The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1879-07-18
FILTHY STREETS.
Stagnant Pools Poisoning the Amos
phere with Their OdOrS.
NEGLECTED ASH BARRELS.
oepIorabe Condition of the West Side
Tenement Districts. sa-

terday morning and to great degree IL either neutral
lied destroyed the noisome fumes of the decaying
matter fluids which still in certain streets
filed the hollows of the pavement The fresh breezes
too which blew from the North River seemed to aid
in dissipatng the lingering efiuva, that only oc
sionally the passer-by subjected to the severe
disgust of admitting it his lungs. The cutters in
that part of the city have seldom been so free from
obstructing filth nor the sidewalks clear of encum
bering garbage and ashes. All this however. is said
only comparatively. and it is the best presentment
that be made of the of the Street Cleaning
Bureau. Ignoring the ordinary condition of this
district, which is much worse than the present. one
will still have difficulty in finding a long and
severe indictment against those officials for neglect
and guilty liberation.
AS was conceded in the HERALD yesterday the bust
ness blocks for the greater part marvellously
clean. There are. however several pest spots even
here and the condition Of the tenement quarters is
unchanged excepting so far it affected by the
recent thunder storm. In New Church street. be-
tween Dey and Liberty. where great many teams
constantly standing, the pavement near the cast
ern curbstone Uttered with large quantity OF
reeking refuse, offence to sight and SMELL 1t does
not appear that these blocks are swept with sufi-
cient frequency. In front Of No. 163 Greenwich
street was stagnant pool. At intervals from this
point toward the Battery the piles OF dirt thrown up
in making excavations for the new a. railroad
pillars wholly dam up the gutter. Water was col
ected each Of these places in great quantities. ane
was growing hourly more impure from the action OF
the heat No effort whatever has been made except
in single spot, to provide channel for drainage
through the dirt and debris. At the Of Thames
and Greenwich streets the culvert still entirely
slogged up and the gutter and roadway were flooded
over an area of hundred square feet and to the
lent IF Or oh
before No. IS extremely filthy.
A PLACE OF ABoMINATIoNs.
The lower part OF Washington street is par ercel-
lence the place of denominations, and in those which
have already been described there was abatement
discernibe. The curbs are lined with stationary
repositories for garbage and ashes, which are sell
dom, if ever, entirely empty The ashman in max
ing his rounds invariably leaves certain quantity
of matter behind him, and this is in constant fer
mentaton and putrefaction. As long as this is the
practice. matter how often the carts sent to
the houses the streets will continue to smell badly
No measures have been taken to remedy any OF the
evils complained of existing in these blocks. A
grocer at No. 50 questioned about a terrible
mass of filth which lay before his door. THE
street." said he ''has not been swept in two or
three days, yet it would be tolerabiy clean If the
people who live in the tenement houses were not so
nasty in their habits The stuff which you see
there washed along last night during the storm
from the other end of the block. The storekeepers
along here generally clean the cutters them
selves every morning. but folks haven't
eaten anything for the past two days-it's
been holland busy in
supplying their wants that we have time to do it.
The greatest abuse the part the Street Cleaning
Bureau is in regard to the removal of ashes and
garbage, which is thoroughly done. The ash
n oh iyt ha t.h.
away" In front OF No 81 ash box overflow
ing with refuse. the gutter half full and the
whole smelled abominably Along Battery place,
from Washington street to West. the gutter had not
been touched up to noon, Notwithstanding the
HERALD's exposition of its condition. Before a
cheap eating saloon at No. 16 West street. the water
is backed up by the accumulation of foul be.
meath plank with which the gutter is covered, and
it will soon become fetid from stagnation and the
heat. Morris street. between Washington and West
Streets can only be compared to sty. In front Of
Nos. 16 and - large rotting nni-
NAL and vegetable matter. on WHICH some myriads
OF blue bottle flies were feeding and breeding.
In the lower part of West street il was no uncon-
mon thing to see ladies who were their way to
the excursion boats moored in the vicinity applying
their handkerchefs to their noses they hurried
past the pest spots which abound. Many heaps of
sweeplngs which had been formed some days before
observed along the eastern curb. Rector street.
between West and Washington, needs a visitation of
the bosom very badly In front of No. "a the gutter
sinks abominably, and an ashbox is crsmmed and
overlooking with ashes and garbage Carlyle street
is also very dirty.
CONTINUED NEGLECT
In Thompson street. the abode OF the worst class
OF negroes in this city, there were signs of puri-
hcation and IL still odorous of filth. The rest Of
the Eighth precinct also the greater part the
Fourteenth precinct, il remarkably clean, u fact
which is due in measure to the excellent pavement
of nearly all the streets In front OF Nos. 10 and ~
Crosby stree; the Nth noticed on Wednesday was
still undsturbed Stagnant water thick with putres-
cent matter scented the cutters of Elizabeth street
from Prince to Broome. Foul spots in front of
Nos lob. 140 and l5l were specially noted. At the
southeast and northwest corners OF Elizabeth and
Grand streets black muck fills the cutters and
smells very strongly In Hester street. opposite the
office OF the New York Gasiight Company, there are
heaps of wet and noisome ashes which have evil
IDENTIFY been dumped in the middle of the roadway
without fear of the law. The western gutter OF
Chatham street below Bayard. contained a thick
solution OF hlth. from which there a very dis
pool OF greenish water aud before No. 19L Bsyard
the gutter is obstructed with heap garbage
A resident said that on Saturday the ash barrel
broke and the contents fell to the ground while IL
IN the hands OF the cartman. There he per-
United them to remain.
In no branch of the public service does the heavy
influence Of the warm weather seem to produce so
lethargic an impression as in that whose duty is to
keep the thoroughfares in wholesome condition.
While all other people are doing something. or at
the least making pretcnce OF keeping busy.
the street Cleaning Department is absolutely
Its impassiveness Is likely to be most damaging to
public health Throughout the entire extent OF tho
dent but in few places is IL felt with lamenta-
BILE suffering than in the sixteenth and Twentieth
police precincts. The residents in these districts
groan beneath the burden incapacity, II not worse
compels them to support. and go on bearing with
the infiction with patience that IL moro
than commendable considering the extent to
which IL is tested. Excessive makes
the cutters and stagnant pools emit odor that is
almost unbearabe, even after long acquan lance,
and the Twentieth warders long lomed to
foul stenches According to their own testimony
rain gives odensiveness in the rottng garbage.
But when ram comes suddenly in great heat and
heat again returns in succession, then 1t is time to
think of escaping from the west side of town.
There many variations the
surface of this territory that abundant re-
ceptscles scattered all IL for the
retention of water, aud there il remains. Some
OF the ground is high and much Of II is low. and the
balance mixture OF high and low. il so admirably
Rdiusted that one aci on the other like perpetual
ever aud keeps up the supply of fostering material
The high ground. must be naturally conceived is
occupied by the best paved streets, in which the
wealthest people live and the low land holds the ten
enient houses, where the hard worked overcrowded
population gasp tor an occasional lung full OF