
 the institution of which I am ah present writing, a physician performed an 
 important operation upon an infant three months old, which deprived it of 
 one of its limbs, without the permission of its pai-ents. I do not know, of 
 course, whether it was necessary in this particular case to go to extremes, 
 but I think that the consent of the mother, who brought the child to the 
 hospital, might have been obtained previous to the performance of the 
 operation. Your readers will appreciate my delicacy in refraining fro'u 
 
 N 
 
178 [Chap. VII. 
 
 giving tliem insiglit into the nature of this case, as sucli would certainly 
 lead them to identify the institution ; and, as this dispenses its benefits far 
 and wide, I should be sorry to detract from its fair fame, 
 
 " At a hospital not many million miles from the Echo OfSces a young 
 woman attended on Monday last, suffering from bad breasts. She had 
 just arisen from childbed, and was in a weak and emaciated condition. 
 The surgeon under whose attention she came examined the wounds, and 
 suggested laucmg. This the young woman, human-nature like, declined, 
 Vhereupon the doctor observed, 'Then take yourself off to a hospital 
 ffhere they don't lance ! ' At the same hospital, and before the same 
 medical attendant, there proceeded an elderly female, who suffered from 
 a chronic illness, but having been well the last two months, and not 
 feeling the want of medicine, had not put in an appearance at the hospital. 
 ' Why haven't you been here for some time ? ' quoth the doctor, with 
 rising indignation. ' Because, sir,' replied the poor old thing, nervously^ 
 'I've been so well and comfortable-like.' 'Don't be impertinent,' cried 
 the chai'itable jEsculapius, 'and go about your business'— as if the old 
 woman had no business to be well for two whole months. In this institu- 
 tion, also, another old woman was badly treated. The crowd was great, 
 and in her attempt to gain egress she dropped her medicine bottle, and its 
 contents were soon meandering over the cold stone floor upon which the 
 patients are compelled to stand. Well, the ailing old soul made known 
 her loss to the official who dispensed the medicine, but he absolutely 
 refused to supply her with ai other bottle. In one of the largest hospitals 
 of which this Metropolis can bo ist, sufferers of all sorts, without regard to 
 age or the nature of their ailments, are compelled to await in dark, cold,, 
 damp corridors the examination of the doctor. The crowd is generally 
 great and the air foul, and the evil effects upon the -patients may be 
 imagined. Having at last escaped from the miserable corridor into the 
 surgery, the sufferers are greeted with coarse indifference, and meet with 
 none of that kind consideration so essential to tlie sick. Persons are 
 examined like so many bales of goods, and in the hurry the wrong medicine 
 is frequently given. But, of course, it does not matter much, as the 
 patients are poor, perhaps very poor, and the surgeon, mayhap, inspired 
 by the benevolent thought of putting a miserable fellow-creature out of 
 the world. It is, sir, a most pitiable spectacle to behold a, few hundred 
 human beings huddled together in a gloomy cold passage, groaning with 
 the pains of complicated ills, and the sight is the more sickening when the 
 observer pictures to himself the callous and brutal manner adopted by the 
 medical officers. Were I so inclined I could adduce many cases of actual 
 cruelty, but I think I have written enough to show the necessity for some 
 effectual reform in the hospital system. Institutions supported by public 
 money should be under the supervision and control of public officers, and 
 
Chap. VIL] 179 
 
 it is to be hoped that these lines may be the means of directing the 
 attention of Parliament to the subject. 
 
 "There is one special point to which I wish to refer in conclusion, and 
 that is that there should be no necessity to obtain a subscriber's letter 
 for admission to a hospital. Surely being sick and ill is a sufEcient recom- 
 mendation ! To one hospital, contributed to by thousands of Englishmen, 
 foreigners are admitted without ' a letter,' while Britons must be provided 
 with one in order to gain treatment ! " 
 
 The same state of things exists in nearly all the other Hospital 
 large hospitals, and invalids often receive hygienically ^^^^ ^^^ 
 more harm than good in their visit from having to wait a farce, 
 so long, often hours, in discomfort. There are, unfortu- 
 nately, other evils to which the recipients of our 
 medical charities are subject to. It is necessary, in 
 order to get through the work, for the physicians to 
 see and prescribe for scores of patients in the course 
 of an hour. Who shall say what mistakes are made, 
 and what mischief done ? It seems little better than 
 grim mockery to proffer this sort of help to destitute 
 suiFcrers ; nor do I think there will be any one who, 
 calmly weighing the fticts, Avill venture to uphold 
 the system on the grounds of any supposed merit it may 
 possess. Mr. Holmes, whose long experience at St. 
 George's Hospital adds great weight to this opinion, may 
 well say as he does, " Very much of the assistance given 
 is merely nominal, and is both a deception on the 
 public and a fraud on the poor." 
 
 It is unnecessary, I think, for me in this place to go 
 further into the subject. The whole thing is a palpable 
 sham and a farce, and the sooner the benevolently disposed 
 public are brought to a knowledge of the miserable system 
 they are supporting with their contributions, the better it 
 will be for the country and for humanity at large. Enormous 
 sums are yearly spent in trifling with suffering, if not in 
 actually propagating disease, and the ignorant and sloth- 
 
 N 2 
 
180 [Chap. VII. 
 
 fill public, always ready to fly to that wliicli is the least 
 trouble; though it may cost them the most in the end, is 
 led to place confidence in a system which, in numerous 
 cases can only leave them worse than it found them. How 
 much greater, hygienically, would be the result if but 
 one half of the vast sums thus expended were devoted to 
 carrying out measures which would prevent a large per- 
 centage of the present sickness that afflicts the poor. 
 
 George Wyld, M.D., remarks: — "In the British Isles 
 there are about 20^000 medical men, and with so noble 
 an array of educated philanthropists, what an incalculable 
 amount of ffood mio-ht we not achieve. 
 
 " Were Chairs of hygienic and preventive medicine 
 established in all our medical schools, and one-tenth of 
 that labour bestowed on those great subjects which 
 is now given to minute and pathological anatomy, 
 the entire aspect of our social condition would be 
 changed." 
 Chinese It has often occurred to me that in this, as in many 
 
 pay^iiff for o^her things, the Chinese exhibit far more practical 
 advice. wisdom than we do, inasmuch as they pay the physician 
 for keeping them well instead of for curing them when 
 diseased. They are thus, as it were, the teachers of the 
 people in respect to the preservation of health. How 
 much better would it be for the nation at large if, instead 
 of a medical profession profiting by the sickness and 
 misery of the community, we had a class of hygienic 
 teachers devoting their time to, and receiving remunera- 
 tion for, instructing the people in the physiological atd 
 natural laws affecting life and health, and so keeping the 
 community well ! We should then, I am convinced, 
 have fewer hospitals and infirmaries, more baths and 
 gymnasiums, as in the days of ancient Greece and Rome ; 
 fewer impure courts and alleys, more open green spaces 
 
Chap. VII.] 181 
 
 and squares ; fewer gutter clnldren * reared amidst Bev. Lord 
 
 dirt and disease, and more cleanly and respectable homes Qp|,"^i^e ^ 
 
 — tlie best nurseries of honesty, sobriety, independence Gutter 
 
 1 • , II- " children, 
 
 and intellio^ence. 
 
 * The Eev. Lord Sidney G. Osborne, S.G.O., of the Times, whose 
 letters to that journal upon social and sanitary subjects are marked M'ith 
 so much good judgment, gave the following — alas, too truthful portrait 
 of this little waif: — 
 
 " There are not many of us who have not seen the Gutter child ; it is 
 the name which is the novelty, not the animal. "What a being it is, what 
 a wonderful downward development of our common humanity ! Take a 
 dozen of them straight from the gutter-side, walk them or herd them in 
 Hyde Park, in any place or park where ordinary humanity takes its 
 pleasure ; compare them with any dozen nursery children, schoolroom 
 children; try to elicit child talk first from the one breed, then from the 
 other ; try to elicit their modes of life, of thought, the manner of their 
 rearing, their tastes, however childish. Test them as to the things which 
 give them most pleasure — the things they would most desire to possess. 
 Draw out what they — the two breeds — have been taught, and who 
 taught them ; what they know of the world about them. Let them talk 
 with each other, and then mark whether they have any subject in 
 common. You will soon discover that the difference of the two breeds is 
 in all this so great that it is hardly to be reconciled with the fact that 
 they are alike human offspring. When first born into the world had 
 they been shuffled together, no science could have detected which was a 
 Belgravian, which a Gutter child. 
 
 " In language, in life, in habits by day or night, the Gutter child differs 
 as much from all other children as it does in its dress and outward ap- 
 pearance. The child of the Fiji can scarcely be more heathen, more 
 barbarian. It may possibly have been baptized — I fear many thousands 
 have not been so. It may have owners, or one owner; have known two 
 parents, or only one, just such parents as " home " by gutter-side. It 
 has been nursed and fed, but too often very grudginglj'. From the day 
 of long clothes to that of corduroy and fustian its every sense has been 
 adapted to take in pollution. It could neither breathe nor listen but to 
 receive foul air to the lungs, foul language — blasphemy by the ear. The 
 Lord's Prayer, the simplest form of creed, simple hymns. Christian 
 child's song, are matters all to it most strange, representing ideas for 
 which it has no perception. The gutter school soon gives the language 
 of imprecation, but affords no belief in the God by whom it swears." 
 
182 [Chap. VII. 
 
 Prevention Persons living nnder these unfortunate conditions, 
 than cure whicli too many of the poor in London and other large 
 in disease, ^^owns are subjected, cannot be otherwise than degraded : 
 and the first step towards improving their melancholy 
 position is to induce them to become cleanly, both in 
 their persons and dwellings, thus raising them out of the 
 mire, as it were, and enabling them to appreciate, and to 
 strive to secure, health of both body and mind. 
 
 There is much wisdom in the proverbial saying that 
 " prevention is better than cure," and especially so with 
 respect to disease. Now, as a general rule, all maladies 
 are manifested in their incipient stage by slight functional 
 derangements, often so slight indeed as neither to excite 
 alarm nor suggest the adoption of precautionary measures, 
 yet certain, if neglected, to grow apace, and assuredly 
 develoj) and establish disease. It is in this incubating 
 stage, so to speak, of disease, that the hot-air bath is so 
 valuable in arresting those maladies that are prevalent 
 among the poorer classes, namely, such as are caused by 
 exposure to wet and cold, and by contagious poisons, 
 respecting which that eminent authority, Erasmus Wilson, 
 says: " The faculty of preventing disease, as exercised by 
 the skin, besides being direct and operative on the general 
 health of the body, is also indirect. The skin repels the 
 depressing effects of cold, of alternations of temperature, 
 of extreme dryness or moisture, by virtue of its own 
 healthy structure — by its intrinsic power of generating 
 heat ; and it also repels other causes of disease, such as 
 animal and miasmatic poisons, by its eliminatory power, 
 which enables it to carry them directly out of the body." 
 Thus, by stimulating the healthful functions of the skin, 
 the bath exercises great power in preventing disease, more 
 especially those forms of ailment to which, as already 
 stated, the working classes are more particularly subject. 
 
Chap. VII.] 183 
 
 It fortifies the body to resist climatic changes, and to 
 escape the evils that generally follow from exposure to the 
 i3:)orbid influences of malaria. 
 
 If, then, we can bring to bear upon the dense masses of Personal 
 poor, who are so .often beyond all agencies for the im- improTino- 
 provement of their position, so powerful a means for couditioa 
 Jiffecting their physical condition, not only do we add to poor, 
 their comfort and general well-being, but also to their 
 liealth, and the health of the community at large ; for we 
 are all aware of the contagious nature of most maladies 
 arising from dirt and filth ; and none can be assuz'ed of 
 being exempted from their ravages, thus warning us, as it 
 were, of our common brotherhood, and our oneness of 
 interest. Here, then, we have a selfish, personal motive 
 • — one that intimately concerns us all — for desiring to see 
 €very effort made to diminish the causes of disease that 
 exist amongst us. 
 
 I should think scarcely a medical man of ordinary Medical 
 intelligence can be found to question the utility of the not use the 
 
 bath as a sudorific process, yet, strange to say, there is ^^^^ ^^ 
 
 1 -,1 T • T f • 1 m ■■ . I Hospitals, 
 
 not a hospital or dispensary m London with a Turkish 
 
 Bath attached, except St. Thomas's, and it is now 
 seldom used. Medical men either from ignorance, 
 inability, or prejudice, do not use the bath when it is 
 provided. The other day I was one of a Committee, 
 who had occasion to visit the Fever Hospital at Isling- 
 ton, and in passing through a large ward I saw patients 
 suffering from all stages of fever, which the wet sheet 
 pack and other ablutions would not only have saved 
 them from immense suffering but preserved at least 
 50 j-er cent, of the lives. 
 
 Whan I asked the question. Have you no baths attached 
 to the hospital ? to my astonishment the reply was — There 
 is but one, and it is used as a receptacle for dirty JinenJ 
 
184 
 
 [Chap. VII. 
 
 7Tot air 
 Bath 
 gradually 
 receiving 
 the atten- 
 tion of 
 medical 
 men. 
 
 Dr. Bris- 
 
 towe on 
 the Turk- 
 ish Bath. 
 
 I merely quote this as a fair example of the appreciation of 
 watery appliances by the medical superintendents of these 
 charitable institutions. 
 
 Hitherto, I am sorry to say, medical men generally 
 have been anything but forward to take advantage of the 
 bath, as, indeed, they are of any other improvement or 
 innovation, either medical or sanitary ; partly, no doubt, 
 because they did not become acquainted with it in the ordi- 
 nary routine of their professional studies, and partly also 
 because the means of applying it are not always at hand. 
 In the first instance, indeed, its introduction was met with 
 a storm of opposition from the sons of ^sculapius, who 
 are proverbially averse to all innovations. The hot-air bath 
 is, however,. gradually forcing itself upon the attention of 
 practitioners, through the medium of their patients, by its 
 own inherent merits, and I am fully persuaded that the 
 day is not far distant when hot air will not only supersede 
 warm-water and vapour baths, but be looked upon as one 
 of our most valuable agencies for the cure of disease. The 
 only wonder is that we should have remained without the 
 bath so long, when, as we have seen, people, on whom 
 we look down as far inferior in point of civilization, have 
 largely used it, and enjoyed its blessings from time 
 immemorial. 
 
 But I am glad to observe that a very markworthy change 
 is taking place. Medical men are gradually becoming alive 
 to the advantages accruing from a judicious use of the hot- 
 air bath. When such a man as Dr. Bristowe, Physician 
 and Lecturer on Pathology at St. Thomas's Hospital, advo- 
 cates its use, there is some hope of its finally gaining that 
 ascendency as a curative method, which its merits un- 
 doubtedly demand. This gentleman, in a lecture recently 
 delivered at the Royal College of Physicians, made the 
 following; observations in regard to the bath : " I confess 
 
Chap. VIL] 185 
 
 I have as little confidence in medicinal diaphoretics as I 
 have in medicinal diuretics ; but I have great confidence 
 in hot-air, hot-vapour, and hot-water baths. During the 
 period to v/hich reference has just been made, and owing 
 to the fact that special opportunities were afforded to us 
 at the temporary St. Thomas's Hospital, I treated my 
 anasarcous patients largely by the Turkish bath : and I 
 w'as soon surprised to find how well those even who were 
 seriously ill bore it, and how much they were, for the 
 most part, benefited by it. Indeed, I began by degrees to 
 employ it in the treatment of such cases almost indis-' 
 criminately, and both for cases of heart-disease and cases 
 of renal disease, whether acute or chronic. Under the 
 influence of the Turkish Bath, employed, as a rule, three 
 times a week, and the copious perspirations whicli it pro- 
 duced, I have certainly seen over and over again general 
 dropsy diminish rapidly and in a very high degree, with 
 a corresponding improvement in the general health of the 
 patient. I hope I have spoken with becoming diffidence 
 of my own power of removing general dropsical accumu- 
 lations by attempting to promote their discharge from the 
 kidneys, bowels, and skin. I have intended to speak thus, 
 because it is comparatively rarely that I (and I think I 
 am not alone in this respect) have had the opportunity of 
 watching the uncomplicated effects of either of these pro- 
 cedures. We know how much the supervention of dropsy 
 in heart disease is hastened by whatever excites the heart 
 to undue action, and by whatever deteriorates the general 
 health ; and how, under favourable hygienic conditions 
 and appropriate medical treatment, the action of the heart 
 becomes quieted, the health improves, and, under the 
 influence of these changes, the dropsy disappears. Similar 
 observations are applicable in an equal degree to chronic 
 renal disease, and to the dropsy which follows upon it. 
 
186 [CnAP. VII 
 
 Now, in almost all cases of anasarca that come under 
 treatment, the patient is at once, in a greater or less 
 degree, put under the influence of all those health-pro- 
 moting conditions : and these co-operate with the special 
 dropsy-removing remedies which we then, or subsequently, 
 determine to employ, and give them often an appearance 
 of efficacy which does not belong to tliem." 
 jjr. Mapo- j)j._ Mapother, Eoyal College of Surgeons, Dublin, in 
 Turkish liis '' Lcctures on Public Health," observes : — " I Avould 
 ^^ ^' advocate the use of the bath as a social custom and 
 preventive of disease, for I believe it is tlie most perfect 
 means of ablution we possess, and therefore keeps up a 
 cleanly and vigorous constitution of the body, and braces 
 the person against the vicissitudes of temperature and the 
 liability to catch contagious diseases. There is no doubt 
 that large evacuations can be accomplished through the skin 
 more safely than by any other excreting organ. Nothing 
 esca2:)es through the shin save what is noxious if retained. 
 . . . . I think its influence is directly curative in 
 rheumatic, gouty, and scrofulous affections, skin diseases, 
 and the earlier stages of feverish colds and ague. By 
 the freer action of the skin, especially of its curative 
 function, I feel sure it is preventive of consumption, and 
 curative, perhaps, in the earlier states of that malady. 
 It is a substitute, to a certain extent, for active exercise, 
 which the circumstances of some prevent them from 
 enjoying." 
 Dr. How- And Dr. Howard, late of the Medical StafP of the 
 ard on British Army in Turkey, records as follows : — " Durinof 
 
 Turkish '' i t i i • • n 
 
 Baths. my residence in Turkey I had many opportunities of 
 ascertaining the value of the Turkish Bath in numerous 
 diseases. I tried it myself on several occasions, and can 
 speak confidently of its utility from my own experience. 
 In so changeable a climate as that of England — producing 
 
CiiAr. VII.] 187 
 
 such a variety of diseases— its applicability to the cure of 
 so many diseases will render the Turkish hot-air bath one 
 of the most important remedies ever introduced into our 
 therapeutics." 
 
 Charles Royston, M.D., M.R.C.S., Eng., &c., remarks : Di'- Rot- 
 *' In June, 1875, I was confined to the house for ten days Turkish 
 W'itli subacute sjniovical inflammation of the metatarso- ^^^hs. 
 phalangeal joint of the right great toe. In the following 
 month (July) the same thing occurred in the right 
 knee-joint, confining me to the house for three weeks, 
 after which I went to the seaside for three weeks. 
 On my return home, I was advised by an eminent 
 medical friend to have a Turkish Bath once a week, which 
 I did for three months, and subsequently once a fort- 
 night. 
 
 " I fully believe it has been the means of preventing a 
 repetition of the affection, and from various conversations I 
 have had with patients using the Turkish Bath, I believe 
 it to be a very valuable auxiliary in the treatment and cure 
 of many disorders." 
 
 Mr. David Urquhart, who, from his long residence ^''- '^W^- 
 in Turkey, had ample opportunity of testing its efficacy, Baths in 
 says : — " AVherc the bath is the practice of the people, '^"^■'^^J'- 
 there are no diseases of the skin. All cases of inflam- 
 mation, local and general, are subdued: gout, rheuma- 
 tism, sciatica, or stone, cannot exist where it is con- 
 secutively and sedulously employed as a curative 
 means. I am inclined to say the same thing in reference 
 to the plague. 1 am certain of it with reference to 
 cholera. As to consumption — that scourge of England 
 — that pallid spectre, which sits by every tenth domestic 
 hearth among the higher orders — it is not only un- 
 known Avhere the bath is practised, but is curable by its 
 means." 
 
188 [Chap. VII. 
 
 Eemedial If evidence were wanting of the remedial and propby- 
 Turkish lactic value of the Turkish Bath, there might be some 
 
 Baths excuse for its not beino- o-enerally recognized by the 
 canDot be o C3 ./ & j 
 
 disputed, medical profession, but as the testimony in its favour is so 
 overwhelming we are forced to the conclusion that it is 
 either due to culpable neglect, or stupid prejudice, 
 that each hospital and dispensary has not at this moment 
 every kind of hygienical appliances. 
 
 But the action of the hot-air bath is generally ad- 
 mitted to exercise a direct and powerful influence, not only 
 in preserving health and guarding against the approaclies 
 of disease, but also in curing some of the most painful 
 maladies to which humanity is subject, more especially in 
 the case of persons whose constitutional debilit}', sedentary 
 occupations, or over indulgence indisposes them for active 
 . physical exertion. 
 Objections There is a prevailing opinion, not only amongst the 
 Turkish uninitiated, but even medical men, that the bath is not so 
 Bath applicable to the working classes as to the upper classes, 
 because the daily expenditure of bodily strength is a 
 necessity of daily life with a vast majority of them. 
 This objection to the use of the Turkish Bath amongst 
 the poorer portion of the community, I have already 
 treated at some length elsewhere. It has its origin in a 
 total misconception of the effects of heat on the animal 
 economy ; because it produces perspiration, it is ignor- 
 antly supposed that the action of the bath is exhaustive and 
 debilitating, and therefore the very reverse of what is re- 
 quired by the condition and necessities of the working man. 
 Let us see how the idea originated which attributes 
 to the hot-air bath an exhaustive debilitating effect. In 
 the popular mind profuse perspiration is associated 
 with bodily fatigue ; hence as the bath excites copious 
 sweatinir — which is the visible result of its action — it 
 
CuAP. VIL] 189 
 
 is illogically assumed tlmt sucli sweating is similar as 
 regards cause and effect to the perspiration produced by an 
 expenditure of physical vitality ; but such an assumption 
 altoo-ether io-nores the essential difference that exists 
 between the two modes by which the sweating is excited. 
 In the case of bodily labour there is necessarily an active 
 expenditure of vital energy, and the perspiration that 
 oozes from the pores of the skin is evidence of so much 
 physical vitality expended, the natural effect of which is 
 to induce bodily fatigue that may be carried to any 
 endurable amount of bodily exhaustion. 
 
 On the other hand, the perspii'ation excited by the bath 
 of pure hot-air is, in all respects, the exact reverse as to 
 cause and effect. In producing it no bodily labour takes 
 place, no vital energy is put in motion ; thus, as there is no 
 physical action, consequently there is no exhaustive wear and 
 tear — no waste whatever of physical vitality. The bather re- 
 mains in a state of quiescence, and the pleasurable repose 
 he enjoys is heightened by the action of the bath, which 
 necessarily relieves the system by the exudation of burden- 
 some impurities. In this state, with profuse perspiration 
 teeming from every pore, cold water — to drink which 
 when in such a condition produced by bodily exertion ' 
 Avould be almost certain injury — can be imbibed 
 freely, not only without any danger, but with actual 
 benefit. 
 
 Dr. Carpenter, an eminent authority, observes : " That Dr. Car- 
 perspiration has no weakening effect in itself, except by perspira- 
 the diminution of the water in the blood, which may be *^°°* 
 re-supplied from the stomach, appears from the fact that if 
 persons exposed to high heat make no bodily exertion, 
 they experience no loss of vigour if copiously supplied with 
 cold water — such exposure may conduce very much to in- 
 vigorate the system." 
 
190 [Chap. VII. 
 
 Dr. Bal- The testimony of Dr. Balbirnie, who has had consider- 
 pers'lr°^ able experience on the subject, is to the same effect. He 
 tion. says : " The allegation that perspiration is a weakening 
 
 process is a fallacy that hardly needs demolition. Sweat- 
 ing, as accomplished by drugs (sudorifics), we admit, is a 
 debilitating drain. So is the vapour-bath as used 
 in the bungling way common in our old bath establish- 
 ments. But perspiration produced in a hot-air bath, 
 followed by tepid or cold ablutions, is highly tonic and 
 invigorating. Nothing of the normal constituents of 
 the body is abstracted save the saline and watery 
 portions of the blood. The water is replaced by ab- 
 sorption from the stomach as rapidly as it is given out : 
 for when the drain becomes excessive the supply is pro- 
 portionate." 
 Dr. Gosse Another high authority, Dr. Gosse, of Geneva, says to 
 ration"^^^^' ^^^® same point : '' Perspiration is composed of water and 
 various escrementitious substances. The elimination of 
 the latter, far from weakening the body, tends rather to 
 strengthen it, by enabling the nervous system to put forth 
 all its powers ; and as for the water, it is easily replaced 
 by appropriate beverages. All the nutritive elements 
 contained in the blood are preserved intact, and it is only 
 a salutary purification it undergoes by perspiration. 
 Hence, all persons who have taken Turkish Baths, even 
 daily, far from complaining of weakness, state that 
 they are in better health, stronger and more lithe- 
 some." 
 
 In support of this opinion Dr. Gosse cites the following 
 facts: "M. Jules Eochette, of Geneva, had to superintend 
 certain establishments in the department of Vaucluse, in 
 France, for preparing madder roots for dyeing. To dry 
 the roots before reducing them to powder, they were 
 put in large stove-rooms arranged in rows. The air 
 
Chap. VIL] 191 
 
 iu the rooms was almost diy, and, In spite of the 
 evaporation from the roots, remained perfectly transparent. 
 ]\Iore than a hundred men worked night and day by turns 
 in these rooms, completely naked, with the exception of a 
 handkerchief round the waist, and were constantly bathed 
 in perspiration. While in this state they had to go 
 into the yard to fetch the bales of roots, even while very 
 cold north winds were blowing, the work was fatiguing, 
 for the bales were heavy, weighing . as much as 80 
 kilogrammes, and attending to them in the hot rooms 
 was not less laborious. The men often fell asleep in the 
 outer passages, exposed to a cold air with nothing on 
 them but a cloth. Nevertheless M. Kochette never saw 
 them inconvenienced or ill through this exposure, but 
 found them, on the contrary, always strong and lithe- 
 some." 
 
 Thus the supposition that the bath debilitates by exciting Dr. Barter 
 copious sweating is alike inconsistent with the experience 15]^ Bath* 
 and repugnant to the conclusions of sound physiology. It "'' '^'^^^s 0? 
 is, indeed, to the very copious sweating the bath induces 
 that a large portion of its incomparable medical merit is 
 attributable, freeing the body as it does of all poisonous 
 waste matter. One of the first cases of lunacy which 
 Dr. Barter treated with the hot-air bath was that of a man 
 who had been nine years in the Lunatic Asylum of Cork, 
 and who, on taking his fii'st bath, said he considered the 
 bath good for everybody. On being asked his reason for 
 so thinking, he replied in these words : " When I was 
 working in the fields ray sweat rolled down from" me like 
 water. It had no nasty smell, nor disagreeable taste. 
 Now, sir," said he, " my perspiration is thick and" nasty, 
 like oil. It has a bad smell and worse taste. When the 
 cook puts a pot on the fire with a piece of meat or veget- 
 able lo boil, doesn't the fire throw the impurities to the 
 
192 [Chap. VIL 
 
 top, and doesn't slie take a spoon and skim tliem off? " 
 In that answer is contained the whole philosophy of the 
 Turkish Bath. It is a well-known fact that if a plaster 
 be placed over the mouth and nostrils a person would die, 
 in like manner, if the body be coated over with any 
 adhesive substance, death will result ; thus showing that 
 the skin is a breathing organ, as well as an excretory; 
 so that not only is the body freed by the profuse perspira- 
 tion induced by the bath from all matter inimical to its 
 well-being, but the system is at the same time prepared 
 to receive a good supply of oxygen from the atmosphere. 
 Import- In fact, it may be said that ccetens paribus, the strength 
 
 abundaTice ®^ ^^^^'^ person's constitution is in direct proportion to the 
 ofpureair. quantity of oxygen which his system is capable of imbib- 
 ing ; for on this the purity of his blood, the vitality of his 
 system, and, as a necessary consequence, his health 
 depends. Hence arises the importance of supplying the 
 system with an abundance of pure air, and the absolute 
 necessity, when the lungs are by nature small and 
 deficient, of increasing that supply af air through the only 
 other medium open to us, namely, the skin — the great 
 supplementary organ to the lungs, as it has been called — 
 the necessity for improving and developing the absorptive 
 powers of which is in exact proportion to the lungs' 
 diminished capacity. In this lies the great therapeutic 
 value of the hot-air bath, namely, in opening the pores 
 of the skin, and improving that medium for the supply of 
 oxygen to the blood. 
 Dr. Shep- As Dr. Sheppard, Medical Superintendent of Colney 
 
 pird s Hatch Lunatic Asylum, expresses it, an invigoration takes 
 -Dpinion. J 7 i J n 
 
 place ^' arising from the contact of the unscurfed skin 
 with ]")artlcles of caloric and from the neidij-acqidred j^oiver 
 of drinking in oxycjzn through channels previousli/ closed uj)" 
 that is, through the pores of the skin. 
 
Chap. VII.] 193- 
 
 Dr. C. Locklmrt Robertson, Metropolitan Inspector ofDr. C. 
 Liinacv, and formerly Medical Superintendent of Hay ward's Eobertson 
 Heath Lunatic Asylum, in treatinor insanity, says: — onTurkisli 
 
 // T • / -IT J' J Eatbsfor 
 
 *' In one instance ot acute mania, depencluig apparently on insanity, 
 recent small-pox, I found imrasdiate relief of the maniacal 
 symptoms follow the administration of the bath. My great 
 success has been with cases of melancholia, with refusal of 
 food, and loss of strength and ilesh. In several cases of 
 melancholia, complicated with phthisis in its earlier stage, 
 a great improvement both of the mental and phj^sical 
 symptoms has followed the treatment." 
 
 " In a case of apparently confirmed dementia — the patient 
 was unable even to tell his name, restless and destructive, 
 was much reduced in health, and there was dropsy in the 
 lower limbs, with albuminous urine of a marked character ; 
 he gradually got worse, and after he had been a month in 
 the asjdum, I sent him to the bath almost as a forlorn hope. 
 The result of a month's treatment of the bath twice a 
 week was, that dropsy disappeared, that no trace of 
 albumen was found in the urine, and the man is apparently 
 convalescent : he is working at his trade as carpenter. 
 The bath, as a remedial agent, is grateful to the feeling.^ 
 of the insane, and which they do not^ like other means of 
 washing, associate with the idea of punishment. 
 
 " I must not omit to notice a specific power to remove 
 noxious secretions of the skin so frequent with the insane, 
 and which, in asylums of twenty years ago, one could reco"-- 
 nize as distinctly as the smell of a dog kennel, and which 
 still sometimes refuses to yield to ordinary ablution. The 
 Turkish bath entirely removes this unpleasant complication." 
 
 Dr. Balbirnie says : "The practical views now suggested p,.. jij. 
 
 in connection with the Turkish Bath, when pushed to their l^'''"ie3 
 1 -r i -11 a> i 1 1- , opinion on 
 
 Jegitimate consequences, will ettect, we believe, a great Turkish 
 
 revolution one day in medical treatment, and will influence ^'''^'"^' 
 
194 [Chap. VII. 
 
 for good the destinies of thousands of unborn generations. 
 I challenge my respected medical brethren to rei'ute the 
 distinct proposition I lay down on this head : viz., deficient 
 oxydation of the waste of the body lies at the foundation 
 of most diseases — an evil aggravated in chronic disease b}-- 
 the attempts of the system to compensate this defect by 
 abstracting oxygen from the food. Disprove this allegation 
 who can ! Beyond all question, this infra-oxydation is the 
 starting point of gout, of rheumatism, of diabetes, of 
 granular kidneys, of fatty degeneration, of many forms 
 of fever, and of some others of our gravest diseases. If 
 so, what is pointed out as the cure of this state of matters ? 
 Less trust to mere drugs, unquestionably ; and more at- 
 tention to open, and keep open, the body's safety-valves. 
 This can always be done by the simplest natural agency. 
 .... If I were asked to give a brief and distincti\e 
 definition of the Turkish Bath, I would say : It is that 
 which claims the exclusive or pre-eminent power of physio- 
 logically opening the safety-valves of the living mechanism ; 
 or, in other words, developing a high activity of the depu- 
 rating economy of the animal body; and so fulfilling the 
 first grand indication for the cure of all diseases." 
 
 It is this double function of the skin — its breathing 
 capacity, so to speak — at once an excretory and an absorbent 
 organ, that enables the bath to act so generally, so power- 
 fully, and so successfully as a therapeutic or curative agent. 
 " It will balance the circulation sooner than any other 
 means I know," said Dr. John Armstrong. " The patient 
 is raised^ as by the touch of a magic wand, from weakness 
 to strength." 
 Turkish It would carry me much beyond the limits assigned to 
 
 Batlis can- ^|^-g chapter to further treat of the therapeutic value of 
 not give ^ .„.-... 
 
 colds. the hot-air bath, but I may mention a favourite objection 
 
 that is urged against it by the uninitiated, namely, that 
 
Chap. VIL] 195 
 
 it renders the body susceptible to cold. Speaking on 
 this point, Erasmus Wilson says : '' The bath, properly 
 conducted, cannot give cold. In truth, it is one 
 of the great recommendations of this form of bathing, as 
 peculiarly suitable to that class of people who are poorly 
 fed, badly housed, and worse clad, that by no other means 
 can the human body be so well fortified against the in- 
 jurious effects of cold." AVith reference to the same 
 objection, Dr. Sheppard says : " The bath is the best 
 preservative against the vicissitudes of temperature. It 
 imparts a vigour and a power to resist cold, which are as 
 remarkable as they are undoubted." Again: "It is a 
 common experience," says Dr. Thudicum, " that pei'sons 
 liable every winter to attacks of catarrh, bronchitis, or 
 neuralgia, acquire a perfect immunity from these com- 
 plaints." 
 
 Another objection, which has been repeatedly raised by Turkish 
 medical men as militating against the adoption of my creates an 
 proposal, is one which has more truth in it. It is that f^ppetite. 
 the bath, by stimulating the skin, and consequently the 
 general animal economy, increases the appetite. This the 
 bath certainly does do, and it is surely but a very shallow 
 arofument to make one of the best signs of its medical 
 merits an objection against its use ; money is better spent 
 in bread than physic. 
 
 No doubt, like every other good thing, the bath may Dr. MiUiu- 
 be injudiciously employed ; but assuming, as we have a i\l^rkbh 
 right to do, its proper administration under competent ^^^li 
 superintendence, then, indeed, so far from having a the poor 
 tendency to impair vitality, or in any other way to act "^ ■^"^^®'^* 
 injuriously on the system, its effect is highly beneficial 
 and salutary. Dr. Millingen, whose testimony is entitled 
 to consideration, as he resided at Constantinople for some 
 years in the capacity of physician to the Sultan, and en- 
 
196 [CiiAr. VII. 
 
 joyed an extensive personal experience of tlie bath in the 
 East, adverting to its use by the labouring population^ 
 says : '' The M'orking classes among the Turks know of 
 no other means of prevention on feeling indisposed but the 
 bath. It is looked upon so much in the light of a panacea 
 bj the lower orders, that they hardly ever dream of con- 
 sulting a physician when taken unwell. If the bath fail 
 to cure them, nothing else will succeed. This prevailing 
 conviction accounts in a great measure for the total absence 
 of dispensaries and civil hospitals, not only in this large 
 city (Constantinople), but throughout the whole empire. 
 Yet I apprehend from the tables of mortality monthly 
 published that the mortality is not greater than it is in 
 countries blessed with those institutions. The higher 
 classes, and women especially, do not, as with us, know 
 much about regular exercise, so that, were it not for the 
 ample compensation afforded by the bath, they would not 
 enjoy the excellent health they possess." 
 Absence of Yet, notwithstanding the undoubted advantages possessed 
 Baths ill by the Turkish Bath as a therapeutic agent, there is not. 
 Hospitals, ^g J i^c^YQ already stated, in the whole of London a single 
 dispensary, and only one hospital, where a patient can 
 have a sweatino--bath. More than this, there is not a 
 single Turkish Bath in the metropolis — within the means 
 of the poor — to which an hospital or dispensary practitioner 
 can send his patient. 
 
 This want of free bathing is the greatest, and by no 
 moans the most creditable, anomaly in the administration 
 of our medical charities. The neglect in the treatment of 
 the poor by an agent so simple and safe, economical and 
 salutary, as the bath incontestably is, becomes the more 
 striking and reprehensible when we consider to what an 
 alarming extent gratuitous drugging prevails. 
 
 No matter how desirable a dispensary practitioner might 
 
CuAr. VII.] 197 
 
 consider a hot-air bath to be, either as an active thera- Difficult ios 
 peutic agent in the treatment of disease, or as an efficient men in ' 
 auxiliary, he is powerless to employ it. He may be °'''^^'?]= 
 thoroughly persuaded that, in many cases, bathing would Batbs. 
 be far preferable to drugging; yet, by the consummate 
 wisdom that regulates the administration of our medical 
 affairs, he is absolutely precluded from availing himself 
 of the remedial agency of hot air, while deleterious drugs 
 and pernicious stimulants, without stint, are placed at his 
 disposal. 
 
 Now, were my proposal adopted of having hot-air baths 
 attached to baths and washhouses as well as to hospitals 
 and dispensaries, the hospital phj-sician would be enabled to 
 prescribe a sweating-bath to his poorest patients with the 
 certainty of their being able to carry out his instructions. 
 He would thus, in addition to giving relief to the patient, 
 be conferring an indirect benefit upon the poorer and more 
 ignorant portion of the community, by inculcating in the 
 popular mind the necessity of absolute cleanliness, and the 
 constant correlativeness of uncleanliness with disease. Nor 
 would the generality of the medical world be slow to take 
 advantage of the means thus jjlaced at their disposal. 
 Indeed, many deplore the present state of things, which 
 prevents them making use of so invaluable a remedy. A 
 gentleman who has had extensive experience as a dispensary 
 and hospital practitioner, and whose high opinion of the 
 bath is based on its medical virtues, says : "lam an ardent 
 advocate, from medical principles, of the practice of Turkish 
 Baths, and quite concur in the sentiment of the British 
 Medical Association, that there ought to be baths of hot 
 air in every city, town, and village ; no medical institution 
 can be worthy of the name without them, for disease is not 
 to be cured by mere drugs alone." And Dr. Richardson, 
 at the late meeting of the Social Science Association, wlien 
 
198 [CnAr. VII. 
 
 describing his model city of health, Hygeia, said he would 
 have all his hospitals '' supplied on each side with ordinary 
 baths, hot-air baths, vapour baths, and saline baths." 
 Baths "Were it, indeed, with no other end in view than the 
 
 lessen tlie reduction of the poor rates, the dispensaries and hospitals 
 poor rates, ought to be provided with means of prescribing such 
 a bath. In parishes where sickness and disease most 
 abound, there, as a natural consequence, the burden of 
 supporting the indigent poor is the most onerous ; for 
 where the heads of families are stricken down with illness, 
 the maintenance of their helpless children necessarily 
 devolves upon the Poor-law Guardians, deferring to 
 this matter in their Second Eeport on the state of large 
 towns and populous districts, the Commission of Inquiry 
 have the following remarks : " The loss of life which 
 occurs annually from a neglect of the measures neces- 
 sary for rendering wholesome the dwellings of the poor 
 and the streets adjacent, must be accompanied by serious 
 pecuniary charges both upon the sufferers themselves and 
 upon the community. The prolonged attacks of sickness 
 which precede this excessive mortality, render the victims 
 of it incapable of following their daily occupations, and 
 reduce them and their families to the necessity of seeking 
 relief from the parish and other funds, which are eventu- 
 ally burdened with the maintenance of the surviving 
 members of the family." 
 Turkish Now colds and other maladies, from which the poor are 
 
 Baths save g^^gj^ i^g^vy sufferers, are, as we have seen, if treated in 
 tbe poor ^ ' _ ' ' 
 
 from their early stages, easily cured by the use of the Turkish 
 expense. Bath. It is, therefore, both less costly as well as more bene- 
 volent to place at the disposal of the labouring classes such 
 means as will enable them to ward off or cure sickness in its 
 incipient stage, than to allow them to fall into ill-health, and 
 thus to bring misery into their families and expense upon 
 
Chap. VIL] 199 
 
 the parish. Yet such is the system now in existence. 
 Surely it is time that so irrational and expensive a state 
 
 ;.of affairs was put an end to ; and it is to the interest of 
 ratepayers to see that it is. Let them ever bear this 
 truth in mind — and no principle in political economy is 
 more sure — that the more baths there are, the less disease ; 
 and the less disease, the fewer demands on the poor rates. 
 It must be admitted, however, that a great deal of the 
 apathy hitherto exhibited on this subject has arisen^ not 
 so much from an indifference to the interests of the sick 
 poor as from a want of knowledge concerning the great 
 inherent virtues of the bath which has so generally pre- 
 A'ailed amongst all classes up to within a very recent 
 period. But now that public opinion is being enlightened 
 in this respect, and that medical men connected with our 
 hospitals, lunatic asylums, workhouses, and other public 
 institutions for the treatment of disease, have successfully 
 tested and favourably recognized its high sanitive and 
 therapeutic merits, it is to be hoped that a brighter period 
 in the annals of the bath is about to dawn. 
 
