IN MURKY ENGLAND
WE hope to make Lord Newton's admirable article on the smoke evil, which we published last week, the forerunner of a short series of expert opinions upon this subject. -It remains, as Lord Newton says, to most people who care for civics, a mystery that nothing should have been done on any scale in 'England to deal with the smoke nuisance—perhaps the most obvious and 7.erying scandal of our scandalous industrial towns. ,Perhaps people do not believe that the smoke evil:-is great and widespread ? Perhaps they believe that it is not so bad for people's health as you'd suppose ? Perhaps they believe that each town gains—aesthetically speaking—in a queer satanic way more than it loses ? Perhaps they do not suppose smoke does much harm to vegetation ?
We want, if we can, in a series of brief articles, each written by an expert, to convince the readers of the Spectator with facts and figures of one or two things. For instance, that a majority of English industrial; towns are in the winter dark and filthy beyond belief of. anyone—even a Londoner—who has not seen them., Then, that the darkness and impurity of the air, which are the consequence of the smoke canopy that over-. hangs each of our centres of population, are every bit as unhealthy and depressing as common sense would lead us to suppose, and particularly .that this unhealthi- ness is the special enemy of the mother and child. Again, we want to draw attention to the fact that large tracts of land in Yorkshire, Lancashire and Cheshire, South Wales and certain parts .of Scotland cannot be economic- ally cultivated because of smoke. And above all, we want to try to prove that it is not difficult to prevent industrial smoke, and to decrease domestic smoke to " country town " dimensions, and that, on the Continent (in the Ruhr Valley for instance) those industries .which we are told . in England cannot be carried, on without causing smoke are, in fact, smokelessly conducted.
Perhaps, if our readers can be convinced on these points, they will suggest methods by which the Bill • referred to by Lord Newton can be helped, or any local measures forwarded which may be directed to this end of cleaning the skies.
Thus, part at least of England's reproach of grimy shabbiness could be removed.
We believe that just as to allow slums is the worst possible national economy (to put it on no higher ground), so to allow our towns to be drenched in smoke is in every way thoroughly destructive and uneconomic. May we especially appeal to our women readers in this con- nexion and ask them to remember that these are pressing questions if the new generation is to avoid the indict- ment justly hurled at our own of being " C43 " ? For, remember, we do not fancy that' it must be bad to live under the conditions endured by most of the boys and girls of this nation, we know from the carefully-tabulated statistics of the late War-that it is bad. As to amenity we shall believe -that people like smoke when an unre- formed Bradford or Coatbridge becomes a holiday centre.
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