The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1877-05-27
CLEANING A GREAT CITY.
How London Is Rendered One Of the
HealthieSt Cities in the World.
PLAQUES OF THE "GO0D OLD TINES"
The Value OF City Refuse as a
Fertilizer.
A LESSON FOR NEW YORK.
LONDON, May IL,


No. many persons. probably among the hundreds Of
thousands who hurry daily through the busy streets
pf THIS great overgrowL metropo.tsihls country Of
nouses-pause 10 remember that beueaih their feet
the ground IS tunnced Tor miles and miles by yast
intricate series OF underground works, ana mat u
is their teeming superabundanee within the com
paralvey limited space where they live and move and
have their beng thar rendered these extensive and
costly works absolutely necessary. How necessary
they may at once perceive II they viii turn Tor mo
meut 70 the statistics Of life and death, the bills Of
mortality OF the days when there was no Metropolitan
Board OF Works aud no .'rnain drainage" and when
that fearful spectre the plague stalNcd periodically
abroad through the dlthy streets, striking down his
victims right ana lett with hts malariaenyenomed
darts
II is almost impossible, in the igat Of modern CON-
forts and convenicnces to imagine the conditions OF
domestic lie in ioadop N tho .good old tlmes'-
those ages Of picturesque squalor, beloved OF tie
nrtst ut abhorrsd OF the saniiaran Refuse ana
waste had to be carried away from The houses 10 GER
localities appointed by he city authorities, and
OF which there were four in London in 1910 1t can
NO. be matter WONDER therefore, thai disease and
death were fearfuliy rite and frequent.
PLAGUE
1T is to be remembered, says Sir William Petty,
In essay the growth oil London, published IN
peueth ID London once in twenty years there.
abouts, and IL Is also TO be remembered that the
pggucs OF London 10 commonly XII one-iiith Of the
nhabtants;p and, further, lhe pague Of London is
The chioi impeachment objection against the growth
81 the city" In act within the century preceding
tho Time when he thus London had
been visited ~ five separate piagues, which had
carried Of upward or 1000 persons, the last OF The
i've the great plague o. 1869 being responsible for
10 600 out OF that number And It must DO remem-
bcred that these desolatng ravages occurred among
population and N city much inferior in numbers
and extent those OF Londcn OF to-day In 1908 Tor
instance, the deaths from Tho plague were out OF
from all other Diseases and III 1873 there were eight
times many deaths Us there were chrstenngs IN
The preceding year. We're the same proportion to
occur now, in a city which numbers more inhabitants
than Scotland, gathered together IS 600 OF
ground the result would be bill OF mortality
the world has never seen. Thanks however, 10 the
progress Of civil engineering ana to the greater value
now set upon human lilo the death roll has ceased
astonlsh aud tcrry. The tables Lave, in Iac been
turned upon the king OF tcrrors and now The mortality
bill shows annual balance at credit the increase of
population amounting, year by year, 10 about $4,000
souls
ANCIENT scAyENGiyG.
To trace infinitely the progress Of Improvement in
engineering
nrst began the minds OF the Iondoners
would DO too long and somewhat tedious story, but
!, may mentioned that it in the year 1881 thar
the first .'comm ssIon" appointed which had for
It's especial object The regulation Of the cutters and
sewers, such they then were The parishes Them
selves the first organizations for the cleansing Of
cities; but IN the time oil Elizabeth the work
too heavy Tor the parochal authorities, and the sov
ereign had TO take thn matter into his or her own
HANDS and appointed court or city avoriies ms COM
missionors Of sewers. These gentlemen were men OF
considerable importance socially and politically,
than their modern representatives. and seemed 10 be
vested with absolute control, Tor the King himself
could clean the avenues lending to his palace
without their authority, and when ne did was asked
pay half tho costs. For instance, the Commission
crs 81 sewers In 1868 ordered at the Kings Majesty
Charles H. one-iaI tho charge the carrying
away oi tue RUBBISH me slulce by his sud MarsLys
bowling green and hundred years later KING George
Ill had TO obtain tn commissioners ieave TO make
sewer from the queen palace III 81 James Park 10
Judge by the arrangements then III vogue there was not
much difference between the condition OF London
oil 1851 and those OF Two hundred later In
TACT, alter the commencement Of The present
fury the practice OF throwing oaeuslve matter INTO The
street st IN The irl tae OF It's popularity 1t
penal offence to discourage sewage into the
Cesspuos regarded the proper receptaclcs
house drainage and sewers as tue legitimate channels
for carrying OH the surface waters only.