 Indeed, when we consider how exceedingly difficult it Prospecte 
 is to contend against the pride of professional dogma, Ba^^*^^^^** 
 which clings with a superstitious reverence to old habits increasing 
 of thought and practice, and how hard it is to sui'- iarity^'^* 
 mount opposition that arises from popular ignorance and 
 prejudice, as well as to overcome official inertia, instead 
 
 . of wondering at the tardy progress the bath has made 
 towards becoming a national institution both for the preven- 
 tion and cure of disease among the poor, it is surprising that 
 without any adventitious aids, and in defiance of all impedi- 
 ments, it has made its way so successfully. Such indeed is 
 the vitality of a good thing that it is sure in the long-run to 
 overcome all opposition ; knowing this, and knowing also 
 that there is now an intelligent desire on the part of the 
 
200 [Chap. VII. 
 
 Xmblio to give an unprejudiced trial to all reasonable 
 improvements, I can confidently predict that in twenty 
 years' time no hospital will be without its hot-air bath, 
 and that the town which has not its public baths — the 
 hot-air bath included — will be considered in as bad a state 
 as a town is now that has no system for the disposal 
 of its sewage. 
 
 HEALTH. 
 
 " Health is that which makes your meat and drink hoth savoury and 
 pleasant ; else nature's injunction of eating and drinking were a hard task 
 and a slavish custom. Health is that which makes your bed easy and 
 your sleep refreshing ; that revives your strength with the rising sun 
 and makes you cheerful at the light of another day ; 'tis that which fills 
 up the hollow and uneven places of your carcase and makes your body 
 plump and comely ; 'tis that which dresseth you up in Nature's richest 
 attire, and adorns your face with her choicest colours. 'Tis that which 
 makes exercise a sport and walking abroad the enjoyment of your 
 liberty. 'Tis that which makes fertile and increaseth the natural endow- 
 ments of your mind and preserves them long from decay ; makes your 
 wit acute and your memory retentive. 'Tis that which supports the 
 fragility of corruptible body, and pi-eserves the verdure, vigour, and 
 beauty of youth. 'Tis that which makes the soul take delight in her 
 mansion, sporting herself at the casements of your eyes. 'Tis that which 
 makes pleasure to be pleasure and delights delightful, without which 
 you can solace yourself in nothing of terrene felicity or enjoyments." 
 
Chap. YIU.-] 201 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 - Small-pox. 
 
 THE small-pox epidemic being very great at this time, 
 I have deemed this a fitting opportunity for making 
 some observations on inoculation and vaccination as 
 prophylactics, and to offer some remarks on the treatment 
 of the disease by physical means. 
 
 The orii!;in of disease, and especially of oreat and 9"»,\^ ^^ 
 •] 1 -1 • 1 1 • r ^1 1 Small-pox. 
 
 wide spread epidemic and endemic diseases, Jias been 
 
 always, in the history of science and medicine, a 
 subject of eagei*, anxious, and often angry discussion ; 
 and when specifics were supposed to be found, or general 
 modes of treatment became popular, these were as much 
 disputed as the maladies themselves. Small-pox and 
 its alleged cures or mitigations are no exceptions. It is 
 almost certain, although not universally enteitained 
 that small-pox broke out in some original centre favour- 
 able to its development, and passed by contagion, or 
 infection from nation to nation, community to communit\', 
 and individual to individual ; until at last it became an 
 hereditary taint, or as the Chinese express it, " imbibed 
 with mother's milk." 
 
 In looking for the place of its origin those wlio attri- 
 bute its birth to some one centre favourable to its exist- 
 ence have greatly differed in opinion ; the majority 
 
202 [CnAr. VIII. 
 
 maintain that it was generated among tlie Arabs, and 
 that it spread into Europe as an accompanying attendant 
 upon the Mohamedan conquests. 
 
 No mention is made of small-pox in the works of 
 Greek and Roman authors, altliough many other irrup- 
 tive diseases are described, such as erysipelas, scrofula, 
 lepra, &c. From this it is reasonably assumed that 
 those enlightened nations were free from this distemper. 
 According to an ancient Arabic MS. the smalh 
 pox originated or was introduced into Arabia in the 
 year A.D. 572 which is historically remarkable as the 
 year which gave birth to Mohamed. From other 
 authentic Arabic MSS. it would appear- that it was 
 at the siege of Mecca that the Arabians were first stricken 
 by this pestilence, and it is observable that after great 
 sieges and campaigns it has frequently appeared and 
 been signally destructive. 
 Progress Dr. Rimbe an able Avriter traces the progress of small- 
 IDox. pox from Arabia in the following terms, " The conquests 
 
 of the false prophet, and his fanatic followers soon 
 extended far and wide ; and as may easily be conceived 
 the ravages of the new disease followed everywhere the 
 track of the conquerors, who in less than half a century 
 had established their dominion not only over Egypt and 
 Syria, but a great part of Persia also." 
 
 In the eighth century, however, the disease certainly 
 appeared in Europe, when the whole Southern Coasts 
 of the Mediterranean were subdued by the impetuous 
 Arabs, so that it entered by the gates of Hercules 
 through the medium of the Mohamedan Moors. But it 
 is remarkable that although Spain first felt the breath 
 of the pestilence, it has been, from some unknown cause, 
 less afflicted by it for some centuries than other nations 
 of Europe. 
 
Chap. VIIL] 203 
 
 Mr. James Moore, a Member of the Royal Collegje of Small-pox 
 
 1 ., : , , T ,. r TV? brought 
 
 Surgeons, m describing the landing or an army oi M.oors into Spain, 
 in Gibraltar and Spain, says: — ''By this invasion the 
 small-pox must kaye been brought into Spain, and the 
 victorious Saracens soon reached the Pyrenees. In the 
 year a.d. 731, Abderame crossed these mountains, and 
 inundated the South of France with a host of Saracens. 
 They were opposed under the walls of Tours by Charles 
 Martel, when Christians! and Mahomedans fought six 
 da3's indecisively for victory, but in a closer combat on 
 the seventh day the impetuous but slender Arabs gave 
 way. The Saracens and Koran were repelled into 
 Spain, but the small-pox remained in France. 
 
 The Saracen fleets were triumphant in the Mediter- 
 ranean ; Sicily, Italy and many cities of the coast were 
 frequently invaded. It cannot be doubted that this 
 intercourse with Africa and Asia introduced this disease, 
 although no direct proof can be adduced. The circum- 
 stantial evidence is conclusive." 
 
 America received the malady from Spain, where it Small-pox 
 spread rapidly among the Indian Tribes. It was intro- ^^ ^^^nca 
 duced into British America from England in the same 
 Avay as alcoholic drink was brought to the natives by the 
 British settlers, England having received the infection 
 from the European Continent. 
 
 Whether the disease was brought into Europe by the 
 Saracens, or not, it is reported to have existed in India 
 anterior to its prevalence among that people. From - 
 India, small-pox was landed upon the coasts of Arabia, 
 and thence entered Persia. If this is correct it would 
 appear that Arabia itself derived the infection from India. 
 
 "Whenever the nations of Western and Central Asia, quities of 
 of Africa, and of Europe may have received the ^^^'^'^s') 
 disease, Chinese records are of fur greater antiquity SmuU-pox. 
 
204 [Chap. YIII. 
 
 than any we have of its visitation to those regions. 
 " China, the puzzle of antiquity," anticipated Europe 
 in various useful arts, criminal acts, and dire diseases, 
 and there seems not much room for doubt that this 
 most terrbile of inflictions, was known to the Chinese 
 many ages before authentic history ascribes it to 
 Arabia. The Jesuit missionaries gained access to tlie 
 archives of the empire, and amongst a vast amount of 
 information which they have given to Europe we find 
 specific accounts of small-pox disease. The appearance 
 of the malady is assigned to a very early period, 1122 
 years B.C. The Hindoo mythology and worship also 
 indicate in their respective modes the existence of some 
 such disease. 
 
 From these facts it is not surprising that the idea 
 should prevail that the calamity should have had many, 
 or at all events, several spontaneous centres. China, 
 India, Arabia, Egypt, Ethiopia, &c., but whether from 
 one, or several, or many, it spread with alarming facility 
 and fatality, until the whole world was cursed with its 
 appalling effects as b}'- the cholera or plague. 
 Develop- For many ages the development of small-pox was ac- 
 Sman-°pox. counted for by contact with the diseased, by inhaling 
 the eflfluvia from their bodies, garments, or apartments ; 
 sometimes from the conditions of the atmosphere, from 
 humid or fetid exhalations, or from water poisoned by 
 invisible fungi or other indeterminate agencies. The pre- 
 • sence of gases that were not analyzed, or which were be- 
 yond analyzation was also made to account for the malady. 
 A modern writer of eminence denies that the disease is 
 caused- by any epidemic atmospherical influence, he says, 
 " If there exists anything in the atmosphere capable of in- 
 juring any one person's health it must injure all, as they 
 would be by the effects of a strong wind, or heat, or cold. 
 
Chap. VIII.] 2O0 
 
 or as they would be by the effects of arsenic, or carbolic 
 acid iuhaledj or an electrical shock, fire, water, &c. 
 Hence, if we observe that only a portion, perhaps a 
 third, or even much less, of a given population becomes 
 seriously affected, while all the rest are entirely free, 
 then we must logically conclude that there was some- 
 thing different in the organism of the affected from those 
 who were exempt ; that the reason, or cause of their 
 being affected, is in tJiemsehrff, and not In the atmosphere 
 alone." 
 
 Doctor Both, of Boston, United States, energeti- Dr. Both 
 cally urges this upon the consideration of all medical ppe^jgpo. 
 men, possible patients, statesmen and citizens of ?^ition to 
 Christendom. He observes — " In all epidemics, such as ' ' 
 cholera, small-pox, yellow fever, typhus, &c., we find it 
 generally admitted that the affected persons have shown 
 a predisposition, while those who continued in health 
 v/ere so constituted as to escape uninjured ; therefore 
 it is of no consequence to learn whether minute spores 
 float in the atmosphere, carrying the germ of those 
 diseases, or whether gases escape from the earth or from 
 diseased persons, or whether electrical cui-rents, or un- 
 even pressure of the atmosphere, or Avhatever may be 
 thought to be the infecting agent, we have only to do 
 with the susceptibility of the persons interested. If we 
 can avoid the predisposition we need have no fear about 
 the atmosphere or other supposed agencies — we are 
 invulnerable." 
 
 According to Dr. Both, a German physician, the pre- Salt an 
 
 disposition to small-pox consists in the elimination or fi^tisepUc 
 CI lie I " 1 1 1 *° Smnll- 
 
 .ibsence of the natural salts from the blood, w^hlch may be pox. 
 caused by food, if that does not contain them, such as stall- 
 fed meat, and the disuse of table-salt either from taste, . 
 habit, or necessity, or from the excessive use of alcohol, by 
 
206 [Chap. YIII. 
 
 which he maintains they are destroyed ; and hence, he 
 argues that in the case of communities, cities, districts^ 
 or individuals, small-pox may be spontaneously developed. 
 After all the long wars in Europe, when from the pres- 
 sure of other important business the salt mines were 
 neglected, it has invariably made its appearance. 
 He thinks that the disease is identical with typhus, 
 typhoid, and other fevers. In fact, the learned doctor 
 appears to be of opinion that there is but one disease, 
 named differently according to the locality in which it is 
 developed, and that small-pox may be indicated in the 
 intestines as in typhus, or elsewhere, as well as on the skin, 
 according to the constitution, or peculiar condition of 
 the sufferer's health immediately before falling sick. 
 
 What 13 j)y. ]3Qt|^ tli^g answers the question What is small- 
 Small- . ^ 
 pox? pox? "It must be admitted by all that small-pox 
 
 consists in an escape or exudation of something into the 
 skin which causes it to swell, and by a process of putre- 
 faction destroys it, and not unfrequently carries off the 
 patient. This mass, which is thus exuded, or thrown off 
 into the skin, must necessarily come from the blood, 
 therefore it must be something which is abnormal, or 
 there must be something which has deranged the whole 
 system to such a degree that the blood, as a consequent, 
 is disturbed in an exceedingly peculiar way." Upon 
 this basis he reasons that the " offending something " 
 must be found in the albuminous combinations or the 
 blood salts ; he, by petitis princiioee, assumes that the 
 serum cannot be the offender, as it is a solvent only. 
 The disturbance of the necessary proportions of water, 
 albumen, and salts, his doctrine, constitutes disease, and 
 and developes small-pox. He sums up his theory 
 thus : — " The predisposition to small-pox consists in an 
 undue proportion of albuminous matter to the bloud salts. 
 
CiiAr. VIIL] 207 
 
 and that, as the result, an otherwise inoffensive nervous 
 irritation becomes sufficient to cause the blood to part 
 with this superfluous albumen, which, in this case, is 
 thrown into the skin, and constitutes that condition 
 which is commonly called small-pox. And we'* further 
 maintain that a person who does not exhibit this super- 
 abundance of albuminous matter in his blood is not liable 
 to small-pox under any circumstances of exposure, or 
 contact with patients suffering under this disorder." 
 
 Although Dr. Both admits that there are concomitant Conditions 
 conditions favourable to the production of the disease, to^'^Small'^ 
 lie maintains that the disease will, or is likely, to be spon- P^^- 
 taneously produced in any climate or soil, in any commu- 
 nity, and in any individual, when an adequate quantity 
 of salt is not used. " It will invariably be found that the 
 ravages of small-pox are principally confined to those 
 cities, countries, or localities where the population is 
 overcrowded, or dwells in close unventilated tenements, 
 with habits and surroundings which are bad, living for 
 the most part in the use of alcohol, with little or no salt, 
 and upon food which does not constitute the elements for 
 creating the best blood, and have no means of bathing or 
 cleaning their bodies." 
 
 Finally, according to this medical philosopher, there 
 is no danger of taking small-pox by attending upon 
 patients, or consorting with them, if the blood be not 
 deficient in its salts. 
 
 I am not in a position to endorse the arguments that 
 salt is an antiseptic to the disease, having had no ex- 
 perience in that direction, I am compelled to admit that 
 the facts produced are such as ought to command the 
 attention of the medical faculty, and their accuracy should 
 be proved by investigation. 
 
 It is deplorable that the prevalence of the calamity. 
 
208 [Chap. VIIL 
 
 the vast numbers swept away by it, the loathsome con- 
 coiiiitants, and the deformity entailed upon survivors, has 
 failed to quicken the philosophy or sagacity of the faculty 
 in any country clearly to investigate its cause or cure. 
 
 The disease has been called in this country, and per- 
 haps elsewhere in Europe, "the oppi'obrlum of the 
 faculty." It is in fact, if not quite true, nearly so, when 
 the only means at the disposal of the profession is vaccin- 
 ation as a preventive, and isolation as a counteraction to 
 its spreading. 
 Specifics The first specific in treating small-pox was inocula- 
 pox inocu- tlon. Like the disease itself this preventive was of 
 latioD. Eastern origin. Lady Montague supposed that the 
 results she witnessed in the East justified her in using her 
 influence with the Court and the public, for the intro- 
 duction of inoculation in this country. Many supposed 
 it to be eflficacious in preventing a recurrence of the 
 disease ; or at all events in mitigating the visitation. 
 But this procedure of '' anticipating the disease " was 
 regarded by very many as unphllosophlcal, and morally 
 improper, and even while it was much practised was 
 generally doubted, and resorted to with misgiving and 
 dissatisfaction. 
 
 We have evidence that the Chinese resorted to it, in 
 the hope that inoculation would mitigate the disease and 
 prevent recurrence. No doubt they were influenced 
 by observing how very differently persons were affected, 
 and the mildness of some cases led them to suppose that 
 inoculation from such a type of the disease would pro- 
 duce its like, but viewed in the light of modern science 
 and experience it is well-known that the disease when 
 taken from a person lightly afflicted is often of the 
 severest kind. 
 
 The Chinese attempted to propagate this milder form 
 
Chap. VIII.] 209 
 
 of the disease, by the following curious and ridiculous 
 method, which they oddly termed — '' sowing the small- 
 pox." " They took a few dried small-pox scabs, and 
 planted them in the nose. A bit of musk was added in 
 order to correct the virulence of the poison, and perhaps 
 to perfume the crusts, and the whole was wrapped up in 
 a little cotton to prevent its dropping out of the nostril. 
 Some physicians beat the crusts into powder, and 
 advised their patients to take a pinch of this snufF, and 
 when they could not prevail upon them, they mixed it 
 with water into a paste, and applied it in that form." 
 
 Inoculation in the arm originated with the Brahmins. A Tnocula- 
 few slight scratches Avere made on the skin with a sharp ^j.^^ 
 instrument, a piece of cotton which the preceding year 
 had been soaked in variolus matter was then applied, 
 moistened with the holy water of the Ganges, and the 
 preparation was bound upon the punctures. In six hours 
 the bandage was taken off and the pledget allowed to 
 drop spontaneously. The next morning cold water was 
 poured upon the head and shoulders of the patient, which 
 was repeated until the fever came on. When the pustules 
 began to change their colour they were opened with a 
 fine pointed thorn. Confinement was absolutely for- 
 bidden ; the patients were allowed to be exposed to free 
 currents of air, and when the fever was upon them, they 
 lay on mats at the door, and their regimen consisted of 
 the refrigerating productions of the climate. 
 
 It is supposed by those who believe that the disease Buying 
 ,, . , . r- * 1 • 1 . , . the Small- 
 
 itself found its way irom Arabia, that inoculation pox. 
 
 may be traced to the same source. The practice 
 
 of " buying the small-pox," was general in Arabia, 
 
 and all along the African coast. A healthy child 
 
 was brought, bearing a few dates or raisins as the price 
 
 of the matter to betaken from an infected child. This 
 
 P 
 
210 [Chap. VIIL 
 
 strange arrangement was ultimately introduced into 
 
 Europe, and to some limited extent was known in 
 
 England. 
 
 Inocula- The medical profession of this country made no recog- 
 
 *jg°^ -P^^^' nitlon of the practice until the year 1703, when one Dr. 
 
 England. Alpech, having noticed at Constantinople the process of 
 
 inoculation prevailing there, and being of opinion that it 
 
 mitigated the pestilence, recommended it in London. 
 
 Very shortly afterwards a British surgeon named 
 
 Kennedy, who had also practised at Constantinople, 
 
 published a work in favour of inoculation, or as he 
 
 termed it *' engrafting the small-pox." 
 
 Great numbers, however, regarded it as unnatural and 
 injurious, and perhaps greater numbers, admitting that 
 it was advantageous in the individual case, objected to it, 
 as a means of far more widely extending the pest, and it 
 fell very much into disuse in the British Isles. Con- 
 cerning it at that juncture, the following curious passage 
 occurs in an old number of the Quarterly Review published 
 early in this century : — 
 
 " When in this dormant state, news was brought that 
 multitudes of Indians in South America had been 
 inoculated with as much success by Carmelite friars as 
 the Asiatics had been by Greek old women ; a johysician 
 and surgeon also began to inoculate in South Carolina, 
 in 1738, and only lost eight out of a hundred persons. 
 But a planter in St. Christophers inoculated three 
 hundred persons without losing one. For it is singular 
 that in those days all inoculations performed by private 
 gentlemen, monks, and old women were uniformly 
 successful, none lost patients from inoculation except tlu 
 • regular members of the faculty. The American reports 
 were so encouraging that about the year 1740 the 
 practice was revived by a few surgeons in various parts 
 
Chap. VIIL] 211 
 
 of the South of England, and gradually extended 
 there." 
 
 In 1754 the Koyal College of Physicians gave inocu- 
 lation their sanction. 
 
 An irregular practitioner named Sutton, discarding Inocula- 
 tlie complicated methods of the faculty, was very success- j-e^^ved by 
 ful in propagating inoculation, and to him may be Sutton. 
 attributed its revival during the latter half of the eighteenth 
 century, when small-pox spread over nearly all Europe, 
 Spain having been the exception, and it is remarkable 
 that the disease sjoread less in that country than in any 
 other. 
 
 During the last thirty years of the century, however, 
 deaths, blindQCSS, disfigurement, and ruined constitutions, 
 were augmented by the pestilence, the public became 
 alarmed, and the practice of inoculation became again 
 unpopular. 
 
 Dr. Both says that '' in the whole literature of science, 
 and in the experiments and improvements made in 
 gcientific knowledge there does not exist one single fact 
 which could support the idea that inoculation w^as a 
 preventive of small-pox." He says the same also of 
 vaccination, which now comes under consideration. 
 
 The name of Jenner, and the origin of his discover}^, introJuc- 
 are too well known to narrate the circumstances attend- Vacc°na- 
 ing the introduction of inoculation by vaccine matter as tion by 
 a preventive of small-pox. His observation of the free- 
 dom of dairy maids from the latter, and the presence of 
 cow-pox in their persons, suggested to him the experi- 
 ment of inoculating the one disease, as a substitute or 
 anticipation of the other. It is contended by some that 
 the adoption of this remedy or preventive was not the 
 result of his own observation, but be this as it may, he 
 introduced the plan, and by his authority, ability, and 
 
212 [Chap. Ylir. 
 
 perseverance made it popular with the peoples and 
 governments of Europe, and eventually in America and 
 other parts of the world. 
 
 It was in the year 1768 that Jenner's attention was 
 first drawn to the subject, but it was not until some 
 years afterwards that he thoroughly introduced his 
 system. 
 Jenner on His own account of it is as follows : — " The disease of 
 pox. cow-pox had been known in the dairies of Gloucester- 
 
 shire from time immemorial, and a vague opinion prevailed 
 that it was preventive of small-pox. This opinion, I 
 found, was comparatively new, for all the old farmers 
 declared they had no such ideas in their early days, a 
 circumstance which seemed easily accounted for from my 
 knowing that the common people were very rarely 
 inoculated for the small-pox till that practice was become 
 general by the improved method introduced by Sutton ; 
 so that working people in the dairies were very seldom 
 put to the test of the preventive power of cow-pox." 
 
 The public mind was prepared to receive almost any 
 specific, so terrible were the apprehensions of the dis- 
 order; and although Jenner and his disciples were much 
 opposed, especially by physicians and surgeons, who 
 " time out of mind " have opposed all new ideas and 
 theories, and all novelties of practice, good or bad, the 
 doctrine and practice of vaccination had a speedy triumph, 
 until finally an Act of the British Legislature made 
 vaccination compulsory. 
 i:fficacy of Discussion has revived, and is now rife as to whether 
 tion"°^' vacci;iation is as effective as the disciples of Jenner 
 disputed, believe, whether it is effectual at all, whether it does not 
 do more harm than good, and under any circumstances 
 whether compulsory vaccination is necessary or just. 
 On all these points many able 'men give a decided 
 
Chap. YIII.] 213 
 
 negative, and the opponents of vaccination are steadily 
 fiu2;menting in numbers. 
 
 It is agreed that there are various eruptions to which Yaccina- 
 the teats of the cow are liable, and that disease not liable to 
 intended by the vaccinators is frequently produced by ^[^g^^*^^ 
 their inoculation ; carefully collected statistics support diseases. 
 the theory that true cow-pox is frequently attended by 
 injurious influences to the patient ; that erysipelas and 
 other diseases of the person from whom the lymph is 
 taken are given to the subject inoculated by it. 
 
 If it be admitted that small-pox has declined since the 
 discovery of Jenner's system, such opponents as admit 
 it declare that the circumstance is due to the superior 
 skill of modern medical practice ; to the prevalence of 
 more scientific knowledge on the part of the faculty ; 
 and above all to the advance of social and sanitary 
 science, creating conditions unfavourable to the 
 development and spread of the disease. It is alleged 
 that since vaccination has prevailed the disease has 
 been checked and pitting greatly diminished ; — But is 
 the credit of this improvement to be given entirely to 
 Jenner's discovery ? Is it not due rather to a variety 
 of influences? Have not imj^roved sanitary measures 
 and more skilful management of the disease had their share 
 in the good work ? One thing is certain, that where these 
 modifying influences are wanting, the disease and its 
 sequelce are still formidable, notwithstanding the most 
 careful attention to vaccination. '^^ ^, 
 
 On the whole the present state of things is unsatisfac- 
 tory. The only hopes of checking the disease, on the 
 part of Allopathists, are compulsory vaccination and isola- 
 tion. On these two points an American physician who 
 has recently written on the subject has made the follow- 
 ing pertinent remarks : — 
 
 ^ 
 
214 
 
 [Chap. VIII. 
 
 Argu- 
 ments 
 against 
 Vaccina- 
 tion. 
 
 " That vaccination was made compulsory in good faith 
 by the Legislature, there is little doubt ; but if science 
 were consulted in the matter, such a law would be found 
 to be barbarous, dangerous and abominable. If the 
 State demand vaccination, it should first give the subject 
 proper investigation ; second, give protection from murder- 
 ous assault by blood-poisoning by procuring lymph, 
 which can stand microscopic examination ; and thirdly, 
 see that no laws are enforced which are based on an 
 experience which is very doubtful, or on an authority 
 of no weight of any kind, directly contradictory to all 
 scientific investigation and facts, and under present con- 
 ditions exceedingly dangerous and harmful." 
 
 Many other able works have been written against 
 vaccination, especially when compulsory, and the forcible 
 isolation of persons who have families and houses. 
 
 Dr. Pearce in his ''Essay on Vaccination" calls it ''a 
 crime against nature," and elaborately argues that it 
 frequently conduces to consumption. 
 
 Mr. T. Massey Harding, M.R.C.S., in a very effective 
 pamphlet, shows that cow-pox and small-pox are not in 
 any way similar, and that it is scientifically and physi- 
 cally impossible that the former can be a substitute for 
 the latter, or operate as a preventive. 
 
 Dr. Bayard, an eminent continental physician, identifies 
 small-pox with typhus fever, differently named from 
 the parts of the body where it is locally indicated, and 
 argues that there is no scientific principle upon which it 
 could be assumed that cow-pox could be a preventive. 
 
 Several eminent medical writers testify that they have 
 seen cow-pox and small-pox at the same time in the same 
 patient. 
 
 Dr. Both lays down the following propositions : — 
 
 " First, that the origin of vaccination was not of a 
 
Chap. VIIL] 215 
 
 scientific character, and that it never at any time had a 
 scientific basis. 
 
 " Second, that the prevention afforded is due to the 
 diminution of the excess of albumen by the ulcer produced. 
 
 " Third, that the vaccine virus generally employed is 
 nothing but pus, the introduction of which to the blood 
 is criminal under any circumstances. 
 
 " Fourth, that nothing specific or preventive is con- 
 tained in any kind of vaccine virus, no matter how or 
 where produced." 
 
 It should not be lost sight of in the discussion of this Small-pox 
 subject that small-pox appeared to be dying out io Eng- when cow- 
 land about the time that cow-pox was introduced as a ?^^ Y^^ , 
 
 . 1 1 . T, mtroducea 
 
 preventive, although as previously stated it raged upon 
 
 the Continent and the terror concerning it in the British 
 Isles was as great as ever. The virulence of the 
 disease had also abated, even where it somewhat 
 generally prevailed. Jenner himself states that in 1791 
 " A species of small-pox prevailed in many of the towns 
 and villages of Gloucestershire. It was of so mild a 
 nature that a fatal instance was scarcely ever heard of, 
 and consequently the lower orders of the community 
 in that district never scrupled to hold the same 
 intercourse with each other as if no infectious disease 
 existed among them. I never saw or heard of an instance 
 of its being confluent. The harmless manner in which it 
 showed itself could not arise from any pecuUaritij either in 
 the season or the weather, for I watched its progress 
 upwards of a year without perceiving any variation in its 
 general appearance." Vaccination was not then preva- 
 lent, or it would of course have got credit for the 
 immunity, but Jenner himself believed that the existence 
 of cow-pox extensively among the cattle in Gloucester- 
 shire, and communicated by them to the milkmen and 
 
216 [Chap. VIII. 
 
 milkmaids accounted for the phenomenon ; but the like 
 was seen about the same period in other parts of the 
 country remote from Gloucestershire, where it was 
 pretended that cow-pox appeared upon the tats of the 
 cattle. 
 
 From the first introduction of Jenner's preventive, 
 
 numbers of medical men reported the frequent recurrence 
 
 in the range of their practice of post-vaccinal small-pox. 
 
 tion no Whatever may have been the utility of the discovery dur- 
 
 longer jjjop the quarter of a century, or indeed, less than that, after 
 
 probable . » / . i p i . i • -, , 
 
 preventive its application, this has been for a long time admitted by 
 
 many, even of its most fervent advocates, that the spell 
 is broken, that vaccination is no longer even a probable 
 preventive, and that a second inoculation by it is 
 necessary to secure whatever virtue there is in it, and 
 some affirm that this should be repeated every seven years. 
 So far back as 1833, the Medical Gazette, in an article on 
 the subject, stated, " It is a well-known fact that small-pox 
 after vaccination has become of much more frequent 
 occurrence within the last few years. Twelve or fifteen 
 years ago cases were occasionally met with, but com- 
 paratively rarely. Since that time it is everywhere 
 becoming more frequent. It is no unusual circumstance to 
 find five or six individuals of the same family successively 
 attacked by the disease." 
 
 Several medical men during the lifetime of Jenner 
 proved that they had patients for small-pox who were 
 vaccinated by Jenner, and many of these occurred a 
 short time after the vaccination. 
 Objections The doctrine of re-vaccination, in order to give perfect 
 to revacci- gffg(>t ^q \\^q remedy, is not without great and numerous 
 objections. Dr. Gregory, who was for some years phy- 
 sician to the small-pox hospital, stated, "Abundant experience 
 has shown that after receiving cow-pox effectually, the 
 
Chap. VIIL] 217 
 
 human body remains insensible to the same poison for a 
 considerable period of time, but for what that period 
 is, whether for life, or for larger or smaller portions of 
 life, are questions of importance deserving rigid in- 
 vestigation." 
 
 Such rigid investigation has never been given ; the 
 theorists who favour vaccination every seven years do 
 so from finding that a single " engrafting " of the cow- 
 pox does not j)revent the disease it was designed to 
 supersede, and does not mitigate its malignance. 
 
 Compulsory vaccination is an intolerable tyranny, Compul- 
 against which the public should revolt. It is worse than n^a'tlon^r^' 
 the hazard of small-pox itself, perhaps worse than its tyranny. 
 advent, because of the consequences which the new 
 disease entails upon millions of persons of different con- 
 stitutions, in different circumstances, different states of 
 health, and diverse periods of life, especially if, as Mr. 
 Birch, an eminent surgeon, states, *' cow-pox has been 
 often fatal, and has introduced new disorders into the 
 human system," and this opinion is supported by 
 thousands of eminent men. 
 
 Dr. Moseley goes farther than this, alleging that " the 
 inoculated cow-pox is not a much milder nor safer disease 
 than the inoculated small-pox. 
 
 Mr. Stuart, a contributor to medical periodicals, and 
 liunself a surgeon, relates an instance that came within 
 his practice, of a very healthy child, wliich after vaccina- \ 
 
 tion became very sickly — " He was always afflicted with 
 blotches and ugly eruptions, until he had the small-pox 
 after an interval of three years, subsequent to hie 
 recovery from that disease, when he became perfectly 
 healthy as before." 
 
 The ugly blotches and eruptions mentioned would not 
 yield to medical treatment, and bore no resemblance to 
 
218 [Chap. VIII. 
 
 any diseases known to the faculty. Now, it would be 
 wrong to say ex uno desee omnesj but it is quite right to 
 argue that so many cases Lave occurred, according to 
 the testimony of numerous medical men, of nasty, venoral, 
 dangefous, and intractable disorders after vaccination, 
 that Mr. Stuart fairly made out '' the cure to be worse 
 than the disease." If it be said that the vaccinated 
 matter was bad, or taken from an unhealthy person, such 
 may constantly occur in the process, and the statement is 
 itself an argument against vaccination. To subject the 
 whole adult population to repeated visitations of " ugly 
 blotches, and eruptions," through vaccination and re- 
 vaccination, would be an oppression and a cruelty on the 
 part of the most despotic Government, and would 
 effectually deteriorate the subjects. 
 Consump- The allegation has been noticed en passant elsewhere in 
 increased *^^^ essay, that consumption has rapidly increased since 
 since vac- the introduction of vaccination. Jenner's own eldest son, 
 was intro- and a servant who were among the first he experi- 
 duced. mented upon, died of consumption. Of course it would be 
 useless to argue the one fact from the other, but for 
 the great number of instances of death from consumption 
 which occurred among Jenner's vaccinated patients and 
 those of his disciples. Neither can we conjecture, however 
 numerous the instances pointed out, whether the induction 
 is a perfect one. This is for statists and medical philo- 
 sophers upon further investigation to determine. 
 Sources of Among the great varieties of opinions as to the origin 
 infection, ^f ^|jq distemper, and somewhat akin to the theory that 
 the cow can infect the human body with cow-pox, is 
 the idea that the camel first infected it with small-pox. 
 This is, however, exceedingly dubious, and requires 
 further evidence before it can be confirmed. 
 
 Allied to the notion of inoculation from the camel 
 
Chap. VIII.] 219 
 
 is Jenner's opinion that it was first communicated from 
 the horse to man, from the human being to the cow, 
 and thence back again to man in the milder form of cow- 
 pox, this idea is exj)ressed by him in the following 
 terms : — 
 
 '^ That the source of the' infection is a peculiar morbid 
 matter arising in the horse, I feel no hesitation^ being 
 well convinced that it never appears among the cows 
 (except it can be traced to a cow introduced to the 
 general herd which has been previously affected) unless 
 they have been milked by some one who at the same 
 time has cai'e of a horse affected with diseased heels." 
 
 This disease of the horse is called " grease," and is 
 always exuded from the heels. 
 
 Veterinary surgeons are supposed to have thrown some Vetcii- 
 recent light upon the subject. We have seen that "gg^g' ^"^' 
 Jenner supposed that the disease called " grease " in opinions, 
 the horse was identical with small-pox, or essentially 
 like it; hence, he literally inoculated for the small-pox, 
 transmitted from one beast to another, as a medium for 
 its introduction to the human body, and was a supposed im- 
 provement upon inoculation from one human being to 
 another. But Dr. Nittinger, of Stuttgard, has volumi- 
 nously written to prove the identity of '^ grease " in the 
 heel of the horse, with pulmonary consumption, and 
 veterinary surgeons, especially in Germany, have 
 supported this theory. If it be true, the cause, or one 
 cause at all events, of the great increase of Phthisis has 
 resulted from Jenner's discovery. Besides, small-pox 
 was a pestilential and terrible evil ages before "^/rmse" 
 in the heel of the horse was observed, which it must 
 have been if it existed, a fact fatal to Jenner's theory. 
 Dr. Both, already quoted on other points of this 
 controversy, and who, perhaps, has given as much 
 
220 
 
 [Chap. VIII. 
 
 Yaccma- 
 tion 
 
 increases 
 fevers. 
 
 Dr. West 
 on vacci- 
 nation 
 and its 
 evils. 
 
 attention to the disease as any living man, maintains 
 that the horse disorder, called "^rmse/'has no affinity- 
 whatever to either small-pox or consumption, and could 
 not be made an instrument of communicating either, and 
 aftej extensive study and observation, denies Jenner's 
 theory that the horse gave the " grease " to man, man to 
 the cow, and the cow back again to man in a milder form. 
 
 Among the evils attributed to vaccination is a great 
 increase in fevers. There are no statistics published in 
 England to show the proportion of the vaccinated to 
 the unvaccinated among fever patients, but in France 
 there are such statistics, and the inference is unfavour- 
 able to vaccination. Dr. Perrin, a French physician, 
 affirms that the effect of vaccination in increasing fevers 
 in France has been very great. In an hospital under 
 his charge, of 154 cases of typhoid fever 76 had been 
 vaccinated, and of these 35 died ; of 38 unvaccinated 
 3 died. The mortality is in the relation of 35 to 6, 
 nearly sixfold greater among those who had been 
 vaccinated. 
 
 Baron Michel, a French army surgeon, affirms that 
 after the army of Paris was vaccinated, fevers increased 
 in the same proportion. 
 
 Similar statements have been made as to the increase 
 of measles, and the following curious paragraph is quoted 
 from the report of the Commissioners in the Parlia- 
 mentary Blue Book, and these gentlemen were all 
 Jennerites ; the particular witness in this instance was 
 Dr. West, physician to the hospital for sick children. 
 
 " With reference to the alleged increased prevalence 
 of measles since the introduction of vaccination, it 
 suffices to say that vaccination preserves only from small- 
 pox, not from any other disease {sic). Measles is, next to 
 small-pox, the most contagious of all fevers. The child 
 
Chap. VIIL] 221 
 
 who sixty years ago would have died of small-pox, is 
 now preserved from that, often only to catch, perhaps to 
 die of, measles. An increased number of deaths from the 
 latter disease was the unavoidable conseguetice of the compara" 
 tive extinction of the former.^' 
 
 Dr. West's statement respecting the imperfect manner Imperfect 
 vaccination is performed is as follows : TOcdna- 
 
 " As the best means of obtaining information on this tion is 
 point we examined the cicatrices on the arms of 49,570 
 vaccinated children in various schools, industrial estab- 
 lishments, and workhouses in London. 
 
 ''Of these only 180 in a thousand were found to be 
 properly vaccinated. 
 
 " In one-fifth of the whole number of children examined, 
 vaccination was found to be wholly bad." 
 
 From these statements it is deducible that even if cow- 
 pox be a preventive, no reliance can be placed upon its 
 general administration. Statistics bearing upon the 
 controversy have been gathered and arranged with pains- 
 taking assiduity by medical men of ability, vaccinators 
 and non-vaccinators, and judging with that impartiality 
 which a sincere inquiry after truth dictates, the weight 
 of evidence is against cow-pox inoculation. Besides, 
 as an eminent physician has observed, " Though vaccina- 
 tion can be made compulsory, the pure lymph, and skilful 
 and conscientious operator, cannot be made compulsory 
 also." 
 
 It is contended that not only an Increase of measles 
 has followed the practice, but of scarlatina and diphtheria, 
 also, which are now classed together in the Registrar- 
 GeneraFs reports. Durihg the first seven years after the 
 Compulsory Vaccination Act came into force, the excess of 
 infant mortality from these diseases exceeded a quarter of 
 a million of lives. 
 
222 [Chap. VIII. 
 
 Vaccim- Jt is very remarkable that in the Crimean Campaign 
 Army. of the war against Russia, the British and French soldiers 
 who had been generally vaccinated, not only generated 
 small-pox, from an unhealthy condition of the blood and 
 circumstances favouring disease, as Miss Florence Night- 
 ingale described, but they also in numerous cases died of 
 cholera, as did also the Russian soldiers, who were also 
 generally vaccinated, while Turkish troops, in the same 
 camps with the French and English and Turkish prisoners 
 in the Russian camp, who were not vaccinated, very 
 extensively escaped. 
 
