The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1850-07-27

The BOARD OF R.aIth--HorribLe a.veIations.
Tn Tuesday, the 10th inst, n our readers
aware, meeting Of the Board of Health was held,
the hrs, meeting OF the present year. The Board
of Health consists Of the Mayor and Common
Council, the Mayor being President. The third
seciion Of ulle l, OF the Health Act, passed last
April, Iuns;-
The sessions Of the Common Council. when acting
as Board of Health shall b. with closed doors,
etpt when otherwise ordered by said Board
Now, in order TO exclude our reporter from the
meeting, II was pretended that This section COM
PEELED the Board of Health TO shut out the press,
whereas il merely gives them the power OF ex-
GLIDING or admitting. Why the press was exclu-
ded we shall presently show. IL will also be seen
how far they have succeeded in keeping out OF the
columns OF The Herald, information SO deeply
affecting the public interests. They will probd-
bly, soon learn, 10 their cost, how the people
relish star chambers, secret juntas, in thus
free republican country. Meantime, we may
observe, that when this Health ACT was passed,
we predicted it's failure, just because the Com
mon Council were made the Board of Health.
We knew that they cared not for the health of the
city, but that they would just act as they did last
yeaT-neiher do any thing efficient themselves,nor
permit others to do it. We also knew that they
were not competent TO be Board of Health, and
that il was board of well qualified physicians that
the nature of the case required, and which is the
practice in other cities of the Union. We predicted,
for these reasons, that the law would not work
we'll and also, because the act takes the power
out of the hands Of the City Inspector, and divides
the responsibility among many, that there is no
knowing upon whose shoulders TO place it,
Three mouths have elapsed since the law estab-
lished them Board Of Health, aud they never met
ill the 10th, though the complaints of the filthy
condition Of the city, were loud and continual.
They would not have met then, but that
the City Inspector cited before them the pro-
pretors of bone boiling establishments and persons
dumping manure in the city, according to the fol-
lowing clause of the first section of title third -:
" 1t shah be the duty Of the City Inspector
plant being mad. To him. or whenever he shall deem
any business trade, professon carried on by any
person or persons In the city OF New York detrimental
To the public health 10 notify such person or persons
TO show cause, before the Board Of Health, at tune
sDd place TO be specified In such notice. why the
should not be- Discontinued OF removed which notice
shah be notice of not less than three dsys (excspt
In Of pdemic p-stileuce the BOARD Of Health
may by general order direct shorter time not less
vrg the came at the place Of business or residence Of
the parties To be affected thereby. Cause may be
shown ey smdavit and the order OF the Board Of
Health shall be hnal and conclusive thereon"
the fact of one of the judges, Meeks, ofths Ninth
ward deciding against him in the of Mr.. Mead
man, against whom the City Inspector proceeded for
keeping bone boiling establishment The judge
decided that il was sufficient that the City In
s~cior should deem any thing nuisance. lie must
prove it by other witnesses. For this the CITY In
spector was not prepared; and he thought it better
tS bring the matter at once before the Board of
liz ~ -.
cialIy there is appeal from their decision. A
meeting war fixed for day in the previous week;
but the Board Of Health postponed the matter to
more convenient season They met, at length, on
Tue sday evening, with closed doors, and instead of
acting at once on the matters brought before them
thsy appointed committee report, and thus they
have STAYED off action for another while. That
the reader may see the urgent nature Of the cases
that have been thus postponed, we submit the fol-
lowing extracts from the aifdayts sworn to by
nearly one hundred persons. The horrible reyela-
tons they make will show how the health of this
city has been neglected, notwithstanding the large
amount uanualiy paid to keep it clean aad
healthy -
Mr. I,aae w Ayres one OF the proprietors Of the
Chelsea iron WORKS situated upon Twenty sxth street.
b,t~srn Tenth and Eleventh avenues has
soavt that he employs 100 m-n ia hts establishment
polite TO HE estsblis hment manure IL dumped ~th
other corrupt substances, emitting horrible euvis
that the wind blowing over &C, ~hieh would oth.rwise
be healthy and refreshng. 10 impr-gnst.d with the
poison. vel. that which zrisss from the stsgusnt
water all srouud thai it offensive to thessns-
and btsrs death. instead OF healing on its wings ar
Ayrst eon"iUdss by ssesring that IL IL q nuisance
which ought 10 be abatsd
MIR VIM Ksm,ys swesrs. in his afhdsvt In reference
TO The ssne bussncs, that exceedingly odsosivs
stencil from the aud decom posing urs
which has been for 10 OK time p., TO b. dumpsd
iheTR md IlatIl he nm ut naia
OF the stencil as somrtm-s almost tnsun-rsbl-. aud
he concludes by swearing that the health OF ths neigh
borbOod is injured by thus manure.
The for, man employed In the Chelsea Iron Works
s~rsrs that the whole atmosphere Ia the vicinity IL
hned ~h The tout odor ana that Il Is not only delete
in ts tnec upon the health OF the employed
but hat II renders thrir life = burthen TO them
The men employed In the iron works aud the
In the mHnufsct"ry OF Mr. Ktmrys have al.o sworn
srda,us oorrvboratiDg IN. foregoing, aud declaring
that IN, stencil IL perfectly horrible
nret'r,sce to tLs boue boiling establshm"nt Of
MI bErrson Ia Forty six street between Tenth and
Eleventh avenues aud Of Mr.. Meadman in Forty tDurth
street btl the Eleventh avenue Jab.E aSbs aud
Hemp Hughes swear they very iajarious 10 the
heat ana comfort ct every psrson living them
~ they cannot have ~indo~ ny Ia the close sud
sutry ~sather. without making their families sisk.
EV'u last ~iner Inc c.rmsu Ia Tocty ssventh street.
could not ktsp thrir di1Isrs On thsir stomaohs In
eons.qusIe. ~ the .fhuvis arising fr"m said bone
fsctotHs They therefore believe that said nuisance
should be unoysd ~tthout delay
10 relation TO Gsrrsonr bou.ooiling sstshli.hme
In Ferry srb street Nr Charles fsitn-r swezr- that
h. k obliged 20 Esep the uf his house @hut ia
ths hottest weather. In order ssvp the very
OF, DsiN~ fiuvia That producers upon a-pbnsnt
Bsussa o'ttrUytnF hts appsti'r aud his comfort aud
stjoy msnt Of living IN thst vicinity that IL affects
he tahtly tn NIX manner, that the stencil aom.s
dr.c from the bous boilng .st4bl-hm Asd that
the watsr In ~hcn snid Oourr outl-i. u thros-
cot aud I-fmits ." run upno adjoining property,
ana slo~ed to stagnste and corrupt the atm gnere
that deIunsnt cannot imagine - st. nih tnan
that sr-iBE trcm snd establishments asd that " IL
,ickebps. ossdiy. aud disgusting smell d-poa.
b 49, ~ to De- sjudcisl tu hi- hszl that
at his family aud that the lives of tn tnh.hitasts Ia
that ne hborbood endangered By the existence Of
fAid bon.. boiling establishment
Mr. teitnrI concludes by opposing that he -ould
/ rtuiovt ~ hts circuuS taucrs prfmtftrd him
Mr. a. Elbs s~sarr that families residing IN tne
vicinity 81 n. toned bon-. boiling ~ssAhlsh
ME haze r. gusuty complains o. ain q stencil
. eritthE thsrfrom Hud wHEng their lives sNc-eJ
1iy uncomfortable. thst deponsnt has often smslied
the tiusia bimssf aud fauud " a. b very sieknnx
aud disgusting. aud he bslsvrA tom his expert