The New York herald., 1872-07-09


durcd long, and the reporter, after casting pity
Ing look at the weeping child, passed out. The
mother was washing white plated sack OF
her own and wore in her ears huge brassy rings.
She said that she and her husband had lived there
for six months. She thought the house was kept
very clean. The stairs were stumbled down again,
and every room In the place was visited. Most or
them We're In the same condition.
Among score OF other houses which were visited
In the Seventeenth ward there was found iith
In each ono SUFFICIENT to shock the nerves OF any
person who lived habitually after respectable
fashion. Some OF these localities have been
famous In police history as beng the dirtiest In the
city.
IL I'm Eleventh street. 1t has been noted in past
years as one OF the most dangerous resorts OF petty
thieves ana rough characters. There are TWO mont
houses and two rear ones, each containing sixteen
families, four on floor; this makes the population
OF this small court about three hundred persons.
Some OF the families contain n dozen members, who
are al crowded at night into one sleeping apart
ntoerable, from the rank stencil.
BULL RUN ALLEY
Is next TO Kellys alley. Its population numbers
l20 families. The houses are very old and rickety,
and some OF the apartments are In simply horrible
In most Of the stteets of the Seventeenth ward
the cellars OF many Of the huge tenement houses
are packed with rags gathered by the ragplckers
throughout the city, ana here the sacks lie for
months steamng and Iottng in the damp atmos-
phere. and the stencil rises up through the grated
openings to the streets and through the Railways
passes all through the houses. 1t Is not healthy
oior.
In First avenue Is another oey or court called
''SEBASrAP0E,N
in the surroundings OF which many criminal has
hidden or found 0opholes Tor escape rom the zeal
OF his pursuers This block OF tenement houses was
once densely populated but Is now q little more
orderly ana clean than in former days. The defec-
tive sewers however, give forth an unhealthy smell,
and the cellars are very filthy
Another place visited, offormer celebrity was
10 narrow, dirty alley in which are six houses). In
these reside no less than dve hundred m0rtals who
breathe every day Of their lives horrible stencil
rible NTH Mounting the zigzag stairway In one OF
the houses to the skystory, the reporter, accom-
opposite night into another "'' hoase Ssa 'y and
emerged rom tho darkness into another
denscly populated and far more llthy than the
'Parradn." A score of negrcsses sat upon the
entered; 1t proved to be the home of about one
hundred and twenty persons, all Of whom We're
black. Most OF the apartments, as well as the hall
In Second street, near avenue A, house was
, found a. il o the M back yard OF which HEB was gathered
the pt Of an adjoining stable. The celier is also
very filthy.
In tho Thirteenth precinct among the tene-
mants visited, In company with GnCer Brown,
were those owned 10y the philanihropist. Mr. Bergh.
and, before he retired, built up, between that and
the river, large block Of houses. They are now
particularly fine condition. In the cellar
OF one the contents of an adjoining sewer
ns nays Ss9p afF Sa t so"s Ss Gs S
the stencil Is earfully offensive, the kindly landlord
has always refused TO have any repairs attempted.
woman with II pliable tongue talked rapidly for
about an hour with the reporter about the contrast
between bis theory regarding the treatment OF
horses and the one he practices in reference to hu-
man beings Her conclusions were very sharply
worded.
opening in tho back yard, cmits very strong
STENCIL
Many of the houses in Forsyth street. in the Tenth
nYllNn n ~ ifyT TNrt IN n
else of the zeal of the Health officers and the gut
ters rank with steamlng garbage.
THE EIGHTH WARD
was given in charge of Health Inspector Hughes,
who had for assistants Drs. Duberceau ana Wade,
the tenement houses and their surroundings, and
to make report of those that where in bad sani-
tary condition, which reports will be laid before
the Board OF Health at their next meeting
An attache OF the HERALD, with one Of the Health
Inspectors, made q tour Of the worst portions OF
this ward, consisting of portions ofsulllyan Thomp
SON. South Fifth avenue, Greene and other streets,
where the tenement houses, especially from Spring
definitely known at present how many of this class
OF houses in this ward, but the number is sup
posed posed. to be about eight hundred, the majority OF
high, 50 that the number Of families
pared with the houses in many of the other wards
throughout the city. AS viii be seen by the follow
built only short distance from the front ones,
which are packed with hnman beings as much as
space VIII permit the small yards or winch IN
many places are in lrightful sanitary con-
diti0n; slOps, ashes, garbage and other house
refuse being thrown there instead OF into
the street, as was formerly the case. The reason
for this IS assigned to the watchfulness of the police
In obedience to the general order lately issued by
the Commissioners instructln9 the officers "to
arrest all parties found throwing ashes, garbage or
other onal in the Streets" Where families live so
closely huddled together In small rooms the house
hold refuse must be got rid OF some manner and as
many of them do uot care to take much trouble
Sbout a,s%dso the tsT in which sn they td w
1t In the nearest possible place, so long as it s
outside Of their own doors, and If they cannot
throw 1t in the street without danger OF arrest the
next place they turn to Is
THE YARD OR THE UNUSED CELLARS
many OF the latter places being filed with al sorts
In that portion OF the Eighth ward bounded by
Spring, Grand and Greene and Thompson streets
&C., are in bad sanitary condition-that
Is, in condition detrimental to the
health and dangerous TO the lives of occupants and
sources OF infection to the neighborho0d generally.
The PRINCIPAL causes of the imp sanitary con-
diton OF these houses are due to the improper
neglect. In many Of the houses visited yesterday
the rooms OF the rear houses were entirely cut on
the the nsllTays also, ,.,!,s sSen In. II the % large
dark that at midday 1t Is almost Impossible to dis
Germ objects in them. In many Instances the foors
walls stairs ana bannsters are IN dangerous con,
permeates the cir. Several of the older houses In
the district very deficient in drainage, as sops
garbage, ashes, &c can be seen in large quantities
in the drains, the latter being chOked up with
solid matter, while the tenants still continue
to throw their offensive matter into these
places instead OF making a report Of the
nuisance to the authorities of the Board of Health
Many Of these drains are running Immediately
below the basement doors OF the dwellings, and
should they get choked up collections of stagnant
and offensive fluids take place, when the whole
house becomes permeated with disagreeable
stencil, which very often continues until sick
ness or Intolerance Of the odor leads to complaint
and investigation. In that portion Of the district Wis.,
tied many of the houses, especially those on lhomp
son street Inhabited both by blacks and whites
both cOlors being represented on the stOops, WIN
dows and other places about the houses they occu-
pied, while In few places were little Italian boys
with volins and harps, playing to groups OF both
parties, q few Of whom were dancing waltz With
out regard to color, while In other places IL was
almost