 The preventive power of cow-pox can be best argued 
 on the Baconian principle of induction. If it can be 
 shown by an induction which is complete that cow-pox 
 prevents or ameliorates small-pox, the question is settled 
 in favour of the vaccinators ; if the induction be imper- 
 fect, the subject remains in doubt until a sufficient 
 number of facts are collected and collated ; but If it can 
 be shown that cases sufficiently numerous can be made 
 out in which virulent small-pox ensued after vaccination, 
 the so-called discovery of Jenner is a failure ; and if any 
 mitigation of the disease has occurred since cow-pox was 
 introduced, to attribute to it the virtue, is what logicians 
 term a non ccmsa ]jro causa. 
 Quality of A few years ago the Privy Council published an 
 matter? official report in which the facts and propositions are laid 
 down. Dr. Both says, "The vaccine matter generally 
 employed is nothing but pus, as any one can see who has 
 a microscope of a power of three hundred diameters. The 
 vaccine matter upon which 1 made my statements was 
 obtained from the City physician, and at various times 
 during twelve years ; and in every instance, upon exami- 
 nation, proved to be nothing but pus." 
 
 Dr. Bayard, who has given the disease and the statistics 
 
Chap. VIIL] 223 
 
 of small-pox and vaccination in France most earnest, 
 energetic, and extensive attention, says : — " Hopes, illu- 
 sions, chimera, deception, decadence — these make the 
 history of vaccination." 
 
 He adds that " since the introduction of vaccination, 
 mortality has more than doubled in the ranks of youth." 
 And after adducing certain tables of health statistic for 
 the department of the Loire and the whole of France, 
 he deduces the conclusion that " cow-pox has done 
 nothing but displace mortality." 
 
 Mr. William Ramley, a surgeon of extensive practice Dr. 
 
 in such cases, has the folio wino; remarkable passage in ^^^"^^^5". 
 ' o -i o on vacci- 
 
 his work on the subject: — *'lt results from the general nation. 
 resume of all these authentic facts that out of 504 
 persons, 75 died from the consequences, and almost all 
 had the small-pox — some sooner, some later — after their 
 vaccination. There is no question here of supposition, 
 or calculation of probability, it is truth. It is evidence 
 which seems to speak, and leaves no doubt. Consider 
 France, Germany, Italy, and other countries where 
 vaccination has been received, penetrate into the interior 
 of houses, interrogate fathers and mothers, and you will 
 be surprised, shocked, and even outraged to see, not 
 only tolerated but maintained, a murderous practice, 
 which carries desolation into families and compromises 
 the reputation of those who protect or practice it." 
 
 The French mathematical scholar and physician, Popula- 
 Camot, who had studied "all the available fio-ures ," *^°^ ^'^^ 
 
 . T ii • -n 1 T 1 • . ,. •. not been 
 
 stated that in Jingland the proportionate increase of the sustained 
 population had not been sustained since vaccination clnation'^' 
 became general; 
 
 Baron Liebig indirectly supports Camot's idea of 
 the population, the increase of which he attributes in 
 England to immigration from Ireland, Scotland, Wales, 
 
opinion. 
 
 224 [Chap. VIII. 
 
 and Germany, rather than from the progressive and 
 proportionate advances in numbers of the EngHsh people 
 themselves. 
 Baron The great Baron Humboldt writes, " M. Schoulein, 
 
 on revac- the first physician to the king, perceives with me 
 cination. ^]|q progressive advances of opinion respecting the 
 dangerous influence of vaccination in France, Germany, 
 and England. The question of revaccination and the 
 repetition of revaccination becomes from year to year 
 more perplexed," 
 Dj.^ Dr. Gregory, some time physician of the London Small- 
 
 Gregory's pox Hospital, stated in a paper read before the Chlrurgical 
 Society, " The idea of extirpating small-pox by vaccination 
 is absurd and chimerical. The small-pox attacks the 
 vaccinated. During eleven years 4091 persons attacked 
 with small-pox were admitted into the hospital : 2167 of 
 these had been vaccinated. In two years, out of 794 
 adult persons — nearly all vaccinated — 115 died." 
 
 Having glanced at the origin and progress of small-pox 
 to the present time and eliminated evidence of medical 
 men, and statistics from the most reliable sources, 
 opinions may be adduced to almost any extent against 
 inoculation and vaccination, as specifics against the 
 recurrence of small-pox. 
 
 The disease, ever since its introduction, has from time 
 to time committed its ravages regardless of any known 
 treatment, and I think the time is approaching when 
 Government will be compelled to modify the compulsory 
 measures which now violate every principle of liberty of 
 the subject ; the evidence of the effects is so very un- 
 satisfactory, and the mode of administration so Imperfect, 
 as to be open to grave consequences. 
 
 In reviewing the treatment of this disease, it Is shown 
 that the faculty has not made much progress, if any, in 
 
Chap. VIII] 225 
 
 remedial measures ; the malady has proved as difficult to Difficulty 
 deal with as the rinderpestamong cattle, and, in fact, the ^^g^j^^^^. 
 legal management of the small-^jox is very similar; cattle of Small- 
 are put out of existence by the pole-axe, and a large per-^ 
 centage of human beings die from the manner the law is' 
 administered. In both cases the law has prescribed and 
 laid down stringent rules under heavy penalties which in 
 some instances amount to tyranny. 
 
 Look at the practice resorted to of forcibly taking Forcible 
 persons out of their beds when in a high state of parents 
 fever, placing them in a cold iDcirish caravan, jolt- 
 ing them through the streets of London for miles, and 
 when the epidemic is bad it has been known that poor 
 patients are driven from hospital to hospital, until the 
 authorities found room to admit them. It cannot be 
 denied by medical men that to take any patient out of bed 
 in a feverish condition is a dangerous practice, and the 
 effect of the jolting and exposure to a chill tends to drive 
 in the eruption upon the viscera and endangers the life of 
 the patient. It is owing to this and other discomforts 
 attending removal that the mortality in hospitals has 
 been augmented as compared with the results of patients 
 treated in cottages or jjrivate houses. The only term I 
 can apply to such a dangerous practice is barlarism of the 
 olden time revived; removing a patient from his own private 
 rooms, family, fireside, and social comforts, let them be 
 ever so humble, against his or their will is an act of great 
 injustice, and contrary to every principle of human feeling 
 and scientific practice. 
 
 Before proceeding to discuss the advantages to be Homroo 
 derived from outward applications in the treatment of S^tment 
 small-pox,. I think it but just to notice another section of Small- 
 of practitioners, viz., the homoeopaths, who are formid- ^°^' 
 able rivals of the allopaths, and enjoy a considerable 
 Q 
 
22« [Chap. VIII. 
 
 share of public confidence as evidenced by their thousands 
 of patients. It will be unnecessary here to consider the 
 nature and theory of their doctrine simila similibus 
 curaniar, as they have always been able to defend their 
 principles and maintain their position against their 
 enemies in the domain of drug medication. I may observe 
 en passant that one of the most striking instances of the 
 validity of their infinitesimal system is vaccination, the 
 small quantity of pus or vaccine lymph which is con- 
 sidered sufficient for preventing or anticipating one of 
 the most loathsome diseases that ever afflicted humanity, 
 is far more insignificant in its potency than the most 
 minute dose ever given by Hahnemann. Yet it is a curious 
 anomaly that homa3opathy should be treated with 
 contempt and ridicule by the allopaths. 
 
 Without holding myself responsible for the principles 
 held for or against homoeopathy or allopathy, I must 
 confess I have seen more favourable results produced in 
 children in the treatment of small-pos by homoeopathy 
 than I have by allopathy. 
 
 In examining the literature of homoeopathy, which is 
 very extensive, one is forced to the conclusion that, their 
 opinions are based upon such a philosophy as will 
 compare most favourably with those of the allopaths, and 
 it would be ridiculous to deny that they do not treat 
 small-pox, erysipelas, and other eruptive diseases as 
 effectually as their neighbours. 
 
 I know the prevailing opinion of allopaths that 
 homoeopathy is a pure system of expectancy. This, 
 however, is a matter I leave to the two bodies to settle 
 between themselves. I simply remark that "those who 
 live in glass houses should not throw stones." It is well 
 known to themselves that they give bread pills and other 
 harmless medicines, and their patients recover. This may 
 
Chap. VIIL] 227 
 
 be due to sound medical advice, as it must not be 
 supposed that when a person consults his medical man 
 that it is always requisite he should have medicine 
 poured into him, hence, if homoeopathic medicines are 
 ineffectual the recovery of patients must be due to the 
 superior advice they receive, and it is rather a commen- 
 dation in favour of their doctrine than otherwise. 
 
 I have noticed that homoeopathists, whatever their Homoeo- 
 opinions may be of their own medicines, are not above recognize 
 recognizing other remedial measures, regardless of their jg^^e^^iai 
 sources. As a proof it may be mentioned they resort measures. 
 to the wet sheet packing, bathing, &c., in eruptive 
 diseases : it is immaterial what means are used so long 
 as they cure their patients and do not set up other 
 diseases. I must say, whatever the pretensions may be, 
 or the arguments urged on the part of either " pathies," 
 with regard to the virtues of their remedial measures 
 which have been brought to bear upon small-pox, their 
 efficacy, up to the present moment, has proved exceed- 
 ingly limited, or its ravages, when the disease did appear, 
 would be more effectually dealt with than it is by the 
 faculty of both schools ; in fact, in numerous instances, 
 they have acknowledged themselves powerless. 
 
 Such being the case, I hope that the few remarks I 
 have to urge in recommendation of another system will 
 command respectful attention ; but before doing so I feel 
 I must make some observations on the treatment of small- 
 pox with cream of tartar. It is scarcely necessary for 
 me to say that amongst my researches I have met with 
 numerous expedients which have been suggested by 
 scientific and philanthropic persons for the purpose of 
 rendering all the assistance they possibly could in 
 ameliorating a disease which has proved fatal to some of 
 our most robust people. In a pamphlet by a Mr. Eose, 
 
228 [Chap. VIII. 
 
 Treatment entitled, '' A Safe, Speedy, and Certain Cure for Small- 
 pox\^th PO^j" t^^^ gentleman gives numerous instances of his 
 
 cream of success in curing small-pox with cream of tartar and 
 tartar. . 
 
 rhubarb. Singularly enough, some years ago I happened 
 
 to meet with Mr. Eose at Dorking ; I found him 
 very intelligent, and he enunciated his theory with great 
 force. He says that cream of tartar, from its powerful 
 action on the skin, is, if rightly given, a specific for small- 
 pox ; it is generally given with rhubarb, but not un- 
 frequently without; but in such instances rhubarb, or 
 some other simple aperient, is given afterwards to keep 
 the bowels open to a moderate degree. It is of the first 
 importance that the cream of tartar should be pure, as it 
 is often adulterated with alum and other deleterious 
 substances. It may be given in cold or warm water, but 
 boiling water must not be used, as it crystalizes the 
 cream of tartar on cooling, and destroys it virtues. His 
 treatment is as follows : — " For an adult add half an 
 ounce, or in severe cases with persons of strong constitu- 
 tion, three quarters of an ounce of cream of tartar, to half a 
 pint of boiling milk, strain (if preferred, a little sugar may 
 be added), and administer the whey .quite warm to the 
 patient when in bed. A copious perspiration speedily 
 follows and continues for some hours. When this has 
 entirely ceased, the patient should, if possible, get up, as 
 lying in bed unnecessarily delays the recovery ; care 
 should be used, however, to avoid taking cold. The 
 treatment thus described can be adopted either in the cold 
 or fever stage. In mild cases so treated, a dose or two 
 of cream of tartar and rhubarb should be given to ensure 
 the cure. Severe cases may require a repetition of doses." 
 Mr. Rose also recommends the use of cream of tartar as 
 a preventive, and in conjunction with his remedy, wisely 
 insists upon a stringent dietetic law. 
 
reco"-- 
 
 Chap. VIIL] 229 
 
 The success of his treatment is no doubt owlnof to its 
 specific remedial action upon the skin, kidneys, and 
 towels ; and when these three organs act harmoniously in 
 small-pox, or any other zymotic diseases, premature death 
 is almost impossible. 
 
 Mr. Rose laboured hard for a number of years in Mr. Rose's 
 testing his remedy in upwards of 3000 cases, and proved ^^l ^^° 
 its efficacy at every stage of the disease ; he appealed nized. 
 to Government, to Parliament, and hospital authorities, 
 his success was undoubted, yet the treatment has not been 
 publicly recognized either by Government or the medical 
 profession. His motives were purely philanthropical, he 
 contributed his mite in endeavouring to lessen the 
 sufferings of his fellow-beings without any reward beyond 
 the saving of human life. 
 
 If small-pox has signally resisted both the new and old 
 schools of drug medication, why have they not turned 
 their attention to such a simple remedy as Mr. Rose's ? 
 The only inference to be drawn is, that prejudice prevents 
 their recognizing it according to its merits, and if pre- 
 judice influences a section of the community who are 
 supposed to possess the confidence of the British people 
 when the lives of thousands are at stake, argument is lost, 
 the advancement of the medical art in the treatment of 
 such a disease prevented, and, as a consequence, the 
 death-rate must continue auofmentincr. 
 
 This brings us to the consideration of the treatment of 
 small-pox, without drugs, by a system called hydro-thera- 
 peutics, commonly comprehended under the name of 
 hydropathy. It is difficult to understand why this system 
 has not been recognized by the ordinary medical faculty 
 in our hospitals, considering it has been before the public 
 at least forty years, and has been gradually increasing in 
 reputation as a remedial agent. 
 
230 FChap. VIII. 
 
 Small-pox There has been numerous able works written on the 
 hydropa- philosophy of hydropathy, and its applicability to the 
 thically. treatment of chronic and acute diseases, and especially 
 cases of fever. As far back as the year 1797, James 
 Currie, M.D., F.R.S., published an elaborate treatise on 
 the treatment of epidemic fevers by the wet sheet and 
 tepid and cold effusions. In speaking of a contagious 
 fever which occurred in Liverpool in 1787, he says: — 
 •^^ At the Liverpool Infirmary I gave the usual remedies, 
 including wine, bark, and opium, without success. I was 
 induced to try the cool effusions in every case of conta- 
 gious low fever where the strength was not much 
 exhausted, and kept a registry of 153 cases, to which I 
 attribute recovery entirely to these water applications,' 
 He further observes in a great number of cases the disease 
 is suddenly cut short by the use of cold effusions on the 
 first or second day, and the good results that ensued were 
 uniform in every case. Dr. Currie, in the same treatise, 
 mentions a Dr. Wright, who had adopted a similar treat- 
 ment in 1777 with equal success. 
 Sir Astley Sir Astley Cooper testifies as follows : — " Though 
 cold-water cold water is not a positive agent yet it is capable 
 of affording great relief in inflammation by lessening 
 the size of the vessels, and by lessening action, which 
 it affords by diminishing nervous irritability. If cold 
 water be applied generally to the system, it has the 
 power of lessening the pulse to an extraordinary degree, 
 arresting hemorrhage, allaying fever, lowering the 
 rapidity and violence of the heart and arteries, and 
 abating inflammation. 
 Liebig on Liebig says, " That a greater change of matter can 
 ' be effected by it in six weeks, than would happen in the 
 ordinary course of nature in three years." 
 
 My own observation and experience convinces me 
 
Chap. VIIL] 2^1 
 
 that no other remedy ever devised is so effective In 
 small-pox. 
 
 I have already gone beyond the limits I intended to Efficacy 
 devote to this subject, or it would not be difficult to shelt^prcb 
 adduce innumerable testimonies of both medical and lay and medi- 
 authorities, on the efficacy of external applications in all baths. 
 forms of fever, especially eruptive fever. The wet sheet 
 pack in the feverish stage of small-pox, acts like magic 
 in arrestmg the virulence of the disease, and considerably 
 shortens its duration. When the pustules are fully 
 developed on the body, and the fever reduced, the wet 
 sheet pack is discontinued, and Condy's or Liquid Sulphur 
 Baths are used, which soothe the sores, and disinfect the 
 exudations from them, making the effluvia innocuous; 
 a good fire should be kept in the room, with plenty of 
 ventilation. When the patient is strong enough, he 
 should be entirely immersed in a medicated bath once a 
 day, and the body frequently sponged over during the 
 twenty-four hours, if immersion is impracticable, frequent 
 sponging will be sufficient to prevent contagion. In per- 
 forming these ablutions care must be taken the patient 
 is not exposed to a draught or in any way risk taking a 
 chill. In suggesting this treatment, it is advisable that it 
 should be administered under efficient supervision, and 
 regulated according to the requirements of each case. I 
 have heard of and seen numbers treated in this way, and 
 what is more remarkable I have scarcely ever heard of the 
 disease spreading beyond the room the patient occupied. 
 I could give numerous instances extending over a period 
 of twenty years of the efficacy in the treatment of 
 small-pox, erysipelas, scarlatina, &c., by the wet sheet 
 pack, and other appliances included in the Hydropathic 
 Materia Medica. A number of cases have come under 
 my notice during the present epidemic. I will mention 
 
232 [Chap. VIII. 
 
 one which occurred in a poor German family, only 
 recently arrived in this country. The family consisted of 
 man and wife, three children and an aunt ; the children 
 Small-iox and aunt fell ill with small-pox, and being disciples of 
 hydrop^ Priessuitz had great horror of the ordinary medical treat- 
 thic treat- ment. The wife, aged about thirty, treated the whole 
 of the cases hydropathically (without any medical assist- 
 ance). They heard I was a great believer in the wet 
 sheet, and sent for me as a friend ; on my arrival, I was 
 introduced to the patients, who were each in a wet pack 
 and apparently progressing favourably. This poor 
 German woman who could scarcely speak a word of 
 English, supported by her husband, brought all the 
 patients through the disorder in a comparative short 
 time. The infant three months old, prematurely born, 
 has, however, since died from exhaustion from the 
 weakening effects of the malady. 
 
 One of my own men had the small-pox about two years 
 ago, and I had him treated in the same way most 
 successfully, and to prove the efficacy of the remedy in 
 preventing contagion his wife and children used the 
 same room as the patient the whole of the time, and not 
 one of them took the disease. 
 
 Let any philanthropist go the round of the London 
 hospitals, and extend his inquiries into the provinces, in 
 what hospital or " house of recovery " will he find a single 
 bath in use, either medicated or simple, cold, tepid, 
 shower, or Turkish ? 
 
 Leaving the wet sheet or other effusions out of the 
 question, the virtues of sulphur and Condy's fluid are as 
 " old as the hills." How is it the liquid sulphur bath 
 is not resorted to ? It is known as a curative and dis- 
 infectant in various skin diseases. And why is it our 
 small-pox hospitals are destitute of this salutary agency ? 
 
Chap. VIIL] 233 
 
 Concly's Fluid baths are well known as a disinfectant 
 agency in small-pox, and their curative powers is not 
 doubted, but they are not to be found in our fever 
 hospitals. Yet it is much more important to disinfect 
 the patient than to disinfect the apartment after he 
 recovers. To destroy the effluvia of the disease as it 
 arises from the patient is to prevent the contamination 
 of the apartment and its appertenances, and by the 
 remedies indicated this may be effected. 
 
 In Germany and many parts of England the wet sheet 
 pack is commonly used for reducing fevers, and Condy's 
 Fluid and Liquid Sulphur baths are resorted to for dis- 
 infecting the body with marked success. 
 
 I may observe in conclusion that frequently the Removal 
 patient is removed from his home to the certain pQ^ 
 destruction of his life — the time and circumstances patients 
 
 U.T1I1GCC3* 
 
 under which he is removed, the method of remov- sary. 
 ing him, and the delay attendant upon his proper 
 reception at the hospital, prove fatal many a time. 
 Patients have been known to die soon after reaching 
 the hospital, and not a few have been attested to as 
 dying en route. In fact, to many of the afflicted a removal 
 at all is certain death. 
 
 When it is proved beyond doubt by medical evidence 
 that the removal of patients actually endangers life the 
 enforcement of the law amounts to manslaughter. Why 
 are not persons, who, although in humble life, neverthe- 
 less have a home, treated in their own apartments ? 
 The fluid sulphur bath, Condy's fluid bath, and the wet 
 pack could be effectually administered, and sufficient 
 nurses ought to be supplied to attend these people at 
 the expense of the country if necessary — when a com- 
 pulsory law is made it should provide for these exigencies. 
 The object of the removal of a patient is to prevent the 
 
234 [CHAr. VIII. 
 
 Object of disease spreading, but if what I have advanced with 
 patients.° regard to the wet sheet pack and disinfectants are 
 preventive measures, the question of isolation woukl be 
 settled, the disease confined to the apartment without 
 affecting other parts of the house, and consequently 
 other inhabitants. 
 
 I have described results that have come under my 
 own immediate notice, where no pretention to scientific 
 administration has been attempted. When results like 
 those of the poor German woman can be produced under 
 bungling management, what might be done under 
 scientific manipulation ? 
 
 Surely, then, if there is any truth in what I have 
 advanced, and I not only defy contradiction but should 
 be too glad to have an opportunity to practically illus- 
 trate the treatment of small-pox under the supervision 
 of the medical board in any hospital. On the score of 
 humanity alone every available remedy calls for an 
 unprejudiced trial. I would to God I had the power 
 to reconcile all the " pathies." I feel persuaded the 
 interests of the invalided public would be much better 
 served, and not a few premature deaths prevented. 
 
 If the medical directors of our hospitals were only a 
 little more liberal and less jealous of their paltry dignity ; 
 if they culled from every measure that crops up from time 
 to time, remedies beyond all dispute, it would not only 
 add to the stabihty of the profession as a body, but 
 redound to their honour, and would be an invaluable 
 blessing to the people at large. 
 
Chap. IX.] 235 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Dipsomania. 
 
 " Lord Coleridge, when charging the grand jury at Durham yesterday 
 said that almost without an exception crimes of violence origiaated in 
 public-houses, and his judicial experience taught him that if England was 
 sober we might shut iip nine-tenths of our gaols." — Globe, February 23rd, 
 1877. 
 
 I HAVE introduced this chapter in the hope of rendering 
 some assistance ^to those whose duties it will be to 
 enact coercive measures for the treatment of habitual 
 drunkards. 
 
 In my public capacity, as well as in my private circle, 
 I have seen a good deal of the effects of the vice of 
 drunkenness; this has caused me considerable anxiety, 
 and enables me to speak with some degree of authority 
 on the vice of drunkenness. 
 
 It is a subject which demands the most serious con- 
 sideration, and it is gratifying to find that legislators are 
 anxious to deal with the question so as to limit or break 
 the <' Devil's chain." 
 
 The Times, in one of its most efficient articles lately 'J^i'ncs on 
 observed— "It is terrible to think of the amount ofir"^*^" 
 strictly preventible diseases on all sides of us. The cure is fliseases. 
 
236 
 
 [Chap. IX. 
 
 Progress of 
 
 Sanitary 
 
 Science. 
 
 Habitual 
 Drunken- 
 ness. 
 
 partly with the doctors; but the public, however poorly- 
 qualified, has also its not less essential part to perform, 
 and while this is neglected, it is in vain to hope that the 
 other will be done." These words are wise^ and challenge 
 the attention of all intelligent men. 
 
 It cannot be denied that within the last twenty years 
 great efforts have been made to bring into force preventive 
 sanitary measures. Although social and sanitar}'- science 
 are comparatively new studies, they are now somewhat 
 fashionable^ and their necessity is recognized ; scientific men, 
 by the media of books, magazines, newspapers, the lecture 
 hall, and the jjlatform, are continually pressing them upon 
 our consideration ; and the pulpit is not unfrequently 
 employed to inculcate their doctrines. Better houses for 
 artizans, cleaner lodgings for casuals, more thorough 
 drainage, and baths and washhouses for the working classes 
 have been established, all with some effect. 
 
 There is, however, one disease, springing from vicious 
 inclinations, which social and sanitary science has left un- 
 touched, namely, habitual drunkenness. A committee of 
 the House of Commons reported,* ''In large towns and 
 populous districts, the great evil of drunkenness is on the 
 increase, while neither the educational or moral improve- 
 ment of the people, nor the amelioration in the character 
 of their dwellings, has borne any proportion to their 
 apparent advantages." In the same report published more 
 than four years ago, and things have not become better 
 since, the committee aver, upon the evidence of numerous 
 witnesses of unquestionable opportunities of observation, 
 competency, and credibility, " That drunkenness is the 
 prolific parent of crime, disease, and poverty — 79 per cent, 
 of the criminals passing through our gaols, attributed 
 
 ^Report of the Select Committee on Habitual Drunkards, June IStb, 1872 
 
Chap. IX.] 237 
 
 their fall to drink ; 20 per cent, of the insanity recorded 
 in Grreat Britain, and 14 per cent, in America are placed 
 to the same causes, and nearly one-half of the idiots are 
 said to be the oflPspring of intemperate parents." The 
 more favourable position which the United States is made 
 to hold in the comparison, can scarcely be maintained out 
 of New England and Pennsylvania. 
 
 Probably there is no city in the United Kingdom where o/'thl^citv 
 public spirit and private benevolence prevail more than of Edin- 
 in the City of Edinburgh, yet the condition of that city, "^^ 
 in respect to the morbid vice here complained of, is alarming 
 and terrible. A committee of the Edinburgh Presbytery 
 of the Church of Scotland reported to that Presbytery a 
 few months ago, that out of a population of rather less 
 than 200,000, it was found that within a year 2132 persons 
 were taken up drunk and incapable; 4762 charged with 
 crime were drunk when arrested. Of the total, 4076 were 
 men and the rest women. Eighty-six women were taken 
 into custody drunk, with infants in their arms ; 129 men 
 were drunk and incapable while in charge of public con- 
 veyances ; and 146 w^ere pimished for wife beating when 
 infuriated by drink. The painful statement was made to 
 the Presbytery that during the past five years drunkenness, 
 on the part of women, had increased 36 per cent., and 
 among men 33 per cent. It can hardly be doubted by any 
 close observer, that in London, inebriation among women 
 is vastly increasing; in many districts on Saturday nights, 
 and on Sundays, and holidays, as many drunken women 
 as men may be seen, while the public-houses are crowded 
 with them, and they may be found clustering about o-in 
 temples in numbers apparently greater than m.en. 
 
 Among men in charge of vehicles in Edinburgh, the 
 increase of cases of drunkenness was in five years 46 per 
 cent. The Presbytery attribute the prevalence of the vice 
 
238 
 
 [Chap. IX. 
 
 more espeeiallj to young men ; but generally in England 
 all ages in the lower and lower middle classes are equally 
 addicted to it. Probably there is no other country in the 
 world where intemperance is so rampant as in Great 
 Britain and Ireland. 
 
 It will not be necessary to enter into voluminous 
 
 Drunk- 
 ards 
 
 Parlia- 
 
 Eepo'rt on statistics to prove this allegation. The Parliamentary 
 Habitual report of the Committee on Habitual Drunkards^ in one 
 brief sentence, tells the sad truth : " It is confined to no 
 class, condition, or sex, and hardly of age." 
 
 The evidences we perceive of its dominancy as we pass 
 along the streets, or read the police reports, is only a part 
 of the prodigious influence it exercises ; for although, 
 among the upper classes, it has become unfashionable, and 
 the habit is discouraged, the Parliamentary Committee 
 truly reports " that there is a very large amount of 
 drunkenness among all classes and both sexes, which never 
 becomes public, or calls for the intervention of the 
 authorities, but which is probably even a more fertile 
 source of misery, poverty, and degradation, than that 
 which comes before the police courts. For this no legal 
 remedy exists and without further legislation must go on 
 unchecked." 
 
 But it is not merely personal and domestic poverty and 
 disturbance that ensue. Strong drink is a direct incentive 
 to crime ; different persons are affected in different ways, 
 according to their intellectual and physical constitution, 
 and, indeed, according to their moral habits in other 
 respects, and their susceptibility of good influences on the 
 part of those they love and respect. In some the tendency 
 is to uncleanness, others yield to absolute sloth, many are 
 impelled io wild and ludicrous merriment, depriving them 
 of the respect of their acquaintances, unless as dissipated 
 as themselves, and of self-respect, as well as the esteem of 
 
 Effects of 
 
 strong 
 
 drink. 
 
Chap. IX.] 239 
 
 their friends after the debauch is over. The chief influence, 
 however, is to violence and crime. Criminality, the result 
 of intoxication, would form a long and terrible record of 
 itself alone. Assaults in the streets, wife beating at home, 
 cruelty to heljoless children, manslaughter, and robbery, 
 either by fraud^ stealth, or violence, in order to secure the 
 means of procuring their beverages, are well-known 
 results. 
 
 On March 6th, 1877, Justice Manisty, in sentencing Justice 
 John M'Kenna, remarked, " You have been found guilty j-e^arkson 
 of the crime of wilful murder, your victim being your sentencing 
 own wife. I am not going to dwell upon this painful case. M'Kenna. 
 You are a sad, sad instance of the consequences of in- 
 dulging in drink, which has brought you into the fearful 
 position in which you are now placed ; it is only owing to 
 God's mercy that this has not brought many more into a 
 similar case. I am afraid that if this vice continues to be 
 indulged in, as it now so generally is indulged in through- 
 out this country, many more will stand in like position to 
 you. Oh that we could, by administering the law, put an 
 end to it ! It is now my duty to pass sentence. Do not 
 fancy that it is my sentence — it is the law. I am merely 
 the officer of the law to pronounce it." Sentence of death 
 was then passed in the usual form. The prisoner was 
 removed from the dock, apparently deeply affected. 
 
 On the same day the Recorder of Dublin was a witness Recorder 
 before the Select Committee on the Irish Sunday Closing evidence 
 Bill. He expressed his belief that intemperance was a before the 
 national vice in Ireland, and especially so in Dublin. In Committee 
 that city the amount of crime yearly was 50 per cent, more 
 than in any other part of Ireland, and the vast proportion 
 of it was owing, directly or indirectly, to intoxication and 
 intemperance. He once held the view that the less Parlia- 
 ment interfered with the customs and habits of the people 
 
240 [Chap. IX. 
 
 the better, but the evil had now reached such a magnitude 
 that it demanded the interference of the Legislature. 
 Justice ]\/[i.. Justice Manisty, in addressing the grand jury at 
 
 drunken- the Manchester Assizes, February 27th, 1877, expressed 
 
 uess. 
 
 his regret that drunkenness was connected with nearly 
 
 every case in the calendar. 
 
 Judges The late Sir Thomas Henry, chief magistrate at Bow 
 
 Magis- Street Police-office, declared that nearly all the cases of 
 
 trates on crime from violence which came before him could be traced 
 
 ness as the proximately or remotely to inebriation. The Lord Chief 
 
 cause of Justice of the Queen's Bench, and the Lord Chief Justice 
 crime. ^ , . . 
 
 of the Common Pleas, have pronounced similar opinions 
 
 from the bench. The governors of gaols almost 
 unanimously state that nearly all the criminals are habitual 
 drunkards. Chaplains of prisons, pastors of all denomina- 
 tions accustomed to visit their flocks, the agents of town 
 missions, and, above all, medical men, whether attending 
 gaols, police-offices, workhouses, or in private practice, 
 attest the fact that intoxication is the most potent and the 
 almost invariable cause of crime. The general effects upon 
 the community at large, upon the commonwealth in its 
 material interests, its moral character and renown, have 
 grown to appalling magnitude. The late E,ev. Dr. Jabez 
 Burns elaborately proved that the national wealth and even 
 grandeur of the country have been greatly obstructed by 
 the general addiction to the use of strong drinks. 
 EeT. The Rev. Dawson Burns, A.M. says, " It impedes the 
 
 BurnT^a accumulation of capital, and the remunerative employment 
 drinking, of labour, and stimulates every kind of evil without inter- 
 mission, and on a scale of national magnitude." 
 
 The form of mischief produced by the inordinate use of 
 alcohol here to-be discussed is, however, mainly its pro- 
 duction of disease. 
 
 Indeed, there are few diseases which it does not either 
 
Chap. IX.] 241 
 
 cause, promote, or intensify. Dr. Both, of Boston, United ^'^^ ^^tb 
 States, a German Physician of repute, is of opinion that produced 
 eruptive diseases, are remotely if not also immediately ^^ °-^'^'^^'^^- 
 produced by alcohol. After a wound the resort to it 
 will cause erysipelas ; small-pox he maintains is caused 
 and aggravated by it ; according to liis theory it expels 
 the .natural salts from the blood, causing the exudation of 
 albumen and by consequence small-pox, and typhus fever, 
 which he considers identical, the name being referable 
 to the locality affected. 
 
 Another medical man, a citizen of Frankfort-on-the 
 Main, saj's that, wounds do not heal as quickly in England 
 as on the Continent, and attributes the fact to the use of 
 alcohol. 
 
 Sir Astley Cooper declared that the presence of alcohol Sj'^ Astler 
 in the system, rendered surgical treatment frequently alcohol. °^^ 
 unsuccessful, when all circumstances besides were in favour 
 of the patient. 
 
 W. Marcet, M.D., F.R.S., F.R.C.P., proves beyond ^^\^- 
 question that the use of alcoholic drugs causes gout, pro- alcohol. 
 motes rheumatism, predisposes to disease of the chest, and 
 softens the brain. 
 
 Families are steeped in poverty through the excesses of Effects of 
 either parent, or it may be both parents resort to strong liXik 
 drink. Order and cleanliness foisake the habitation of 
 the drunkard. Idleness ensues for days after a debauch ; 
 to use a common phrase among working men and women 
 " I am good for nothing since such a night, when I had a 
 drop too much." 
 
 The pawnbroker is then the resort, increasing the 
 poverty and depriving the household of the comforts 
 which make home happy, rendering it difficult or 
 impossible to send the children to school, or for the parents 
 to make a respectable appearance, and often causing the 
 
 11 
 
 excesses ni 
 
242 [Chap. JX. 
 
 loss of employment, cousigning whole families to tlie 
 workhouse-r-for none will employ a known and habitual 
 drunkard. It is computed by the Bev. Dawson Burns that 
 a fifth of the aofo-recTate wages of 6,000,000 of the 
 working classes is spent in liquor. 
 Drmkmg rp^^g Catalogue of diseases is lonof and terrible which 
 
 conduces _ _ ° _ ° 
 
 to fevers drinking produces. It directly conduces to fevers and 
 
 sbortens inflammations ; destroys the functions of the liver, spleen, 
 
 life- and kidneys, poisons the blood, and by its quickened 
 
 circulation deranges the action of the heart, lungs and 
 
 brain, the most vital of all organs. 
 
 The effect in shortening the general duration of life in a 
 given population, and in different sections of a population, 
 is testified by Dr. Macnish. He says that '' one half 
 of the children born in the metropolis die before reaching 
 their third year, while among the Society of Friends 
 one half attain to the age of forty-seven. It appears 
 also from accurate calculations that in London only one 
 person in forty reaches the age of eighty, while, among 
 the Society of Friends, not less than" one in ten reaches 
 that age .: arising from their proverbial sobriety." 
 Drinking It Cannot be disputed by all right-minded people that 
 orEnff-^^ excessive drinking is the national curse of England, and 
 laud. it behoves the thinking part of the English subjects to 
 
 consider how the evil is to be abated. I have heard it 
 argued over and over again that excesses in anything is 
 bad ; no doubt this is true,- and is to be deplored, but so 
 long as the excesses indulged in will not inebriate and 
 incapacitate the individual from taking care of himself 
 there is no necessity for legislative enactment. What, 
 however, causes the vice of inebriation but drink ? 
 It is absurd to classify other excesses with drunkenness. 
 An inebriate is not amenable to reason, hence society 
 demands that he should be restrained by physical force, 
 
Chap. IX.] 243 
 
 and is tlius demeaned by liis own acts. I cannot conceive 
 it possible for a drunkard to be either a good husband, 
 father, Christian or a good citizen. 
 
 Fourteen thousand clergymen of the Established Church Memorial 
 have memorialized the Bishops, urging the closing of jTourteen 
 public houses and special legislation, on the ground that Thousand 
 the drinking population are literally inaccessible to 
 ministerial influences. The memorial with the signatures 
 occupies 500 pages, and goes minutely into proof of 
 the absolute obstruction which the drinking habits of 
 the people presents to pastoral labour. 
 
 The Rev. Dawson Burns asks the question, " What effect Rev. 
 has strong drink upon the purity of individual Christians Burns. 
 and Christian congregations ? " and he answers the question ^^^y^S 
 in this wise, " It is the prompter and promoter of every retards 
 form of impurity ; " and quotes the testimony of ^!^^^" 
 patristic divines, modern pastors, and Christian mission- 
 aries to prove the almost insurmountable barrier it places 
 in the way of ministerial success, the ingathering of 
 people to the churches, and the conversion of the heathen. 
 "It directly and largely limits the number of persons 
 whom the agencies of the Church are designed to 
 effect." 
 
 The Convocations of the English Church use remarkably C'onToca- 
 
 strong language, supporting Mr. Burns' view of the case : English 
 
 ^' Two thirds of the non-attendants on the ordinances of ^"^'i^"'r'^ 
 
 ... on Intem- 
 
 religion are indisposed from the direct and indirect in- perance. 
 fluence of intemperance ; irregularity at first, increasing 
 and ending in a total absence of all religion and obli- 
 gation." A number of individual clergymen gave evidence 
 to the Committee of Convocation, that just in proportion as 
 intemperance was suppressed in their parishes, attendance 
 upon divine worship and domestic religious exercises 
 increased. 
 
 R 2 
 
244 
 
 [Chap. IX. 
 
 Probablj not less than sixty missionaries, members of all 
 churches and creeds, have stated in the missionary reports 
 of their respective societies that the introduction of strong 
 drinks among the heathen presented a greater hindrance to 
 their work than superstition and ignorance united. 
 
 Professor Miller in his work on " Alcohol : its Place and 
 Power," observes : — 
 
 " No man is safe. I have seen those at whose feet I 
 had been life-long content to sit, to learn both wisdom 
 and pietj, drawn gently on, tempted, bound, enslaved ; 
 men not long before eminent for worth and goodness, now 
 secret tipplers, or drunkards but ill disguised ; once 
 honoured to bear the message of ' good news ' to many, 
 and now themselves poor ' castaways.' 
 
 " This ' luxury ' — this ' something separate ' from food 
 — this ' dainty ' — this thing ' delightful to the senses ' — 
 is not safe for me — icliatsoever and loliosoevev I am. 1 may 
 remain its master ; but it may become mine ; and if it do, 
 I am lost — or at least in utmost peril. Why should the 
 oak court the embrace of the ivy, if it know or even fear 
 that the sycophant, as it creeps and clings around, will in 
 the end suck all its sap, and leave it to die a faded withered 
 thing, fit only as a faggot for the burning? 
 
 '' And why should men, themselves safe — for the time 
 — lead others on by the most powerful of all teaching — 
 namely, example — to dalliance with this drug, when they 
 ^ee thousands so led perishing miserably, and for ever ? 
 
 '' Let honest men but think — opening their intellects as 
 well as their hearts ; and surely they will be forced to 
 abstain from what is certainly something more — far more 
 — than a mere ' appearance of evil.' There is a time for 
 its use. Let its use be limited to that time. All else is 
 abuse ; for which there is no time and no tolerance. It 
 is then a positive evil, and of the highest and most heinous 
 kind. 
 
Chap. IX.] 245 
 
 " Let men learn its power, and act wisely on that 
 learning. Let them know and remember that it has vast 
 power as a poison — to be dreaded by all who would live 
 and let live ; great power, too, as a medicine — in small 
 quantities, and skilfully employed ; much power as a 
 luxury, but of a most perilous kind ; no power as food, 
 save only in occasional emergencies ; no power to sustain 
 or refresh even a man, under either bodily or mental 
 labour — and let them abolish the term "refreshments" 
 in its ordinary alcoholic sense, as a most foul and fal- 
 lacious misnomer ; no power to afford continued and 
 systematic protection against extremes of either cold or 
 heat; no power to avert disease, but power almost infinite 
 to produce it ; no power to cherish old age, but only to 
 cripple and confound it; no power to prolong life, but 
 power to both hasten and embitter its ending : no power 
 to strengthen the morals or the mind, but power to 
 debase, if not destroy the one, and weaken and pervert 
 the other ; a power to produce crime, and minister to 
 vice, beyond what pen can write or tongue can tell — 
 * sensual, devilish.' " 
 
 There is a prevailing opinion among a large class of ^•^'^^^^^^ 
 , 1 .11 , drinkers. 
 
 persons who do not indulge to any great extent, that 
 
 alcohol is strengthenino- taken as a beverage, believing 
 
 in its ability to cheer the spirits, and fancy they cannot 
 
 do without it. These individuals may be termed moderate 
 
 drinkers. 
 
