The letter over the signature of Mr. E. F. Harris, concerning conditions prevailing in the Western Area, should receive the earnest attention of the authorities, for it draws attention to a deplorable state of affairs, which never ought to have been allowed to occur and which even now should be remedied as quickly, and as far as possible. It is an excellent point which he makes, when he insists that those paying rates to the municipal authorities have a Tight to expect that nothing shall be done either to diminish the enjoyment of their properties, or to decrease their value, and there is undoubtedly a moral obligation entailed to see that owners and occupiers of such premises should receive adequate protection. The whole matter has been aired at considerable length in the correspondence columns of this journal, and it is a matter for regret that up to the present no real steps have been taken to bring about the amelioration of a very unfortunate state of affairs. It is readily admitted that there are difficulties in the way, or would be were normal conditions prevailing. But these are abnormal times and the steadfast adherence to the practices of normality is a policy which completely fails to take into account the realities of the situation. Mr. Harris suggests a means whereby it might be possible to effect an improvement following what appear to be perfectly proper lines in the first of his two alternatives. It is one, the possibilities of which should be explored if they have not been already, for the ruination of the residential area involved must in the end prove a calamity in which the whole life of the port may become involved, if only on the score of health. The preservation of as much open space as possible in Shanghai may very well prove a valuable contribution to the general health of the place, and if for that reason alone something ought to be done.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.