London Labour and the London Poor, Vol. 2

by Henry Mayhew

I am assured, by persons well acquainted with the omnibus trade, that the number of omnibus horses here cited is far too low—as many proprietors employ ten horses to each “bus,” and none less than six. Hence we may fairly assume that there are at the least 25,000 horses at work every day in the streets of London. Besides the horses above mentioned, it is estimated that the number daily coming to the metropolis from the surrounding parts is 3000; and calculating that each of the 25,000, which may be said to be at work out of the entire number, travels eight miles a day, the aggregate length of ground gone over by the whole would amount to 200,000 miles per diem, or about 70,000,000 miles throughout the year. There are, as we have seen, upwards of 1750 miles of streets in London. It follows, therefore, that each piece of pavement would be traversed no less than 40,000 times per annum, or upwards of a hundred times a day, by some horse or vehicle.

As I said before, the facts that have been collected concerning the absolute traffic of the several parts of London are of the most meagre description. The only observations of any character that have been made upon the subject are—as far as my knowledge goes—those of M. D’Arcey, which are contained in a French report upon the roads of London, as compared with those of Paris.

This gentleman, speaking of the relative number of vehicles passing and repassing over certain parts of the two capitals, says:—“The Boulevards of Paris are the parts where the greatest traffic takes place. On the Boulevard des Capucins there pass, every 24 hours, 9070 horses drawing carriages; on the Boulevard des Italiens, 10,750; Boulevard Poissonière, 7720; Boulevard St. Denis, 9609; Boulevard des Filles du Calvaire, 5856: general average of the above, 8600. Rue du Faubourg St. Antoine, 4300; Avenue des Champs Elysées, 8959. At London, in Pall Mall, opposite Her Majesty’s Theatre, there pass at least 800 carriages every hour. On London-bridge the number of vehicles passing and repassing is not less than 13,000 every hour. On Westminster-bridge the annual traffic amounts to 8,000,000 horses at the least. By this it will be seen that the traffic in Paris does not amount to one-half of what it is in the streets of London.”

Of the Dust and Dirt of the Streets of London.

We have merely to reflect upon the vast amount of traffic just shown to be daily going on throughout London—to think of the 70,000,000 miles of journey through the metropolis annually performed by the entire vehicles (which is more than two-thirds the distance from the earth to the sun)—to bear in mind that each part of London is on the average gone over and over again 40,000 times in the course of the year, and some parts as many as 13,000 times in a day—and that every horse and vehicle by which the streets are traversed are furnished, the one with four iron-bound hoofs, and the other with iron-bound wheels—to have an imperfect idea of the enormous weights and friction continually operating upon the surface of the streets—as well as the amount of grinding and pulverising, and wear and tear, that must be perpetually taking place in the paving-stones and macadamized roads of London; and thus we may be able to form some mental estimate as to the quantity of dust and dirt annually produced by these means alone.

But the table in pp. [186-7], which has been collected at great trouble, will give us still more accurate notions on the subject. It is not given as perfect, but as being the best information, in the absence of positive returns, that was procurable even from the best informed.

Here, then, we have an aggregate total of dust collected from the principal parts of the metropolis amounting to no less than 141,466 loads. The value of this refuse is said to be as much as 21,221l. 8s., but of this and more I shall speak hereafter. At present I merely seek to give the reader a general notion upon the matter. I wish to show him, before treating of the labourers engaged in the scavenging of the London streets, the amount of work they have to do.

A TABLE SHOWING THE SEVERAL DIVISIONS OF THE METROPOLIS CLEANSED BY THE SCAVENGERS AND PARISH MEN, THE NAMES OF THE CONTRACTORS, THE NUMBER OF MEN AND CARTS EMPLOYED IN COLLECTING, THE QUANTITY OF DUST AND MUD COLLECTED DAILY IN THE STREETS IN DRY AND WET WEATHER, WITH THE ANNUAL VALUE OF THE WHOLE.

Divisions and Districts.	Names of Contractors.	Number of Men employed at scavenging.		Number of Carts used daily in scavenging.		Number of loads collected daily.		Number of Cart-Loads annually collected by the Scavengers.	Annual value of Dirt collected by Scavengers.
		In dry weather.	In wet weather.	In dry weather.	In wet weather.	In dry weather.	In wet weather.
Kensington	Parish	3	5	1	2	3	5	1252	£187	16s.	0d.
Chelsea	Ditto	3	5	1	2	4	6	1565	234	15	0
Ditto (Hans’ Town)	Mr. C. Humphries	3	4	1	1	3	5	1252	187	16	0
St. George’s, Pimlico	Mr. Redding	2	4	1	2	5	7	1878	281	14	0
Ditto, Hanover Square	Parish	3	5	1	1	1½	2½	626	93	18	0
St. Margaret’s, Westminster	Ditto	5	7	2	3	8	10	2817	422	11	0
St. John’s, ditto	Mr. Hearne	5	7	1	2	8	10	2817	422	11	0
St. Martin’s	Machine	6	9	4	4	4	6	1565	234	15	0
Hungerford-market	Mr. J. Gore	2	2	1	1	1	3	626	93	18	0
St. James’s, Westminster	Parish	2	4	1	2	5	7	1878	281	14	0
Piccadilly	Parish and Machine	20	28	2	2	8	12	3130	469	10	0
Regent-street and Pall-mall	Ditto, ditto	8	12	2	2	4	6	1565	234	15	0
St. Ann’s, Soho	Ditto	3	4	1	2	4	6	1565	234	15	0
Woods and Forests	Machine	2	4	1	2	5	7	1878	281	14	0
Paddington	Parish	4	6	1	2	6	8	2191	328	13	0
Marylebone (Five Districts)	Ditto	20	35	3	4	15	25	6260	939	0	0
Portland-market	Mr. Tame	3	5	1	1	2	4	939	140	17	0
Hampstead	Parish	2	4	1	1	2	4	939	140	17	0
Highgate	Ditto	2	4	1	1	2	4	939	140	17	0
St. Pancras, South-west Division	Mr. Stapleton	2	4	1	2	4	6	1565	234	15	0
Somers-town	Mr. Starkey	3	5	1	2	7	9	2504	375	12	0
Southampton Estate	Mr. C. Starkey	4	5	1	1	3	5	1252	187	16	0
Bedford ditto	Mr. J. Gore	2	2	1	1	1	3	626	93	18	0
Brewers’ ditto	Mr. C. Starkey	2	2	1	1	1	3	626	93	18	0
Calthorpe ditto	Ditto	2	2	1	1	1	3	626	93	18	0
Cromer ditto	Ditto	2	2	1	1	1	3	626	93	18	0
Doughty ditto	Mr. Martin	2	2	1	1	1	3	626	93	18	0
Foundling ditto	Ditto	2	2	1	1	1	3	626	93	18	0
Harrison ditto	Ditto	2	2	1	1	1	3	626	93	18	0
Skinners’ ditto	Mr. H. North	2	2	1	1	1	3	626	93	18	0
Union ditto	Mr. J. Gore	2	2	1	1	1	3	626	93	18	0
Islington District	Parish	6	8	1	1	3	5	1252	187	16	0
Battle-bridge	Mr. Starkey	4	6	1	2	5	7	1878	281	14	0
Hackney	Parish	5	7	1	1	2	4	939	140	17	0
St. Giles-in-the-Fields and St. George, Bloomsbury	Mr. Redding	7	9	2	3	6	10	2504	375	12	0
St. Mary-le-Strand	Mr. J. Gore	2	5	1	2	4	6	1565	234	15	0
Savoy	Ditto	2	3	1	1	1	3	626	93	18	0
St. Clement Danes	Parish	5	7	3	3 waggons.	2	6	1252	187	16	0
St. Paul’s, Covent Garden	Ditto	3	5	1	2 carts.	3	5	1252	187	16	0
Covent Garden-market	Mr. Stapleton	5	7	5	6	9	12	3130	469	10	0