 Impartially considered, I think enough has been ad- AI50I10I 
 
 duced, both practically and theoretically, to prove that 
 
 alcohol is not strengthening but enervating in its 
 
 action ; it also arrests digestioji and nutrition, and is most 
 
 pernicious to the masses. What is injurious, taken as 
 
 a daily beverage must also be so to a greater or less 
 
 extent when taken in moderation, even if it was not 
 
246 [Chap. IX. 
 
 injurious, when taken in moderation, surely the bane- 
 ful influence of the drink upon the masses is such as to 
 suggest the question — is the amount of probable good 
 sufficient to justify the imbibation of a fluid that sends 
 so many to hell annually? These are considerations 
 which should have an influence over all men's actions 
 relating to their own creature comforts. 
 Arguments Perhaps the most persistent and formidable argument 
 Apolomsts ^^sed by apologists for the use of alcoholic beverages, who 
 for the use ^t the same time are opposed to intemperance is, that it is 
 alcoliolic illogical to argue from the abuse against the use. How far 
 beverages, |.]^q ^^gg q£ gQi-j-^g forms of drink containing alcohol may be 
 useful, or at all events permissible, I will not obtrude 
 my opinion: let the opinions of our leading physicians, 
 moralists, and sanitary philosophers have their due weight, 
 but nothing, alas, can be more patent to observation, 
 amongst all classes of observers, than that moderate drink- 
 ing leads to occasional inebriety; that again to confirmed 
 habits of drunkenness and all the sequences of diseases, to 
 dipsomania, and finally to the jail, the convict hulk, the 
 madhouse, or the grave, perhaps the scaff'old. 
 Professor Professor Miller remarks on alcohol as food : — 
 SKs " ' Thus,' they say, ' alcohol may be useful to the poor 
 ^otJ- man in an economical sense, and to the dyspeptic man by 
 saving heavy meals.' But this is a mere assumption. 
 And no reasonable man can doubt that the explanation 
 is quite different from their statement of it. Habitual 
 use of alcohol, even in ' moderation,' diminishes the 
 appetite, as we have seen, by exciting a direct and un- 
 favourable action upon the stomach. 
 
 ' I cannot eat but little meat ; 
 My stomach is not good. 
 But sure I think that I can drink 
 With him who wears a hood.' 
 
 '' The man, in virtue of this morbid condition, comes 
 
Chap. IX.] 247 
 
 to have a less craving for and a less power of digesting 
 
 food. 
 
 ' I love no rost, but a nut-broun toste 
 And a crab laid on the fire ; 
 A little bread shall do my stead — 
 Much bread I nought desire.' 
 
 " Therefore he takes less. And the portion of food 
 which he does not take, and otherwise would have taken, 
 is simply lost to his system by the alcohol. This, more- 
 over, has kept waste old material circulating in the blood ; 
 and that is oifered to the system for nourishment in a 
 fatty and fusted form. There will be no vigorous appetite 
 for fresh food, till that waste material is used up and got 
 rid of somehow — while meantime every successive dose 
 of alcohol prevents the disappearance of this obstructive 
 waste, by appropriating the oxygen instead. And the 
 question comes to be — Whether shall we take alcohol, eat 
 less, and be imperfectly nourished ; or take no alcohol, 
 eat more, and be nourished well ? Whether shall we 
 thrive better on a small quantity of new nutritive material, 
 with a great deal of what is old and mouldy ; or a constant 
 and fresh supply of new material, in sufficient abundance 
 to dispense with the old — which, being then in all respects 
 useless, is extruded from the system ? Even one less 
 qualified than a ' licensed victualler ' should have no 
 difficulty in giving the right answer — ' The fresh article, 
 if you please ; and plenty of it.' " 
 
 No doubt many of the apologists referred to are sincere, Dr. B. W 
 and are themselves examples of the occasional or frugal ^^^ ^^ ' 
 use of strong drinks, without inebriety ; but in many moderate 
 other cases we fear the language of Dr. Benjamin W. '^' 
 
 Eichardson is too applicable, " Because in their hearts they 
 are infatuated with the liking for alcohol, and are glad to 
 find any excuse that will minister to their own inclinations." 
 The same eminent physician in an address delivered in the 
 
248 [Chap. IX. 
 
 Slieklonian Theatre at Oxford said, " The mere moderate 
 man is never safe, neither in the counsel he gives to others 
 nor the practice he follows himself." And the learned doctor 
 winds up his argument by the startling paragraph: '' The 
 attraction of alcohol for itself is cumulative. So long as 
 it is present in a human body, even in small quantities, the 
 longing for it, the sense of requirement is present, and a& 
 the amount of it insidiously increases so does the desire." 
 The doctor is not sure whether he should call this a physio- 
 logical or a psychological fact ; perhaps it is both, but 
 whichever way we regard its rationale the circumstance 
 itself shows that the moderate drinker is not secure, and, 
 at least, may be on the road to dipsomania itself. Indeed, 
 Dr. Hichardson's argument closely analysed would almost 
 carry the conviction, that even the love of alcohol on the 
 part of mere moderate drinkers is of the nature of incipient 
 dipsomania. 
 Sirll. Sir Henry Thompson takes nearly the same view. He 
 
 Thompson remarks that '^ the habitual use of fermented liquors to an 
 
 on habitual n ^ , o ^ , • i i i 
 
 use of extent lar short or what is necessary to produce drunken- 
 feruiented jjggg^ injures the body, and diminishes the mental powers 
 
 to an extent of which few people are aware." 
 
 Mr. E. ^^^- Edward Baines, late M.P. for Leeds, an experienced 
 
 Baines on sanitary reformer and cogent reasoner, says : "Of all the 
 
 drinkhig. victims of intemperance there is not one who did not begin 
 
 by moderate drinking, or who had the remotest idea when 
 
 he began that he should be led into excess." 
 
 The same practical observer also states, " I say boldly 
 
 that no man living who uses intoxicating drinks is free 
 
 from the danger of at least occasional excess, and if 
 
 occasional ultimately of habitual excess." 
 
 j3j. Dr. T. W. Christie divides habitual drunkards into those 
 
 Christie Y\o were never completely drunk but always drinking, and 
 
 on habitual ■ i i i 
 
 drunkards, thosc who were never completely sober. 
 
Chap. IX.] 249 
 
 Dr. Lamb in his report on regimen states, " The siis- Dr. Lamb 
 picion appears just, that the perpetual ingurgitation of modgi-^ie 
 those drinks cannot be innocent, however moderate the drinking. 
 quantity may be." 
 
 It is alleged by the supporters of moderate drinking 
 that it is not injurious to the constitution, and with some 
 gusto they instance the vigour of two brothers named Ehn, 
 both upwards of eighty, that came before one of our judges, 
 who remarked on the clearness with which they gave their 
 evidence. One had been a teetotaler all his life, was compli- 
 mented for his abstinence and congratulated on his good 
 health, while the other, on being asked if he was a teetotaler 
 also, replied, ^' I scarcely ever go to bed sober." The judge, 
 surprised, exclaimed, " Elm wet or Elm dry both seem 
 to thrive." This may be true ; at the same time it is no 
 argument in favour of strong drink ; the probability is, that 
 the man addicted to drink was blessed with a remarkably 
 good constitution, and had he led a sober life like his brother 
 might have lived ten or twelve years longer. What- 
 ever may be said in favour of drinking, or instances 
 adduced of the longevity of persons addicted to drink, we 
 cannot refute the fact that the average life of abstainers 
 is longer than that of drinkers at the present day, which 
 may be entirely attributed to the absence of intoxicating 
 drinks ; and if these could be annihilated, the probabilities 
 are that future generations would attain a longevity similar 
 to that of the patriarchs of old. Isolated cases can scarcely 
 be taken as a proof of the validity of a general principle 
 either pro or con. 
 
 Professor Miller protests against the common practice Professor 
 of having recourse to alcoholic stimulants in order to alcoholic 
 
 sustain the system under the pressure of overwork. Like stnuulanu 
 •^ . . , . ^"d over- 
 
 every other real physiologist (we use this term to exclude work. 
 
 certain pretenders who have a theory to support, that 
 
250 [Chap. IX. 
 
 "Alcohol is force," and who trumpet it forth as if it were de- 
 monstrated by factsj instead of being in direct antagonism 
 to them), he sees that under such circumstances " Alcohol 
 gives no addition to the amount of vital strength, but 
 merely urges the more rapid and thorough using-up of 
 what you already have ; " and that whenever circumstances 
 necessitate its temporary employment for such a purpose, a 
 permanent injury is done, unless adequate restoration is 
 obtained by repose. " When such shift or substitution is 
 not occasional but constant, and when, moreover, there be 
 no ST.iflScient correspondence in the amount of compensating 
 rest, the working organism must soon come to be alto- 
 2fether in a most artificial and unsafe condition. It will 
 resemble an overtasked mercantile house, supported on 
 bills and other means of ' accommodation ' ; the work is 
 done at a great cost ; and at any time, by failure of the 
 artif-cial support on the one hand (even for a day), or by a 
 sudden increase of outward pressure on the other, the 
 whole concern may fall to pieces, either stopping altogether, 
 or dragging out a crushed existence in insolvency." How 
 much additional force this pithy illustration derives from 
 the mercantile crash which took place while the writer's 
 ink was scarcely dry, we surely need iiot point out. Yet 
 the merchant who trades up to ten, twenty, or fifty times 
 his capital upon the bill system, paying discounts which 
 far more than absorb his prc.fits, and thus progressively 
 involving himself in hopeless insolvency, is not acting more 
 inconsistently with the obvious rule of prudence and 
 rectitude, than is the man who sets himself to a daily 
 task, whether the work be of the head or the hand, 
 beyond what his natural powers can accomplish, and 
 has recourse to stimulants with the delusive idea that they 
 will support him under it — whereas every draught is like 
 a bill at a long date, with heavy accumulating interest. 
 
Chap. IX.] 251 
 
 which weakens his future resources in a far greater Moderate 
 degree than it adds to his present means. caus d b 
 
 I admit that a good deal of the moderate drinking may un]iealthy 
 be owing to the innovations produced by unhealthy occupa- °'^'^"P^ ^*^" 
 tions, and an alcoholic stimulant, in the absence of any 
 other, is resorted to to spur men on in their duties. 
 Excessive and oppressive hours of labour is one of the social 
 evils that will require to be dealt with ; in fact Government 
 has already done something towards abating the evils 
 by the Factory Act, which gives local authorities power to 
 inspect workshops, and see that they are large enough, and 
 kept in a healthy state, and it may become necessary to 
 restrict the hours of labour of adults as well as of children. 
 Able-bodied persons should be able to accomplish their 
 daily work without stimulation, thus obeying the laws of 
 nature ; but when stimulants are used, nature is excited 
 beyond her powers, which cannot be clone with impunity. 
 
 There cannot be a doubt that an able-bodied man should 
 be able to accomplish his legitimate labour without alcoholic 
 stimulants, and retain his health much better. There is 
 scarcely any limit to the proofs which can be adduced to 
 support this, but it will be sufficient to give the following 
 quotation which appeared in the GrapJdc, December, 
 1876, which places the matter beyond all doubt : — 
 
 " If alcobol is, as is claimed by beer and spirit drinkers, a potent sus- AlcohoKc 
 tainer of vitality, its beneficent effects would never be more clearly manifested drinks in 
 than when men are undergoing unusual fatigue in a temperature many Er^ Arctic- 
 degrees below zero. The records of the recent Arctic Expedition do not "^ 
 bear out the theory of those who make the assertion. The teetotalers of 
 long standing, some of whom were good templars, that is, abstainers from 
 their childhood, on board the Alert and Discovert/, those subjected to the 
 same labours and hardships as their companions, in every instance escaped 
 scurvy, and remained in excellent health. One case may be deemed an 
 exception, but it is an exception of a kind that proves the rule. A good 
 templar named Grore succumbed to a temptatit n while on the sledge 
 journeys, and took to grog. After this, his appetite failed, he ceased to 
 
252 
 
 [Chap. IX. 
 
 Alcohol 
 ■will not 
 fortify 
 against 
 cold. 
 
 Dipso- 
 mania. 
 
 have refieshing sleap, and be was ultimately attacked with scurvy. The 
 evidence of Aj les, a teetotaler of many years' standing, is very important. 
 His labours were among tbe severest of any member of the ships' com- 
 panies. He was not only out for 110 days sledging, but he was out no less 
 than eighty-four days from the ships at a time. He neither drank nor 
 smoked ; his compani6ns drank plenty of strong grog and smoked heavily. 
 In the result, Ayles and Lieutenant Aldrich, who was nest door to an 
 abstainer, as he diluted his rum more than any other member of the 
 expedition, were the only members of the sledge party who escaped scurvy. 
 In conclusion, it may be observed that the testimony of the two ships' 
 companies, doctors and officers included, is unanimous against the serving 
 out of stimulants during the day, as they emphatically state that no work 
 can be done upon grog ; but many of them believe that a glass at night acts 
 as a recuperative agent. This idea certainly appears to be refuted by the 
 experience of the good templars." 
 
 Dr. B. Richardson in his remarks on alcohol and its 
 effects in the temperature of the human body, observes that 
 those who are exposed to extremes of cold are best forti- 
 fied against cold when they abstain from alcohol, and 
 depend upon warm unintoxicating drinks. 
 
 The diseases resulting from drink are very numerous, 
 but, some of the most painful are dipsomania and delirium 
 tremens. 
 
 There are two kinds of dipsomania, one is supposed 
 to be hereditary. The appetite for " fire water " is trans- 
 mitted from drunken sire to son, or, as the Chinese say 
 of small-pox, it is " mothers' milk." There is in this form, 
 original and constitutional defect ; and it is observable 
 that the career of excess, leading to the catastrophe, is 
 shorter, even if there be nothing more dreadful in the 
 'phenomena. 
 
 The other form is that which is brought on by long and 
 habitual potations. The unfortunate man finds solace for 
 all his woes pro tempore, and a remedy for all his ills in the 
 bottle ; he quite acts up to the spirit of the old baccha- 
 nalian song 
 
 5J 
 
 ■ If any care or pain remain, 
 Let's drown it in a bowl." 
 
Chap. IX.] 2.33 
 
 If he be sick, he drinks to get well ; if in health, his Drinking 
 exhilai'cation finds vent in that way. If in prosperity, he ^ ° 
 treats all his friends, and enjoys what he calls a spree : if 
 in adversity, he is not ashamed to beg to satisfy his 
 cravincr. His baro-ains are concluded over the bottle ; his 
 " morning," as he and his friends call it, is thence 
 supplied, and, with the tumbler in his hand, he closes the 
 day. So it proceeds until the cup of his madness, misery, 
 and crime is full, and the insanity of dipsomania fastens 
 upon his brain. 
 
 Alexander Peddie, M.D., has probably paid more atten- Dr. A. 
 tion to the '' disease " (as he firmly and repeatedly calls it) dipjo- 
 than any other member of the profession. His description maiua- 
 of the course of the dipsomaniac is graphic, and excites 
 even more compassion than horror, and must move every 
 humane man to commiserate his misfortunes, and follow 
 him with his aid : — 
 
 '^ A process of mental deterioration goes on gradually 
 and simultaneously with the indulgence. The main 
 desire of his life is how to obtain liquor — moral control 
 has lost its sway over him, he has no power to resist the 
 propensity ; he has become the involuntary slave of the 
 vice, and would sacrifice his last sixpence, or his shirt, or 
 sell his soul to the devil for ' one drop more.' Yet strange 
 to say the poor creature has no pleasure in drinking 
 socially or convivially, he gulps it down in large quantities, 
 away from society and observation, and even as if it were a 
 drug ; the only satisftiction it affords him is by benumbing 
 his sensibilities, and in this way affording him relief from 
 his fancied miseries." 
 
 To say the least, drink is a curse. 
 
 Moderate drinking is the stepping-stone to become a sot. 
 
 Habitual drinking is "the stepping-stone to become a 
 dipsomaniac. 
 
254 
 
 [Chap. IX. 
 
 Delirium 
 Tremens. 
 
 Object of 
 
 the 
 
 G-overn- 
 
 ment 
 
 inquiry. 
 
 Dipsomania is the stepping-stone to the last stage' 
 before the grave, naraelj, delirium tremens. 
 
 The above may be considered the educational process of 
 the deterioration of the material body to a stage of 
 physical alteration known as delirium tremens. If 
 we are to recognize a heaven and hell when we depart 
 from this life, with the Bible as our guide, it is self 
 evident that a man suffering from delirium tremens is 
 on the brink of hell, and nothing less than a miracle 
 can save him from that fearful condition. 
 
 The explanation of dipsomania is thirst madness^ and the 
 disease consists in an unconcpierable desire for intoxicating 
 drinks, &c. 
 
 Delirium tremens only differs from dipsomania from 
 its being more intense and directly affecting the brain. 
 It usually supervenes on a fit of intoxication ; but 
 it not unfrequently arises from circumstances exactly 
 opposite ; namely, where an habitual drunkard omits his 
 accustomed stimulant. The approach of ah attack of 
 delirium tremens is almost invariably announced by the 
 patient being remarkably irritable, with fretfulness of the 
 mind and mobility of the body. Watchfulness next 
 occurs, and the patient gets little or no sleep. He has 
 frightful dreams, sees remarkable sights, such as strange 
 animals, monkeys, snakes, and appears to have a kind 
 of clairvoyant insight into purgatory, or hears extra- 
 ordinary sounds. He then begins to fancy that some 
 conspiracy is forming against him, entertains suspicions 
 about certain persons or things, and imagines that some 
 mischief is intended towards him. Then he is perpetually 
 busied about his affairs, and so on. This is the stage when 
 the patient might at any moment commit suicide or murder. 
 
 The Government inquiry was not instituted to deal with 
 the moderate drinker or even occasional drunkards, as those 
 
Chap. IX.] 255 
 
 could be dealt with by the police magistrates when they 
 became a nuisance to society.in the streets. It was to obtain 
 evidence on the desirability of introducing an Act to bring 
 dipsomania and delirium tremens cases under coercion. 
 Hitherto they could only be treated as cases of drunken- 
 ness, as the law has no power to place them in asylums. 
 
 The committee of inquiry examined thirty-three wit- 
 nesses, all medical men of high standing;, mao-istrates and 
 constables, men of science, and commissioners of lunacy, 
 together with Dr. Parish and Dr. Dodo-e from the United 
 States, and the committee reported to the House as 
 follows : — 
 
 " That occasional drunkenness may, and very frequentl}^ 
 does become confirmed and habitual, and soon passes into 
 the condition of a disease uncontrollable by the individual, 
 unless indeed some extraneous influence, preventive or 
 curative, is brought into play. That self control is suspended 
 or annihilated ; moral obligations are disregarded ; and 
 the decencies of private and of public life are alike set at 
 nought ; and individuals obey only an overwhelming 
 craving for stimulant to which everything is sacrificed." 
 
 The committee attributed the occurrence of such disease 
 not simply to pure alcohol itself, but to adulteration by the 
 vendors. 
 
 The Government exercises extreme vigilance over GoTern- 
 every branch of sanitary science, more especially in prose- ^^^Xict 
 cuting for the adulteration of articles of food, such as milk, in prose- 
 butter, &c., but it is curious that no attention is paid to the adultei\v 
 examination of intoxicating drinks sold in licensed f-."^© 
 houses when it is well known and proved by analytical 
 chemists and men who have given attention to the 
 subject, that a large proportion of injuries inflicted, 
 is the effect of adulteration and not so much from 
 alcoholic influence. It is a well known fact that the beer 
 
256 [CiiAP. IX. 
 
 whicli the workino: classes drink is adulterated with all 
 kinds of rubbish to make them thirsty and induce them to 
 drink to excess. Beer especially, is the English beverage, 
 and so long as the people will persist in drinking it, it is 
 but just that Government should insist upon their having 
 it genuine. 
 Di'. Forbes j^^,^ Forbes Winslow, in givino; evidence, said : — 
 
 Winslow s ... 
 
 eridence . '' There is a morbid craving for stimulants which is 
 
 Select ^ clearly traceable to a brain condition; it is a form of 
 
 Committee insanity although it is not recognized by law. A man 
 
 who has had ample opportunity of observing those cases 
 
 and studying them is able to diagnose pretty accurately 
 
 the difference between normal drunkenness and abnormal 
 
 drunkenness. The vice sometimes passes from a normal 
 
 into an abnormal state ; and the exaltation of the instincts 
 
 becomes a disease or mania.^^ 
 
 S'nf Alexander Peddie, M.D., Fellow of the Eoyal College 
 
 Pedclie OB "^ , ^ 
 
 the treat- of Physicians, Edinburgh, was one or the most prominent 
 
 dipso-°^ witnesses before the committee. He gave evidence that 
 mania. such disease existed, and was replete with ruinous con- 
 sequences. He has since written a book with the 
 sio-nificant title " The Necessity for Some Legalized 
 Arrangements for the Treatment of Dipsomania, or the 
 Drinking Insanity." This title recognized the existence 
 and character of the disease, and on excellent authority. 
 The following pertinent passage occurs in the work : — 
 '' Now, among this class (the morally and mentally 
 diseased), I hesitate not to place the habitual drunkard or 
 dipsomaniac. I consider that his condition is one of com- 
 bined moral and mental insanity, and the consequence of a 
 vicious impulsive propensity — for I cannot, in such a cUse, 
 discriminate it simply as a vice; and I regard it as 
 rendering him incapable of social duties or civil rights ; 
 and not merely so, but as lessening his liability to punish- 
 
CiiAP. IX.] 257 
 
 ment for crime, of the same kind or to the same extent as 
 the other members of the community. That the excessiv3 
 and uncontrollable desire for strong drink is a disease, and 
 that it is symptomatic of some abnormal cerebral conditions 
 which gives it the character of a form of insanity, cannot 
 be doubted." Again — 
 
 "There can be no absolute rale for insanity indicating 
 itself by any particular sign. Hence its physical indication 
 may be addictedness to drinking, as well as hallucination 
 of ideas. To declare whether it is or not, is as much a 
 question for medical science in the one case as the other. 
 But medical observation has declared that dipsomania is a 
 proof of mental aberration, and therefore it appears to mo 
 that such cases stand on the same footing as other instances 
 of mental derangement." 
 
 This is a very full, comprehensive, and decided opinion 
 coming from one of the most eminent among the many 
 distinguished members of the medical profession in 
 Scotland. 
 
 The question, then, forces itself upon every benevolent ^mes and 
 
 • 11 -11 -1 111 iinpi'i'Oii- 
 
 mmd, what is to be done with our common drunkards, meut for 
 
 and with our dipsomaniacs ? The former may be rightlv '^'^''^'^'^s^: 
 J- J o ^ ness and in 
 
 punished, some say, in the way criminals are usually dipso- 
 
 treated, by imprisonment, but the present practice of ^jggipgg 
 
 carrying a riotous or brawling drunkard before a magis- Remedies 
 
 irate and fining him five shillings is obviously nugatory, by the 
 
 In the case of the genuine dipsomaniac it is useless and ^^^^^ 
 
 = ^ Committee- 
 
 may be cruel. 
 
 The medical and scientific witnesses gave different 
 detailed opinions, but most of them agreed in the main 
 features of a scheme for the cure of the disease, and the ' 
 salvation of the patient. The Committee on this point 
 reported to the House as follows : — - i 
 
 "That there is an entire coriciirrence of all tKe 
 
 s 
 
 ■^ 
 
258 [Chap. IX. 
 
 witnesses in the absolute inaclequacj of existing laws to 
 check drunkenness, whether casual or constant ; rendering 
 it desirable that fresh legislation on the subject should 
 take place, and that the laws should be made more simple, 
 uniform, and stringent. 
 
 " That small fines and short imprisonments are proved 
 to be useless, as well by the testimony of competent 
 witnesses, as by the fact that the same individual is con- 
 victed over and over again to even more than 100 times. 
 
 In fact, numerous instances amongst the lower orders in 
 Liverpool are recorded, where they are proud of being 
 brought before the mngistrates simply because their names 
 appear in the newspapers, when they have the satisfaction 
 of forwarding a copy to their friends and relations. 
 
 " That the absence of all power to check the downward 
 course of a drunkard, and the urgent necessity of pro- 
 viding it has been dwelt on by nearly all witnesses ; and 
 the legal control of an habitual inebriate, either in a 
 reformatory or in a private dwelling, is recommended, in 
 the belief that many cases of death, resulting from 
 intoxication, including suicides and murder, may be pre- 
 vented." 
 
 The remedies suggested to the Legislation by the 
 Committee, so far as common street drunkards are con- 
 cerned, taken by the police before a magistrate for being 
 drunk and disorderly, are, a fine not exceeding 40s. ; a 
 register of the fine to be made in a book kept especially 
 for the purpose ; and the infliction to be made progressive, 
 with costs. The reason given for this recommendation, a 
 sound one, was not only because something more must be 
 done than is now done, but from the fact that the present 
 penalty of 5s. was enacted in tlie reign of James L, when 
 that fine, from the decreased value of money, was far 
 heavier han it is now. 
 
CHAr. IX.] 259 
 
 Tlie provision recommended for progressive deterring 
 punishment is, that on three convictions within twelve 
 months, the magistrates should be empowered to require 
 sureties for the transgressor's future good behaviour; and 
 in case of not obtaining such sureties (and they very 
 seldom could be obtained in the lower links of life) upon a 
 fresh offence, imprisonment in a reformatory of an 
 industrial nature to be especially provided. 
 The committee also report : — 
 
 " That it is in evidence as well from those who have 
 conducted, and are still conducting reformatories in Grreat 
 Britain, as by those who are managers of similar institu- 
 tions in America, that sanatoria, or inebriate reforma- 
 tories are producing considerable good in effecting 
 amendment, and cures, in those who have been treated in 
 them." 
 
 " That the average number of cures is stated to be from '^' s'';** fjf 
 30 to 40 per cent, of the admissions. This conclusion trcatmcr.t 
 being based upon subsequent inquiries, from which it i"-^'"^'"'^-^ 
 appears that the cures are as complete and permanent as 
 in any other form of disease, mental or physical. The 
 avei'age time taken in effecting these cures is from 
 twelve to sixteen weeks in America. For the English 
 institutions the period has been longer." 
 
 The whole drift of the report and arguments points Eecom- 
 to coercive legislation for the treatment of dipsomania ™/tLe^^"'^ 
 cases in providing the asylum, kind supervision, suitable Couimiitca 
 regimen, diversion of the mind, recreation for the bodv, 
 and skilful treatment, such as that to which hydropathy 
 is related as alone likely to restore the individual to 
 home and liberty as a sane man. This could be best 
 accomplished by experienced individuals who possessed 
 establishments appropriate to the purpose, and ^^ ho were 
 actuated as well by philanthropic feeling; to whom, in 
 
 s 2 
 
2G0 [CiTAP. IX. 
 
 fact; it would be a labour of love. In those cases tlie 
 dipsomaniac would, be a voluntary patient, a refugee^ 
 seeking a sanctuary from the ruthless pursuer of his 
 home, fortune, reason, and life ; some idiosyncrasies are 
 more likely to be amenable to regulations, when entering a 
 temporary home and shelter, by their own consent, than 
 in a reformatory organized by the authorities. 
 
 It is worthy of remark that the system of sureties has. 
 been adopted with good effect on the North American 
 Continent, and in Sheffield in this country. The common 
 law of England, however, does not sanction it, and a special 
 Act of the Legislature would be necessary. The committee 
 wisely recommended the repeal of the old statutes of 
 James I., and the enactment of a concise and intelligible 
 one, more suited to the present necessities. 
 
 That such measures would be to some extent effectual 
 might be relied on, because the sureties would look well 
 to their diseased friend ; and relatives and companions, 
 apprehensive of penalties that could be ill-borne, would pay 
 sedulous attention to his wanderings ; more particularly 
 as the recommendation is, that the magistrate might, 
 without further process, estreat the property of the sureties 
 upon forfeiture of bail. And the imprisonment, or con- 
 finement, rather, of the demented person might be for a 
 term of not less than three months, and not more than 
 twelve ; so as to deprive him for the period within this 
 range of all opportunity of resorting to his usual haunts, 
 and mingling with his former associates, and thus alter 
 his morbid cravings. 
 nrunkards The Committee recommended the keeping of a 
 egister. u Drunkards' Register," which might be a very power- 
 ful deterrent, because an Englishman, like the Hindoo, 
 fears nothing so much as the loss of caste, and the 
 insertion of his name as a registered drunkard, would 
 
Chap. IX.] 261 
 
 be a sliame wliicli even liis inebriate associates would 
 keenly feel. Instances amongst tlie lower orders in Liver- 
 pool are recorded, where tliey are proud of being brought 
 before the magistrates simply because their names appear 
 in the newspapers, when they have the satisfaction of for- 
 warding a copy to their friends and relations. It is true 
 that some topers are too far gone to be ashamed 
 of any ordinary occasion of disgrace, but this would 
 be a social stigma which few could endure without 
 compunction and humiliation. It would also check 
 the aberration of others, lest the like thino- should 
 happen to them. Families and friends would be more 
 ashamed and afraid of the drunkards' register than even of 
 the habitual excesses of the drunkard. 
 
 Of course, if, when the drunkard is temporarily mad, or 
 actually a dipsomaniac, and violent or aggressive in his 
 paroxysms, "it may be left to the discretion of the magis- 
 trate to send him at once to an inebriate reformatory." 
 
 It is not contemplated to restore the confirmed dipso- 
 maniac by these methods ; he is past the fear of obloquy or 
 punishments, he hugs his chains, and clanks them in the 
 hearing of everybody, he staggers about under their weight, 
 as if they were silken bands or wreaths of flowers ; so far 
 as we have noticed, the object in view is to '' quench the 
 smoking flax," but not to '' break the bruised reed." If 
 not to stop the drunkard's career at the beginning, when 
 it must be comparatively a secret, it is to catch him in his 
 first public aberration, and save him from farther delin- 
 quency and madness. 
 
 Objections are raised to what is called an infraction of Objection 
 
 to Jc^islti— 
 
 the liberty of the subject, but in public asylums, the habeas tion.'' 
 corpus would be in force if the recommendation of what 
 has been sneeringly called " the drunkards parliamentary 
 committee " be adopted. There can be no pretence what- 
 
2G2 [CiiAF. IX. 
 
 ever for saying tliat personal liberty is infringed, when 
 the unfortunate dipsomaniac has sense enough left to 
 commit himself to the hospitality, care, and cure provided 
 by a private home adapted to his condition, sometimes at 
 the expense of the country. 
 
 Yet in any form objectors are to be found to the plan 
 of secluding the distressed victim of drink, no longer able 
 to take care of himself, and too headstrong in his paroxysms^ 
 too stupid in his potations, and too infatuated at all times 
 to allow his family or friends to take exBcient charge of 
 him. If in an interval of light and reflection, he volun- 
 tarily places himself out of the way of the world, in the 
 custody of intelligence and kindness, with a view to 
 his restoration to the status from which he fellj it would 
 indeed be a desperate and scandalous invasion of the 
 liberty of the subject were he prevented by any law, 
 existent or future, from doing so. It is necessary, or at 
 all events, proper to notice the tone and temper in which 
 the objections are urged. It is, however, neither necessary 
 nor comporting with the space at our disposal to take in 
 view all sorts of objections. The most formidable are to 
 be found among influential members of the faculty, 
 although many of the highest standing endorse the plans 
 here advocated. 
 Dr. C. Doctor Charles Bucknill is one of the most recent and 
 
 onth" powerful of the objectors. In his article in the Contempo- 
 treatment ^,^^^,y J^^ijieu^^ before quoted on another point of the contro- 
 inebrlutes. versy, he objects to any confinement of inebriates except 
 for offence against the law, for which he would not hold 
 them as responsible like other men only, but considers 
 their intoxicated habits an aggravation of the offence 
 committed. His opinion is that to limit their freedom at 
 all simply as drunkards, is a violation of personal liberty, 
 and should be regarded with the utmost constitutional 
 
Chap. IX.] 263 
 
 jealousy. He quotes the immortal Milton, iu support of 
 liis views, who in his " Areopagitica," draws so much of 
 his argument in favour of" unlicensed printing, from the 
 supposed liberty of unlicensed drunkenness " {sic). But 
 Milton only argues as to the hopelessness of putting down 
 drunkenness, any more than fornication and some other 
 viceSj by statute. He apparently never had presented to 
 his mind the remedial and benevolent proposal now made 
 in the interest of the otherwise hopeless inebriate. The 
 learned Doctor also quotes John Stuart Mill, to the effect 
 that '' no person ought to be punished for simply being 
 drunk." One -can go the whole length with the great 
 metaphysician in such a proposition, without conceding 
 one iota of what is contended for in this chapter. If we 
 admitted the logician and philosopher to be infallible, the 
 basis of his argument does not cover the question here 
 discussed. 
 
 Tlie very fact of further legislation being necessary is a Legislation 
 proof of the evil effects of alcoholic drinks upon society at 
 large, hence, while there may be a difference of opinion as 
 to the mode of legislation required, all will agree that 
 something should be done to legally bring the dipsomaniac 
 under treatment. 
 
 In England there is a great jealousy about the infringe- 
 ment of the liberty of the subject, therefore it is very 
 difficult to legislate for a social evil taking away the 
 liberty of an individual who has not committed a 
 breach of the civil law, but is killing himself by imbibing 
 excessively of drink which is the beverage of nine- 
 tenths of Englishmen, and is recognized as such by the 
 Government of the country who derive £30,000,000 ster- 
 ling from the traffic in alcohol liquors for the disbursement 
 of its internal afftiirs, including crime arising from drink. 
 
 The only rational way to look at the matter, is that it 
 
2G4 [Chap. IX. 
 
 is a necessity to prevent human beings killing themselves 
 %Yhen they are brought into such a state by drinking as to 
 be irresponsible beings ; and when persons are not able 
 to enjoy liberty within certain limits, although they may 
 not openly break the law, to bring them within the power 
 of the police. The interest one human being should have 
 in another is such (if he fulfils his duty) that he should 
 make it his imperative duty to look after those of his fellow 
 creatures who are not able to take care of themselves ; it 
 is not a question of liberty that must be looked to, but 
 humanity. 
 
 The main object of the Select Committee of the House 
 of Commons was to inquire into what analogy there was 
 between a lunatic and a dipsomaniac, and the committee 
 very justly recommended that there should be a law to bring 
 the dipsomaniac under treatment just as much as the 
 lunatic, within certain limits. 
 Inebriety The only difference between inebriety and insanity is, the 
 Insanity. '^''^^ ^^ produced by excessive drinking of alcoholic stimu- 
 lants, and is generally harmless, and immediately the effects 
 of the drink are removed the subject becomes perfectly sane, 
 while the other may be suffering from organic disease of 
 the brain, from which, in all probability, he may never 
 recover, and requires to be placed under restraint to prevent 
 him doing himself or fellow creatures any bodily injury. 
 
 It is well known that habitual drunkards cannot over- 
 come their desire for drink without exercisinoj almost 
 superhuman control over their actions ; they are generally 
 extremely nervous and highly sensitive, and m their 
 moments of sobriety feel their degraded position most 
 acutely ; and being disgusted with themselves, often rush 
 recklessly into their old habits 'to drown their feelings, 
 and it is with a view ^of restraining such persons that 
 coercive measures are recommended. 
 
Chap. IX.] 205 
 
 No doubt if the law should come into force the dypso- 
 maniac will no lonorer be a "free asjent to manaore himself 
 or his affairs, and it will require very stringent and judicious 
 management to prevent great cruelties being inflicted. 
 Institutions or asylums where patients are brought under 
 treatment should be provided with every known appliance 
 that could be made available to lessen or soothe the suffer- 
 ings and ameliorate the condition of these unfortunates, 
 in the process of weaning them from their old habits and 
 restoring their shattered constitutions. 
 
 They should be treated with the greatest kindness and Inebriates 
 consideration, and legislation which does not regard this be treated 
 fact, and exercise the most vigilant superintendence over ^^^^^Y- 
 the officials in dipsomania asylums, will entail great 
 suffering on the patients, and not a few will be driven into 
 hopeless mania. 
 
 The Act of Parliament, wisely and judiciously adminis- 
 tered, will not only prove a great boon to individuals 
 but to the public at large, will prevent paupeiism and 
 crime of every description, and will materially reduce 
 the rates. 
 
 The baneful effects of alcohol taken in excels need no Opinion of 
 
 farther comments at my hands, but there is a divided men on 
 
 opinion amonor medical men of equal repute as to the ^^''^^^.^ ?^ 
 1 ^iiii'i .a medicine 
 
 medicinal advantages of alcohol taken in such proportions 
 
 as may be recommended. I might enter into a long 
 
 discussion and rake up medical evidence to an indefinite 
 
 extent both pro and con, but I have already far exceeded 
 
 the limits I intended giving this subject. I have read Dr. 
 
 Richardson's "Researches into Alcohol, and its Medicinal 
 
 Action;" and if his analytical investigation can be relied 
 
 upon, alcohol taken in any form is most pernicious and 
 
 injurious to the body ; also that there are other medicinal 
 
 stimulants in the pharmacy which will effect the same 
 
2uG [CiiAr. IX. 
 
 purpose as alcohol is supposed to do without being injurious, 
 
 hence the plea often adduced in favour of alcohol and the 
 
 absence of a better stimulant is at an end.* 
 
 Alcohcl Alcohol cannot be said to be a natural drink at all, for, 
 
 not a j^qj. i^ein cr assimilable to the body or entering into its 
 
 natural ^ ... . . 
 
 drink. elementary composition, it can never even assist in repair- 
 ing the loss of the fluid parts of the blood caused by 
 evaporation and the action of the secretive and exhalant 
 organs, but only serves to render the blood more ihiek 
 and viscid. Neither can it assist in the nutrition 
 of the body, as remarked by the late Dr. Abernethy, 
 any more than the " whip or spur " can feed the horse or 
 add to its vital powers. The late Sir Astley Cooper 
 declared the London draymen to be the least able to endure 
 an accident or a surgical operation of any class of patients 
 he had to do with. 
 
 Dr. Pereira lays down the following axiom, *' A living 
 body has no power of forming new elements, or of convert- 
 ing one elementary substance into another, and it, there- 
 fore, follows that the elements of which an animal is 
 composed must be also the elements of his food." 
 
 A great maxim of the ancients was set forth in the 
 words, " Know thyself," and did we but pause for a few 
 moments to consider of what minute, delicate and fragile 
 materials we are composed, we should hesitate, seriously 
 hesitate, ere we committed to our digestive organs the 
 heterogeneous, artificial and unassimilable substances par- 
 taken of as food and drink by the unthinking multitude 
 around us. 
 
 Thirty years ago the medical profession advised alcoholic 
 
 *I should recommend all my readers who are anxious for more informa- 
 tion on the action of alcohol to read Dr. Kichardson's researches, as well 
 as several other excellent works on the subject, which can be had at the 
 Offices of the United Kingdom Alliance, 52, Parliament Street. 
 
CiiAP. IX.] 2,1 
 
 drink to their patients wholesale, scarcely without any Modifica- 
 
 11 • 1- 1 1 , 1 , • 1- tion of tlio 
 
 stmt, and there is httle tloubt that the present tippling, views of 
 
 especially among the fair sex, is directly or indirectly due ™g[j^™ 
 
 to the indiscreet recommendation of alcohol by the medical ak-ohoL 
 
 profession. As proof of tJiis during the last few years tliey 
 
 have considerably modified the'v views, and seeing that 
 
 the medical wants of thirty years ago were much about 
 
 the same as they are now, the modification is an admission 
 
 of their error, and I hope the process of reduction will go 
 
 on so that in fifty years hence perhaps the evils commenced 
 
 thirty years ago will in a measure be compensated for in 
 
 the shape of a considerable diminution of drunkenness. 
 
