New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1879-12-28
THE STREErCLEANING PROBLEM.

The greatest. most difficult and dirtiest
problem which this city has TO solve is brought
to public attention again most fOrciby by the
effects OF the first saOw-storm Of the season.
Can the streets of this city be kept deccntly
clean and passable, and if so. howl Captain
Williams has been savagely assalled 10y many,
but 10 one has ever accused him OF want OF
energy. When he WAS transferred to the
charge of the street-clcaning force, men who
had attacked him most earnestly were
ready to admit: of he cannot do the
thing there is not much hope" lie has
had little time or opportunity, rs yet, but the
condition Of the streets on Christmas Day was
not such as to convince persons on foot thathe
had solved the problem. The truth Is that it
has been too much the habit to attribute the
condition of the streets to the negligence, inef
fcency or misconduct of officials Having some
official body to complain of, and some palpable
evidences of inefliciency or NEGLIGENCE, the pub
lie has been altogether too ready TO suppose
that the real difficulties were not great. that
the present mode of dealing with them was
well enough and that the streets would be
clean If the officials were cean-handed and
faithful.
The truth is that the business of street.
cleaning presents one Of the most difficult
problems of modern civilization What shall
be done with the stuff carted of 7 II viii not
do to put 1t into the river the health of the
city imperatiYely demands that the refuse
should be- removed to q distance from our
dwellings,. 1t would be fatal to the commerce
of New York TO dump it into the bay, for in-
vestgation has already shown that the bars
at the mouth Of the harbOr have been in-
creased rapidly of late years by the accumula-
ton of refuse dumped carelessly or unlaw-
fully TOO near them. The attempt to take the
vast mass of dirt and filth out into deep
water cannot be expected to succeed, with any
appliances now in Use. The removal must be per-
formed with regularity every day, or the streets
cannot be kept clean, and yet there are times
when it Is absolutely impossible, sometimes for
several days in succession, to move any feet
of ,und-scOws into the open and deep water
beyond the bars because of the violence Of
storms. The attempt tn use the material from
the streets in filing up low or marshy places
anywhere near the city has been made, but it
necessarily endangers the public health be-
cause of the presence of filth in all the sweep
ings, and must become an especial nuisance TO
the inhabitants and property Owners near the
point selected. Legal resistance to that method
of dlsposng of the stuff Is CERTAIN, no matter
where the attempt may be made and whether
such resistance should prove successful or
not in the end, the mere fact that it would
tcmporariy block the whole process OF get
ting lid of the refuse renders il impossible to
rely upon that process. Again, it has been
said that the refuse of the streets would be
of great value TO farmers, and that they would
gladly take it away at their own expense.
but street sweepinGs would DO useful to
farmers. and they would have opportunity TO
take them away economically, only at certain
seasons OF the year. The only process which
will answer is one which can be relied upon
equally every day in the year. but with very
great inequality as to quantities. These condi-
tons render it difficult to use the material
from the streets for the fertilization of the
soil.
The immediate difficulty, as to the dumping
of refuse into the river or the bay,ouqht not 10
be removed by any yielding Of the authorities
as to the dumping of solid matter within the
outer bar. 1t is better that the city should
suffer in slush and filth. a. 1t has suffered
than that ITS harbor should BIO rendAred Las