Holborn	Parish	6	9	2	3	4	6	1565	234	15	0
St. Sepulchre’s	Mr. J. Gore	3	4	1	1	2	4	939	140	17	0
Hatton-garden	Messrs. Pratt and Sewell	2	2	1	1	1	3	626	93	18	0
St. James’s, Clerkenwell	Mr. Dodd	5	7	2	3	8	10	2817	422	11	0
St. John’s, ditto	Mr. J. Gould	5	7	3	3	6	8	2191	328	13	0
St. Luke’s	Mr. Dodd	7	10	4	6	8	10	2817	422	11	0
Goswell-street	Mr. Redding	3	4	1	2	4	6	1565	234	15	0
Liberty of the Rolls	Messrs. Pratt and Sewell	2	2	1	1	1	3	626	93	18	0
Blackfriars Bridge	Mr. Jenkins	3	5	1	1	4	6	1565	234	15	0
City Division, Eastern, A	Mr. G. Sinnott	10	16	4	6	12	16	4382	657	6	0
Ditto, North Middle, B	Mr. T. Rooke	9	13	4	6	8	12	3130	469	10	0
Ditto, Western, C	Mr. C. Redding	12	14	4	6	14	18	5008	751	4	0
Ditto, South Middle, D	Mr. J. Gould	10	12	3	4	9	11	3130	469	10	0
Shoreditch	Mr. Dodd	6	9	2	4	8	12	3130	469	10	0
Norton Folgate	Mr. J. Gould	3	5	1	2	4	6	1565	234	15	0
Finsbury Square District	Ditto	3	4	1	2	6	8	2191	328	13	0
St. Botolph	Mr. Westley	2	4	2	2	4	6	1565	234	15	0
Spitalfields District	Mr. Newman	3	6	1	2	3	5	1252	187	16	0
Spitalfields-market	Mr. Parsons	5	7	3	4	4	6	1565	234	15	0
Bethnal-green	Mr. E. Newman	4	6	3	4	8	10	2817	422	11	0
Whitechapel	Mr. Parsons	3	5	2	3	6	8	2191	328	13	0
Commercial-road	Parish	4	6	2	3	4	6	1565	234	15	0
Mile-end	Mr. Newman	3	5	1	2	3	5	1252	187	16	0
Ditto, New-town	Mr. Parsons	3	6	1	1	3	5	1252	187	16	0
St. John’s, Wapping	Mr. Westley	2	4	1	2	2	4	939	140	17	0
Shadwell	Ditto	2	4	1	2	3	5	1252	187	16	0
St. George’s-in-the-East	Ditto	4	6	2	3	6	8	2191	328	13	0
Stepney	Mr. E. Newman	4	6	1	2	4	6	1565	234	15	0
Poplar	Parish	2	4	1	1	2	4	939	140	17	0
East Borough	Mr. Redding	4	6	2	3	3	5	1252	187	16	0
West ditto	Ditto	3	4	2	2	2	4	939	140	17	0
Borough Clink	Mr. W. Sinnott	3	5	1	2	2	4	939	140	17	0
Bermondsey	Parish	4	6	2	3	9	15	3576	563	18	0
Newington	Ditto	4	6	1	2	3	5	1252	187	16	0
Lambeth	Ditto	12	16	2	3	8	10	2817	422	11	0
Ditto (Christchurch)	Ditto	14	20	2	3	6	9	2191	328	13	0
Wandsworth	Ditto	2	4	1	1	1	3	626	93	18	0
Camberwell and Walworth	Ditto	4	6	1	2	5	7	1878	281	14	0
Rotherhithe	Ditto	3	5	1	2	3	5	1252	187	16	0
Greenwich	Ditto	3	5	1	2	4	6	1565	234	15	0
Deptford	Ditto	3	4	1	2	6	8	2191	328	13	0
Woolwich	Ditto	3	5	1	2	3	5	1252	187	16	0
Lewisham	Ditto	2	4	1	1	1	3	626	93	18	0
	Scavengers’ Total	358	531	130	183	355½	548½	140,983	21,147	9	0
	Average total	444½ men.		156½ carts.	452 loads daily.		140,983 loads yearly.		£21,147	9	0
	Orderlies	546 ditto.			9 ditto.		2,817 ditto.		352	2	6
	Gross total	990½ men.		156½	461 loads daily.		143,800 loads yearly.		£21,499	11	6