SEWER RI,xss or LONDON.
wound he complete without some mention OF the
streams which formerly lowed through the city and
discharged tier waters INTO the thames, Dut
either entirely obterated or do duiy sewers.
On The west Fleet street was then the west
end) was the fleet; INTO II fell the Old Bourne,
which with Its cockney prelixnd aspifute may
stl be recognized the uumc oil isniiiar street,
Holuorn. lhc .sWcilsn mentioned by The early us.
Iorian, Fitz stephen as .cnoue fountains oi water,
sweet Wholesome anu clear, the Chief Vi VII oh
Holy Well CierkeDwcll and 81. Ccment's Wen also
feii iulo the Fleet Running through tho middle OF
usttu~ fltau
bourne. Tue former WAS Of much mpo' lance ia carly
times Tor vast Quantities OF piles were discovered
along us course when excavations were beng mado
for new Streets but both ana the Lansbourne were
gradually brIdgrd over aud finally dIsap beneath
Tue street level o. the growing city he Fleet made
longer ngnt tor visible ,x,stence but succumbed mt
last, N liJ2, alter having endured much reviing at
the hands OF the salrsts vi It's last years. Pope having
immorttlzed IL as
The kipg 81 dikes! than whom no sluce OF mud
Viii deeper sable oiuss the silver HOOD.
II became the Fleet sewer ana vanished forever from
the igAt OF day.
Up 10 the lime when the gigantic operations which
have made London the best drained city IN Ihc world
were comnenred the system OF sewerage adopted was
the very smpc one % discharglng all the main
into the Thames where nows through the CITY, Most
OF these Sewers says D. W. Baza2ette, the engineer,
"ieli INTO the valley ot The Thames aud most oi lhcn
passing nnaer tue iow grounds tue margin Of The
RIVER before they reacncd It, discharged their contents
into that river AZ or ABOUT the level and at The of
low water only As the toe rose II closed
lets aud pended back tho sewage lowing from tue
high grounds Tbs accumulated III the ow lying por-
Tie Scwtra, Nntru remained
cases Tor eighteen uul Of every tweuly-iour hours.
During that pcrioi tue uetycr ngred dcpos-
led and from DAY 10 nay accumulated IN the sewers;
besides wuicD, ~ times ol heavy and long continued
rams, ana more particularly when THESE occurred at
Tie Tune oil hiEh water ia the river, The closed sewers
we're unaue storu the increased v0iunc OF sewage.
wAIcn then through the house drains aud Hooded
the easements oi me houses.
he eject upon the Thames Of thIs dischafging tho
sewage INTO II The timc OF low WAS most
srDas, because MOI ony was II carried Oy the rising
dc up the river. 10 Ue brought back to Lon.un by
all. tnart xtlI -.
sspply The process OF many days accumulation
toward the being almost lmpreeptbic--Uut The
volume oil tbe pure wafer IA tue river, DrlnE Al that
sins at lis MINIMUM, fcnnercd II quite incapable o
sllu,iDg and ai-in cctng sued vast masses OF
MODERN COMMISSIONS
Prior 10 l34i there eg inrpunucnt aud distinct
i.coflnI.sslOIs' intrustnJ aIn he drainage vi the
metropolis and lcse alferent bodies Carried oul their
.VrH uttery regardless o the drauage oil any other
1islrlct than tacir own. Each street haa lts
'.syslem. ana large sewcrs we're made TO discharge
into snall ones a. frequently as sinai! ones iato