DORTMUND.
183
The next Table (supplied by the Director of the Municipal Statistical Office,
and relating to a slightly later date) shows the distribution of that part of the
population which inhabited tenements of not more than four rooms :—
No. of Persons in Household.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10 or more
No. of Households occupying
1 Room.
2 Rooms.
3 Rooms.
4 Rooms
414
215
130
66
33
15
9
5
1
2
345
1,699
2,506
1,804
1,241
726
362
176
53
35
98
652
996
1,051
971
766
509
326
166
96
47
263
303
345
274
262
175
96
66
49
It appears from these two Tables that in 1900 about three-quarters of
the total number of dwellings in Dortmund were of two or three rooms, and
that a large majority of these were in the occupation of three to five persons.
The conditions appeared to be substantially the same in these respects in 1905.
The town is, for the purposes of the building regulations, divided into the
old town, two other zones, and certain great streets which are also lines of
communication. In the old town and first zone not more than three-quarters
of any piece of ground may be built upon, whilst in the second zone and great
streets the maxima are two-thirds and two-fifths respectively : corner blocks are
allowed a little more. The maximum height of buildings is proportionate to
the width of the street. In the old town buildings 23 feet high may be erected
in a street 13 feet wide or less, and the further proportions are :—
feet to 26\ feet.
49J „
69
Height of buildings.
Width of street.
13
261
49¿ ,, „
In the other zones and great streets the figures are :—
Width of street. j Height of buildings.
To 36 feet. 36 feet.
32| feet.
49^ „
494 „
to 69 feet.
36 feet to 49¿ feet.
4 9¿ feet.
Over 49¿ feet. ! Equal to width of street.
The minimum height of rooms in new buildings is 9 feet 9 inches, and of
attics 8 feet 3 inches ; and there must be one water-closet for every two families.
The dwellings of the German workmen are as a rule much superior in
appearance to those occupied by the foreigners who have come into Dortmund
in such great numbers in recent years. In both cases the rooms are usually very
plainly, and frequently even very scantily, furnished, but in the dwellings of the
foreigners there is often a painful lack of cleanliness. In both classes of
dwellings there is much over-crowding, and an indifference to ventilation ; it is
not uncommon to see three double-beds in a room so small tnat they leave
hardly any space to move about. This undue crowding arises partly from the
heavy cost of dwellings as compared with earnings, and partly from the
development of the lodger system. The great number of workmen, often (in
fact generally) unmarried, pouring into the town, and in search of accommodation,
has produced a large lodger-class, which may be divided into two groups
(a) The “Kostgänger,” who get lodging and board (usually with the family).
The customary charge for this accommodation is fiom 1 s. id. to Is. 1 ()d. per
day, or £2 10s. per month. (5) The " Schlafgänger," who get only lodging and
morning coffee. The “ lodging " here consists often only of a room shared with
another"lodger, or even with two or three others, and frequently a room is
shared with" members of the family. The customary charge for such accommodation
is £1 a month. The evil effects of such conditions—overcrowding
complicated with this form of the lodger system—are evident both in regard to
health and morals. The local authorities are doing their best to cope with the
evil by means of regulations, but are admittedly unable to do more than
mitigate it slightly.
