The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1878-09-01
INSPECTING OUR STREETS.
DRITEN hROUND ron MORE THAN TWO
HOCRS BY CfPI. GUNNER


"
neo 20 m ,, Hc.e nr ,,''.., ,""N
S
Inc spread OF pe7tllence III southern clll"7
has made the condition Of tho streets Of New
York an interesting subject Police Commits
sioncr Nichols. Chairman OF the street Clcan-
INK Committee. asserts that the streets ar" in
fairly clean condition. considering the dihi'ul-
ties against which he has to labor. Tho head
OF the Bureau OF street Cleaning. supervised by
Commissioner Nichols. is Capt John Gunner.
by his invitation tho writer rode with him
through number of the dcnsely populated
districts yesterday. with Wow OF as
ccrtaining by Inspection the actual con-
dition OF the streets. Tho Captain OK
planned that Essex. Mulberry. Baxter. Mott.
Washington. Carlisle and Rector streets were
swept every day that all tho avenues. as well rs
West and South streets and Broadway were
swept three times wcek that all cross streets
below Fourteenth street were swept twice a
week, except those In the Tenth and Eleventh
Wards, and these were swept three t,mcs a
Wp'N' hpoNo r"ur'ceh'h street u'l the cross
streets arc swept once woek. except In the
Siytoon,b ward whore thov orc s,yon, ,v,ico n
We'k. Las' year the street cleaning cost
100000 in 1875, when Commissioner Dis
bnckcr Ind rhnrgo n cost soDo ono nud In 1870
N''''' - ~ ~, "''" III 90
uhuer inc mhhaeeneht oil commissioners
henry Ninltn anu OliNNr tlurlirk IL cost
Al lOOOOO Tho nurnher Of miles svvnn, n, nro-.
si,i'''yy' nv 'u','1oi " ii'i'cs 9"vi' ut I,V9-
en' Is "'so CONSIDERABLY greater now 'nan II has
aug i- -o7 ,"',os " S,'u,. were s"ep, rms
Yl'lued O''z' loaus OF street art VI ashes
there were cartcd away 1856 loads and 1873
barrels Of garbage were gathered.
Riding down Mulberry street the writer saw
that after its sweeping in the morning there
,oJ ,,o,i,r.l a., ,t, .,.., - ..,,t.tt.. .
melon rnds brown paper. and cabbage leaves.
but there was nothing that could be construed
into n garbage pile. Dcprcssions hero and tbere
in the uneven cutters were filed with black
w1iSr Tint c" i Gunner eSrlaincd got il. for,
U''u',is '''vl nVi, we 'opi""s sprlhhlhs OF
C" nn aIa 'h'i n snC DoaIa o. Health had re-
,,,'ti,i,,, no., -. 800. -. A.. -, -
.'nul'l0h' ana worse very nearly IN proportion
To- the greater number and greater poverty Of
its inbnbitant. few ,orIv residents hal in
sc,,rni ncns hooI w, , tl' "'. -,
tho cutters into heaps I'm the roadway. The
odors from the piles as wei Us from the cutters
wcre unpleasant Tho Five Points were "A
model u clcanness as were Pearl and Worth
streets,
a rapid drive through Duane street West
Broadway. Barclay. and Church streets re-
veal"d nothing In the roadway to challeng,
critical attention Rector street. az the foot u
In 1922. had been swept Ia the morning. and
there was little material for the nurtuiing 81
yellow lf'NFI germs 10 lF S'fl. lNlf. Gunner
called attention 70 the fact that dirty parts 81
the streets were almost always in front OF tenc-
mcnts that swarmcd with poor families and
asserted that directly after the sweeping Of each
street these places were Jus; as clean as any
part of it, The difference. he said. was entirely
owing to tho almost constant throwing Of gar
bngc and slOps III the cutters 10y the poor wo-
mon who occupied the ienemenis. They
watch" he said until the patrolman has
passed their door and Is out Of sight and then
street and don't blame them They Lnyc no
"a n On r.
cncnt soon 6econcs friebtftii nuisairee"
kitchen refuse?'
wei. | always burn mine. The servant has
orders 70 throw II piece TX piece into the range
ihe moisture ouiof it in Tie shape of steam and
what is lcft Il good fuel. | have never per-
ceived any odor from this Process
, In Washington street woman .wns soon
throwing pail u dirty water. on which noaied
q lm 81 potato peelings. into the gutter. Tho
matter; but in each OF hall dozen Of the
cutters was Mt frequent intervals offensive.
Sometimes it, repulsive odor would be mingled
with the wholesome smell Of carbolic acid ana
sometimes it would como strong and uncor-
inches deep in the depressions' and oiten only
Tho fraction 81 an inch deep. In the worst
rac,- 10 had green's ii t.nge and sometimes
th" o., aping gases % vegetable Decomposition
had formed scum II small bubbles This WIS
success, fully fought with troom-.,
~ moro benefit III cleansing the cutters II pcs
th" street Cleaning Bureau ran possibly be-. Il
il i'm lieu of rains that me sprin King Of The eri.
i"ts WIN catboiit aeil has born ordered. It
ia,o ne ru,trrr The iorcc of iI@ stream. /, -
Urged, would rtonr IN" bottoms Of te -tasuant
water alterWar'i. II would hc Glenn water. while
a. Ice ff4I flH1 ft