 In tracing the history of medical treatment from Hip- 
 pocrates, there has evidently been a tendency on the part 
 of the profession to accept the opinions of some medical 
 men of repute as to a particular remedy discovered by 
 them, and prescribing it for nearly all the ills that flesh 
 is heir to ; hence, you often see a remedy once in high 
 repute fall suddenly into insignificance to give place to 
 another quite different drug, which again is administered 
 wdthout the slightest investigation as to its action. 
 
 In perusing medical literature the idea forces itself 
 upon us that the changes in the treatment of disease are 
 as variable as the fashions, and the chanoe which has 
 taken place respecting alcohol is only a sample of those 
 which have occurred and are occuirincj, and shows at least 
 a great want of stability in the theory of the medical 
 art. 
 
 While the medical profession, as a body, aie open tO' 
 grave censure in prescribing alcohol so extensively, they 
 are compelled in some cases to pander to the whims of 
 their patients, and the medical attendant, no doubt, often 
 permits his Loii vivant patient to take a little stimulant for 
 the sake of peace and quietness, and to retain his patronage. 
 
268 [Chap. IX. 
 
 There seems to be a kind of inherited vicious taste in 
 this country for alcoholic drinks, which need not be 
 wondered at considering, in a great many instances, 
 drinking commences in the cradle and ends in the grave. 
 
 It is no use denying the fact that the prevailing opinion 
 of the medical profession is in favour of alcohol, both as a 
 beverage and medicinal agent, and they still prescribe it 
 largely. Patients are very self-willed, and there are very 
 few general practitioners who are in a position to dictate 
 to them too much without the risk of losing their clients ; 
 and there are so many gentlemen in the same profession, 
 making the patients somewhat independent ; so that 
 between the dependency and the independence there is a 
 good deal of diplomacy required on the part of the medical 
 man to discharge his duties conscientiously. Hence it is 
 quite as great an art with the medical profession to study 
 character as to study remedies. 
 Treatir-^nt Without arguing the use of alcohol in the treatment of 
 some diseases, in dipsomania it must be like adding fuel to 
 the fire, and the system adopted of gradually loeaning 
 the inebriate from stimulants, has been found not only 
 difficult but oftentimes ineffectual. The irritation kept 
 up in the stomach is just sufficient to give the patient 
 a hankering after stimulants and to prevent the return 
 of the normal appetite, in many cases the remedy proves 
 worse than the disease. 
 
 The only effectual alternative stimulant is external 
 appliances, such as the hot-air bath, the wet-sheet 
 pack, &c., which bring the skin into vivid action, 
 increase the circulation, while combustion becomes 
 greater, and the disease produced by super-alcohoHcism is 
 carried off rapidly. The change effected in the system 
 causes the patient to feel less desire for drink, and his 
 normal appstite is restored. 
 
 inania 
 
Cpiap. IX.] 
 
 269 
 
 Dr. Jolm Goodman, M.R.C.S., Lend., an eminent Dr. Goo:l- 
 
 ,.,.,■■ j^. . T rr uiau on 
 
 authority, describes the comparative merits and etiects Water and 
 of Water and Alcohol upon the human organism : — Alcohol. 
 
 WATEE. 
 
 1. — Increases the interstitial 
 metamorphosis or change of 
 issues. 
 
 2. — Baths cause a considerably 
 increased demand in the system 
 for oxygen, manifested by aug- 
 mented respiration and amount of 
 carbonic acid expired. 
 
 3. — Assists in the solution of 
 effete matters and increases all the 
 secretions, carrying off rapidly the 
 waste or effete material from the 
 system. 
 
 4. — Increases appetite and de- 
 mand for food. 
 
 5. — Especially by the employ- 
 ment of baths, causing a rapid 
 change of tissue, and increased 
 demand for oxygen in respiration, 
 water increases the rapidity of 
 development of nerve force and 
 animal heat. 
 
 6. — Water, by its cooling 
 agency, tends to destroy all inflam- 
 matory affections in the mucous 
 membranes, and to increase the 
 healthy action of the mucous, 
 alsine, and all other secretions and 
 evacuations. 
 
 ALCOHOL. 
 
 1. — Arrests the normal change 
 of matter by absorbing the oxygen 
 from the arterial blood, which is 
 necessary for metamorphosis. 
 
 2. — Diminishes the amount of 
 carbonic acid expired, although 
 it increases the amount of carbon 
 in the blood. 
 
 3. — Lessens the excretion both 
 of solid and fluent constituents of 
 the urine. It also dcci eases the 
 amount of carbonic acid given off 
 by the lungs, and the other excre- 
 tions of the body in proportion to 
 the period of its employment. 
 
 4. — Alcohol and tobacco decrease 
 the desire for food generally by 
 arrest of function, diminished 
 metamorphosis of tissue and 
 retention of waste. 
 
 5. — By its general effects on the 
 nervous system, as a stimulant, it 
 exhausts the nervous fluid ; or, as 
 a narcotic, it impedes its action ; 
 it also lowers the vital actions 
 generally, diminishes assimilation, 
 decreases combustion, and, there- 
 fore, limits the production of 
 animal heat. 
 
 6. — Alcohol, by its heating and 
 stimulating influence, developes 
 infiammaiory action in the mucous 
 membranes, and in whatsoever 
 tissues it enters, and tends to dry 
 xip all healthy secretions. 
 
270 
 
 [CiiAr. IX. 
 
 7. — "Water diinkitig and bathing 
 determine the force of blood to the 
 skin, muscular organs, and surface 
 of the body, when the heat of the 
 blood is healthfully diffused, and 
 admirably employed for the 
 reaction, the external sanguifica- 
 tion and warmth of the skin, and 
 endurance of atmospheric change. 
 
 7. — Alcohol, by combination with 
 the oxygen of the arterial blood 
 immediately after respiration, at 
 once begins to diffuse iis heat -'n the 
 2mhnonary organs; in the heart 
 through which it passes, and in 
 all the large vessels, the brain, 
 nervous centres, and other internal 
 organs by them supplied, tending 
 to the development of irritation, 
 congestion, or inflammation in the 
 interior of these \ital organs, 
 which lob the surface of its blood- 
 heat, and endurance of cold. 
 
 Dr. Parish 
 recom- 
 mends the 
 Turkish 
 Bath in 
 Dipso- 
 mania 
 Cases. 
 
 Hydi-opa- 
 thic treat- 
 ment of 
 dipso- 
 mania. 
 
 Dr. Parish, in liis evidence before the House of 
 Commons Committee, stated that, in a private asylum 
 for dipsomaniacs, of which he is one of the physicians, 
 an important part of the treatment was the application 
 of the Turhish Bath. 
 
 I have also seen most excellent results from it in 
 combination with other hydropathic appliances in all forms 
 of drunhenness. 
 
 It supplies a stimulant, improves the apatite, gives tone 
 to the nerves, and promotes general exhilaration in the 
 system of such patients, so that they do not miss the 
 noxious excitements they formerly so greedily sought, but 
 soon learn to prefer the genial, wholesome, sustaining 
 stimulant of the ^ath, which, unlike the fickle and 
 treacherous alcohol, is followed by no depressing reaction, 
 but is progressive alike in the love for it which it creates, 
 and the vigour which it imparts. The efficacy of the hot- 
 air bath in relieving the system from poisons with which 
 it may be saturated, I have demonstrated elsewhere ; it is 
 unnecessary here to repeat my account of the modus 
 operandi, let it suffice to relate that so specific is the action 
 on the skin that its suppressed, or repressed and dis- 
 
CHAr. IX.] 271 
 
 organized functions are restored and even revived ; 
 deleterious matter, whicli tlie system has absorbed, is 
 exj)elled ; even the poison of alcohol, whleh the great 
 reformer, John Wesley, called '' slow but subtle," cannot 
 elude its power; the Turkish Batli cleanses the system 
 from the virus, relieves the saturated ventricles of the 
 brain, spinal marrow and nervous system, until the patient 
 literally rejoices in the liberty it bestows, and would not 
 again bow his neck to the former slavery which bound 
 him down and debased him. Not only is there a cure, 
 but the patient perceives the rationale, soon acquiesces in 
 so genial and practical a philosophy, and learns not only 
 to desire the cure and appreciate it, but to take pleasure 
 in the manner by which he is cured. In this way it is 
 the most important of a^' instrumentalities in the recovery, 
 renovation, and restoration to home of the dipsomaniac. 
 
 I cannot conclude this chapter without referring to the Tnflaences 
 check given to the drink traflic by the United Kingdom suppres- 
 Alliance. No doubt a good deal of the modifications of the ^'°" °^ 
 
 . p . . drunken- 
 
 law, the conversion or so many ministers, as well as the ness. 
 
 sentiments expressed by so many of the judges, is owing 
 
 in a great measure to the influence brought to bear on 
 
 the pul)lic by the Alliance movement. 
 
 Sir Wilfrid Lawson's pertinacity in bringing forward 
 the Permissive Bill year by year is most praiseworthy, 
 and he should be regarded as one of the greatest philan- 
 thropists of the present age, as no doubt future generations 
 will be benefitted by the influence he has brought to 
 bear on the drink question. I hope the movement 
 will continue to prosper and be well supported. 
 
 Altliough eulogizing the United Kingdom Alliance I 
 must say that I have often been surprised that the attention 
 of the agitators, including Sir Wilfrid Lawson, has not 
 been turned to the question of providing public houses for 
 
272 [Chap. IX. 
 
 tlie working classes without the beer; such institutions 
 has been advocated by Mrs. Captain Bayley, autlioress 
 of " Ragged Homes/' Mrs, Wightman, authoress of 
 numerous good books, and Mrs. Donovan, authoress of 
 " Sanitary Facts/' &c. These ladies have for years en- 
 deavoured to impress upon the public the desirability of 
 forming a society for establishing public houses where no 
 intoxicants should be sold, and where working men could 
 cono-reo-ate for social intercourse. I think the United 
 Kino-dom Alliance would do well to give such a move- 
 ment their adhesion. 
 
 I am afraid, however, that influences brought to bear in 
 the attempt to suppress or check the liquor traffic, will 
 have but little effect so long as the Government of the 
 country touches and handles that which is unclean. It 
 is, in fact, a calamit}', when the Government derives 
 nearly half its income from this vile source. It was a 
 mere sham and a farce to appoint a select committee to 
 inquire into the question of drunkenness with a view of legis- 
 lating for the evil, when in fact the revenue has a direct 
 interest in the liquor traffic. How then, in the name 
 of all that is honourable, charitable, humane, or con- 
 sistent, can any Government or collective, body expect 
 anything else than the present appalling results from the 
 drinking customs of the country which they patronize 
 and protect ? while they place no restriction on the com- 
 petition of legitimate traders. Well may Judge Manisty 
 remark "that it is only by the grace of God there are 
 not more victims." 
 
Chap. X.] 273 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 liETTERS FROM STATESMEJf, NOBLEMEN, MEDICAL MEN, 
 LITERARY MEN OF EMINENCE, AND OTHERS. 
 
 T 
 
 HESE letters were received in answer to the following 
 communication : — 
 
 The Commissioners of Batlis for the Parish of Paddington are about to 
 erect Baths and Washhouses for the Working Classes, and they are anxious 
 to add the Turkish Bath and heated Lavatories (in -which to wash and bathe) 
 to the ordinary arrangements. These, it is urged, would be in greater 
 request during the winter months, and would also attract many bathers 
 who do not care to take the ordinary Avarm bath administered in a cold 
 room. 
 
 Mr. IMetcalfe and other Commissioners are supporting this proposal, and 
 they are anxious to strengthen their case by opinions as to the value of the 
 Turkish Bath. 
 
 Would it be too much to ask for your view on the Bath as a sanitary 
 find cleansing agent, and the desirability of affording the Working Classes 
 the facilities named ? They do not ask your opinion of the Bath as a remedial 
 agent, that being beyond the scope of their proposal. 
 
 I was one of the first Commissioners appointed to carry out the 
 provisions of the Bath and Washhouses Act in the parish of Pad- 
 dington, and during the time occupied with preliminaries, selecting 
 the site, &c., I strenuously advocated the right of the poor to be 
 
 T 
 
274 [Chap. X. 
 
 provided with hot-air baths and warm lavatories, in addition to the 
 usual bathing appliances. I could not be blind to the fact that my 
 colleagues regarded me as a necessary nuisance — hot-air bath mad 
 — but beiag the only Commissioner who had a thorough knowledge 
 of the bath question, it would have been inconvenient to oppose 
 me, at this stage of the undertaking, hence my proposal did not 
 meet with any direct opposition until they had used me for carry- 
 ing their proposal before the Vestry. Knowing that advocates of 
 any new thing generally experience fractious opposition, I there- 
 fore endeavoured to enlist the sympathy and support of the 
 Board, and with this view, I obtained a host of letters from 
 influential gentlemen, having observed when other subjects came 
 before the Vestry, the collected outside opinions materially 
 influenced their action, and I thought it might have some weight 
 in my case with the Commissioners. 
 
 Being anxious not to lose the opportunity of having the 
 hot-air bath recognized in the Baths and Washhouses of this 
 great metropolis, I was perplexed to know how the members of 
 the Vestry could be enlightened upon the question, and, 
 " like a drowning man catching at a straw," it occurred to me I 
 would procure a work bearing on the subject by an eminent 
 author, and present it to the members (numbering over 
 seventy), accordingly, at considerable cost, a copy of Dunlop's 
 " The Bath ; or. Air and "Water in Health and Disease," was 
 presented. Notwithstanding these efforts no impression was 
 made, and as a proof of their indifference to the subject, I found, 
 a few weeks afterwards, copies of the book I had presented, 
 and bearing the mark of the Vestry, exposed for sale in the 
 immediate neighbourhood. 
 
 I have thought it right to publish the whole of the letters 
 received in which an opinion is given for or against the bath, in 
 order that both sides of the question may be fairly before the 
 readers, who will be in a better position to determine on their 
 merits. 
 
Chap. X.] 275 
 
 I may add that although the letters were obtained for a specific 
 object^as stated above, no restriction was placed upon their publica- 
 tion ; and as this work is purely philanthropicj and published for 
 the purpose of advocatinpj the erection of hot-air or Turkish Baths 
 for the working classes, it is in this spirit they are introduced here. 
 Some of the letters received were very elaborate, and were really 
 little essays. I was therefore compelled to delete extraneous 
 matter with a view of economizing space and sparing expense. 
 Should any gentleman on perusing them think I have omitted 
 any important portion, they will, I hope, acquit me of any intention 
 of giving offence in using their communications for any other 
 object than the one it was given for. 
 
 Many of the letters are from gentlemen of distinction, and will, 
 I am sure, command the attention of the readers, and add con- 
 siderably to the importance of the volume. 
 
 From the Kiglit Hon, Lord CArtLiNGFOED. 
 
 In reply to your letter, I have no difficulty in saying that having taken an 
 interest some years ago in the introduction of the Tiu-kish Bath into this 
 country, through the exertions of Mr. DavidUrcLuhart, I think very highly of 
 it, as a means of comfort, cleanliness, and health, and I should be very glad to 
 see its use extended to the working classes. 
 
 Board of Works, Whitehall Gardens. 
 
 From Lord Kinnaird, Rossie Priory, IncJUure, N.B. 
 
 I think the Turkish Bath would be appreciated by many and taken advan- 
 tage of. 
 
 At a time when Pleuro-JPneumonia was raging in this district, I used it with 
 great success for my cattle ; and, when the heat was up, and when unoccupied 
 by cattle, I had numerous applications to use the bath. 
 
 The great drawback is the length of time it takes for using it, but, on the 
 
 T 2 
 
276 [Chap. X. 
 
 other hand, the extra expense of fitting up one in connection with baths and 
 and washhouses ought not to be great. The flue of the furnace being conveyed 
 in fire-clay pipes heats the room, while the furnace supplies steam and hot 
 water for the washhouses and baths. 
 
 Besides the above, I steam food for cattle, and my furnace heats a kiln for 
 frying grain. 
 
 The water apparatus attached to the Turkish Bath, would be most valuable 
 in your establishment, and would supersede, or could be applied in each bath 
 room. Tt partakes of the character of a steam, or Kussian Bath ; is far superior 
 for cleansing purposes than a hot bath, occupying only about twenty minutes ; 
 is most efficacious for colds, rheumatism, sprains, bruises, &c. 
 
 When any of my work people meet with an accident they come for a hot 
 and cold spray, or douche, and on Saturday evening or Sunday morning the 
 water apparatus is in request. 
 
 I will send you some plans and specifications. I have one in the house 
 which heats hot water pipes for passages and conservatory, the other at 
 the farm for purposes described above. I shall be happy to supply you with 
 .any information, if you reqiiire it. 
 
 • 
 
 From tlie late Right Hon. Lord Lytton, P.O., G.C, M.C. (received one 
 iveek before lie died.') 
 
 In reply to your request, I should say that the opinion of an eminent 
 medical man is worth more than all the opinions to be obtained from persons 
 like myself. So far as I can pretend to judge, I should think the Turkish 
 Bath a very desirable adjunct to any bathing establishment, especially for the 
 working classes, partly because no bath is so cleansing from all those morbid 
 •particles which adhere to the skin in various departments of operative labour, 
 and partly because it seems to have a specific effect on those sudden chills 
 and rheumatic attacks to which the working classes are necessarily subjected. 
 At the same time, I have heard from an eminent medical authority that the 
 Turkish Bath is likely to do serious mischief wherever there is any tendency 
 to disease of the heart, and in some other maladies, 
 
 Argyll Hall, Torquay. 
 
 From the Eight Hon. John Laird Mair Baron Lawrence, G.C.B., G.C.S.I. 
 
 I beg to acknowledge the receipt of your letter, and to inform you that in 
 my opinion a moderate use of the Turkish Bath is very beneficial as a cleans- 
 ing and sanitary agent, when used in moderation, for all persons. 
 
 From long experience of its use, I think it would do good if introduced 
 among the working classes. 
 
 26, Queen's Gate, S.W. 
 
CHAr. X.] 277 
 
 From A. McArthur, Esq., M.P. 
 
 I am in receipt of your letter requesting my opinion of " the Turkish Bath 
 as a cleansing and sanitary agent." 
 
 In both resjpects I consider it most efficacious. 
 Brixton llise, S.W. 
 
 From the late Charles Gilrin, Esq., M.P. 
 
 In reply to your note, there can be no doubt as to the cleansing agency of 
 the Turkish Bath, but I fear I should not be an entirely satisfactory witness 
 in its favour, as on the several last occasions of taking it, I have from some 
 cause or other got considerably chilled ; so that my faith once strong in the 
 Turkish Bath is now weak. 
 
 10, Bedford Square, W.C. 
 
 From Right Hon. A. S. Ayrton, M.P. 
 
 I am directed by Mr. Ayrton to acknowledge the receipt of your letter, 
 and in reply to state that it is not within the province of the First Com- 
 missioner's official duties to express any opinion on the mode of carrying out 
 the parochial provision of Baths, but his personal opinion is that the 
 Turkish Bath can only be regarded as a sanitary agent when used under 
 medical advice for particular disorders, and that, for the purpose of cleanliness, 
 it is better to provide the very cheapest means of washing, and not the most 
 costly, which, used under improper conditions, would be injurious' to health. 
 
 H.M.'s Office of Works, 12, Whitehall Place, S.W. 
 
 From Sir Thomas Watson, Bart., M.D., F.R.C.P., &c. 
 
 In reply to yoiir communication asking for my opinion of the Turkish 
 Bath "as a sanitary and cleansing agent," I cannot hesitate to say that, 
 properly regulated, I believe it to be both the one and the other. 
 
 As to "the advisability of affording the working classes the faciUties 
 named ' ' in your letter, my own opinion is that, unless you can calculate upon 
 recourse to those facilities by a large number of persons, not belonging to 
 the working classes (as I understand these words), the expense of providing 
 them must prove a serious impediment to the project. I discern no other 
 objection. 
 
 IG, Henrietta Street, W. 
 
278 [Chap. X. 
 
 From (lie late Sir W. Fergusson, Bart., M.D., F.E.S., &c. 
 
 In reply to your note, I have no hesitation in stating that I consider the 
 Turkish Bath as a powerful cleansing and sanitary agent ; such as would be 
 a valuable adjunct to all ordinary bath establishments. 
 
 16, George Street, W. 
 
 From He late Sir James R. Maetin, M.D,, C.B,, F.E.S, 
 
 In reply to your letter, desiring my opinion as to the desirability of the 
 proposed Turkish Bath and heated lavatories in which to wash and bathe, 
 I beg to state that as popular means, if placed under proper inspection and 
 regulation, the Turkish Bath and heated lavatories may become very highly 
 conducive to the advancement of public health. 
 
 You exclude, very properly I think, the consideration of the uses of these 
 additional baths, as remedial means, for they are matters altogether separate 
 and distinct. 
 
 37, Upper Brook Street, W. 
 
 From Dr. W. B. Carpenter, F.R.S., &c. 
 
 In reply to your letter I have to say that I entertain a very high opinion of 
 the value of the Turkish Bath, occasionally used as a sanitary, and more 
 particularly, as a cleansing agent. 
 
 University of London, Burlington Gardens, W. 
 
 Dr. A. Leaked, F.R.C.P., Senior Physician to tlie Great Nortliern Hospital., 
 Physician to the Infirmary for Diseases of the Chest. Author of a paper on 
 the Treatment of Phthisis hythe Turkish BatJi, ivhich appeared in the "Lancet,'^ 
 Novemher and December, 1863. 
 
 In reply to your letter asking for my opinion of the Turkish Bath as a 
 sanitary agent, it gives me pleasure to have the opportunity of saying that I 
 regard its proposed introduction by the authorities of Paddington into 
 their parish with great interest, and as a most important step. 1 quite 
 agree that the Turkish Bath would attract many bathers who would not care 
 for the ordinary warm bath. 
 
 Speaking from experience of the Tiirkish Bath in this and in Eastern 
 countries, I should add that it combines care of physical health with agree- 
 able relaxation. 
 
 Such a provision for the classes for which the bath is, in the present 
 instance, intended is most desirable. 
 
 12, Old Burlington Street. 
 
Chap. X.] 279 
 
 From Dr. Morell Mackenzie, M.R.C.P., Phjsicianjjo tlie Hospital for 
 Diseases of tJie Throaty and Senior Assistant Physician to the London Hospital. 
 
 I beg to state that I consider that the establishment of the Turkish Baths 
 and hot-air lavatories in the parish of Paddington, as proposed by Mr. E. 
 Metcalfe, for the benefit of the working classes, could not f aO. to be of great 
 sanitary value. 
 
 When the existence of such a lavatory became known there is no doubt 
 that many would use it who do not now avail themselves of the ordinary 
 bath. 
 
 13, "Weymouth Street, W. 
 
 From Dr. W. Batchelour, M.L.A.C, &c. 
 
 The Turkish Bath is one of the best sanitary agents, and if placed within 
 the reach of all classes would be a national benefit. 
 3, Turner's Place, S.W. 
 
 From Dr. E. J. ParkeS. 
 
 If it is proposed to add a Turkish Bath to the ordinary establishment, and 
 if this can be done without great expense, then I think it would be an 
 excellent arrangement. There is, I think, no doubt that the Turkish Bath, if 
 used with the cold douche or plunge at the end, is one of the best cleansing 
 and most effective baths we have. 
 
 Of course the question of cost of erection and of working, and the 
 consequent price of the bath, are matters which have to be very carefull 
 considered, and in which I am not competent to form au opinion. I think, 
 however, that if the cost of the Turkish Bath were so great as to raise the 
 cost of common hot and cold water baths, in order to get a return on the 
 money expended, then even the Turkish Bath might be purchased too dearly, 
 
 Sydney Cottage, Bitterne, Southamj)ton. 
 
 From Dr. C. B. Eadcliffe, F.R.C.P. 
 
 I believe that the addition of Turkish Baths and heated lavatories 
 •which to wash and bathe) to the baths and washhouses, about to be erec 
 in Paddington, woiild be, in many ways, very desirable. 
 
 25, Cavendish Square. ' 
 
280 [Chap. X. 
 
 F7-om Dr. J. MacpherSon, Inspector-General of Hospitals {H.M.R.A. 
 
 retired). 
 
 I am satisfied that tlie occasional use of the Turkish Bath forms a very 
 iiseful supplement to ordinary bathing, as by its employment the skin can 
 be more thoroughly cleansed than by any common bath. 
 
 I should be very glad to see the Turkish Bath placed within the reach of 
 the working classes. 
 
 35, Curzon Street, W. 
 
 From Dr. Geo. Wyld. 
 
 I have a high opinion of the hot-air bath, both in a sanitary and social 
 point of view. If hot-air chambers could be opened for the reception of 
 Avorking people, where washing operations could be carried on, they would 
 be very attractive, especially in cold weather, and would, in my opinion, 
 induce many to cleanse themselves who now neglect to do so, or shrink 
 from it. 
 
 An im]3ortant question for consideration would be whether the luxm-y 
 could be made self-supporting. The hot-air, unless well ventilated, would 
 be more or less injurious. 
 
 12, Great Cumberland Place, W. 
 
 From Dr. T. H. Tuke, F.R.C.P. 
 
 I consider the Turkish Bath of great value in the treatment of disease, 
 and in health most useful in insuring cleanliness and promoting the proper 
 action of the skin. 
 
 37, Albemarle Street, W. 
 
 Frovi Dr. John Murray, M.E.C.P. 
 
 I sympathize with the object you have in view. During the past three 
 years I have had considerable experience of the Turkish Bath, and entertain 
 a very high opinion of its value as a cleansing and sanitary agent. 
 
 I believe that your proposal, if carried out, will be productive of much 
 good to the working classes. 
 
 42, Ilarley Street, W. 
 
 From Dr. J. Lockhart Clarke, F.R.S. 
 
 I quite approve of the addition of Turkish Baths to the establishment at 
 Paddington, and think it desirable in a sanitary point of view. 
 64, Harley Street, W. 
 
Chap. X.] 281 
 
 From Dr. PIolt Dunn. 
 
 I have not studied the Turkish Baths as much as I ought to have done ; 
 but trust shortly to avail myself of the facilities you have kindly given me, 
 and to become better and more practically acquainted with its many merits 
 as a therapeutic agent, &c. 
 
 You ask my opinion of the Tm-kish Bath as a sanitary and cleansing agent 
 (not as a medical one). I do not think there can be any doubt of its 
 value as both. Since the days of the ancients it is to be found in all the 
 early classical medical literature, I believe, and has been handed down from 
 age to age as no mean legacy bequeathed us by our ancestors. 
 
 All modern philosophers agree in the importance of maintaining the action 
 of the skin, and sanitary doctors know it to be as important to have the- 
 drainage of our bodies in order, as it is to have that of the locality in which 
 we live, and I know of no means by which the skin can be kept in such 
 perfect working order as by the use of the Turkish Bath, Avhich is the 
 X^erfection of cleansing agents, and thus becomes also ^ great, powerful, and 
 important sanitary one. 
 
 I am sure the public and the profession are greatly in your debt, and 
 should be very grateful for the time and talent you have devoted, as well 
 as large capital, in order to advance the knowledge of the Turkish Bath, 
 and to perfect it as you have at your own establishment. 
 
 69, Hereford Road, W. 
 
 Dr. A. TOULMIN, M.R.C.S.E., Author of a paper on the importance of the 
 Functions of the Skin in the Treatment of Tubercular Diseases, recommending 
 the Hot-air Bath as a specif c remedy ; read before the Harvean Society, and 
 reprinted from tlie ^^ London Medical Review.''' 
 
 Speaking from a long and practical experience of the sanitary and 
 cleansing properties of the hot-air bath (in contradistinction of the vapour 
 bath), I know of no boon, next to a sutficient supply of food and raiment, 
 of so much value to the poor in general as these baths ; not alone in a 
 sanitary point of view, but also in a moral and religious one, as the best 
 means of helping the poor out of their present slough of despondency, by 
 removing their strong craving for alcoholic drinks, as the only means they 
 know of for alleviating their permanent sense of want and misery. Dr. 
 Mullinger, physician to the Sultan, tells us "That in Turkey, where there 
 are no poor laws, nor hospitals, nor dispensaries, for the relief of the sick 
 poor, they at once, when ill, have recourse to their bath, as their universal 
 remedy, taking no medicine, and trusting to it alone for recovery," and yet. 
 
282 [Chap. X. 
 
 Dr. Mullinger adds, " on looking at tlieir bills of mortality, we find them as 
 favourable to longevity as those of England." 
 
 I had almost omitted to mention that one of the most important effects of 
 the bath is the removal of all sense of weariness in the fatigued person 
 taking it. 
 
 46, Russell Eoad, W. 
 
 From Dr. J. G. Westjiacott, L.E.C.P.S., Edin. 
 
 In reply to your note received to-day, relative to the sanitary and cleans- 
 ing agency of the Turkish Bath, I have no hesitation in saying that I believe 
 it would greatly conduce to both. 
 
 I have been in favour of the said bath since its first introduction into this 
 country, having also enjoyed the luxury frequently myself. 
 
 19, St. Mary's Terrace, W. 
 
 From Dr. Wilberfokce Smith, L.E.C.P., M.E.C.S. 
 
 In reply to your note, it seems to me that the addition of Turkish Baths to 
 the proposed public baths and washhouses would be a valuable improvement. 
 
 In my experience, the working classes use the warm bath as a means of 
 ablution far too seldom ; and if the process of cleansing the skin were done 
 in the thorough manner insured by the Turkish Bath, this would, I believe, 
 somewhat compensate for its being done too seldom. I^should think that heated 
 lavatories, for the use of the ordinary warm bath, would be a great attraction, 
 and an inducement to bathe more frequently. 
 
 20, Bishop's Eoad, W. 
 
 From Dr. J. E. Eetoolds, F.R.C.P. 
 
 I think that the Turkish Bath is very useful as a sanitary and cleansing 
 agent, and that it would be well to extend its advantages to the working 
 classes. 
 
 38, Grosvenor Street, W. 
 
 From Dr. E. CeONIN. 
 
 For many years I have had but one judgment as to Turkish Baths (so 
 called). Both in a sanitary and medical point of view, when well constructed 
 and well supplied they are, I am persuaded, invaluable; 
 
 Claremont House, Brixton Road, S.W. 
 
Chap. X.] 283 
 
 From Dr. \V. V. Drury, M.R.I.A. 
 
 As I find so many people take Turkish. Baths, I should think they "would 
 pay well in any good neighbourhood where they were erected at a moderate 
 cost, where there was not already a supply, and where the cost of the bath 
 would bring it within reach of the middle classes. 
 
 Never having taken a bath of this kind, I regret that I cannot speak from 
 my own experience, but my patients who use them speak very favourably of 
 them. 
 
 7, Harley Street, W. 
 
 From Dr. Charles Witt, M.R.C.P. 
 
 In compliance with your request, I have no hesitation in assuring you that 
 I believe greater benefit can hardly be conferred on the working classes than 
 the establishment of the Turkish Bath in addition to the ordinary ones 
 proposed for your parish. 
 
 The advantages of personal cleanliness and comfort need no comment, and 
 these are hardly attainable by any means so effectually as by the Turkish 
 Bath. In ancient Rome, where baths of wondrous splendour were con- 
 structed for popular use, we see in them remaining proofs of the value then 
 attached to this form of ablution. 
 
 Furthermore, I may venture to state my conviction that niimerous disorders 
 will be prevented, and that many will unquestionably be cured, by the 
 judicious use of the Turkish Bath, which now again must be considered as 
 one of our most valuable remedial agents. 
 
 11, Spring Gardens, W. 
 
 From Dr. L. A. GossE. 
 
 I have had the honour of receiving your letter, and I discharge a duty in 
 replying to the questions it contains, and which seem to me, in fact, to be in 
 the interests of your philanthropic views. 
 
 And in the first place you wish to know what I think of the desii-ability of 
 adding a Turkish Bath to the popular washhouse and ordinary baths which 
 you mean to establish. Now I am convinced of the advantages derivable 
 from the Turkish Bath, from a hygienic point of view, as a means more 
 efficacious than the usual warm baths for cleansing the skin thoroughly, 
 whether from detached epidermis particles or incrusted dirt, and, moreover, 
 to aid, by perspiration, the expulsion of elements noxious to health, especially 
 during the prevalence of epidemics. Therefore, I cannot but approve of 
 
284 [Chap. X. 
 
 Mr. Metcalfe's projoosition of adding a Turkisli bath to the washing establish- 
 ment. 
 
 I am of opinion, also, that in order to bring this bath within the reach of 
 the poorer classes, the prices of admission should not be too high. 
 
 1, Rue des Granges, Geneva. 
 
 From Dr. R. Quain, F.R.S. 
 
 In reply to your inquiry, I have no hesitation in saying that a well con- 
 structed, and carefully managed Hot-air Bath would be a very valuable 
 addition as a cleansing sanitary aid to an ordinary hot and cold water bathing 
 establishment ; and no one can doubt that " warmed lavatories" would be a 
 source of great comfort and a security against cold. 
 
 87, Harley Street, W. 
 
 Frovi Dr. J. J. Garth Wilkinson, F.E.G.S., &c. 
 
 I am of opinion that an occasional Turkish Bath would be a suitable change 
 of skin and body, and of mind too, to the working classes, and that it is a 
 wholesome public object to bring the bath within their reach. 
 
 76, Wimpole Street, Cavendish Square, W. 
 
 Froin Dr. Thomas Neatby. 
 
 There is not room for two opinions as to the importance of the Turkish 
 Bath in a hygienic and sanitary point of view, apart from its value as a 
 remedial agent. 
 
 I am persuaded that the classes for whose benefit it is proposed, would, in 
 time, appreciate highly the boon which would be conferred on them by its 
 establishment. 
 
 29, Thurlow Road, N.W. 
 
 From Dr. Henry ThOxMPSON, F.R.C.P. 
 
 I am sorry I cannot give you a reply based upon personal experience, but 
 as far as I can ascertain from other people, I should say that Turkish Baths 
 are useful as sanitary and cleansing agents. 
 
 53, Queen Anne Street, W. 
 
Chap. X.] 285 
 
 From Dr. C. T. Pearce, M.R.C.S. 
 
 lu reply to your note desiring my opinion of the Turkish. Bath as a sanitary 
 agent, I have to say that it is one of the greatest blessings ever introduced of 
 a sanitary nature, because it does that for society which is better than curing 
 disease, viz., prevents disease by keeping the bodies of those who use it in a 
 cleanly, vigorous condition. Ever since the introduction of the Hot-air Bath, 
 I have taken some pains to investigate its action, and I habitually use it to 
 preserve my health. The Baths Commissioners of Paddington, in my 
 opinion, cannot do better than adopt the suggestion for the health of the 
 masses, and the saving of the rates to householders. The loss arising ftom 
 the " sickness of dirt " is enormous. 
 
 I shall hope to hear that the authorities of Paddington have set a good 
 example to the other parishes in the metropolis, and that it will be followed 
 extensively. 
 
 16, Great Castle Street, W. 
 
 From G. Sexton, Esq. M.A. 
 
 I have had considerable experience in the use of the Turkish Bath, and my 
 opinion is, that as a sanitary agent, it is unparalleled. I sincerely trust that 
 you will succeed in establishing one in Paddington in connection with the 
 Baths and Washhouses. 
 
 Should this be done, Paddington will have set a glorious example to be 
 followed hereafter, I have no doubt, by hundreds of other parishes. 
 
 17, Trafalgar Road, S.E. 
 
 Dr. W. Jackson CujiMiNS, M.R.C.S., Physician to the Cork Infirmary, Author 
 of '■^Prevention better than Cwe,^^ an address to the Students of Cork 
 Infirmary and County Hosjoital, also a panqyhlet on the '^ Hot-air Bath as a 
 Sanitary Agent," tfcc. 
 
 The bath is largely availed of by the lower orders in Cork, but I am sorry 
 to say that it has not reahzed my anticipations that it would tend to diminish 
 intemperance, as drunkenness is largely on the increase ; but I am sure it has 
 tended to dmiinish the injurious physical effects of this degrading vice, and if 
 the Legislature could be induced to sever its alhance with the classes who are 
 interested in enticing the mass of people to commit suicide in public houses, 
 the bath would be a valuable substitute for porter and whisky. 
 
 I have charge of the medical dej^artment of the principal hospitals here, and 
 havelarge opportunities of judging, regarding the lower orders, especially trades- 
 people, and the classes above the labourers, the class most addicted to habitual 
 
286 [Chap. X. 
 
 intemperance, and I can speak highly of the effect of the bath in relieving 
 the degeneration and disease of the organs and tissues which alcohol slowly 
 but surely induces. I can speak in favour of its effects upon the general 
 habits and constitutions, and though it is now twelve years since my pamphlet 
 was published, increased experience has confirmed almost everything it 
 contains, and has made me value the bath more and more. 
 15, Charlotte Quay, Cork. 
 
 From the late Dr. Charles Bryce. 
 
 I have much pleasiire in complying with your request to state my opinion 
 of the Turkish Bath as a cleansing and sanitary agent for the working classes. 
 My experience of its value in these respects has been of many years, in many 
 lands, and I say confidently, that inasmuch as personal cleanliness is conducive 
 to social and domestic well-being, this bath is surely the most effective and 
 safest of all baths, and, when properly constructed and worked, less costly 
 than the warm water tank into which many people emerse themselves together 
 for cleansing purposes. Besides, a person who has proved the comfort and 
 good of the Turkish Bath, and can resort to it cheaply, is weaned from pothouse 
 indulgence. For which reasons I consider the establishment of Turkish Baths 
 by municipal authorities a most excellent thing. 
 
 Old Steyne, Brighton. 
 
 From Dr. Tilbury Fgx, F.R.C.R 
 
 In reply to your note I beg to say that I regard the proposal of the Com- 
 missioners of Baths for the parish of Paddington to establish Turkish Baths 
 as a most admirable one. Putting aside the value of the Turkish Bath as a 
 curative or alleviative agent in disease, I regard the bath, judiciously given, as 
 a great luxury, a source of infinite comfort in giving relief from bodily and 
 mental fatigue, and as an important cleansing agent, as regards the skin of 
 healthy men, and especially serviceable to those who work hard. If the 
 commissioners can bring the bath within the reach of the workuig classes, they 
 will be entitled to great credit. 
 
 In thus praising the Turkish Bath I wish it to be understood that I do not 
 regard it as some authorities do, as a panacea for all evils, and a j)reventive 
 for every derangement of health. The bath has its great hygienic use, and is 
 harmed by the injudicious utterances of pseudo savans in baneology. 
 
 14, Harley Street, W. 
 
Chap. X.] 287 
 
 From Dr. William Bates. 
 
 In reply to your letter, in wliicli you ask my opiuioa of the Turkish Bath 
 as a cleansing and sanitary agent, and as to its desirability as such an agent 
 for the working classes, I have great pleasure in saying that I conceive the 
 addition of the Turkish Bath (on a good scale) to the baths and washhouses 
 would be an incalculable boon to the working classes, and a great relief to 
 the poor's rate. The Turkish Bath, when used in moderation, is the best 
 and most complete means of purification to the skin. It is further of 
 immense service as a preventive against disease, and especially against the 
 disease of the poor, i.e., rheumatism. Further, it tends, when used in mode- 
 ration, to strengthen the skin, and thus to prevent colds and bronchial 
 coughs, which form, together with rheumatism, a large proportion of the 
 diseases which specially affect the poor, and lay them up from their work. 
 
 I therefore consider that the Turkish Bath should be added to the wash- 
 houses as a means of perfect skin cleansing, and as a means of preventing 
 disease. 
 
 68, Brook Street, W. 
 
 From Dr. J. Kidd. 
 
 I think the Turkish Bath is a most important sanitary and cleansing agent. 
 It would be a great boon to the working classes to have facilities for using it. 
 1, Finsbury Circus, E.G. 
 
 From T. S. Wells, F.R.C.S. 
 
 My opinion of the Turkish Bath has been published long ago.* I object to 
 giving anything like a testimonial upon any subject. 
 3, Upper Grosvenor Street, W. 
 
