The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1859-02-05
Condition of New York.


The rep..rt of the State Senate Committee on
the sanitary COM; lion of this city, published in
Yesterdays HERALD, is full of warning and in
s'ructicn, which it wocld be well for the State
Legislature, the city government, and all whom
u may concern, to lay to heart. 1t is not like
mere question of party politics; il comes home
to the business and the bosom of every man in
TIE community. Whoever has carefully read the
document and is acquainted with the different
localities Of the city will observe that portions of
New York are extremely unhealthy, while other
portions ere not surpassed for saldbrious location
ON the face of the earth; and that the healthy and
unb' abby pr rts are those, respectively, which
are high end dry and those which are low and
damp llwho have seen the old maps Of the city,
and know what the confguration of the ground
was some fifty years ago, will perceive at a
glance that those parts of the city built on the
natural eminences are all healthy, while those
situated in low, and what is called "made"
ground-that is, ground reclaimed from
the sea-are unhealthy, because these
localities have never been properly drained,
and consequently are damp in winter,
causing rheumatism, diseases Of the lungs and
other maladies; while in summer, under the rays
offs hot sun, they exhale poisonous masma pro-
ducing intermittent fever and whole train of
disorders
Among the most healthy portions Of the city
we may enumerate the region of ST. Paul's
church, corner of Broadway and Fulton street,
and the Bite of the HERALD establishment. Dig
down here fifty feet, and you will find the earth
perfectly dry. The City Hospital, in Broadway,
and the Bowery theatre, are located on healthy
ground; so are Union square and Murray Hill,
whilst the regions of the North and East rivers
in the lower part ofthe city; of Canal street. for
merly IN inlet from the Hudson; of the Swamp,
Including Ferry street; of the Tombs, built on
deep pond called the Collect; of Madison square,
Washington square, ST. Johns park, Gramercy
park and Tompkins square, are all unhealthy.
These places are built over springs, and streams,
and ponds, which have never been drained, or
over salt marshes saturated with the water ofthe
sea- and the inevitable consequence is that the
moisture continually oozes up, chilling the blood
and undermining the constitution.
What is wanted, therefore, in the first place. is
thorough system of scientific drainage for the
whole city, to carry off the subterraneous water;
and after that scientific system of sewerage to
conduct the filth Of the city into the North and
East rivers, to which there is natural fall, SO
that these two great scavengers may convey it
where it can no longer be noxious- Never
d;1 noturo do morn op1 mon lose fnr tho
publication of great city. Besides,
the main sewers and their branches there
on Il Il to be q sewer from every house to one of
these; and no new house ought to be permitted
to be built without this appendage, so essential
to health. The third thing necessary is to keep
the streets and alleys continually clean, as is
done in Paris and London. Then there ought
to be regulations about direct light and pure
air, and for the prevention of overcrowding the
habitations of the poor. And to enforce all
these sanitary conditions there ought to be
Medical Board of Health--as there is in
all the large cities of Europe-instead of en-.
trusting the health of the city to ignorant men
who know nothing about the matter, and care
little for anything but to pocket the public
money.
We regret to see that the new bill proposed,
though an Improvement on the past, does not
come up to the necessities of the case. If the
right steps are only taken now, and vigorously
carried out, New York, instead of being in
some portions the most unhealthy city in the
world, will soon be the most healthy throughout
its entire extent-as healthy almost as that beau
tiful plateau in the Twelfth ward, lying between
Harlem, Manhattanville and Fort Washington,
including Carmansville. Fort Washington is the
summit of the ridge, and the highest ground
about New York, commanding most extensive
prospect Of the surrounding country, marked
with all the undulations and diversities of land
and water on one side the smiling, peaceful val
ley stretching away to the Sound on the other
the Hudson, with its noble " Palisades " and its
lordly food moving in silent majesty to min
gle its waters with the blue ocean. The view
embraces the city, the unrivalled bay and its
small isles, with the larger one of Staten Island
the splendid Narrows, and even the Atlantic
wave. 1t is one of the most healthy and delight
full spots in the world-equal to the environs of
Florence and the most salubrious and beautiful
portions of Germany. 1t can be reached in an
hours ride, and is the finest location on this con-
tinent for private residences. In few years
property there will command fabulous price,
and those who could now purchase pleasant coun-
try seats at moderate rate will hereafter regret
that they lost the opportunity, and lost it for
ever. The scenery of the Hudson particularly
in early Fall. is not surpassed in beauty by any
thing on the banks of the Arno, or even the far
famed Rhine.
MORAL or THE PRoBANG WAR.--Wc do not be-
lieve that the public will be quite satisfied with
the complacent way in which the doctors have
hushed up the Whitney case. We believe, taking
the alarming statistics Of city mortality along