The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1892-03-14
PESTS AND PLAQUES.
Mass Meeting Of Mission Prop,
erty- Holders Yesterday.
They Protest Against the City and County
Hospital and Pesthouse Strange
Revelat IONS.

In response TO the call for a mass meeting
OF property-owners made early last week
by the POtrero improvement Club. about
seventy gathered yesterday afternoon in
Maennerbund Hall, on the corner
Twenty-fourth street and Potrero avenue.
J. D. Koran, President Of the club acted as
Chairman.
President Koran stated the purposes of
the meeting were to devise ways and means
for the removal of the City and County
Hospital and the Twenty-siXth Street Hos
pital, better known as the " Pesthouse,"
where smallpox patients and leper are con-
I'm ed.
Secretary Dwyer said he had been given
10 understand no effort would be made to
remove the Pesthcuse from its present 81 e
onto the County Hos ptal grounds; also
that Supervisor Taber is looking for a
Pesthouse size on the other side of the Po-
trero hill, and that the only thing to con-
slider was ways and means to hasten the
removal of the County Hospital. This
view, however. was not accepted. and a
motion was adopted making the Pesthouse
the first question to be considered.
WELCOME NEWS.
j. Wagner announced that he had good
news for the Mission residents. He said
he had heard Of an offer OF two and a half
acres opposite Shag K OK which would be
sold for $4,000. A round of applause fol-
lowed Nj Wagners announcement.
10 show into how many departments of
lie the Pesthouse is truly plague and
constant menace TO health dozen CITIZENS
| gave their evidence.
J. Sullivan said the Mission ducks and
hens feed inside Of the Pesthouse limits and
that their eggs must contain more or less Of
the infectious microbes.
Peter Stanberg kept the ball rolling by tell
Ing how children are able aud do peep
through the cracks in the fence at the un-
| wholesome sights Of half-eaten faces and
crooked limbs, and how every southwesterly
wind is apt to carry the disease right across
| the city.
Another citizen told of a boy going about
| IN the Mission selling clans caught in the
| rear OF the Pesthouse, IN a region not far
from where the Pesthouse sewage empties.
HORRIBLE TALES.
These, and other statements too horrible
| for publication, were the topic of discus
sion for half hour. in which the property
owners appeared more as ghouls telling
wild tales of spirits Of pestieDce than SIM
pc citizens protesting against hospital.
On motion the matter Of the removal of
the Pesthouse was referred To a committee
comprising Messrs. Thomas F. Mitchell,
| James L. Hughes. Henry Schulken, J. Sui
livan. Frank MacAleer. McAree, Baldwin
d hammond, O. Diliman. John Wagner,
Adam Newman and A. 4. Morrison.
Later in the session the matter OF the
County Hospital removal was referred to
the same committee.
Frank MacAleer said Shag Rock is not
TT place for the Pesthouse. for when the
sou'wesers blow the water washes furiouslv
over the highest point on the rock, and at
best ii has only 30x75 feet OF very rough
surface. No one appeared to defend Shag
Rock as site, and the next order of bust
ness was taken up. This was the County
Hospital question.
A sEwAGE-soAKE HOSPITAL.
By far the greatest amount OF grievances
recited against the County Hospital were
that the place Is breeding i'll health and i'm
morality. James p. Hughes said that the
sewers were not properly come cted, and
that large rart of the sewage is reeking
beneath the building and breeding miasma
under the very noses Of the Board of Hea III :
also that the mattresses of the patients sick
OF all diseases, are hung on lhs fence to dry,
that the dirty linens are hung on the veTan-
dahs to dry, and that the smokestack is OF
high enough to lift the smoke above the
surrounding cottages.
August Mullering told of a corral where
the abandoned baDdages are thrown. This
place, be said, is on the Potrero-avenue side
Of the grounds. Ia this he was partly borne
out by Michael Hurley, who has lived near
there for years.
INDECENT BATuERs.
Then came several statements about the
use of bathrooms by patients who did not
take the precaution to lower the curtains
that would have shut them off from the vie w
OF the entire neighborhood.
The question of the extension of all
streets between Mission and Vermont. from
Twenty-sixth toIUtah was next taken nm
but as there was considerable diver gence OF
opinion and some misunderstanding. tho
matter was deferred TO another meeting
Inc plan is to extend all the streets at once
10 avoid so MANY street commissions. and
make it possible for residents on each street
10 pay tor their streets only aud not for