 From Sir W. W. Gull, Bart., M.D. 
 
 Sir William Gull directs me to acknowledge your note with his compli- 
 ments, and to say that the advantages to the working classes of properly 
 arranged baths and washhouses cannot be over estimated. Sir WiUiam does 
 not, however, think that the Turkish Bath is especially advantageous. From 
 
 * Lecture on the Revival of the Tui-kish or Ancient Roman Bath, delivere 1 at 
 the Grosvenor Place School of Medicine. 
 
288 [Chap. X. 
 
 his experience he should think that opportunity for thorough cleanliess is 
 afforded by the ordinary warm bath ; nothing further could be desired. 
 
 Turkish Baths are probably more adapted to the indolent and luxurious, 
 than to those who toil for their livelihood. 
 74, Brook Street, W. 
 
 From Dr. T. King CHAiiBERS, F.R.C.P., &c. 
 
 I do not consider the addition of the Turkish Bath to baths for the labour- 
 ing classes as advisable in a sanitary point of view. 
 
 1. Unless accompanied by anointing, which is costly, it renders an im- 
 perfectly clothed person more susceptible of cold. 
 
 2. It diffuses through the air, mixed with steam, the excretions from 
 the skin, which are thus drawn into the lungs of themselves and their 
 neighbours. 
 
 3. It discourages the use of the water bath, a healthy cleansing agent. 
 
 4. It still more discourages open air bathing, and swimming among young 
 men. 
 
 5. It is a lengthy process and therefore a waste of tune for those who 
 have none to spare. 
 
 64, Brook Street, W. 
 
 From Dr. Andeew Claeke, M.A. 
 
 As I think that the Turkish Bath should not be used without the sanction 
 of a medical man, I am unable to give my support to any project for its 
 indiscriminate and imguarded use. 
 
 16, Cavendish Square, W. 
 
 From Dr. G. Burrows, F.E.C.P., F.E.S., &c. 
 
 Dr. Burrows presents his compliments, and in reply he considers 
 the Turkish Bath, independent of its uses in the treatment of diseases, 
 most healthful in its uses by official, professional, and other men of 
 sedentary occupations, who never excite their skins into a state of per- 
 spiration, but he does not think that such a luxurious kind of bath is required 
 by artizans and the labouring classes of society. 
 
 18, Cavendish Square, W. 
 
Chap. X.] 289 
 
 From Dr. E. Sieveking, F.R.C.P. 
 
 In reply to your request that I would give an opinion as to the desirability 
 of Turkish Baths for the working classes, " as a sanitary and cleansing agent," 
 I beg to say that valuable as Turkish Baths are in the treatment of certain 
 forms of disease, I do not regard their habitual use as desirable. 
 
 For the ordinary purposes of cleanliness, and the preservation of health, 
 warm, tepid, or cold baths, selected according to circumstances, are amply 
 suflB.cient, and tliey offer this further advantage, that they consume little 
 time, while the Turkish Bath, if not to prove absolutely prejudicial, demands 
 a considerable expenditure of that, to most people, very valuable commodity. 
 
 17, Manchester Square, W. 
 
 From Dr. C. J. B. Williams, F.R.S. 
 
 In reply to your letter I must say that from what I have known of the 
 operation of the Turkish Bath in this country, I do not form a high estimate 
 of their utility for the working classes. 
 
 It is quite true that they are more cleansing and searching in their 
 operation than other baths, but, if used frequently, they would too much tax 
 the time and strength of the working man, and if used rarely, they would 
 not be an adequate substitute for the more salutary habit of regular simpler 
 ablutions, which are both easier and more safe. 
 
 49, Upper Brook Street, W. 
 
 From Dr. Thomas Ballakd, M.R.C.S. 
 
 In reply to your request for my opinion of the hot-air bath as a sanitary 
 and cleansing agent, and of the advisability of providing the working classes 
 with the proposed facilities of access to it, I beg to say that I have no 
 reason to regard it as useful as a sanitary agent, and that I consider it less 
 convenient for cleansing j)urposes than a hot ^vater bath. 
 
 I do not think tlie working classes will appreciate very highly the facilities 
 of access to the hot-air bath, because they have little leisure time, and are 
 not so much disposed to indulge in hygienic diversions as those who have 
 more leisure and means at their disposal. 
 
 Facilities of access to plenty of warm water and soap, with the necessary 
 accommodation for bathing and dressing, must be a great honn for all the 
 poorer classes. 
 
 10, Southwick Place, W. 
 
 U 
 
290 [Chap. X. 
 
 From Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell. 
 
 Dr. Elizj,beth Blackwell begs to state, respecting the propriety of intro- 
 ducing the Turkish Bath into the jDroposed baths for the working classes, 
 that she has known so much mischief arising from the ignorant or careless 
 use of that powerful agent, the Turkish Bath, that she does not consider it a 
 safe appliance for ordinary public baths. 
 
 That the public bath house should be warmed in winter and an unlimited 
 supply of hot water provided, is of course indispensable to its utility. 
 
 6, Burwood Place, W. 
 
 From Dr. Horace Johnson. 
 
 It gives me much pleasure to reply to your circular received the day before 
 yesterday. 
 
 I am sorry to say, however, I do not think it would be desirable to erect 
 the Turkish Bath referred to. 
 
 8, Ovington Square. 
 
 From Dr. W. Hardwicke, Coronor for Middlesex, late Medical Officer of 
 Health for Paddington. 
 
 In reply to yours asking for my opinion of the Turkish Bath as a " sanitary 
 and cleansing agent," I would refer you to the following abstract from a 
 lecture of mine : — 
 
 Public Baths in Ancient and Modern Times. — The hot-air bath system, or 
 Turkish Bath, has many advantages over the ordinary warm bath. It is more 
 suitable for winter use than a common warm bath, and better at all times for 
 cleansing purposes, for the following reasons. No soap is required, the acid 
 secretions of the sweat glands, and the oily product of oil glands, form a kind 
 of natural soap in the surface of the skin, and when perspiration is excited by 
 heat, it readily detaches the loose scales of the scurf skin. It forms a soft 
 lubricating lather, better than soap, and quite as easily washed off by warm 
 water ablution. Cleansing in the ordinary warm bath must be effected by 
 the use of soap, and a scrubbing or flesh brush is often necessary. 
 
 Richmond Yilla, AV. 
 
 From Dr. SEPTIMUS Gibbon, M.R.C.P., Medical Officer of Health, Holhorn. 
 
 In reply to your communication, asking my opinion as to the desirability of 
 adding a Turkish Bath and heated lavatories to the new baths and wash- 
 
Chap. X.] 291 
 
 houses it is proposed to erect in Paddington, I have no hesitation in saying 
 that I consider such an addition Avould be a very valuable boon to the 
 inhabitants. 
 
 The Turkish Bath is a powerful agent,/which, now for nearly twenty years, 
 Ihave been in the habit of employing for preventing as weU for curing 
 disease. A well- constructed bath of this description is much wanted in the 
 locality. 
 
 11, Finsbury Place South, E.G. 
 
 From M. J. McCoemaCk, Esq., M.B., Medical Officer of Health, LanibetJi. 
 
 In reply to your favour requesting my opinion as to the value of the 
 Turkish Bath, as a sanitary and cleansing agent, and the advisability of 
 affording the working classes the facilities for using the same, I have no 
 hesitation in giving my humble opinion as to its value, and that it is a step in 
 the right direction as far as sanitary measures are concerned. As to the efficacy 
 of it as a remedial agent I could also testify, but as you say it is not within the 
 scope of your proposal, I need not enter into the question. 
 
 Vestry Hall, Kennington Green, S.E. 
 
 From Dr. J. W . Teipe, Medical Officer of Health, Hackney. 
 
 I consider Turkish Baths more likely to be useful in a sanitary point of 
 view for the working classes than any other, as the pores of their skin must 
 be more filled with dirt from the nature of their employment than those of 
 the middle and upper classes. I am, therefore, of opinion that, irrespective 
 of pecuniary arrangements, they would be most useful. 
 
 Town Hall, Hackney, E. 
 
 From C. F. J. Lodd, Esq., M.R.C.S., Medical Officer of Health, St. John, 
 
 Hampstead. 
 
 Your letter about the Paddington Baths did not come direct to me. I 
 regret that it has been since mislaid. , 
 
 I am very favourable to the use of the Turkish Bath, and consider it as an 
 excellent sanitary and cleansing agent for all classes of the population. 
 
 Hampstead, N.W. 
 
 u 2 
 
292 [Chap. X. 
 
 From Dr. J. S. Beistowe, F.R.C.P., Medical Officer of Health for Camherwell; 
 Examiner in Medicine to the University of London^ Physician to Si. Thomas's 
 Hospital. 
 
 1 hardly know how to reply to your note without entering upon the very 
 question which you exclude from its scope. I have no doubt that the Turkish 
 Bath is in many cases, and under certain circumstances, a very important 
 curative agent. Apart from that, I fancy its chief use lies among those who 
 are in easy circumstances, and have much leisure on their hands. The time 
 that each bath requires renders it difl&cult of use at all (in whatever class of 
 life they may be) who are much occupied with work, and while I should 
 imagine it would be undesirable to make provision for the former, it would 
 be equally undesirable I think to encourage the latter to waste their time. 
 
 You hint, as a point in favour of the Turkish Bath, that that would be 
 administered in a warm room, whereas the ordinary warm bath would be 
 taken in a cold one. Would it not be possible to overcome that objection by 
 warming all that part of the building devoted to warm baths ? If this were 
 done, it seems to me that you would secure for your bathers every advantage 
 that a Turkish Bath itself could afford, excepting that of having a lounging 
 place for the idle, and (what you say you do not require) a place of cure for 
 a small proportion of those who are sick. 
 
 11, Old Burlington Street, W. 
 
 From Dr. Nicholas, Medical Officer of Health, Wandsworth. 
 
 There cannot be a doubt as to the desirability of establishing baths, hot 
 and cold, as well as washhouses for the poorer classes, and, indeed, for the 
 general public. There might, however, be a doubt as to the advisability of 
 giving the working classes a great faciHty of access to the Turkish Bath, 
 which is calculated for occasional and remedial, rather than for lavatory use, 
 and that under proper supervision. It would, however, be a useful addition 
 to the establishment proposed if carefully employed, and its too frequent use 
 precluded by a sufficiently high charge for admission. 
 
 2 & 3, Church Row, Wandsworth. 
 
 From J. J. Skegg, M.E,.C.S., Medical Officer of Health, St. Martin' s-in-the-Fields. 
 
 The proposed idea of establishing in your parish the Turkish Bath for the 
 use of the working class, is a novel and excellent undertaking, and one, if 
 taken advantage of by the class for whom it is intended, will doubtless, in a 
 sanitary point of view, be of great benefit. 
 
 26, Northumberland Street, W.C. 
 
Chap. X.] 293 
 
 From Dr. T. Oejie Dudfield, Ij.'K.Q,, P., Medical Officer of Health, Kensmgton. 
 
 In reply to your letter I beg to express my opinion in favour of the Turkish 
 Bath, &c., as a sanitary and cleansing agent. If it be practicable, I think 
 there can be no doubt as to the advisability of affording the working classes 
 the facilities named, which I doubt not would be much appreciated by them 
 when understood. 
 
 Kensington Vestry, W. 
 
 From S. Tilly, Esq., F.R.C.S., Medical Officer of HealtJi, RotJierJiithe. 
 
 Five years ago, in my annual report to the St. Saviour's District Board of 
 Works, I advised that baths and washhouses should be erected for the use of 
 the working classes. I am decidedly of opinion that the Turkish Bath and 
 heated lavatories would have in addition a very beneficial effect, and tend, in 
 a great degree, to promote the operation of sanitary laws. 
 
 Emerson Street, E.G. 
 
 From Dr. Thomas Stevenson, F.R.C.P., Medical Officer of Health, St. Fancras. 
 
 The Turkish Bath is of great value as a sanitary and cleansing agent. The 
 great difficulty in introducing them for the use of the lower orders is the 
 expense. 
 
 10, Edward Street, N.W. 
 
 From T. J. HuGHES, M.D., Medical Officer of Health, Woohcich. 
 
 Not a necessary, only a luxury. 
 Woolwich. 
 
 From Dr. J. Whitmore, M.E.C.S., Medical Officer of Health, St. Marylelone. 
 
 In reply to your letter in which you ask my opinion as to the desirability, 
 in a sanitary point of view, of erecting Turkish Baths for the use of the work- 
 ing classes, I find it dilficult to speak of this description of bath otherwise 
 than as a medical or remedial agent ; there can, however, be no doubt that for 
 effectually cleansing the surface of the body it is greatly superior to the 
 ordinary warm bath, and for that reason is useful as a sanitary agent. The 
 addition of heated lavatories, in which to wash and bathe, appears to me to be 
 a luxury that would prove anything biit invigorating to a class of j^ersons 
 whose avocations necessarily expose them to cold and wet. 
 
 Court House, St. Marylebone, W. 
 
294 [Chap. X. 
 
 From F. J. Bukge, Esq., M.R.C.S., Medical Officer of Health, Fulliam. 
 
 In reply to yours, I am of opinion that the addition of the Turkish Bath, &c. 
 for the imrposes named, would be an unnecessary and useless adjunct. 
 Broadway House, Hammersmith. 
 
 From Henry N. Pink, Esq.., M.R.C.S., Medical Officer of Health, Greenwich. 
 
 In answer to your questions whether the Turkish Bath and heated lavatories 
 would be advisable for the working classes during the winter months, I would 
 express my opinion in decided opposition to their use. The risk of, and 
 exposure to cold after the use of the hot baths during the winter months 
 would be very objectionable, and I should oppose any proposition of the kind 
 in this district. 
 
 Greenwich, S.E. 
 
 From Dr. H. Bateson, Medical Officer of Health, St. George-the-3Iarlyr, 
 
 Southwark. 
 
 Dr. Bateson wishes me to acknowledge the receipt of yours on the 9tb 
 inst., and give you his opinion on the subject. 
 
 As a means of cleanliness there is nothing more efficient and satisfactory 
 than the baths in daily use at the Public Baths ; there is cold and hot water 
 at the choice of the bather, and this, with soap and brush, is all that is needed. 
 
 There is no necessity the rooms should be cold in winter, plenty of appli- 
 ances being at hand for warming them. 
 
 He considers the Turkish Bath a medical agent of great power, and should 
 liken its action upon the skin to a purgative upon the bowels, and this is not 
 required by those who simply desire to wash and be clean. 
 
 116, St. George's Road, S.E. 
 
 FromW. Tifeen Iliff, Esq., M.R.C.S., Medical Officer of Health, St.Manj, 
 
 Islington. 
 
 My own impression is against the propriety of establishing Turkish Baths 
 for the j)oor,- 1 believe them unnecessary and not likely to be much used by 
 the poor alone. As to the warm bath in a cold room, it is really a thing so 
 easily remedied that it does not deserve being alluded to. 
 
 37, Kennington Park Road, S.E. 
 
Chap. X.] ' 295 
 
 From the late Dr. H. Letiiby, Medical Officer of Health for the City of London. 
 
 I regret that in consequence of great pressure of engagements, I Lave not 
 had an opportunity of replying to your letter before this. 
 
 I do not think that the Turkish Baths are at all necessary for the use of 
 the working classes, hut I think that heated lavatories in which to wash and 
 bathe during \\\q cold weather would be a great advantage. 
 
 17, Sussex riace, X.W. 
 
 From Dr. M. Corner, M.R.C.S., Medical Officer of Healthy Mile End 
 Old Toion, E. 
 
 The sanitary arrangenints of a community cannot be complete without well 
 contrived public baths and washhouses ; comfortably warmed lavatories would 
 be a good plan and make the places more attractive and numerously attended ; 
 indeed, I look upon a proper amount of heating of the rooms in cold weather 
 as a necessary addition to the healthy influence of the bath. With regard to 
 the Tui'kish Bath as a sanitary and cleansing agent, I believe its habitual use 
 both unnecessary and highly dangerous, and should certainly not be offered to 
 the uncontrolled use of the public, and especially of the labouring and poorer 
 classes, who would and could not take the necessary precautions to prevent 
 injurious effects after the bath. 
 
 The Turkish Bath is essentially a remedial agent and shoxdd be used with 
 great care under skilled advice. I believe it often produces insidious injury, 
 of which the sufferer may be at the time unconscious ; it might be useful to 
 add a certain number of such baths for the use of the public, but only under 
 medical advice. 
 
 For all purposes of cleanliness, the ordinary bath, with more or less 
 addition of soap, is sufficient and entirely effectual. 
 
 Vestry of the Hamlet of Mile End Old Town, E. 
 
 From Dr. Williams, Hydropathic Establishment^ Croydon. 
 
 I am happy to answer your queries relative to the Turkish Bath in health 
 aiid disease, or, rather, in regard to its value as a hygienic agent in the 
 prevention of disease. I have been twenty-nine years in practice, and of 
 that time about thirteen years I had the care of a large Union district and 
 Union Infirmary. I think, therefore, I may fairly claim to have some 
 practical knowledge of the subject. I may add that for some fourteen years 
 I have had a growing disbelief in the value of merely drugging the human body, 
 I do not wish to say, with Macbeth, " throw physic to the dogs," but still, 
 I believe the really beneficial influence of drugs is in a very limited area. I 
 
296 [Chap. X. 
 
 use drugs as adjuncts to baths, and not baths as extremely rare adjuncts to 
 drugs, in the prevention and cure of disease. I have nearly wholly relied 
 upon baths for a few years past. 
 
 Heating the body before washing it positively strengthens it, especially in 
 delicate people. A great deal of ignorance exists upon the subject in England, 
 and a very large amount of jjrofessional obstruction is, from the want of 
 practical knowledge of the subject, found even in the medical prof ession itself. 
 
 iSTo greater boon could be given to the poor than good hot baths. 
 
 From C. E. Tidy, Esq., M.B., M.R.C.S., Medical Officer of Health, Islington, 
 Professor of Chemistry and Medical Jurisprudence at the London Hospital. 
 
 My opinion is that for all cleansing purposes the ordinary warm bath is 
 sufficient, but knowing very well that a cold room is a frequently urged 
 objection to its use by the lower classes, I think it is quite worth while giving 
 the Turkish Bath a trial. 
 
 Further, while I think the Turkish Bath is very useful if occasionally 
 employed, it is right I should add I consider its frequent use is both unad- 
 visable and inexpedient. 
 
 The Hollies, Cambridge Heath, E. 
 
 Erasmus Wilson, Esq., F.R.C.S., F.E.S., &c. Author of the ^^ History and 
 Revival of the Hot-air Bath into England and its application to the purposes 
 of Health;' Sfc. 
 
 I consider a heated but properly ventilated atmosphere of the first import- 
 ance in every form of in-door bath ; and especially in the case of the warm 
 bath. The essence of a bath in my opinion is : — 
 
 1st. A warm and genial atmosphere ; and 2nd a warm shower under which 
 ablution may be accomplished ; subsequently cold shower and cooling room. 
 
 Mere soaking in warm water is more mischievous than useful ; and the 
 exercise of the limbs in rubbing the skin, while the warm shower washes 
 away the exuvice of the skin, is of considerable importance. In reference to 
 the Turkish Bath, it should be borne in mind that its purpose and medicine 
 is warmth. Excessive heat would be injurious, and the varied processes of 
 the Turkish Bath are unnecessary for general use. 
 
 I would certainly suj)port every opinion which favoured a modified Turkish 
 Bath, that is, a hot-air bath, with a current stream of warm water (shower- 
 room) to rinse off impurities. Trusting that these observations may meet the 
 objects you have in view. 
 
 17, Henrietta Street, W. 
 
Chap. X.] 297 
 
 From Ernest Hart, Esq., M.R.C.S., Editor ^' BiifisJi MedicalJoumal,'^ and 
 President of the Harveian Medical and Quackett Microscopical Sciences. 
 
 I have no doubt that the addition of a Turkish Bath to the establishment 
 which the Faddington commissioners are about to erect for the benefit of the 
 poor, would be of very great public value indeed. 
 
 They would not only make bathing a luxury, which could hardly fail to 
 prove inviting to the unwashed, but they would, I believe, do something, 
 perhaps a great deal, to lessen intemperance and vice, and to promote the 
 habits of self-respect, which are a part of morality. 
 
 69, Queen Street, W. 
 
 From Jabez Hogg, Esq., M.R.C.S. 
 
 I can answer your note from a very extended personal knowledge of the 
 use of the Turkish Bath. 
 
 I believe this kind of bath to be of the highest value as a sanitary and 
 cleansing agent, and for these reasons constantly employ it. 
 
 No other bath can in any way be compared with it for promoting the 
 healthy action of the skin. This opinion is borne out by every physician 
 who has made the bath a study ; and while very many persons are convinced 
 of the importance of the hot bath, and its necessity in maintaining health, a 
 great number are afraid to use it from a well-founded suspicion that there is 
 great risk of becoming infected with a loathsome disease, which, in spite of 
 all precautions, must often be left behind in the bath. 
 
 Now, there is no fear of any calamity of the kind occurring in the Turkish 
 Bath, and hence its greater popularity with gentlemen. 
 
 A Turkish Bath for the middle and working classes would, indeed, be a 
 boon of great worth, and a very much larger number of persons would resort 
 to it than now resort to the ordinary hot bath. 
 
 I do hope the Paddington vestry will be the first to set so good an example 
 to the rest of the London parishes. There cannot be a doubt of its being a 
 step in the right direction. 
 
 1, Bedford Square, W.C. 
 
 From H. W. Bainbridge, Esq., F.R.C.S., of the Droitwich Brim Baths. 
 
 Absence and constant engagements have prevented me replying to your 
 note of yesterday by this morning's post. I have no hesitation whatever in 
 answering your inqmries to the best of my abihty. The value of a Turkish 
 Bath and lavatories for the working classes cannot, in my opinion, be sur- 
 passed or equalled by any other washing establishments. 
 
298 [Chap. X. 
 
 As a " ckanswg agent " it is superior to any other bath, for, independent of 
 dirt with which the poor toan's sMn is necessarily loaded, there is also the 
 excessive secretion to be removed, and in doing this with the Turkish Bath 
 you can at the same time produce a healthy reaction on the surface, which 
 would materially tend to preserve the health of the body. In my opinion, 
 such a step as your commissioners contemplate would be not only a gxeat 
 boon to the working man, but would also confer great praise on those by 
 whose advise such a step had been undertaken. 
 
 Droitwich. 
 
 From J. Baxter Lakgley, Esq., LL.D., M.E.C.S., &c. 
 
 I have had great opportunities of seeing the Turkish Bath at work in 
 different parts of the country. They are generally well supported by the 
 higher class of artisans, where the prices are not prohibitory, and I am con- 
 fident wotdd not only be greatly useful, but widely patronized by a class to 
 whom the private Turkish Bath is inaccessible on the ground of expense. 
 
 A very moderate reduction secures to the present baths in the evening a 
 very large attendance, and if public baths, at stiU more moderate cost, could 
 supply Turkish Baths, it would be an advantage which I should expect to be 
 largely used. 
 
 The Turkish Baths at present practically exclude women by their high 
 prices, and in any public arrangements the female sex should be especially 
 provided for. 
 
 As a cleansing and sanitary agent, the Turkish Bath takes the foremost 
 X)lace of all appliances I know. 
 
 60, Lincoln's Inn Fields, W.C. 
 
 From K. M. Willson, Esq., M.E.C.S., &c. 
 
 I am decidedly of opinion that the addition of the Turkish Bath system to 
 the baths about to be erected for the working classes will be most beneficial 
 and much more effectual, as a cleansing means, than the simple warm or hot 
 baths ; and I also think that many will be induced to visit the babhing rooms 
 for that luxury who would perhaps scarcely think of usiug the warm bath 
 only. The Turkish Bath is also well known to act as a powerful preventive 
 means against various impending disorders. 
 
 99, Ledbury Road, W. 
 
Chap. X.] 299 
 
 From E. Parker Young, Esq., M.R.C.S. 
 
 Press of work has prevented me answering your letter ere this ; but 1 am 
 of opinion that the erection of the Turkish Bath with heated lavatories, &c., 
 would be a great boon to the working classes, for I have been puzzled some- 
 times in recommending my dispensary patients and poorer ones the Turkish 
 Bath (even as a remedial agent, on which 1 look upon it in certain cases with 
 favom-), as I know the difficulty of obtaining one at a cheap rate. 
 
 I think the Commissioners would do well in erecting one at the same time 
 that the baths are erected, as the cost would be less ; and, financially, I feel 
 certain it would pay if properly conducted. 
 
 I should be quite willing to support a resolution, if it was moved in the 
 vestry, to sanction the Commissioners in erecting one, if they felt any 
 difficulty in taking upon themselves the responsibility. 
 
 10, Delamere Crescent, W. 
 
 Fro7n T. G. D. Thomas, Esq., M.R.C.S., Medical Officer of HeaWi, Harlesdon 
 Deputy Coroner for Central Middlesex, 
 
 Your letter duly received. With regard to the Turkish Baths, I am of 
 opinion that as a depurative agent they would be most useful to the working 
 classes if they were attached to the baths and washhouses. 
 
 22, St. Mary's Terrace. 
 
 From tlie late J. B. Walker, Esq., M.E.C.S. 
 
 In reply to your letter, I beg to say that my opinion is very favourable to 
 the use of the Turkish Bath, both in a sanitary and medical point of view. 
 
 At the same time, I think it should be used with cautiqn, and be tmder the 
 eye of an experienced man. 
 
 17, Clifton Gardens, W. 
 
 From R. Epps, Esq., M.R.C.S. 
 
 I have much pleasure in stating my opinion of the Turkish Bath, which I 
 consider to be a valuable addition, if I may say so, to the Materia Medica, it 
 being, in properly selected cases, a valuable medical aid. I must say, 
 however, that I have seen bad results often follow its indiscriminate 
 employment. 
 
 89, Great Russell Street, W.C. 
 
300 , [Chap. X. 
 
 Frovi F. B. Pearse, Esq., F.E.C.S. 
 
 There can be no doubt that the hot-air bath is most valuable ; indeed, things 
 
 are not complete without it in a sanitary view of the matter ; and if you 
 could add also, when required, sulphur and alkaline vapour baths, it would 
 be a boon to any locality. Baths are of the greatest importance to the 
 working classes. 
 
 Haverstock Hill, N.W. 
 
 From J. Hawkins, Esq., M.E.C.S. 
 
 I received your favour, and am of opinion that the hot-air bath, as a 
 sanitary and cleansing agent, would be decidedly useful ; in some cases it 
 requires one. 
 
 86, Colet Place, E. 
 
 From W. S. Britton, Esq., M.II.C.S. 
 
 In answer to your applications, I have the highest possible opinions of the 
 advantages of the Turkish Bath, as a cleansing, sanitary, remedial, and 
 disinfecting agent, and I am sure the authorities of the parish of Paddington 
 would deserve well of their fellow men, and the public in general, if they 
 place this boon within reach of the poorer classes, for I constantly order 
 the Turkish Bath for my dispensary patients, but the expense prevents them 
 from availing themselves of its advantages. 
 
 The baths should not be free, a sufficient charge should be made to pay 
 working expenses. 
 
 55, Wellington Eoad, N.W. 
 
 From Sanders Stephens, Esq., M.E.C.S. 
 
 In reply to your inquiry as to the hot-air bath, Mr. Stephens is decidedly 
 of opinion that it is of great use as a sanitary and cleansing agent, and that 
 any scheme for providing baths, &c., for the working classes would not be 
 perfect without it. 
 
 49, Kensington Gardens Square, W. 
 
 From Dr. E. Houghton, Weston Lodge, Upper Norwood. 
 
 In reply to your communication, (which only reached me yesterday, when 
 very busy,) respecting the advisability of adding Turkish Baths to the public 
 
Chap. X.] 301 
 
 Baths and Waslihouses about to be erected for the parish of Paddington, I 
 have no hesitation in giving it as my opinion that, provided they are properly 
 adapted for the purpose had in view, the commissioners will never regret 
 taking the initiative in showing a good example to other parishes throughout 
 the coimtry. It must not be forgotten that for such a purpose rapid cleansing 
 of the person, with as little expense for attendance as possible, is one of the 
 very first desiderata, and unless this can be accomplished, a great impediment 
 will exist to obtaining that reasonable profit which ought to be realized 
 through the addition of Turkish Baths. 
 
 I have always looked upon it as very encouraging that the Marylebone 
 Baths, which are certainly the best public baths in London, are the most 
 profitable, at least amongst those which otherwise would have to be sup- 
 ported out of the rates, whilst those which are not remarkable for either 
 cleanliness or good ventilation, have never been anything else than a constant 
 source of expense. 
 
 From this I infer that want of success in such undertakings arises either 
 from bad management, high prices, or defective accommodation. 1 have not 
 time at present to enter into detail, but I heartily wish success to this effort 
 to raise the self-respect of the working-classes, by rendering the process of 
 bathing both cheap and agreeable ; and when the baths are in process of 
 construction, I shall be happy to give any farther advice in my power to render 
 them as efficient and as satisfactory as possible in every respect. 
 
 From Dr. A. MuKROE, Melrose Hydropathic Establishnent. 
 
 There is nothing like a supply of Turkish Baths for the working classes in 
 Scotland. I have been doing what I can to popularize the bath, and will still 
 continue at the work as far as opportunity can be got, because I have the 
 best of reasons for concluding that the working classes would take advantage 
 of this bath in preference to all other baths, and get more good from it than 
 from any other. I find that boys and girls, when properly introduced, take 
 delight in the bath. 
 
 From Rev. C. H. SPunoEON. 
 
 I am afraid the great length of time required for the proper taking of a 
 Turkish Bath will prevent the working classes using it very extensively. 
 
 As to the cleansing nature of the bath there can be no doubt of its extreme 
 value. I venture to say that no one has ever been clean who has not had a 
 Turkish Bath. 
 
302 [Chap. X. 
 
 Its health-giving influences I am convinced of by experience ; it is, more- 
 over, one of the greatest of ll^xuries. 
 Nightingale Lane, Clapham, S.W. 
 
 Fi-om Eev. J. Angus, D.D., Member of the London School Board. 
 
 From my knowledge of the Turkish Bath, and from the large experience' of 
 others, I have no hesitation in saying that it is of great value for sanitary 
 purposes, indeed, a system of public baths would seem to me very defective 
 without it. 
 
 College, Regent's Park. 
 
 From the late Eev. J. Burns, D.D., LL.D. 
 
 I consider the Turkish Bath of the greatest possible restorative value, and 
 in connection with the baths and washhouses, would be of invaluable worth 
 to the poor. 
 
 Church Street Chapel, W. 
 
 From the late Eev. G. Wade Eobinson, M.A. 
 
 From a somewhat wide experience of the Turkish Bath, I am quite 
 pursuaded of its invaluable efficacy both in sickness and in health. And I 
 have no dou,bt whatever that the working classes, as well as all other classes 
 have yet to learn both its sanative and therapeutic virtues. 
 
 Brighton. 
 
 From Rev. H. Ashlev, M.A. 
 
 I am glad to hear you are trying to have Turkish Baths adopted at the 
 *' Baths and Washhouses." A warm bath is a good thing sometimes, but 
 nothing to be compared to the Turkish Bath, the latter, by perspiring, draws 
 evil out of the system and relieves it wonderfully, and the washing and 
 shampooing afterwards removes all. The former does nothing of the kind, 
 it takes no mischief out of the body, but only washes away what little may 
 be on the surface. 
 
 Wooburn. 
 
 From Eev. C. Hole, M.A. 
 
 In reply to your letter asking my opinion as to the desirability of adding 
 the Turkish Bath, &c., to the proposed new " Baths and Washhouses," I 
 
Chap. X.] 303 
 
 have uo hesitation in saying that I think such an addition most desirable, 
 I have the strongest opinion as to the sanitary advantages of the Turkish 
 Baths, and earnestly hope tliat the time may come when it will be deemed 
 an essential adjunct to every system of baths for the poor, as I believe its 
 general use by the lower orders calculated to improve their health and 
 self respect. 
 
 We know that personal cleanliness induces cleanly habits, and these, very 
 often, raise the tone of the whole character 
 
 North Oheam House, Surrey. 
 
 Fro7n Rev. G. Palmer Lane, M.A. * 
 
 I cordially approve of your proposal that a Turkish Bath and heated 
 lavatories should be added to the public baths about to be erected in the 
 parish of Paddington. 
 
 From my own experience of the Turkish Bath I can conscientiously bear 
 testimony to its thorough efficacy as a powerful cleansing and sanitary agent, 
 and I certainly think that were it brought within the reach of the working 
 classes it would not fail to prove of immense benefit, "When its cleansing 
 and sanitary powers become more fully known, I feel assured it will be 
 universally adopted wherever practicable. 
 
 Great Gransden. 
 
 From Eev. T. Lesset. 
 
 I am strongly of opinion that the Commissioners of Baths will be confer- 
 ing a great boon on the working classes by adding the Turkish Bath and 
 heated lavatories to the ordinary arrangements. 
 
 I should anticipate the very best results from such a liberal and enlightened 
 policy, and sincerely trust it may be adopted. 
 
 98, Hilmarten Eoad, N.W. 
 
 From Henry Varley, Esq., of the West London Tahernacle. 
 
 I have strong conviction that the Turkish Bath is an admirable cleansing 
 and sanitary agent, and most desirable to introduce for the working class. 
 
 Personally, I have received much benefit from their use, and continue to 
 use them. 
 . Notting Hill, W. 
 
304 [Chap. X. 
 
 From D. UrQUHART, Esq., Auilior of '■'■ The Pillars of Hercules,'''' and the 
 Introducer of the Bath into England. 
 
 In reply to your letter, just received, I have to say that I am very glad to 
 learn that your local board are desirous to introduce the Turkish Bath to 
 those they are about to erect. My opinion of their value for those in health 
 and those suffering from disease, is shown in the toil I have undergone, and 
 the money I have expended in importing this practice from the East into 
 Europe, or rather, in restoring it in the West from ancient times. 
 
 I would earnestly recommend that yourself or other member of the board 
 should visit the bath at Colney Hatch, where Ur. Sheppard will, I am sure, 
 afford you every opportunity of judging of it, also you should visit . the 
 Plammam, 76, ffermyn Street, and take it there. I enclose an order of free 
 admission for yourself and two friends . 
 
 Dr. Sheppard, at Colney Hatch, may perhaps be able to find for you a 
 paper I drew up for him to submit to the board on the saving of expense by 
 its means. 
 
 I think also that some such pa]per was printed at the Hamman ; the 
 secretary there, Mr. Waugh, will know, and furnish you with one. 
 
 I would refer you to my "Manual of the Turkish Bath," but, I believe, it 
 is momentarily out of print. 
 
 Montieux, Vaud, Switzerland. 
 
 From James Leath, Esq. 
 
 I reply to your favour ; my opinion of the Turkish Bath, as a cleansing and 
 sanitary agent is, that it is the only bath that thoroughly cleanses the skin. 
 Homoeopathic Pharmacy, 9, Vere Street, W. 
 
 From the late G. Dornbusch, Esq. 
 
 In reply to your enquiry as to my opinion of the efficacy of the Turkish 
 Bath, I have much pleasure in stating that I consider it in its warmth and 
 moisture combined, superior to any other medical agent in cases in which the 
 skin as well as the mucous membrane, and the respiratory organs, require to 
 be acted upon, as a detergent and purifier of impurities and obstructions in the 
 body. In my opinion a Turkish Bath would be an invaluable addition to any 
 public baths and washhouses. At the same time I wish to throw out a 
 caution that the habitual indulgence in Turkish Baths, too often repeated for 
 any length of time, would be debilitating. I also wish to state that persons 
 who are addicted to the use of intoxicating drinks, or strung tea and coffee, 
 
Chap. X.] 305 
 
 and tobacco, affecting the brain, and whose nervous system is sliattered, 
 would not derive the same benefit as persons who are free from those intem- 
 perate habits. 
 
 To remove that, commonly called a cold, which is really only internal heat, 
 nothing is more efficient than the Turkish Bath, and if one bath is not 
 sufficient a second or third will remove it if anything can do it. In conclusion 
 I am fully convinced that the establishment of public baths, inclading the 
 Turkish, would greatly promote the public health. The only class who are 
 likely to suffer in pocket by the extension of public baths and general bathing, 
 in winter or summer, includes the doctors. They would do less business, but 
 the people would enjoy so much more permanent health. 
 
 Threadneedle Street, E.C. 
 
 From G. J. Holtoake, Esq. 
 
 As I have taken the trouble to promote the establishment of Turkish Baths 
 in many parts of the country, and induce Corporations to provide them for 
 the general use of the working class, I can readily answer your question in 
 the affirmative. I consider that the Turkish Bath, as a sanitary and cleansiug- 
 agent, should be placed within the reach of the working class in every town 
 and district. 
 
 20, Cockspur Street. 
 
 From E. Whitwell, Esq. 
 
 I am thankful to be able to say that under God's blessing, I derived great 
 good from the three weeks treatment I had under IMr. Metcalfe's prescription, 
 and the "Turkish Bath" was the chief instrument for producing the benefit. 
 
 Any arrangement which will give the working classes the opportunity of 
 partaking of similar benefits, will be an important boon to them, and I shall 
 be much interested in hearing of its success. 
 
 Kendal. 
 
 From J. EwiNG Ritchie, Esq. 
 
 It is my opinion that there is nothing more luxurious or more necessary to 
 health and comfort than a Turkish Bath. 
 
 It is to be hoped that the Commissioners may add Turkish Baths to those 
 they are erecting for the working classes. In our day the comfort and 
 cleanliness should be placed within the reach, at any rate, of the working 
 classes 
 
 Ilendon. x 
 
306 . [Chap. X. 
 
 From FfiANK Wbight, Esq. 
 
 In reply to yours I have much satisfaction in learning that it is under con- 
 sideration to add Turkish Baths to the baths and washhouses in Paddington, 
 for I am of opinion that such an addition will very greatly add to their value. 
 I was made a convert to the use of the Turkish bath by personal experience 
 of its value ; and from being a great sceptic have come to regard it as one of. 
 the most useful of sanitary appliances, and I now regularly use it as a means 
 of personal cleanliness in the place of an ordinary warm bath. I shall be glad 
 to learn the result of the discussion in Paddington, and sincerely hope we 
 shall not be behind you in Kensington. 
 
 Kensington, W. 
 
 From tie late W. T\veedie, Esq. 
 
 My long acquaintance with Turkish Baths enables me to speak in the 
 highest terms of their utility as a cleansing agency, and I feel assured that 
 much, very much, disease would be prevented if the poor had it in their 
 power to use such baths as frequently as I think they would do, if placed 
 within their reach. 
 
 The members of my family, from the youngest to the oldest, use Turkish 
 Baths, and have done so for fifteen years. 
 
 337, Strand. 
 
 From George Diblet, Esq. 
 
 I am pleased to inform you that the Turkish Bath is a most important 
 cleansing and sanitary agent, and I consider it highly desirable that the 
 municipal bodies should have them attached to their baths and washhouses. 
 
 Euston Road. 
 
 From E. Steinfielb, Esq., J.P., Ex -Mayor of Ballarat East, Victoria. 
 
 Your communication is to hand in which you state that the Commissioners 
 of Baths for the parish of Paddington are deliberating on the addition of the 
 Turkish Bath and heated lavatories to the bath and washhouses they are 
 about to erect ; and asking my opinion of the Turkish Bath as a cleansing and 
 sanitary agent, and the desirability of providing the proposed facilities for the 
 working classes. 
 
 In reply, I have the honour to state that the city of Ballarat, colony of 
 Victoria, Australia, has the Turkish Bath connected with the public bath. 
 
CiiAr. X.] 307 
 
 That a suitable bulkliug, with the necessary appointments for Turkish Bath 
 purposes, lias been purchased and paid for by the said city council from the 
 city fund (rate-payers' money). That, whilst the baths have been only about 
 three years in existence, they have already proved themselves to be repro- 
 ductive, according to Last balance sheet (1872), receipts and expenditure being 
 about equal (£800 per annum.) A great number of working men, from the 
 nature of their occupation are : — 
 
 1. Exposed to all kinds of weather during the different seasons of the year. 
 
 2. Compelled to work in an unhealthy atmosphere. 
 
 3. Or, become impregnated with dusty substances, composed of different 
 unhealthy ingredients, according to the nature of the occupation. 
 
