The sun., 1879-05-04
STREET DIRT AND GARBAGE.
MR. HFNRY HILTON'S OFFER TO THE
STREET. CLEANING BUKEIU


from the Battery to Finy.ninth Street
1t was rumored about Police Headquarters
yesterday that the Police Commissioners had
received and taken under Advsement propo-
sition from ex-Judge Henry Hilton for the dis
position Of the street dirt OF the city. Tho
great difficulty heretofore encountered by the
Commissioners In cleaning the streets has
been tho placing OF the street sweepinRs. gar
bagc and ashes gathered by their carts. While
the island Black Tom" was forming they en-
jOyed a respite from struggling with this puz-
zle but when the Central Railroad Company OF
New jersey got into difficulties. and " Black
Toms" growth was etopped. the Commissions
ers' troubles began n,reeh. Neglect OF duty by
subordinatcs. who should haNe kept apart the
ashes. garbage. and sweepinRs. but dn not do
So resulted in their Obtaining vast quantities oi
a noxious and entirely useless mixture which
nobody would have upon any terms and which
could only be thrown into the sen. or perhaps
burned. But the burning has not yet developed
into a satisfactory system. and for the emptyinR
into the sen the facilities at the command Of the
Street Cleaning Bureau have been altogether
inadequats Its scows are unfit to 20 outside
the bay in weather that ia at all rough each
scow load taken down the bay costs t25 for
dragging the scow TO the ocean and bringing II
back tho employees ON tho scows have n ten
der regard for their lives and rather than run
any risks OF being capsized beyond the Hook
prefer to dump the loads Of garbage md Nth
IN the bay. In consequence OF which there are
raging HarhOr Commisiioncr and furious
protests IRON the shore dwrllers OF Long
Island. Coney Island. Staten Island. and New
Jersey.
Ex-Judge Hilton was found In his Office by a
| SUN reporter. and Ia reply TO tha questions
large quantity OF street dirt from tho city and
recently renewed his proposition IN such form
As 10 entirely relieve the Com iOners OF the
| trouble Indicated. replied:
Il supposed that my application would have
| come out properly through the Commissioners
| to have got out through Headquarters, have no
| objection To giving any Information ] have on
| tho subject. had for sometime had under con-
sideratlOn the subject of utilizing the street
| sweepings OF New York. and believed that II the
| practicnbility Of doing So. and their value was
suits m the future, ltherrfore. on tho 27th OF
March last. sent the following letter to Gen.
| smith, President OF the Police Board:
Gen a r,t,,t ,s SfS ps. iSs- Sssep Ss TX e ~ s'
some iifeuly IN ,e MATER Of the disposal Of .i,se,
value ieruliSer Tor lard willing 10 undertake
the dem"nsraon OF te net 10 ihe euluyeiors Of The
ing demand Tor this ard thereby great
ior Ssreutufai purpescs i9do6 tons Of youf street
sweepinss delivered at the AVERAGE OF 100
he Lns sSd RsirSsG ca%S"aS al anser @ Font Font
that may dupns die season dSpiesis iii: cnsr %i
aso tha, hsve No doubt OF being abls to induce
largrr quantities should you have 1t 10 dispose OF
This will give you convenient as well safe harbor
weather Respectfully submitted.
" The result OF that proposition was that Capt
Gunner was sent to see me and talk the matter
over. He said the difficulty was thnt they GOULD
Why notr Ho replied that the garbage.
