The state of the supplies of water to the labouring classes in Scotland appears to be similar to that prevalent in the towns and the rural districts of England.
Mr. William Tait, surgeon, of Edinburgh, states, in regard to the houses in the High-street, Cowgate, and Canongate:—
“The dwellings of the poor are remarkable for their generally uncomfortable appearance, and I attribute this in most instances to a deficient supply of water, necessaries, and such like conveniences. There are no receptacles for filth of any description, and it is either accumulated in the stairs or dwellings themselves, and the stairs are scarcely ever washed. And how can it be otherwise, seeing that the poor have to travel for a considerable distance for water, and afterwards carry it up five, six, or seven stories?”
The Return from Glasgow states that the—
“Sewers or drains are left uncovered, and with no diluting water except the refuse of families and rain-water.”
That—
“There is no scarcity of water if carried into the poorer houses.”
Dr. Alexander Cuddie, of Aberdeen, states that the—
“Water is plentiful; but it would be proper to bring it into the houses of the poor as well as the rich.”
Mr. Forrest, in his report on the sanitary condition of the population of Stirling, states that in that town—