26
BERLIN,
room, which had no separate entrance, was let to two lodgers In another
dwelling of the same size both living room and kitchen contained two beds.
The closet arrangements in houses of this class are often of a very primitive
kind ; they are seldom found within the dwelling, and sometimes they take the
form of a cupboard-like structure erected on the landing.
It is not intended to represent the conditions here described as typical of
Berlin as a whole, yet they are nevertheless very common in all the older quarters
of the city, and no picture of Berlin working-class homes would be true which
ignored these darker features.
Mention has already been made of the interdependence of Berlin and its
suburbs in the matters of work and housing accommodation, and more particular
reference to several of the adjacent towns seems called for. Charlottenburg, on
whose outskirts are found many large engineering and electrical works, is in all
respects a replica of Berlin, of which it is a westerly prolongation. Instead
of adopting an architectural style of its own, as was possible thirty years ago,
when its population was only 25,000, or one-tenth of the present figure,
Charlotten burg has slavishly followed the lead of its big neighbour, and the
“ barrack ” house and the courtyard are in full possession. The result here, as
in Berlin, is an increasing density of population, more stories per building, more
dwellings per story. While in December, 1900, there were 12‘3 households
per building, the number was 13'2 in 1905, and the average number of persons
per building was 52-50 in 1900 and 56 03 in 1905, the highest local figures
being 118-14, 95*88, 98, and 83*52. On the other hand, there is a greater diffusion
of the population at Charlottenburg, and few districts are exclusively
inhabited by working-class tenants ; these are found chiefly in the side streets
and the back houses around the courtyards. The streets are wide, asphalt is
general save in the older parts, where setts remain, and a good deal of planting
has been done. Though the builder has done his best to sweep away all traces
of former architecture, many old houses of one or two stories, with high gables,
red roofs, and wooden shutters, still stand in busy streets. As Charlottenburg
is so modern the general conditions of housing are very favourable ; the only
serious defect is the limited accommodation with which working-class households
have to be content. At the census of December, 1905, the 56,269
households of the town were lodged in dwellings of the following character and
size (heatable and unbeatable rooms being classified indiscriminately) :—
Dwellings consisting of
Number of Dwellings. Percentage of the whole.
One room
Two rooms
Three rooms
Kitchen only ...
One room without kitchen ...
\ One room with kitchen
1 Two rooms without kitchen
l Two rooms with kitchen ...
I Three rooms without kitchen
Larger accommodation...
Total
119 11 351
1,202 [ A ’ d0A
12 !o
