Page:Item 4 1848.pdf/8

From Historical Hastings
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the health and comfort of the inhabitants and visitors, in as much as the only level carriage-drive into the country is westward of the town, and that the W. and S.W. winds prevail on this part of the coast for three-quarters of the year. That your memorialists are fully aware of the advantages that would be gained in many places by the collection of sewage water, but they are entirely convinced that in this case the nuisance and inconvenience to invalids and others would very greatly counterbalance any profit likely to accrue by the sale of such manure. That the contents of all houses may be discharged into the sea without any of the evils referred to by your Inspector by the adoption of the reservoir plan patented by Mr. Page, C.E. That the proposed union of the two towns for the sanitary improvement of Hastings being therefore unnecessary, will manifestly be most unjust. That St. Leonards is of recent formation and consists chiefly of first-class houses in wide, airy streets, built on one uniform plan, with well-constructed sewers, and a sufficient water supply; whereas the town of Hastings is of great antiquity, and where, according to your Inspector’s Report a great proportion of houses are of an inferior class, many of them having cesspools only—many having no supply of water, some having no drains whatever, and many of the streets without cover sewers. That it will be most unjust to throw a portion of the expense of improving the drainage and water supply of Hastings or of the intermediate district of the two towns, which has no local Improvement Act upon the owners and occupiers of property within the town of St. Leonards. That by the Municipal Corporation Act the borough of Hastings is divided into two wards, viz., All Saints and St. Leonards. That All Saints ward comprises the parishes of All Saints, St. Clements, part of St. Mary-in-the-Castle, and part of Ore. That St. Leonards ward comprises the parishes of St. Andrew’s, Holy Trinity, St. Michael, St. Mary Magdalen; part of St. Leonards and St. Mary Bulverhithe (sic). That All Saints ward returns 12 Councillors, and St. Leonards only six. That the town of St. Leonards is situate partly within the parish of St. Leonards and partly in St. Mary Magdalen; is wholly within the borough of Hastings, but is, in fact, only a fractional part of the area of the St. Leonards ward or western division of the borough. That new houses being continually erected in the district lying between the two towns, the owners or occupiers whereof would be eligible as councillors for the said ward, the town of St. Leonards would not be fairly represented at the proposed Local Board of Health; and that even assuming that the full number of six councillors were elected from its inhabitants (a circumstance most unlikely considering -