 That, in all such cases, the Turkish Baths approve themselves as a cleans- 
 ing and sanitary agent. 
 
 It is, therefore, my opinion that the Commissioners of Baths for the parish 
 of Paddington would confer a great boon on the working men of its parish by 
 placing within their reach the great benefits of Turkish Baths, 
 
 Cannon Street, E.G. 
 
 We, the undersigned, have attended the hydropathic treatment under 
 Mr. Metcalfe, 11, Paddington Green, for several years, at intervals, and have 
 ^een greatly benefited in health. 
 
 We believe that the establishment of such treatment, accessible to the 
 working classes, would be of incalculable benefit. 
 
 Michael Parfitt, -t London Citij 
 James Burns, \ Missionaries, 
 
 From Pf. Hall, Esq., F.S.A. 
 
 I have full and entire faith in the efficacy of the Turkish Bath, I think it 
 ■may be made a very valuable source of health to the many to whom, in 
 consequence of its cost, it is not available ; and I shall be happy to aid. 
 any project for giving this blessing to the working classes. 
 
 Avenue Villa, 50, Holland Street, Kensington, W. 
 
 From George CRnicsHANK, Esq. 
 
 In reply to your letter I must tell you that I wash in cold water all the 
 year round, and )<■ so happens that I have not only Hero- used a " Turkish 
 
 X 2 
 
308 [Chap. X. 
 
 Batli " but liave not even seen one, and, tlierefore, can give no opinion 
 respecting it. 
 
 I should advise you to consult my friend Dr. Hardwicke, who is the Medical 
 Inspector of Paddington. 
 
 263, Hampstead Road. 
 
 From J. INIacgregor, Esq., Member of (lie London School Board. 
 
 I do not think the Turkish Bath useful in this climate, except when 
 specially needed medicinally, and that the expense of doing what you 
 propose, in a manner at all likely to secure custom, will be very great. 
 
 Proper hot baths are good, and need only half an hour to be spent ; the 
 Turkish Bath requires two hours. 
 
 Temple, E.G. 
 
 Fi'om R, HrxTEE, Esq., Bridge of Allan Hydropatluc Estdblishment. 
 
 In answer to your inquiry regarding the value of a Turkish Bath, with its 
 accessories of warm water washings, or baths, as a sanitary measure, I have 
 no hesitation in giving my strongest assurance of its value, while, at the 
 same time, it will act as a preventive of disease ; and, without especially 
 intending it, it will prove a valuable aid in curing many common ailments, 
 such as common colds, rheiimatic attacks, &c., as a quiet sweat, taken 
 periodically, or after a chill, prevents or carries off the material of disease. 
 
 The virtue of the Turkish Bath consists in a free perspiration and thorough 
 washing, and it removes both the material of disease and the cause of bad 
 tempers. 
 
 In erecting a Turkish Bath there is great room for skill in economizing 
 space and material, besides ventilation and economy in fuel. I have planned 
 and fitted up two, which gave perfect satisfaction to the extent of fifty per 
 day, while the fuel required for the hot room and water cost only 6d. per 
 day, one of these being in constant use in Glasgow for the last ten years, 
 and is largely frequented ; the charge is Is. The original cost of altering and 
 fitting up a large kitchen, washing-house, wine cellar, and another room for 
 dressing, &c., &c., was only about £100. I have the plans still, and they are 
 at the service of your committee, with more information, if required. As 
 a contrast, the baths with buildings complete, at this place, have cost 
 upwards of £3000 ; I mean for the bathing purposes, independent of the 
 establishment or dwelling. But our baths are, perhaps, the finest in the 
 kingdom, and were built without regard to expense, fourteen years ago. I 
 strongly recommend having the baths all over the country for the working 
 
Chap. X.] 309 
 
 classes. Tliey will have tlie original cost in a year iu health, poors' rates, 
 aud prev^ention of crime, iu addition to saving many lives. I have in various 
 forms given or advised hundreds of thousands of them in the course of 
 twenty-five years' practice. 
 
 From Mr. R. Williams, Cardiff Balls. 
 
 In answer to yours, I enclose my pamphlet of notes on the working of this 
 •estabhshment during the late lessee's tenancy, together with an apportioned 
 account for the same time, and would most strongly advise any gentleman, 
 ■or body of gentlemen, who intend opening baths, not to do so unless they 
 mean to have a Turkish Bath in connexion therewith. 
 
 It is simply invaluable, and ought to be the first consideration, and Hot 
 \^'ater Baths afterwards. If the Turkish Bath is properly conducted, I 
 know of nothing so conducive to the general health of the community at large. 
 
 I could give dozens of instances in which men and women have been kept 
 off the rates through the means of the Turkish Bath, people who could not 
 afford to pay a doctor, but who could, and did, manage to come to the Turkish 
 Bath, and got cured of various forms of disease, principally rheumatism. 
 
 Now, if the Paddington Vestry wish to keep the poor from applying to the 
 Parish Doctor, let them build Turkish Baths ; and, if there should be a small 
 loss on the working expenses, they will find that to be more than balanced by 
 the increased health of the inhabitants ; and the consequent decrease in 
 the number of honajide working men applying ior jMrish relief. 
 
 I shall be most happy to give you any information you may require, and 
 once more strongly urge any one wLo thinks of opening baths, that the first 
 thing to be thought of is a Turkish Bath, at such prices as will enable every- 
 body to derive the benefits of the bath, and I say this after some years' expe- 
 rience as manager of this company. 
 
 i^roHi Mr. John Howe, the Sheffield Turkish and Piihlic Paths Company, Limited. 
 
 I have much pleasure in bearing testimony to the benefit to be derived from 
 he use of the Turkish Bath, both as a cleansing process, and a preventive 
 and curative agent in cases of disease. 
 
 I believe it to be the greatest boon that can be conferred upon the inhabi- 
 tants of a poor district ; and that it will contribute most materially to the well 
 being of the community. I heartily wish you every success in your effort to 
 obtain the baths for the people. 
 
 I may say that several most remarkable cures have been effected at our 
 Baths in cases of fever, rheumatism, and reputed consumption. 
 
From Mr. Philip Ryder, Oriental Batlis, Lictrpool. 
 
 In reply to your note of inquiry, relative to the Turkish Bath for the poor» 
 I beg to state that, in its application as a remedial agent in the treatment 
 of disease, it is a priceless boon to humanity. 
 
 I have for some years witnessed the advantages of the Turkish Bath as a. 
 great sanitary blessing in maintaining perfect vigour and a healthy condition 
 of body. 
 
 From J. CoNSTANTilTE, Turkish^ Russian, and Hydropathic Baths, Manchester.. 
 
 Yours is to hand. There is no doubt the working classes will use the 
 Turkish Bath freely in any large town if they could have them at a moderate 
 price. 
 
 At this place our Turkish Bath accommodation is limited, the lowest price is- 
 Is. 6d., and yet the working clat^ses use the Is. 6d. bath pretty freely. There 
 can be no doubt as to the superior cleansing properties of the Turkish Bath ^ 
 
 There is a Working Men's Turkish Bath at Sheffield, which is very 
 extensively patronized. 
 
 From Mr. W. Mathewman, The Oriental and General Bath Company^ 
 
 Limited, Leeds, 
 
 I believe the Turkish Bath is the only bath for sanitary, cleansing purposes 
 that is effectual, and, if taken regularly by every one, would prevent a great 
 deal of disease, if not altogether get rid of it. 
 
 From Mr. T. Caeruthers, Turkish Baths, Luton. 
 
 In reply to yours I have to say that it affords me great pleasure to kno\r 
 that an effoi't is being made anywhere to give the working, or any other clas^^ 
 the means of cleanliness, which I am confident the hot-air bath (and only 
 that), is emphatically. 
 
 I have had six years experience as an attendant and manager of a hot-air 
 bath, and am free to say that I know no means of bodily cleanliness that can 
 be allowed to bear the remotest comparison with it. I believe it to be, also, 
 an effectual means of protection from the infection of small pox, as well a* 
 all other infections, and, perhaps, contagious diseases, just because it makea- 
 the body absolutely clean, which no other sort of bathing can accomplish ; 
 i.e., when the Turkish Bath is properly applied — for, I am sorry to say, it is 
 ■well known that there are Turkish Baths and Turkish Baths. 
 
Chap. X.] 311 
 
 I am of opinion, finally, that the working classes cannot be expected uor 
 relied on in great numbers to use the hot-air bath at a higher price than 6d., 
 and I do not think it can be made self-supporting at any lower rate. 
 
 From Mr. W. Allison, Secretary of the Manchester and SaJford Baths and 
 Laundries Company. 
 
 I do not think the popularity of the Turkish Bath with the working classes 
 is on the increase. My opinion of it, as a cleansing agency, is favourable, 
 and, if a Turkish Bath could be obtained at as low a rate as a warm bath, 
 it is probable that a great many more would use it. 
 
 From Mr. T. S. Huss, Corporation Baths, Derby. 
 
 In reply to your letter I am sorry to inform you we have no Turkish Bath 
 here, or nearer than Nottingham. I am just now seeking the same informa- 
 tion for which you ask, that I may bring the subject before our Committee 
 of Management. 
 
 I may say that the many persons, "strangers," who came here hoping to 
 find a Turkish Bath, and the disappointment they showed, has convinced me 
 of its superiority, and has led me to go into the matter. 
 ■ Corporation Baths, Derby. 
 
 From Mr. James Bl'Rns. 
 
 In my popular lectures on Physiology, Hygiene, and Social Reform, I have 
 always advocated that hot-air baths should be attached to every large factory, 
 so that the workpeople could clean themselves and change their raiment 
 before they retired to their homes. I have found in my travels that the idea 
 has been taken up by Town Corporations, viz., Bradford, where I have found 
 the baths crowded ; at Keighley, the large pile of baths and washhouses, 
 including Turkish Baths, were not finished at my last visit. My opinion is, 
 that the hot-air bath is of more importance than all other baths as a cleanser. 
 It combines the usual forms of ablution and, in addition, sets the excretions 
 in action, so that any dirt or poison in the pores, with the effete matters 
 caused by labour, are expelled. 
 
 It has been proved that painters using the baths are saved from colic, and 
 Avorkmeu who inhale or absorb deleterious substances cannot be cleansed with 
 water alone, but require the hot-air bath and shampoo. 
 
 Hoping that Paddiugtou may be blessed with such baths. 
 
 Southampton Eow, W.C. 
 
312 [Chap. X. 
 
 From Mr. A. Samwell, Turkish Baths, Leicester. 
 
 In reply to your letter of enquiry, I beg to say that I have been manager 
 eight years, during the first four of which it was difl&cult to pay expenses ; 
 but, since taking them on my own account, the prices have been 2s. 6d., Is. 6d., 
 and Is., the working classes availing themselves of the opportunity imme- 
 diately, and now the establishment pays 12 per cent. 
 
 I have also been well supported in opening from 5 a.m. to 8 a.m. for 6d., 
 without shampooing. There is now formed in Leicester a new company, who 
 are building very superior baths, which are to open in January next, and 
 which, I expect, will reduce mine to a complete working man's bath. 
 
 Frovi Mr. J. Tollet, Oxford Turkish Baths. 
 
 In answer to your letter, allow me to say I have had twelve years experi- 
 ence in the management of Turkish Baths, and, during that time, I have had 
 numbers of proofs of their value. They are, indeed, invaluable for cleanliness 
 and improvement in health ; not only so, but they cure almost anything. I 
 have cured othtrs, and, when ill myself, have cured myself; and, I think, if 
 people knew more what the Turkish Bath can do. there would be many more 
 similar establishments in England than now exist. I have often wondered 
 that some one does not take the matter up in the London papers. 
 
 From Mr. B. Lett, The Baths, Worcester. 
 
 In reply to your inquiry for information on Turkish Baths, I am happy to 
 give you the little which I can. 
 
 I conclude that if the Baddington Vestry build such baths, the charge for 
 attendance would not exceed 6d. With regard to the success of the under- 
 taking I cannot give an opinion, which would depend upon circumstances. 
 If the medical profession in your district will take the matter up, and 
 prescribe the use of the baths as a healthful and remedial agent, there is 
 ittle doubt of success in a commercial point of view. 
 
 For my own part, I am very much convinced of the benefits, socially, morally, 
 and physically, that would result to mankind from the more general use of 
 the bath. 
 
Chap. X.] 313 
 
 From Mr. T. Roberts, Skipton. 
 
 In answer to yours, I beg to inform you that it is about two years since I 
 gave up my Turkish Bath, as I could not get sufficiently supported. Perhaps 
 the population of Skipton was too small. But, after an experience extending 
 over seven years, I feel convinced if the Turkish Bath cannot command the 
 support of the working classes, iwne other ivill. 
 
 As to the necessity of some cleansing agent to which our thickly populated 
 townspeople can resort, no one, I think, having given the least thought to 
 the subject, can, for one moment entertain a doubt ; and, for aught 1 know 
 to the contrary, no other appliance can equal the Turkish Bath as a thorough 
 purifier of the skin. 
 
 From IVIr. W. Lock, Turkish Baths, Eton. 
 
 In answer to your letter, I am happy to give you all the information I can 
 respecting the Turkish Bath. I believe it is the finest institution ever 
 opened. I was in the first established in London. I have always enjoyed 
 good health, and so have my wife and family. 
 
 I believe if the Turkish Bath was more generally used throughout the 
 country as a cleanser, there would not be so much disease as there is. The 
 great prejudice which now exists, I have no doubt, will be overcome Avhen 
 the value of the bath is better known. 
 
 From Mr. J. Hastie, Turkish Bath, Neiccastle-on-Tyiie. 
 
 In reference to your letter received, respecting a Turkish Bath for the 
 working classes, I have not a very cheering account to give, as I do not think 
 the working men yet understand the value of it. If they did, our town of 
 JS'ewcastle would have four instead of one ; still, the visitors who do use it 
 regularly, say they would not, on any account, be without it. 
 
 AVe have three classes, Fiist being 2s. 6d., Second, Is. Cd., and Third, Cd. ; 
 the different prices enable all classes to avail themselves of a bath suitable to 
 their means. 
 
 I think you will confer a great boon on the inhabitants of your district in 
 ■establibliiug a Turkish Bath for the use of not the working classes alone, but 
 all will be benefited bv them. 
 
314 [Chap. X. 
 
 Frovi Mi\ W. Chester, Turkish ButJis, Soulhport. 
 
 As far as it concerns a thorough cleansing, there is no bath to compare to 
 it, *nd we all know that cleanliness is a great key-note to health. 
 
 From Mr. J. Rose, Soutliavipton. 
 
 Having been connected with Turkish Baths for about eleven years, I can 
 truly say they are a great boon to any town, I myself having cured hundreds 
 of cases of illness that have come under my notice, besides having benefited 
 many others. I have been very successful both with rich and poor, and am 
 persuaded that if the vestry would add a Turkish Bath to the baths and 
 washhouses, they would confer a great benefit on the working classes, both 
 for cleanliness and retaining health. 
 
 Frovi Mr. W. H. Green, Common Councilman, Kidderminster. 
 
 Your kind letter, inquiring for any information I could give relating to 
 Turkish Baths, should not have remained unanswered so long, but for my 
 inability to write, as I am suffering at present from a misfortune which the 
 bath cannot reach. 
 
 The letter enclosed, which I wrote to one of our local papers, will give you 
 my general views on the subject, and from that, and other efforts that I 
 made of the same nature, I brought about the adoption of the baths by our 
 corporation. 
 
 Upon my solicitation, the whole of our medical faculty signed the requisi- 
 tion to the corporation. 
 
 My own experience of the baths began at Worcester. Owing to 
 rheumatism, I found a benefit from them I could not too highly appreciate. 
 For that affliction, and also my general health, I had previously consulted 
 Dr. Bell Fletcher, of Birmingham, and others, with little effect. 
 
 Whilst going to the Turkish Baths at Worcester and Birmingham, about 
 twice a week, for two or three months, I was startled at the various cures 
 that I saw, and the expressions of gratitude that I heard from those that had 
 derived benefit from the baths ; and knowing that many sufferers among the 
 working classes, that could not afford to go, were in my own midst, I was 
 determined to agitate the matter, so as to. induce the corporation to give the 
 town the advantage of such a blessing which now exists. 
 
 Although some prejudice prevailed, yet, I am pleased to say, that some of 
 
Chap. X.] 315 
 
 those who manifested such prejudice have lived to praise the Turkish Batl), 
 and many are the advantages that would be derived but for such stupid 
 ignorance, which retards the progress of many a blessing. 
 
 From Mr. W. Gates, Turkish Baths, Rotherhcm. 
 
 I am quite satisfied with my baths, and know that they will do better still. 
 It is very cheering to find that they not only pay, but that they do a great 
 deal of good. 
 
 From ISLt. E. Marshall, Turkish Baths, Barnsley. 
 
 1 am always glad to push the Turkish Bath, for it is superior to all others. 
 The benefits derived from it, the delightful feeling after, are so different 
 from the water or steam ; they all come far short of it. I have stayed in the 
 bath all night many times, and gone to business in the morning quite ficsh 
 and full of vigour. If you can get a Turkish Bath attached to your baths it 
 will be a blessing to those who avail themselves of it. 
 
 Those who filled our bath, qualified or not, when free, were the poor 
 •weavers. The same men came again and again, night after night, so long 
 as it was fiee, even out of the villages. 
 
 From Mr. Geo. Dunn, The Priory, Doncaster. 
 
 1 had a Turkish Bath attached to the St. James' Hospital for many years, 
 and found it not only useful in a sanitary point of view, but essential in^ 
 many severe cases of neuralgia and rheumatism, and, in my opinion, no town 
 or district sliould be without one. 
 
 You are at liberty to make any use you like of this letter. 
 
 From Mr. T. Wallington, Turkish Baths, Plymo^ith. 
 
 In reply to yours I beg to say I have had thirteen years experience as a 
 shampooer and manager in different Turkish Baths in England, and am sorry 
 to say have tried to induce the working classes in different towns to avail 
 themselves of the only mode of cleansing their skins, without effect. 
 
316 [Chap. X. 
 
 I should very much like to see the working classes take to the baths, for 1 
 am quite convinced it 'would be the means of preventing one half of the 
 sickness we have. 
 
 From Mr, J. H. Bryning, Surrey Turkish Baths, Blachfriars Road. 
 
 In reply to your letter I beg to state my opinion, which is, as a remedial 
 agent, and a means of cleansing, there is no bath equal to the Turkish. It 
 may be given to the youngest infant, or the oldest person, with perfect safety 
 and great benefit. 
 
 As to getting the poor to take the bath, let it be ever so cheap, this must 
 take time. They, like the rich, have their prejudices, and being uneducated, 
 you cannot persuade them that it is either necessary or beneficial, therefore, 
 it makes it a work of time. 
 
 When you find prejudice in educated medical men, you cannot wonder that 
 the masses should be so. 
 
 There is a Turkish Bath in new St. Thomas's Hospital, and they will not 
 nvail themselves of its curative powers ; therefore it is not used, although Dr. 
 Erasmus Wilson, and Dr. Goulden are both so favourable to its use. There is 
 mo doubt if the vestry should provide a Turkish Bath, and the price of 
 -admission was 6d. that many of the intelligent working men would avail them- 
 selves of it when it became known, but for the class you want to make the 
 bath, viz., the very poor, the charge must not be more than 3d. each. 
 
 From Mr. AY. Feexch, Turkish Baths, Stratford Neiv Town. 
 
 I would like to see the Turkish Bath adopted by the working man, indeed 
 all people in England. 
 
 I am convinced it would benefit the health of the masses more as a preven- 
 tive to small-pox, or any epidemics, fevers, &c., than vaccination, or anything 
 else ever invented ; but the opposition of a vast number of medical men, from 
 .selfish motives, must be first overcome, for they, as quietly as possible, hinder 
 its use as much as they can. 
 
 After over 12 years experience as a proprietor, I can say with truth I have 
 not known one bather of ours to have any of the complaints aforementioned. 
 
 Its value in colds, rheumatism, sciatica, gout, and all that family, is well 
 known to all who seek to know. As Dr. Brereton says, "it has become a 
 question, not what the bath will cure, but what it will not." 
 
Chap. X.] 317 
 
 From Mr. J. Johnson, 25, TIan-ington Square, N.W. 
 
 I have been in many baths, including Liverpool, Southampton, two 
 at Manchester, Southport, Dublin, Brighton, and most of the baths in 
 London. I was a great sufferer from illness, and in the habit of taking 
 Turkish Baths very frequently for the last four years, I have better health 
 than I had for years previously. As to cleanliness, they are perfection itself. 
 
 Should you think more of the matter, I could give you a vast amount of 
 information as to benefits derived from the baths, and as to the building of 
 premises, and would take pleasure in so doing. 
 
 Fi'om INIr. W. EyANS, Hospital for Throat Diseases, Golden Square. 
 
 In reply to your letter, I beg to state that my father has quite given up the 
 Turkish Bath business. 
 
 For some time he left me the entire management of the baths in John 
 Street. This Hospital then required the house to enlarge their premises, so I 
 had to give up, and have had very little to do with the business since. 
 
 Having the experience of my father, formerly engaged in the business, I 
 think it would be well to have Turkish Baths connected with the ordinary 
 washing baths, and if so connected, I believe, would be well patronized, not 
 only in London, but in the North of England where the experiment has been 
 tried at the charge of sixpence. When my father was in Bell Street, Edgware 
 Eoad, I noticed we used to have a great many working men from different 
 parts of London on Saturday nights and Sunday mornings, when our charge 
 for a bath was one shilling. 
 
 I think if there is any room to spare in the St. Marylebone Bath, it might 
 be easily converted at a little cost. The idea now is making baths grand, but 
 the plainer they are, I think, the more effectual. 
 
 /Vom Mr. Cuert, Turkish Baths, Gosicell Road. 
 
 Mr. Curry desires me to say that you cannot do a better thing than build 
 a Turkish Bath for the working classes. 
 
 From ]\Ir. T. Smith, Turkish Baths, City Road. 
 
 I will just say that I wish you every success in your efforts to establish 
 Turkish Baths for the working classes, and I am willing to give you all the 
 
318 • [Chap. X. 
 
 .assistance I possibly can, and I think I can prove to any one that may call on 
 me, or to a committee that may be formed to carry out the above object, that 
 •a good bath can be given to the working classes for 6d. 
 
 From Mr. J. P. Prickaed, TurJdsh Baths, Leicester Square. 
 
 Your important letter has only just been handed to me, in consequence of 
 ■our shampooer putting it in his pocket. It is a most important thing that 
 the working classes should have a Turkish ^ath, as they would see if 
 they only knew the benefits to be derived therefrom. 
 
 Fro7n Mr. J. Burton, TurJdsh Baths, Easton Road. 
 
 Your letter has j)artly been overlooked, I am now building a bath entirely 
 devoted to ladies. I am confident if I had my way in this matter, I would 
 compel every person, man, woman, and child, to wash every day. You have 
 now an Act to compel children to go to school, at the same time compel them 
 to be clean. 
 
 We have spent in draining, sewering, &c., millions of money, but, stiU, the 
 people are dirty. I should like to see every corporation in England adopt the 
 Turkish Baths. 
 
 From Mr. E. Fr.aley, Ti(rJd.sh Baths, Neath. 
 
 In answer to yours, the building of Turkish Baths for the working classes 
 would, in my humble opinion, be one of the greatest blessings that could 
 possibly be conferred upon them. 
 
 I hope no village or town will be without its bath, and supported to a great 
 extent by the working man. He is the person who ought to take them most, 
 as his health is his capital. 
 
 From Mr. T. Atkins, TurJdsh BatJis, MertJiyr Tydv'il. 
 
 In reply to your letter, I beg to state that after seven years experience, it 
 is my opinion that if the facilities for using the Turkish Bath at a small charge 
 was extended to the working classes, it would be extensively used, and I also 
 think that it would greatly benefit the health of the community, and 1 could, 
 it necessary, state hundreds of cases in which the baths have proved very 
 efficacious. 
 
CiiAP. X.] 319 
 
 From Mr. T. Coakley, Turkhl Baths, Belfast. 
 
 I am in receipt of your note requiring information as to tlie adoption of the 
 Turkish Bath by the Paddington Vestry, and, in reply, beg to state that I am 
 of opinion it would be one of the greatest boons that could be conferred on the 
 working classes. But I regret to have to inform you that though Working 
 Class Baths are now in operation here about twelve years, yet, so very few 
 avail themselves of them, that, in fact, they are not worth keeping open, 
 inasmuch as they are not paying expenses. 
 
 The working classes, generally speaking, do not appreciate the bath; at 
 least, in Belfast they do not to any extent. 
 
 From Mr. S. "Woemleigiitox, Roden House, Limerick. 
 
 I had "better state that ray connection with the late Dr. Barter, as sole 
 partner in the Limerick Bath, for the last thirteen years, and now sole owner, 
 as well as that of the Waterford Turkish Bath, has furnished me with the 
 means of observing how the working classes appreciate them when placed 
 before them in a proper manner and at a reasonable charge. The value of 
 the Turkish Bath as a cleansing agent cannot be too highly appreciated, for 
 no invention with water was ever known that could cleanse from the interior 
 of the pores as the hot-air bath does. 
 
 I look on it as the greatest boon to all classes, not only as a curative agent 
 in cases of illness, but, in its broader sense, as a powerful sanitary pilot that 
 will bring the working man to consider the health of his home as well as that ' 
 of his own person. 
 
 From Mr. S. Stolls, TurJdsh BaOis, Lincoln Place. Dublin. 
 
 I have been connected, as manager, with the Turkish Baths for the last 
 twelve years. I find them a first rate cure, especially for the poor, who often 
 are subject to rheumatism and severe colds ; I think you will find them the 
 "poor man's friend." We have had men, women, and children, all cripples, 
 brought to this bath, and, after taking them nightly for a fortnight, I have 
 seen them walk out quite well. 
 
 If any of your friends should ever come to Dublin I shaU be very happy to 
 show them the working of the bath. About ten years ago fourteen lunatics 
 attended here for experiment, for a month. Most of them received relief, 
 and some I saw myself were quite cured. 
 
 I know of no disease that the Turkish Bath cannot cure. If they had been 
 used more frequently in the treatment of small pox, in my opinion, it would 
 not have lasted so long. 
 
320 [Chap. X. 
 
 J'rom Mr. T. L. Harvey, Waterford TurMsli Bath Company [Limited), Watcrford. 
 
 In reply to your letter, our Turkish Bath is much used as a general 
 cleanser and purifier of the skin by the middle class, as well as the respectable, 
 but it is not supplied at a sufl3.ciently low rate to be much used by the lower, 
 or working classes. 
 
 I am quite satisfied that, taken in moderation, the bath is a most valuable 
 sanitary agent in cleansing and purging the skin, and encouraging a natural 
 and healthy perspiration, preserving the body in health, and, in cases of 
 colds, restoring the normal action of the system, and promoting restoration. 
 In rheumatisim it is most excellent. 
 
 The working classes icill use the baths if supplied at a low rate. 
 
 From IVIr. T. KicOL, lurldsli Batlis, Glasgow. 
 
 I will give you my experience, having been about seven years attendant 
 and proprietor. During the first four years the Turkish Bath was not much 
 patronized or countenanced by the doctors of Glasgow, but, during the last 
 three years, I have had a great number of patients from them, and also from 
 the infirmary, the authorities of which are just now paying cab and baths 
 for several chronic rheumatic patients, from which number I have seen men 
 who were not able to walk, but had to be carried into the bath, able to walk 
 out from the infirmary upwards of a mile after the first or second bath. 
 Four baths as a rule have been sufiicient for these cases, the success of which 
 has induced the professional men to now favour the Turkish Bath, and the 
 public follow suit, so that I have been doing more in Turkish Baths during 
 the last two years than I did before. 
 
 From Mr. W. Fisher, TurTcisli Baths, Princes Street, Edinlurgh. 
 
 I have very great pleasure in recommending the Turkish Baths to the 
 public in general. As a cleansing and sanitary agent it is certainly invalu- 
 able. 
 
 From Mr. J. Sutherland, Hydropathic Institution, West Campbell Street, 
 
 Glasf/ow. 
 
 Your favour to hand. 
 
 I cheerfully comply with your request in giving my humble opinion of the 
 value of bathing as a means of cure and comfort to the physical frame, 
 personally on myself and family for more than twenty-five years, half of the 
 
Chap. X.] 321 
 
 above period in tlic Tuvkisli Batk daily, and during that time have accom- 
 plished cures in skin diseases from simple eruption to scrofula in the neck 
 •and other portions of the body, rheumatism, acute and chronic, diarrhoea, 
 indigestion, flatulence, &c. 
 
 Those who study the laws of health prize the bath. 
 
 The merchant from his counting house, the lawyer from his desk, find it an 
 excellent substitute for exercise. To the languid and careworn it gives 
 energy; to the overwrought citizen, a stimulant. Xo other thing can be 
 compared to it. 
 
 That the Turkish Bath does not weaken, experience has proved beyond 
 doubt, and the day is coming when its value will be acknowledged by the 
 faculty; and the public, more alive to its beneiits, would take their motto from 
 Shakspeare, "Throw physic to the dogs," with this addition, "Take the 
 Turkish Bath." 
 
 From Mr. T. Edmonson, Windermere Batli. 
 
 I am quite satisfied in my own mind that if the working classes had the 
 Turkish Bath at a cheap rate it would be a great benefit to their health. 
 There is no doubt that keeping the skin in proper order is one of the greatest 
 blessings that people can have ; I believe that there are many complaints 
 brought on by the skin not being able to do its work, with the pores all being 
 clogged up, whereas if they could get the Turkish Bath it might throw off 
 many a complaint. I hope before many years go round there will be a 
 Turkish Bath in every village in England. Hydropathy is still on the increase. 
 
 From Mr. T. Sowter, Beulali Spa, Upper Norwood. 
 
 In replying briefly to your communication I would state that, if I gave you 
 the result of twelve months' experience, I must fill sheets with interesting 
 cases cured, or greatly relieved, by the Turkish Bath. 
 
 As a blood purifier and preventive of disease, I have the highest opinion 
 of it. 1 have seen the complexion of a lady completely changed under its 
 use, to the astonishment of the visitors in the house ; also, a new head of 
 hair has crowned its daily use. I believe it to be an eradicator of most 
 hereditary diseases, and that it puts the human organism in the best possible 
 position for resisting every invader in the way of disease. 
 
 Turkish Baths for the working classes must be a great boon in Paddiuo-ton 
 and would only be the forerunner of the same being established in other 
 districts. 
 
322 [Chaf. X. 
 
 THE FOLLOWIN'3- TESTIIffONIALS WESE PBESEIITED TO THE 
 KIDDERMINSTER LOCAL ATJTHOHITIES IN FAVOTJB, 05" 
 THE TURKISH BATHS BEING ERECTED ON THE RATES 
 FOR THE LABOURING CLASSES. 
 
 From David Corbet, M.R.CS., L.M., L.S.A., Medical Officer oflhaWu 
 
 I have been in the habit of recommending my patients of a gonty or 
 rhenmatic diathesis a Turkish Bath, at least twice a week, and I have always- 
 found, when they have regularly followed it up, that their health has become 
 greatly improved. To the " seedy " man, whether from over-work or free 
 living, I have found no restorative like the Turkish Bath. 
 
 Kidderminster, March 8th, 1876. 
 
 Trom 'Wii, Eoeen, M.D., A.M., Fellow of tie 'Royal Medical and Cliirmgicat 
 
 Society, London. 
 
 I am of opinion that the Turkish Bath is a remediable means of great- 
 power and value in many cases of serious disease. There are, doubtless,, 
 forms of disease, on the other hand, in which proper advice should be sought 
 before its use. There are also numerous cases of less serious import in which 
 this bath may be used by the public at large with great benefit ; and it is 
 well therefore, that in all large communities the authorities should provide- 
 the working, and struggling middle classes, with sit eh a sanitary auxiliary 
 at as moderate a rate as possible, having regard more to the general welfare 
 than to the mere pecuniary profit. 
 
 The upper classes, and those who use the bath as a luxury, should never- 
 theless aid the undertaking by paying the reasonable costs of the bath. • 
 
 Morningside, Kidderminster, March l8th, 187G. 
 
 From Samuel Stretton, M.R.C.S., London, S,c., Hon. Surgeon tt> tJie Kidder- 
 minster Ivjirmary. 
 
 Although few of my patients may have taken advantage of our local 
 Turkish Bath, my opinion as to its great benefit remains unchanged. In 
 addition to its value as a curative agent, I look iipon the bath as a healthful 
 luxury to all those who are able to enjoy it. 
 
 March-2nd, 187G. 
 
" Chap. X.] 323 
 
 From E. H. Addenbrooke, M.R.C.S., London, cj-c, Hon. Surgeon to tJie 
 Kidderminster Lifirmary. 
 
 1 hope in any new arrangements that may be contemplated in connection 
 with the baths, that the prices of admission to the Turkish Baths will not 
 prevent their being available at stated times for the working classes, as well 
 as for the more wealthy. 
 
 The Tiu-kish Bath is not only a great luxury, if properly carried out, but 
 also is of great assistance in the treatment of some diseases and in the preven- 
 tion of others. 
 
 Kidderminster, March 3rd, 1876. 
 
 From John Hillman, Senior Hon. Surgeon to the Kidderminster Lifirmary. 
 
 The Turkish Baths are, in my opinion, a great boon to the inhabitants of 
 Kidderminster. 
 
 Several of my patients, suffering from gout, rheumatism, congestion of the 
 internal organs, &c., have derived the greatest relief from their use. If the 
 charges for the baths could be reduced a httle, I think they would be much 
 more extensively used ; they are, in my opinion, too high for the middle and 
 working classes. 
 
 30, Mill Street, Kidderminster. Mii-ch 29th, 1876. 
 
 From M. COWEN, M.K.C.S.E., & L.M. 
 
 I have recommended patients of mine, suffering from various complaints, to 
 the Turkish Baths, and in every case they experienced great benefit. 1 
 therefore have no hesitation in recommending them to the public as a 
 preventive, and an important auxiliary in the cure of disease. 
 
 E^dderminster. 
 
 The foregoing letters are, to say the least, an evidence of the 
 interest taken in bathing. Fifteen years ago it would have been 
 difficult to obtain the expression of one half the sentiment, anu 
 
 Y 2 
 
324 [Chap. X. 
 
 it is encouraging to find such a change in the feelings of the 
 *' upper ten thousand " respecting bathing as a sanitary agent. 
 
 Although some of the correspondents may not approve of the 
 hot-air bath being added to the baths and washhouses, yet they 
 all believe in the necessity of baths for the people. 
 
 I may observe that the whole of the late IVIinistry were written 
 to, and, with the exception of Earl Oarlingford and the Kight 
 Hon. A. S. Ayrton, they declined to give an opinion. The Hon, 
 A. S. Ayrton thinks the Turkish Bath should not be administered 
 except under the supervision of medical men ; but it is proverbial 
 that this gentleman must say something odd, and he replies in 
 the usual pedantic style for which he was famed when in office. 
 We assume all establishments to be conducted by qualified 
 persons, and it is rather a reflection on their intelligence if it 
 is thought necessary that every bather [should have his pulse 
 felt by a medical man before taking the bath ; a practice not 
 only inconvenient, but one that experience has proved un- 
 necessary. The Turkish Bath is fraught with kindness and not 
 danger to animal life, and besides, the information sought was 
 for warm lavatories, and not an opinion of the medical efficacy of 
 the Turkish Bath. 
 
 G. Crulkshank, Esq. This eminent artist, I am sorry to observe, 
 says he has never had a Turkish Bath. " It is never too late to 
 mend," and even in his latter days it is quite possible he might 
 add to his fame if he witnessed its surprising remedial effects — for 
 instance, it is not unusual for some Individuals to be carried into 
 the hot room, helplessly inebriated, and others suffering from 
 Rheumatism, and after undergoing the bath processes, the one 
 would be sober and the other able to walk out without assistance. 
 As they were before going into the bath, and as they are after 
 leaving the bath, might form good subjects for his genius. 
 
 With regard to the letters from medical men generally they 
 may be considered highly favourable, but Drs. Watson, Parkes, 
 Sir W. W. Gull, T. King Chambers, Andrew Clarke, Burrows 
 
Chap. X.] 325 
 
 Sieveking, C. B. Williams, Ballard, Bristowe and Nicholas, all 
 agree upon the medical efficacy of the Turkish Bath, but add 
 some remarks which are scarcely worth noticing. Their queries 
 are thoroughly exhausted in the chapters on " Economics, and 
 Warm Water versus Hot Air," and need no comment here. 
 
 It must be admitted there is a tentativeness and lukewarm- 
 ness about the communications from medical officers — they 
 neither blow hot nor cold, and are apparently afraid to speak out 
 their minds ; this some readers will wonder at, but those who 
 have had experience in the management of Local Self Govern- 
 ments will perfectly understand. Every officer finds it necessary 
 for the sake of ease and comfort with his masters to exercise 
 a kind of prudent diplomacy in the discharge of his duties. 
 
 The mental composition of the members of Local Boards are 
 so constituted as to embrace an infinite variety of opinions, 
 and, however absurd some of these may be, their officers deem it 
 wise not to intrude their own opinions too much on the Board, 
 or their situations might be in danger. 
 
 It is lamentable to find from experience that there is a good 
 deal of friction and party feeling exhibited by our Local Boards in 
 general, and in many cases to the great injury of the management 
 of their affiiirs. It is an absolute fact that officers wishing to retain 
 their position with any degree of peace, it is desirable they should 
 hold no opinions but simply do as they are bid by the Board, 
 hence the same reticence is observable in all public communica- 
 tions from the highest to the lowest officer. 
 
 Notwithstanding, the letters from the medical officers, when 
 closely analysed, disclose evidence decidedly in favour of the 
 Turkish Bath as a therapeutic agent. 
 
 Letters were sent to Inspectors of Nuisances, and the rej)He3. 
 received, I regret to say, reflect neither credit in tl^eir com- 
 position nor intelligent knowledge of their duties, consequently 
 they are not published. 
 
 I hope to be pardoned for observing that I think the time has 
 
326 [Chap. X. 
 
 arrived when the educational standard of our inspectors of 
 nuisances should be raised, in fact there should be an educational 
 qualification enacted by Parliament, I have had some painful 
 experience of the general inefficiency of inspectors in the dis- 
 charge of their delicate duties, and it is really important that they 
 should be gentlemen possessed with as much prudence, discretion 
 and intelligence, as medical officers. 
 
827 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 cm? 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Adulteration of intoxicating drink 255 
 Air, the importance of abundance 192 
 Alcohol, Professor Miller on ... 2-14 
 
 Alcohol injurious ... 245 
 
 Alcohol as food 246 
 
 Alcohol will not fortify against 
 
 cold 252 
 
 Alcohol, opinions of medical men 
 
 as medicine 265 
 
 Alcohol not a natui-al drink ... 266 
 Alcohol, Modification of the views 
 
 of medical men on ... ... 267 
 
 Alcoholic hevcrages, arguments 
 
 against ... ... ... ... 246 
 
 Alcoholic drinks in the Arctic 
 
 Eegions ... ... ... ... 251 
 
 Antiquity of the Bath J09 
 
 Ashton-under-Lyne Baths ... 63 
 
 Baines, Ed., on moderate drinking 248 
 Balbimie, Dr., on perspiration ... 100 
 
 Barnsley Baths 85 
 
 J3arter, Dr., Introduction of the 
 
 Tuikish Bath 102 
 
 Barter, Dr., on Turkish Bath in 
 
 lunacy cases ... ... ...191 
 
 Bath Act passed 11 
 
 Bath Act amended ... ... 12 
 
 Bath for sanitary purposes ... 128 
 
 Bath preserves health 133 
 
 Bathing a human instinct ... 120 
 
 Suthing in rivers and ponds ... 140 
 
 PAGE 
 
 163 
 1 
 
 3 
 
 4 
 
 Bathing more essential in Winter 
 
 than Summer 
 Baths, The rise and progress of . 
 Baths, Liverpool Corporation . 
 Baths, Glass House Yard 
 Baths, Goulston Square ... ... 5 
 
 Baths, George Street, Euston 
 
 Square ... ... ... ... 9 
 
 Baths and Yfashhouses erected on 
 
 the Bates 23 
 
 Baths known to the Ancients ... 105 
 
 Baths in Ireland 112 
 
 Baths in Russia ... ... ... 114 
 
 Baths in Japan 115 
 
 Baths in Tartary 118 
 
 Baths in China 119 
 
 Baths in New Zealand 120 
 
 Baths would lessen poor rates ... 198 
 Bermondsey Public Baths ... 31 
 
 lilston Baths ... ... ... 77 
 
 Birmingham Baths ... ... 1 
 
 Blackburn Baths 64 
 
 Both, Dr., on diseases produced by 
 
 alcohol 241 
 
 Bradford Baths 8G 
 
 Bradford Corporation Baths ... 167 
 Brereton, Dr., opinion on Turkish 
 
 Bath 133 
 
 Brighton Baths 80 
 
 Bristol Baths ... ... ... 59 
 
 Brstow, Dr., on Turksh lihs ... 1S4 
 
328 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Buckingliam, Mr. J. Silk, Batli 
 
 Bill introduced 9 
 
 Bucknill, Dr., on the treatment of 
 
 inebriates ... 262 
 
 Burns, EeT. Dawson, on drinking 240 
 Bums, Eev. Dawson, strong drink 
 
 retards Christianity 243 
 
 Bury Baths 65 
 
 Canterbury 61 
 
 Capabilities of the Bath 154 
 
 Cardiff Baths 58 
 
 Carpenter, Dr., on heated atmos- 
 phere ... ... ... ... 131 
 
 Carpenter, Dr., on perspiration ... 189 
 Charges sanctioned by the Act ... 14 
 
 Chester Baths 49 
 
 Chinese system of paying for 
 
 advice 180 
 
 Christie, Dr., on habitual drunk- 
 ards 248 
 
 Clarke, Dr., description of a 
 
 Russian Bath 115 
 
 Clarke, Dr., on the benefits from 
 
 Baths 117 
 
 Clergymen, Memorial from four- 
 teen thousand 243 
 
 Cold Bath ought not to be taken 123 
 Comforts of the Hot-air Bath ... 137 
 
 Condition 148 
 
 Convocation of the English Church 
 
 on intemperance 243 
 
 Coombe, Dr., on Turkish Bath ... 133 
 Cooper, Sir Astley, on cold water 230 
 Cooper, Sir Astley, on Alcohol ... 241 
 Counties in which the Baths and 
 Washhouses Act have not been 
 
 adopted 90 
 
 Coventry Baths ... ... ... 83 
 
 Croydon Baths 79 
 
 Cummins, Dr., on Dry Air ... 129 
 
 Daily News on Goulston Square 
 
 Baths 7 
 
 Decorations 154 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Delirium Tremens 254 
 
 Derby Baths 62 
 
 Dewsbury Baths 86 
 
 Difficulties in ordering Turkish 
 
 Baths 197 
 
 Dipsomania 235 
 
 Dipsomania, Dr. A. Peddie on ... 253 
 Dipsomania, Treatment of ... 268 
 Dipsomania, Hydropathic treat- 
 ment of 270 
 
 Disadvantages of warm water 
 
 bathing 136 
 
 Discomfits of the present bathing 
 
 system ... 161 
 
 Donovan, Mrs., opinion of Turk- 
 ish Baths 132 
 
 Drink, Strong effects of 238 
 
 Drink, Effects of excesses in ... 241 
 Drinking conduces to fevers ... 242 
 Drinking, the curse of England... 242 
 
 Drinking customs ... 253 
 
 Drunkards' Register ... ... 260 
 
 Drunkards, Habitual 236 
 
 Drunkenness, influences for the 
 
 suppression 271 
 
 Dublin, Eecorder of, evidence 
 
 before Parliamentary Committee 239 
 Durham Baths ... ... ... 54 
 
 Eastern Hammam Ill 
 
 Echo, The, on Local Board of 
 
 Health 13 
 
 Economics of the Hot-air Bath ... 151 
 Edinburgh, Condition of the City of 237 
 Ellis, Mr., on Chinese Baths ... 11& 
 Estimate for building Turkish 
 
 Baths 152 
 
 Estimate of the cost of bathing 
 1000 persons ... ... ... 157 
 
 Fallacy of bathing when the body 
 
 is hot 13a 
 
 Fines, &c., for drunkenness ... 257 
 Forbes, Dr. Wm., on Steam 
 Baths 107 
 
INDEX. 
 
 329 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Gateshead Baths 55 
 
 Glasgow Baths ... 89 
 
 Goodman, Dr. John, on Water 
 
 versus Alcohol ... 269 
 
 Gosse, Dr., on perspiration ... 190 
 
 Grantham Baths 72 
 
 Green, W. H., on Turkish Baths.. 155 
 Grey, Sir G., Puljlic Baths and 
 
 "WashhousesBill 11 
 
 Gutter Children 181 
 
 Hahitual di-unkards. Report of 
 
 Pai'liamentary Committee on . . 233 
 Hahitual drunkards. Treatment of, 
 
 in America ... ... ... 259 
 
 Hahitual drunkards. Objection to 
 
 legislation on ... 261 
 
 Habitual drunkards, legislation 
 
 necessary 263 
 
 Hanley Baths 78 
 
 Health 200 
 
 Hospital relief a sham and a farce 179 
 Hospitals, Evils attending ... 172 
 
 Hospitals, increase of out-patients 173 
 Hospitals, a weakness and disgrace 176 
 Hospitals, Absence of Turkish 
 
 Baths in 196 
 
 Hot-air ... 129 
 
 Hot-air Bath gradually receiving 
 
 the attention of medical men ... 184 
 Hot-air Baths, Advantages of ... 132 
 Hot-air Baths, Comforts of ... 137 
 Hot-air Baths can be used at all 
 
 seasons 138 
 
 Hot-air Baths, Financial advan- 
 tages of 151 
 
 Hot-air Baths used more in winter 
 
 than summer 159 
 
 Hot-air versus Warm Water 
 
 Baths 126 
 
 Howard, Dr., on Turkish Baths... 186 
 
 HuU Baths 87 
 
 Hydropathic treatment of Dipso- 
 mania 270 
 
 Inebriates require to be treated 
 
 kindly 265 
 
 Inebriet}' and insanity ... ... 264 
 
 Inoculation for small-pos... ... 210 
 
 Japanese Baths ... ... ... 119 
 
 Jenner, Dr., on cow-pox ... ... 212 
 
 Kidderminster Baths ... ... 8i 
 
 Kingsley, Late Canon, on the want 
 
 ofbaths IS 
 
 Lamb, Dr., on moderate drinking 249 
 
 Liebig on cold water ... ... 250 
 
 Liverpool Baths ... ... ... OS 
 
 Local Government Board, Letter 
 
 from 2L 
 
 London, Bishop of. Petition to the 
 
 House of Lords ... .., ... 10 
 
 Luton Baths ... 4S 
 
 Macclesfield Baths 60 
 
 Mahomed's Baths at Brighton ... 106 
 
 Maidstone Baths ... 62 
 
 Malaire prevented ... 149- 
 
 Manisty's, Judge, remarks on sen- 
 tencing John McKenna ... 239^ 
 Manisty, Judge, on drunkenness.. 240 
 
 Mansfield Baths 73 
 
 Mapother, Dr., on Turkish Baths 186- 
 
 Marylebone Public Baths ... 26. 
 Medical relief, Increased demand 
 
 for 174 
 
 Medical oharity leads to depend- 
 ence ... ... ... ... 174: 
 
 Medical men do not use the bath 
 
 in hospitals ... 183. 
 
 Merits of Hot-air Bath 127 
 
 Metropolitan Lethargy ... ... 47 
 
 Mexico, The form of Bath in ... 114 
 
 Miller, Professor, on alcohol ... 244 
 Miller, Professor, on alcohol as 
 
 food 24& 
 
 Miller, Professor, on alcoholic 
 
 stimulants and overwork ... 249^ 
 MOlinger, Dr., on Turkish Baths 
 
 amongst the poor in Turkey ... 195 
 
830 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Moderate drinkers 245 
 
 Moderate drinking caused by nn- 
 
 healthy occupations 251 
 
 Moist and dry air, Effects of ... 130 
 
 Newbury Batbs 45 
 
 Newcastle-on-Tyne Baths ... 75 
 
 New York Vapour Bath Co. ... 108 
 Nottingham Baths ... ... 74 
 
 Oldham Batha ... 69 
 
 Operation of the Bath Act ... 12 
 
 Origin of Baths 110 
 
 Osborne, Lord Sydney, on Gutter 
 
 Children 181 
 
 Paddington Public Baths ... 37 
 
 Parish, Dr., on Turkish Bath ... 270 
 Parliamentary Committee on 
 
 habitual drunkards. Recom- 
 mendation ... 259 
 
 Peddie, Dr. A., on the treatment 
 
 of Dipsomania ... 256 
 
 Penn, Wm., the founder of Pensyl- 
 
 -vania, on the American Indians 113 
 
 People's Bath, Cork 162 
 
 Personal motive for improving the 
 
 condition of the poor ... ... 183 
 
 Physical deterioration among 
 
 crowded populations ... ... 127 
 
 Plymouth Baths 53 
 
 Poplar Public Baths ... ... 29 
 
 Preston Baths 70 
 
 Prevention better than cure ... 182 
 
 Primitive Baths 112 
 
 Proposal to add Hot-aJr Baths to 
 
 Baths anu V\ ashhouses ... 21 
 
 Provincial Baths and Washho uses 44 
 Eemedies suggested for habitual 
 
 drunkards ... ... ... 257 
 
 Eichardson, Dr., en moderate 
 
 drinking 247 
 
 Pochdale Baths 70 
 
 Poman Baths 110 
 
 Poman Therma; ... 147 
 
 Poyston, Dr., on Turldsh Baths... 187 
 
 PAGBT 
 
 Russian Baths • ... 15 
 
 St. Margaret and St. John's Public 
 
 Baths 23 
 
 St. James', Westminster, Public 
 
 Bath 20 
 
 St. Giles-in-the-Fields and St. 
 George's, Bloomsbury, Public 
 
 Baths 31 
 
 St. George's, Hanover Square, 
 
 Pubhc Baths 32 
 
 St. Martins-in-the-Fields Public 
 
 Baths 34 
 
 St. Pancras Public Baths ... ■ 35 
 
 Sanitary Science, Progress of ... 236 
 
 Shampooing not neccessary ... 142 
 
 Sheffield Baths 88 
 
 Sheppard, Dr., opinion on the 
 
 efficacy of Turkish Baths ... 125 
 
 Sheppard, Dr., on sea bathing ... 139 
 
 Skin, The functions of ... ... 1 
 
 Small-pox ... 201 
 
 Origin of 201 
 
 Progress of 202 
 
 Brought from Spain 203 
 
 In America ... ... ... 203 
 
 Chinese records of ... ... 203 
 
 Development of 204 
 
 Dr. Both on predisposition to... 205 
 
 Salt, an antiseptic to ... ... 205 
 
 What is .P 206 
 
 Conditions favourable t J ... 207 
 
 Specifics, inoculation 208 
 
 Inoculation iu the arm 209 
 
 Buying the 209 
 
 Inoculation practised in Eng- 
 land 210 
 
 Inoculiktion revived 210 
 
 Vaccination introduction ... 211 
 Dj'ing out when cow-pox was 
 
 introduced 215 
 
 Sources of infection ... ... 219 
 
 Difficulty ia the treatment ... 225 
 
 Forcible removal of patients ... 225 
 
331 
 
 PACE 
 
 SmaU'-pox^ coniimied, 
 
 Homojopathic treatment ... 225 
 
 Plomocopathic and other reme- 
 dial measures ... ... ... 227 
 
 Cream of Tartar in the treatment 
 
 of 228 
 
 Eose's, Mr,, treatment not recog- 
 nized 229 
 
 Hydropathically treated ... 230 
 
 EiaScacy of wet-sheet pack ... 231 
 Cured by hydropathy ... ... 232 
 
 Kemoval of patients unnecessary 233 
 Object of removing patients ... 234 
 
 Staly bridge Baths 71 
 
 Stockport Baths » ... 51 
 
 Stockton-on-Tees Baths ... ... 56 
 
 Summary, Statistical and Finan- 
 cial, of Metropolitan Baths and 
 
 Washhouses ... 91 
 
 Summary, Statistical and Finan- 
 cial, of Provincial Baths and 
 
 Washhouses ... 91 
 
 Sunderland Baths 57 
 
 SwimmLag Baths 124 
 
 Temperature of Turkish Baths ... 135 
 Thompson, Dr., on fermented 
 
 liquors 248 
 
 Time saved by the warm lavatory 
 
 system 158 
 
 Times, The, on preventible diseases 235 
 Times, On Local Boards of Health 13 
 Tui'kish Baths, ratepayers should 
 
 advocate the erection ... 153 
 
 Pecuniary advantages of ... 158 
 
 Used more in winter than 
 summer ... ... ... 159 
 
 Success of at Cork ... ... 163 
 
 Opening of the People's at Cork 164 
 Gaining popularity ... ... 164 
 
 Donovan, Mrs. A., on ... ... 166 
 
 First in Europe 166 
 
 Bradford... 167 
 
 Hanley 168 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Turkish Baths, Kidderminster ... 169 
 
 Stalybridge 169 
 
 Remedial agent 171 
 
 Bristow, Dr., on 184 
 
 Mapother, Dr., on 183 
 
 Howard, Dr., on 186 
 
 Eoyston, Dr., on 187 
 
 Urquhart, Dr., on 187 
 
 Objections to ... 188 
 
 Eemedial value cannot be dis- 
 puted ... ... ... ... 188 
 
 Balbimie's opinion ... ... 193 
 
 Eobertson, Dr. C. Lockhart, on 
 insanity ... ... ... 193 
 
 Sheppard's opinion on 192 
 
 Cannot give colds ... ..194 
 
 Creates appetite 195 
 
 Ee-introduction of ... ... 101 
 
 Improved ... ... ... 102 
 
 Opposition to its introduction... 103 
 The first for the poor in Ireland 103 
 
 Popular in Ireland 104 
 
 Introduced into England ... 104 
 
 In Scotland 105 
 
 Eevival of, on the Continent ... 121 
 Improved ... ... ... 121 
 
 Necessity for ... ... ... 123 
 
 For the working classes ... 126 
 
 And Warm Lavatories, versus 
 
 ordinary Warm Bath ... 126 
 
 A^alue of, to farm labourers ... 134 
 In connection with Baths and 
 Washhouses ... ... ... 135 
 
 Time an objection 141 
 
 Will elevate the working classes 143 
 H.M's Inspector of Schools testi- 
 mony in favour of ... ... 144 
 
 Eecommendations 144 
 
 Dr. Thudichum's testimony ... 145 
 As a curative agent ... ... 145 
 
 For the people ... ... ... 146 
 
 Increases strength ... ... 147 
 
 Effects of, on the Army ... 143 
 
332 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 TurMsh Bath Preserves health ... 149 
 Prevents disease ... ... 149 
 
 Cost of building 152 
 
 Estimate for building 153 
 
 Save the poor from misery and 
 expense ... ... ... 198 
 
 Increasing in popularity ... 199 
 Parish, Dr., on the use of, in 
 Dipsomania 270 
 
 Tynemouth Baths 76 
 
 Urquhart, Wm., introduction of 
 the Turkish Bath into Eng- 
 land 101 
 
 Urquhart, Dr., on the Baths in 
 Turkey 187 
 
 Vaccination 211 
 
 Efficacy disputed 212 
 
 Liable to produce other diseases 213 
 
 Arguments against 214 
 
 Not a probable preventive ... 216 
 
 Compulsory 217 
 
 Increased consumption 218 
 
 Veterinary Surgeons' opinions. . . 219 
 
 Increases fevers 220 
 
 Dr. West on the evils of ... 220 
 
 Imperfectly performed 221 
 
 In theAimy 222 
 
 Eamley, Dr., on 223 
 
 Vaccination — continued. 
 
 Population has not been sus- 
 tained since introduced ... 223 
 Humboldt on re-vaccination ... 224 
 Gregory, Dr., opinion ... ... 224 
 
 Vaccine matter. Quality of ... 222 
 
 Vapour Baths ... 15 
 
 Introduced into England ... 106 
 Not popular ... ... ... lOS 
 
 Waiting-rooms at London Hos- 
 pitals 176 
 
 Warm Water Bathing, Disadvan- 
 tages of ... ... 136 
 
 Warm Water Bathers decrease in 
 
 Winter 160 
 
 Warmth 123 
 
 Washington, G., Esq., on Bathing 109 
 Watex versus Alcohol ... ... 269 
 
 Whitlaw, Dr. Charles, on Vapour 
 
 Baths 107 
 
 Winchester Baths 60 
 
 Wiaslow, Dr. Forbes, evidence 
 before Parliamentary Committee 
 on habitual drunkards .. . "... 256 
 
 Worcester Baths 84 
 
 Working of Turkish Baths in con- 
 nection with Baths and Wash- 
 houses 161 
 
 INDEX TO LETTERS. 
 
 Addenbroke,E.H.,Esq., M.E.C.S. 323 
 
 Allison, Mr. W 311 
 
 Angus, Rev. J., D.D 302 
 
 Ashley, Rev. J., M.A 302 
 
 Atkins, Mr. T., Merthyr Tydvil 318 
 Ayrton, Right Hon. A. S., M.P.... 277 
 Bainbridge, H. W., Esq., F.R.C.S., 
 Droitwich 297 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Ballard, Dr. Thomas, M.E.C.S... . 289 
 Batchelor, Dr. W., M.L.A.C. ... 279 
 
 Bateson, Dr. H 294r 
 
 Bayes, Dr. William 287 
 
 Blackwell, Dr. Elizabeth... ... 290 
 
 Bristowe, Dr. J. S., F.R.C.P. ... 292, 
 
 Britton, W. S., Esq., M.R.C.S. ... 3«Q 
 
 Bryce, Dr. Charles 2H'\ 
 
INDEX. 
 
 333 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Bryning, Mr. J. H., Blackfiiars 
 
 Road 316 
 
 Burge, r. J., Esq., M.R.C.S. ... 294 
 Burns, Late Rev. Jabez, D.D. ... 302 
 Bums, Mr. James ... ... ... 311 
 
 Burns, Mr. James 307 
 
 BuiTows, Dr. G., F.R.C.P. ... 288 
 
 Burton, Mr. J., Easton Road ... 318 
 Carlingford, Right Hon. Lord ... 275 
 Carpenter, Dr. W. B., F.R.S. ... 278 
 
 Carruthers, Mr. T., Luton ... 310 
 
 Clarke, Dr. J. Lockhart, F.R.S... . 280 
 
 Clarke, Dr. Andrew, M.A. ... 288 
 
 Chambers, Dr. T. King, F.R.C.P. 288 
 Chester, Mr. W., Southport ... 314 
 Coakley, Mr. T., Belfast ... ...319 
 
 Constantine, Mr. J., Manchester 310 
 
 322 
 295 
 323 
 282 
 307 
 285 
 178 
 306 
 304 
 283 
 
 Corbet, D., Esq., M.R.C.S. 
 Comer, Dr. M., M.R.C.S. 
 
 Cowen, M., Esq 
 
 Cronin, Dr. E 
 
 Cruikshank, George, Esq. 
 
 Cummins, Dr. W. Jackson 
 
 Curry, Mr., Goswell Road 
 
 Dibley, George, Esq. 
 
 Dornbusch, Late G., Esq. 
 
 Drury, Dr. W. V., M.R.I.A. 
 
 Dudfield, Dr. T. Orme, L.R.C.P... 293 
 
 Dunn, Mr. G., Doncaster 315 
 
 Dunn, Dr. Holt 281 
 
 Edmonson, Mr. T., Windermere 321 
 
 Epps, R., Esq., M.R.C.S 299 
 
 Evans, Mr. W., Hospital, Golden 
 
 Square ... ... ... ... 317 
 
 Fergusson, Sir "W., Bart., M.D.... 278 
 
 Fisher, Mr. W., Edinburgh ... 320 
 Fox, Dr. Telbury, F.R.C.P. ... 286 
 
 Fraley, Mr. E., Neath 318 
 
 French, Mr. W., Stratford New 
 
 Town 316 
 
 Gates, 'Mr. W., Rotherham ... 315 
 Gibbons, Dr. Septimus, M.R.C.P. 290 
 Gilpin, Late Charles, Esq., M.P. 277 
 
 Gosse, Dr. L. A 283 
 
 Green, Mr. W. H., Kidderminster 3l4 
 Gull, Sir W. W., B irt, M.D. ... 287 
 
 Hall, R., Esq., F.S.A 307 
 
 Hardwicke, Dr. W 290 
 
 Hart, Ernest, Esq., M.R.C.S. ... 297 
 Harvey, Mr. T. L., Waterford ... 320 
 Hastie, Mr. J., Newcastle-on- 
 
 Tyne 313 
 
 Hawkins, J., Esq., M.R.C.S. ... 300 
 
 Hillman, John, Esq 323 
 
 Hogg, Jabez, Esq., M.R.C.S. ... 297 
 
 Hole, Rev. C, M.A 302 
 
 Houghton, Dr. E., Upper Nor- 
 wood, S.E 300 
 
 Howe, Mr. J., Sheffield 309 
 
 Holyoake, G. J., Esq 305 
 
 Hughes, T. J., Esq., M.D. ... 293 
 
 Hunter, Dr. R., Bridge of Allan... 308 
 
 Huss, Mr. J. S., Derby 311 
 
 Iliff, Dr. W. Tiffen, M.R.C.S. ... 294 
 
 Johnson, Dr. Horace ... ... 290 
 
 Johnson, Mr. J., 25, Harrington 
 
 Square 317 
 
 Kidd, Dr. J 287 
 
 Kinnaird, Lord 275 
 
 Lane, Rev. G. Palmer, M.A. ... 303 
 Langley, J. Baxter, Esq., LL.D., 
 
 M.R.C.S 298 
 
 Lawrence, Right Hon. John, 
 
 G.C.B 276 
 
 Leared, Dr. A., F.R.C.P. ... 278 
 
 Death, James, Esq. 304 
 
 Lessey, Rev. T 303 
 
 Lethby, Dr. H 295 
 
 Lett, Mr. B., Worcester 312 
 
 Lock, Mr. W., Eton 313 
 
 Lord, a F. .J., Esq., M.R.C.S. ... 291 
 Lj'tton, Late Right Hon. Lord ... 276 
 McArthm-, A., Esq., M.P. ... 277 
 
 McCormack, M. J., Esq., M.P. ... 291 
 
 Macgregor, J., Esq. 308 
 
 Mackenzie, Dr. Morcll, M.R.C.P. 279 
 
834 
 
 INDES. 
 
 Macpherson, Dr. J. 
 
 Marshall, Mr. E., Barnsley 
 Martin, Sir James E,., M.D. 
 Mathe-wman, Mr. W., Leeds 
 
 Munroe, Dr. A., Melrose 
 
 Murray, Dr. John, M.RC.P. ... 
 
 Neathy, Dr. Thomas 
 
 Nichoi, Mr. T., Glasgow 
 
 Nicholas, Dr 
 
 Parfitt, Mr. M 
 
 Partes, Dr. W. E 
 
 Pearce, Dr. C. P., M.R.C.S. 
 Pearse, F. B., Esq., F.E.C.S. ... 
 Pink, Henry N., Esq., M.R.C.S... 
 
 Prickard, Mr. J. P 
 
 Quain, Dr. R., F.R.S 
 
 Eadcliffe, Dr. C. B., F.R.C.P. ... 
 Reynolds, Dr. J. R., F.R.C.P. ... 
 
 Ritchie, J. E wing, Esq 
 
 Roberts, Mr. T., Skipton 
 
 Robinson, Rev. G. Wade, M.A. ... 
 
 Eoden, W., Esq., M.D 
 
 Rose, Mr. J., Southampton 
 Ryder, Mr. P., Liverpool 
 Samwell, Mr. A., Leicester 
 
 Sexton, Dr. G., M.A 
 
 Sieveking, Dr. E., F.R.C.P. 
 
 Skegg, J. J., M.R.C.S 
 
 Smith, Dr. Wilberforce, L.R.C.P., 
 
 &c 
 
 Smith, Mr. T., City Road 
 Sowter, Mr. T., Upper Norwood 
 Spurgeon, Rev. C. H. 
 Steinfield, E., Esq., J.P., Ballarat 
 Stephens, Sanders, Esq., M.R.C.S. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 
 PAGE 
 
 280 
 
 Stevenson, Dr. Thomas, F.il.C.P 
 
 . 293 
 
 315 
 
 Stolls, Mr. M. S., Dublin 
 
 . 319 
 
 278 
 
 Stretton, S., Esq., M.R.C.S. 
 
 . 322 
 
 310 
 
 Sutherland, Mr. J., Glasgow 
 
 . 320 
 
 301 
 
 Thomas, Thomas D., Esq. 
 
 . 299 
 
 280 
 
 Thompson, Dr. Henry, F.R.C.P.. 
 
 .284 
 
 284 
 
 Tidy, C. R , Esq., M.B., M.R.C.S 
 
 . 296 
 
 320 
 
 Tilly, S., Esq., F.R.C.S 
 
 . 293 
 
 '292 
 
 Tolley, Mr. J., Oxford 
 
 . 312 
 
 307 
 
 Toulmin, Dr. A 
 
 281 
 
 279 
 
 Tripe, Dr. J. W 
 
 291 
 
 285 
 
 Tuke, Dr. T. H., F.R.C.P. 
 
 280 
 
 300 
 
 Tweedie, Late W., Esq 
 
 306 
 
 294 
 
 Urquhart, D., Esq. 
 
 304 
 
 318 
 
 Varley, Henry, Esq. 
 
 303 
 
 284 
 
 Walker, J. B., Esq., M.R.C.S. .. 
 
 299 
 
 279 
 
 Wallington, Mr. T., Plymouth ... 
 
 315 
 
 282 
 
 Watson, Sir Thomas, M.D. 
 
 277 
 
 305 
 
 Wells,T.S., F.R.C.S 
 
 287 
 
 813 
 
 Westmacott, Dr. J. G., L.R.C.P.S. 
 
 282 
 
 302 
 
 Whitmore, Dr. J., M.R.C.S. 
 
 293 
 
 322 
 
 Whitwell, Edward, Esq 
 
 305 
 
 314 
 
 Wilkinson, Dr. J. J. Garth, 
 
 
 310 
 
 F.K.G.S 
 
 284 
 
 312 
 
 Williams, Dr. C. B., F.R.S. ... 
 
 289 
 
 285 - 
 
 Williams, Dr., Croj'don ... 
 
 295 
 
 289 
 
 Williams, Mr. R., Cardiff 
 
 309 
 
 292 
 
 Willson, R. M., Esq., M.R.C.S. ... 
 
 298 
 
 
 Wilson, Erasmus, Esq 
 
 296 
 
 282 
 
 Witt, Dr. Charles, M.R.C.P. . ... 
 
 283 
 
 317 
 
 WormleightoB, Mr. S., Limerick 319 
 
 321 
 
 Wright, Frank, Esq , 
 
 306 
 
 301 
 
 Wyld, Dr. George 
 
 280 
 
 306 
 
 Young, E. Parker, Esq., M.R.C.S. 
 
 299 
 
 300 
 
 
 
 Printed ty the LoxDON Co-operative Printing and Stationery ^Company, Limited, 
 Plough Court, Fetter Lane, E.C. 
 
HYDROPMHIG ESTABLISHMENTS, 
 PRIESSNITZ HOUSE, 
 
 PADDINGTON GREEN, LONDON, W. 
 (Established 1858,) 
 
 AND 
 
 GHAFENBUHC^ HOUSE, 
 BARNET , HERTS, 
 
 (Established 1862.) 
 
 PRIESSNITZ HOUSE is within five minutes walk of 
 Edgware Eoad and Bishop's Eoad Stations from the City 
 (Metropolitan Railway), and ten minutes from the Great Western 
 Terminus, and also within ten minutes walk of Regent's Park, 
 Hyde Park, and Kensington Gardens. Omnibuses pass the Green 
 to all parts of London. 
 
 The Establishment is airy, comprising two houses (Nos. 10 
 and 11), and very open back and front. 
 
 Terms per week— £3 3s. Superior Bed Room — £4 4s. 
 
 When two occupy the same Room — £2 12s. 6cl. each. 
 
 Entrance Fee— £1 Is. Visitors— £2 2s. per week. 
 
 GRAFENBERG HOUSE is close to New Barnet* Railway 
 Station (main line) which is reached from King's Cross (Great 
 
 * There are two Barnets--01d and New — loersons going; to Graftmberg House 
 must book for New Barnet, on the main line. 
 
 1 
 
ISTortliern) in twenty minutes, and from Moorgate Street, Broad 
 Street, or Ludgate Hill, City, in thirty-five minutes. The services 
 to and fro are well adapted to meet the requirements of business 
 men for treatment and change of air. 
 
 There is a billiard table for the use of patients. 
 
 Terms per. Week— ^£2 13s. 6d. to £3 3s. 
 
 Two occupying one Bed Room— £2 12s. 6d. each. 
 
 Entrance Fee — 10s. 6d. Visitors— £2 2s. 
 
 A deduction of Half-a-Guinea per week is made to city men 
 dining out. 
 
 At the Barnet Establishment each patient is required to bring 
 one blanket, two rough bath sheets, and two towels. At Pad- 
 dington bathing sheets are provided. 
 
 The terms cover all expenses of treatment, board, &c., except 
 fire in bed rooms. It is usual for Patients to give a week's notice 
 previous to leaving. 
 
 Breakfast is on the table .at 8 o'clock, dinner at 2, and tea at 
 7 p.m. (except on Sundays, when breakfast is at half-past 8, dinner 
 at half-past 1, and tea at 6 o'clock). During winter months, 
 breakfast is a quarter of an hour later; supper on Sunday evenings 
 only at a quarter to 9 o'clock. 
 
 Meals cannot be served in bed rooms except to patients unable 
 to be at the public table. 
 
 Special arrangements are made for patients attending business 
 daily, undergoing treatment night and morning, whose office hours 
 are such as to make it impossible for them to have time for treat- 
 ment and be punctual at meals — their breakfast and tea are provided 
 out of the usual hours to meet their convenience. 
 
 The gas is put out at each Establishment punctually at half- 
 past Ten o'clock. 
 
 Smoking is strictly prohibited, either in the house or on the 
 premises. 
 
Both Establishments are conducted on rigid Hydropathic prin- 
 ciples, and visitors are only received into the house in company 
 with Patients requiring their assistance. 
 
 For the convenience of families, where one or two members 
 may be requiring treatment, Mr. Metcalfe has a Furnished 
 House adjoining his Establishment at Barnet, capable of accom- 
 modating two small families, which he lets without Board, &c., 
 charging only for treatment and the Apartments, and a great 
 number of families have availed themselves of this arrangement. 
 
 Mr. Metcalfe is generally at home for consultation at Priess- 
 nitz House, after ten o'clock and up till half-past one daily. He 
 invariably visits Barnet daily, but not at any particular stated hour. 
 The resident patients are seen there three times a week in the 
 morning, or more frequently when required. 
 
 In order to avoid inconvenience and disappointment on the part 
 of Patients wishing to consult Mr. Metcalfe, it is desirable they 
 should write him the day previous, and all communications and 
 inquiries should be addressed to Priessnitz House. 
 
 Mr. Metcalfe has Rooms at 26, Finsbury Place, E.G. (on 
 the Third Floor), for the convenience of Git}- Gentlemen desirous 
 of placing themselves under Hydropathic treatment, where he can 
 be consulted on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Feidays, from 
 2 till 4 o'clock p.m. — Consultation Fee 10s. Gd. 
 
 No Consultation Fee is charged to Ministers, Artists, Mis- 
 sionaries, School Masters, &c., and arrangements are entered into 
 with patients whose cases require a long course of treatment on 
 reduced terms. 
 
 TERMS FOR NON-RESIDENT PATIENTS. 
 
 The bath accommodations (including hot-air bath) at Griifen- 
 berg House are small as compared with those at Priessnitz House, 
 but quite large enough for the efficient treatment of all resident 
 
patients. Priessnitz House being situated in tlie midst of a large 
 wealthy population — the facilities for the treatment of Non-resident 
 Patients are large to meet the requirements of the neighbourhood 
 and during the last two years the bathing department has been 
 greatly increased ; twenty patients can be treated at one time. 
 
 There are a great many persons suffering from general debility 
 and small ailments, as well as fevers and other acute diseases, who 
 can be treated with more success Hydropathically at their homes, 
 than by the ordinary medical treatment. Mr. Metcalfe has been 
 practising Hydropathy in London for 20 years, during which 
 period he has treated thousands of patients in this manner with 
 great success, and bath attendants are sent to carry out his treat- 
 ment at patients' own residences. Mr. M. charges One Guinea for 
 three professional visits, at moderate distance from the Establish- 
 ment. Long journeys are charged according to distance. Consul- 
 tation fee for seeing patients at the Establishment is 5s. 
 
 The following is a Liist of Hydropathic Appliances and 
 Hours of Attendance at Priessnitz House. 
 
 The Establishment is open to Visitors and Non-resident 
 patfents from 6 a.m. till 8 p.m. There is but one set of Turkish 
 baths in the Establishment, which are reserved for Ladies from 
 11 aim. until 2 p.m. daily, and after 6 o'clock on Tuesday and 
 Friday evenings, and open to Gentlemen at all other times. The 
 other Hydropathic appliances may be had at any time during the 
 day. 
 
 1 Wave Douche 
 
 2 Cold Descending Douche 
 
 3 Hot and Cold Spouting Douche... 
 
 4 Ditto Cold ... 
 
 4 
 
 Single Bath, 
 
 Twelve Baths. 
 
 s. d. 
 
 £ s. cl. 
 
 ... 2 6 
 
 ... 1 G 
 
 ... 2 G 
 
 ... 1 G 
 
 ... 2 
 
 ...110 
 
 ... 1 G 
 
 ... 15 
 

 Single Bath. 
 
 Twelre Batbs. 
 
 
 
 s. 
 
 d. 
 
 £ s. 
 
 d. 
 
 5 
 
 Hot, Cold, or Tepid Ascending Douche . . . 
 
 1 
 
 6 
 
 ... 15 
 
 
 
 6 
 
 Hot and Cold Spray Bath 
 
 1 
 
 6 
 
 ... 15 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 Cold Eain Bath 
 
 1 
 
 6 
 
 ... 15 
 
 
 
 8 
 
 Cold, or cooled down Shallow Bath 
 
 1 
 
 6 
 
 ... 15 
 
 
 
 9 
 
 Hot Mustard Bath 
 
 2 
 
 G 
 
 ... 1 6 
 
 
 
 10 
 
 Warm Bath, followed by Tepid or Cold 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Aifusion 
 
 2 
 
 
 
 ... 1 1 
 
 
 
 11 
 
 Warm Bath... 
 
 1 
 
 6 
 
 ... 15 
 
 
 
 12 
 
 Hot' Bran Bath 
 
 2 
 
 6 
 
 ... 1 6 
 
 
 
 13 
 
 Pail Douches 
 
 1 
 
 6 
 
 ... 15 
 
 
 
 14 
 
 Eumiing Sitz 
 
 1 
 
 6 
 
 ... 15 
 
 
 
 15 
 
 Needle Bath, Warm or cooled down 
 
 2 
 
 
 
 ... 1 1 
 
 
 
 16 
 
 Needle Sitz, Head, Arm, or Leg Bath 
 
 1 
 
 6 
 
 ... 15 
 
 
 
 17 
 
 Hot and Cold Dripping Sheets in succession 
 
 2 
 
 
 
 ... 1 1 
 
 
 
 18 
 
 Soap Wash in Turkish Bath 
 
 2 
 
 
 
 ... 1 1 
 
 
 
 19 
 
 Hot Air Bath, with head out ... • 
 
 3 
 
 
 
 ... 1 10 
 
 
 
 20 
 
 Leg ditto 
 
 2 
 
 6 
 
 ... 1 
 
 
 
 21 
 
 Arm ditto ... 
 
 2 
 
 
 
 ... 1 1 
 
 
 
 22 
 
 Vapour Bath 
 
 8 
 
 
 
 ... 1 10 
 
 
 
 23 
 
 Lamp Bath ... 
 
 3 
 
 
 
 ... 1 10 
 
 
 
 24 
 
 Wet Sheet Pack, etc. ... 
 
 3 
 
 
 
 ... 1 10 
 
 
 
 25 
 
 Half- Sheet Pack, etc. ... 
 
 2 
 
 6 
 
 ... 1 6 
 
 
 
 2G 
 
 Hot Foment Pack for Liver, Stomach, or 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Chest, including ablution ... 
 
 2 
 
 6 
 
 ... 1 6 
 
 
 
 27 
 
 Plunge Bath... 
 
 1 
 
 6 
 
 ... 15 
 
 
 
 28 
 
 Sulphur Vapour Bath . . . 
 
 3 
 
 6 
 
 ... 1 16 
 
 
 
 29 
 
 Liquid Sulphur Bath . . . ■ 
 
 3 
 
 6 
 
 ... 1 16 
 
 
 
 80 
 
 Mercurial Vapour Bath 
 
 3 
 
 6 
 
 ... 1 16 
 
 
 
 31 
 
 Condy's ozonized sea salt Bath ... 
 
 3 
 
 6 
 
 ... 1 16 
 
 
 
 32 
 
 Turkish Bath 
 
 2 
 
 6 
 
 ... 1 6 
 
 
 
 33 
 
 Ditto, without Shampooing 
 
 2 
 
 
 
 ... 1 1 
 
 
 
 34 
 
 After Six o'clock 
 
 2 
 
 
 
 ... 1 1 
 
 
 
 35 
 
 Ditto, without Shampooing 
 
 1 
 
 6 
 
 ... 15 
 
 
 
 36 
 
 Private Turkish Bath, which can only be 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 had by an appointment 
 
 6 
 
 
 
 ... 3 
 
 
 
 Monthly, quarterly, and yearly arrangements are entered into and 
 larger numbers of tickets are issued on reduced terms. Mr. Metcalfe 
 sees patients gratuitously every Saturday afternoon, and the circum- 
 stances of every person are taken into consideration, and treated 
 Hydropathically according to the requirements of their case. 
 
WORKS BY RICHARD METCALFE 
 
 Can be had at the Establishment. 
 
 Price Q>d. 
 
 ON THE 
 WITH 
 
 LORD LYTTON'S EXPERIENCES OF THE WATER CURE. 
 
 Ill iJie Press, Price 2s. 6d, 
 
 HYDROPATHIC MATERIA MEDICA, 
 
 OE, 
 
 HINTS TO PATIENTS UNDERGOING HYDROPATHIC 
 TREATMENT AND OTHERS. 
 
 /Second Edition, Price 1$. 
 
 SIMPLE aUESTIONS & SANITARY FACTS. 
 
 Too miTcli praise cannot be given to tliis admirable cyclopa3dia of 
 every-day knowledge. Most valuable for scliools, and interesting to 
 everybody. 
 
 Pourth Edition in the Press, Price Gd. 
 
 ILLNESS, ITS CAUSE AND CURE. 
 
 This popular manual shows how to preserve health and cure disease 
 by simple means within the reach of all. The poorest in the land might 
 tmderstand the system, and avail themselves of its benefits. 
 
 Pince Gd. 
 
 REGOLLEGTIONS OF THE LATE DR. BARTER. 
 
 (A Perfect Photograph of Character.) 
 
 To BE OBTAINED OF Me. J. BURNS, 15, SOUTHAMPTON RoW, LoNDON. 
 
 C 
 
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 COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES 
 
 This book is due on the date indicated below, or at the j 
 expiration of a definite period after the date of borrowing, as 
 provided by the rules of the Library or by special arrange- 
 ment with the Librarian in charge. 
 
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