street sw1epings. and ashes were all put to-
But"I said why S do you o. do do J thatf You 1 coi
lect them separately. or should do So and II you
collect them separately as rrquired hy law. you
can surely keep them separate. There is no
difficulty nbout II at Nil. Keep them apart and
there Is value IN the ashes for hllines and in
the other materials for fertilizing. but by mixing
them you destroy their entire value and have a
mass offensive and even dangerous. In some
ton OF ashes to street sweep.ngs Is as six 10
one. BY mixing them the whole is rendered
Wei. he finally said that he would recommend
that | should have delivered over ut Hunters
Point one scow load OF street sweeplngs per
diem. as d'slred. and l was Immediately to
transfer IL To the railroad cars. and in no event
WIS Sow to be kept over there more than a
day. That went along satisfactorily about two
weeks aud W" were using II as fnst as we re-
ceived IL Every other day or thereabouts they
-ent a boat over with l5O tons or so on board
suddenly the supply ceasrd, without any nnti-
n'aton of Intention to stop It or explanation OF
doing So until some days after. when received
| Of their having accepted the proposition OF a
Mr.. O'Rourke, who offered to take the street
| NWfFpluGs anu pay Genus " lfhu IoT tntm. L
got no moro dirt Things went on for ten or
twelve days. when Can't. Gunner called upon
me again and showed mo copy Of the resolu-
| tion Of the Board. accepting Mr. O'Rourkr's
dirt. / said, Why, you. have stoppcd, il al.
| ready He said that could not be-. He did not
| know that my supply had been stopped some
| days before. and could not understand 1t. he
" But. as 1t turned out. Mr. O'Rourke never
| came To take n load Of the dirt. and they ex-
| p"'ted TO continue with me, Capt Gunner said.
.sa.la
| only. The experiment mad made. and the
facts which had been developed, gave me re-
newed thought on the subject | made up my
| mind that there WINS no DIM .ully IN utilizing
the entire refuse OF the city OF New York. II IL
was properly collected. and that without one
dollar of added expense 10 the city in gathering
and disposing Of H. hut on tho contrary NJ u
great saving upon the presen. system. Having
| reflected upon IL, and determined how could
| udynntageously dispose Of the street dirt and
| garbage. and Of the ashes. which Are greater
| difficulty made up my mind to send the lol-
sioners. 1t reached them this morning. May 81:
| Nsv YoRK. May 2. 1870
To ne Commissioners " the Potes Dspi'msnf " ne OH u
| trs1i1SIS. In view Of the difficulties which ap
appear 10 attend the disposal oi our street sweepnss
rafbage and ashes after iull consideration have con
cuie To to receive from yuu and uu2e all su
street sSssinss rsHsge ana ashes rsm%ysd ron ne
Prti,i That tic Police Departure nj viii comply with
| h6a-The department to cause the ashes and other
h tt fr'm t,e stTrrt .wee niigs niI "a rbaS
ana 20 deliver the ashes aud such like material board
which will he provided Tor the purpose along side
o docks iocaed at or near detnpo on the East River
andThat the street sweepings and garbage s all be
upon railroad the dumps
specified and that the surface OF each car load Of
swecpngs anu garbAre soon as loaded there shall be
distributed lpss than hundred pounds ol ground
gypsum Inexpensive article. for the purpose OF
| nVutrainng the offensive eXhalatOnS
Thttd-The department TO furnish transfer boats, suit
ably arranged for the transfer Of railroad ~ and
docks at Hunters Point place equally conNe-
uicnt and % tow such transfer boats to aud from such
IL will be perceived that this Arrangement presents
many advantages to the city among which may be noted
| the following, VIZ;
| as collected, and will not be len upon the dumping
| grounds as heretofore.
the river INSTEAD OF OUT TO sea and 10 the NarOws
iii All que sons II injury to the harhor from dumping
In the lower nay, Ac, As heretofore Will be avoided
" The garbage and sWccIings viii be utilized and
saved instead ot being wasted burned, has been
| proposed ~
preparation to receive the ashes II Is deSra
hle that early consideration u the subject should be
had But It must be understood that my oner can only
| be accepted As a whole. -
| Very respectfully yours, HEsRr Huron
| Think there Ia fine opportunity now for the
| Commissioners to accomplish what the public
| demand, viz, the cleaning OF the streets. And
| It comes In Just at the right time; when sum
| meT is coming on, people are anxious on the
| subject. ! do not care 10 say at present before
| IL ia decided whether my prupOsitiDn Will bo ac-