St. Paul daily globe., 1889-04-30
STICKNEYS new SCHEME,
The President of the Kansas Road
Wants the City's Garbage.
HE HAS GOT A BIG FARM,
But the Council Committee Inclines to
the Crematory System and Will
Call for Bids.


to a call by Mayor Smith, to receive
and consider the report of the special
committee appointed to visit Eastern
cities and investigate the different sys-
TENS of garbage disposal adopted by
them. After making a thorough inves
tigatlon and carefully considering the
question the committee returned the
following report:
To the Honorable Common Council of the
City of st. Paul-Gentlemen The under
signed, your committee appointed to lnvesti-
gate and report what, in their opinion, was
method of disposing of the refuse matter.
consisting of ashes, nightsoil, garbage, dead
animals, etc., beg leave to report that we pro-
ceeded to the cities of Chicago. Buffalo,
Boston and New York, and carefully investi-
gated this subject. Aside from the ordinary
method of removing these matters to some
place without the city, we found two sys-
TENS that are in practical operation, one Of
which consists in the cremation of the ma
terials and the other what is termed the
Vienna system.
The city of Cicago has built a large plant.
costing about $4,000, which it has been
using to cremate that portion of these ma
terlals that 1t could dispose of in this way,
and during the season of 1887 had this plant
IN operation. The operation of the plant
established the fact that it required ton of
soft coal to burn about twelve to fifteen
tons OF garbage; and, counting the expense
of running the plant and handling the
material after it was collected, the statistics
prove that it required an expenditure of II
cents ton to burn this material. The prac-
teal operation of this crematory also eStab-
lished the fact that to obtain satisfactory re-
suits it was necessary to separate the ashes
and combustible materials from the garbage;
and this, in the city of st. Paul, has proved
very difficult undertaking. This system of
Waukee, but 1t proved very unsatisfactory
there and the city of Chicago has endeavored
TO obtain another system, and the health
commissioner of Chicago is about to intro
duce the Vienna system. We are unani-
mouSly of the opinion that the crematoIy
system would be unsatisfactory. and would
not be adapted to this city. 1t is very eX-
peKsive; it necessarily throws off gases and
the limits of the city; and it requires the
separation Of the garbage from the other
materials and leaves the ashes. nightsoil and
dead animals to be disposed of by some other
method.
THE VIENNA SYSTEM.
About ten months ago a company, under
the name of the MerZ Universal Extractor
and Construction company, erected plant
outside the city of Buffalo, n. Y, for the
purpose of disposing of the garbage of that
city. The company assured the people that
the operation of the plant would not be
Objectionable in the heart of the city, but
they were compelled to construct it beyond
the city limits. This plant has been in opera
ton several months and when we visited it
we found it in active operation. 1t handles
and disposes of only that portion of the ref
use matter covered by the term garbage, and
this excludes nightsoil, ashes and manure.
All the other parts of the refuse matter of
the city are disposed of by this plant. The
material is treated substantially as follows:
1t is placed in large iron cylinders, capable
of holding about 5000 pounds each, within
n nf hInh Ic tDIr hNi1 Dlxy
ing shaft. with hollow arms, which in opera
ton are nj I'D with super-heated steam. IN a
jacket ard3hd the cylinder and in this
hollow shaft and projecting arms is con
ton of the plant, and the shaft is constantly
revolving, and at the end of about seven or
eight hours the material is removed from
this cylinder. 1t comes out dry and free
of drying it in the cylinder all the moisture
and organic gases are removed and con-
densed into water, without the escape of any
offensive odors In this part of the process
about 90 per cent of the green garbage is de-
stroyed or removed, and the remaining 35
per cent is then placed in close tanks or ex-
tractors. in which it is treated with chemi
GALS and there is extracted from it in vege-
table and animal oils about 3I2 per cent of
the amount of green garbage. The balance
OF the material is found to be of considerable
value as basis for making fertilizers, and
the oil is used fer making candles
operation there was nothing
offensive or annoying to the people residing
in the vicinity, or to those employed about
the plant. There were no offensive odors,
except such as arise from the handling of
garbage before operating upon it. A plant
like this might our opinion, be constructed
and operated in very many portions of this
city, without the least annoyance to the resi-
dents of the vicinity. AT Buffalo we found
that there were four of these dryers or
cylinders in active operation, and it was
estimated 1t would require four more to dis
pose of the garbage of the city. From the
best information we can obtain, it would re-
quire a plant consisting of four or five
cylinders, or dryers, with the corresponding
extractors, to dispose of the garbage of this
city. At the time we visited she Buffalo plant
the MerZ company was about commencing to
operate another dryer for the destruction of
night soil ana manure: but this was
an experiment which, we understand,
has been successful. The great
practical question which the council has to
determine is how to dispose of all the refuse
matter. II the Merz company can dispose of
the garbage and dead animals, of which
there seems to be no doubt, we estimate that
the night soil, manure and ashes would still
constitute at least 75 per cent of the whole
amount of refuse matter, and that would
have to be disposed of in some other way. In
conclusion, your committee would recon-
mend that the city clerk be authorized to ad-
vertise for bids for the collection and dis
posal of all refuse matter within the city
limits, proposals to be made in such man.
ner that separate bids can be obtained for the
collection of all refuse matter and its dis
posal: for the collection of garbage alone
and its disposal; and for the collection eff all
other matter except garbage, and its dis
posal.
Signed by Anthony Yoerg Jr., o. 0. Cullen,
John F. Gehan, W. a. Sanborn, L. W. Rund-
lett Henry F. Hoyt
When the report of the committee
came up for adoption Aid. Sullivan an
nounced that President A. B. Stickney,
of the Kansas City road, who was
present, desired to be heard upon the
matter. Mr.. Stickney was accorded
permission to speak, and said:
'"This matter of the disposal of the garbage
and refuse of large city is important from
q sanitary, and also from a business stand
point. 1 have for good many years looked
with covetous eye upon the amount of
property constantly wasted in the destruction
of this garbage"
He then went on to report his investi-
CATION of the methods of garbage dis
posal in New York city over the Long
Island railWay,t elling how President
Corbin had not only rescued the road
from bankruptcy, blt had in ten years
increased the value of land on Long
Island from $40 and SIS an acre to $500
and $1,000 an acre. He explained in de-
tail how manure was purchased in New
YORK, nauleQ TO the East river, ferrled
across and there loaded upon cars and
hauled down the island to be sold to
farmers.
sit is a fact" said the speaker, ''that
farmers are now living on five acres and
making money, where before it took 200
acres; and it is fact that men do now pay
So 900 an acre for farm land there. 1t seems
to me that instead of burning and Destroy
ing this stuff, we too should haul ii out into
the country. 1t will, of course. lie claimed
new York and Brooklyn with nearly 3.OOO,-
600 of people, but the Long Island produce
is not all consumed in New York hut goes to