WOMEN AS SANITARY INSPECTORS. - Evening News (Sydney, NSW : 1869 - 1931) - 19 May 1900 (original) (raw)

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Sat 19 May 1900 - Evening News (Sydney, NSW : 1869 - 1931)
Page 3 - WOMEN AS SANITARY INSPECTORS.

The following was sent to the Under-Secretary

of Finance and Trade on Friday: — To the Under

secretary of Finance and Trade, the Treasury,

Macquarie-street. Sir, — We, the undersigned, re-

presenting the women of Sydney, who, in consider-

ation of our needs, are now much incercsied in

the question of sanitary inspectors, ask permis-

sion to express our views to the Honorable the

Premier and the Colonial Treasurer through you.

Views which we will support by a reference to the the

revolution in city sanitary government which has

taken place in England during the last few years.

There, as you are aware, female sanitary inspec-

tors have proved entirely successful. In prepar-

ing for the duties they go through identically, the

same training as male inspectors; attending

lectures, classes, demonstrations, with them;

qualifying for the same positions and passing the

same examinations; holding the same certifi-

cates; the only difference being that, when, ap-

pointed by a vestry their work is confined to

those places where women are employed. We

should like to draw the attention of the Board

of Health and the municipal councils to the pio-

neering work done by Dr. Orme Dudfield, of

London, who was the tirst medical officer to re-

commend to his vestry the appointment of women

as sanitary inspectors. Dr. DuGfield is the head

of the Association of the Medical Officers of

Health, and his experiment was first tried at

Kensington in 1893. The results were so success-

ful that the innovation has been followed by other

vestries in London and the provinces, such vestry

appointments applying only to workshops, work-

places, and laundries. This was a first step. In

many towns, however, both in England and Scot-

land, the women inspectors do not confine their

duties to this limited area alone, they are ap-

pointed as general sanitary inspectors, and as

such do general work with great satisfaction to

the sanitary authorities. Briefly stated, the du-

ties of women inspectors of vestries is to report

in the first instance to the medical officer of health

such existing nuisances as these: — (a) Drains un-

trapped, unventilated ; (b) sanitary conveniences

ill-lighted, unventilated, and defective in water

supply; (c) sanitary conveniences supplied from

drinking water cistern; (d) cistern dirty or unco-

vered; (e) dustbins wanting or defective; (f) mis-

cellaneous. As a fitting corollary to this, it is

interesting to quote Dr. Dudfield's remark in that

portion of his annual report relating to 'Duties of

sanitary authority with respect to workshops.'

Here he says: 'With respect to workshops, etc.,

where men only are employed, nothing has been

done to give effect to legislation in any way com-

parable with the work so well carried out by the

female inspectors of workshops, etc., where wo-

men are employed. These establishments should

be taken in hand, but it is impossible with

the present limited and reduced staff of

sanitary inspectors. ' The existing insanitary

state of Sydney, with its great danger to life and

health, together with the proved disinclination of

male inspectors to inquire minutely into the sani-

tary arrangements of private houses, lead us to

urge the Government to appoint female sanitary

inspectors on the same terms as men, and both

men and women to be properly qualified. We

trust to the strong tide of reform to bring about

this necessary innovation without unnecessary de-

lay. — We are, sir, yours faithfully, (Signed) Lucy

F. Darley, Fanny Gadsden, M. Isham Garran, D.

M. MacCallum, H. C. Newcomb, S. F. Thring, K.

Burdekin, E. Loyd Matthias, Louisa Macdonald,

Helen McMillan, Rose Scott, Zara B. Aronson,

Dora E. Armitage, Mary Edwards, A. C. Kellick,

C. A. Montefiore, National Council of Women. May