Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1882-03-15
WASHINGTON DRAINAGE.
From the Sanitary Engineer.

From the Sanitary Engineer.
For many years there have been occasional
complaints as to the drainage and sewerage of
Washington city. Before the war it was stray
Cling village of boarding houses and oyster sa-
looms, with a few large and handsome buildings
| scattered about. The greater part of the drain
age was superficial, the paved cutters were often
foul, and many of the streets were unpaved. and
in winter almost impossible. The streets inter-
secting Pennsylvania avenue between the Capt.
tol and the White House. had in their centers
large, roughly-built brick sewers which emptied
| into the canal. and from the avenue to the canal
had but little fall-being. in fact, nothing more
than elongated cesSpools. The foul gases from
one of these sewers produced the famous Ma
| tional Hotel epidemic in 1857. The greater
part of the city, however, had neither drainage
! nor sewerage.
After the war the increase in population was
such that village methods Of providing for eX-
creta were no longer sufficient. and when the
| board of public works was created it entered
upon the construction of general system of
sewers in connection with the extensive OPEN
| ing and paving of streets. which it carried out
The work was done in haste-on plans not fully
| dlgested, under very poor supervision. and at a
relatively enormous expense but it made WASH
| ington one of the most beautiful cities i'm the
country, and put an end to the schemes for re-
moving the capital, of which for year or two
| SO much was heard.
better class of buildings made its appear
ance although at the same time the Jerry build
ers ran up their long rows Of cheap brick tene-
ments by the hundred.
Now, Washington is fast becoming great lit
erary and scientific certer. winter resort for
that class of people who in summer are found
at the seaside or in Europe.
But there is cloud on the fair fame Of the
city, and that is with regard to its healthfulness.
The Washington malaria has become celebrated.
| No doubt its amount and its danger have been
| exaggerated, if we use the word i'm the sense in
I which it is now for the most part used. But
| there is also no doubt that there occurs each
| year in Washington large unknown amount of
disease. and certain proportion OF deaths due
to defective sub-soii drainage. badly construct ed
sewers of deposit, and marshy and polluted
river front. The registration of deaths i'm the
| District of Columbia is fairly accurate one-a
permit from the health office being required for
every burial; and the results OF this registration
have been carefully tabuated and presented in
the reports of the health officer. In his annual
report for 1880. lie gives a summary of data re-
| lating to the deaths occurring in the District
! from September /; 1874. the date when accurate
| registration commenced, to june 80. 1880: the
total number of deaths during this period being
"a. $50
1t is well known that the disease which pre-
sents most intimate relations with soil moisture
is consumption The following table shows the
| number OF deaths from this disease during the
| period above referred to- as compared with the
| total number Of deaths from all causes: