Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-11-16
SWEEPING THE SKY.
The Engineers Society Con.
siders Plans to Abate
the Smoke Nuisance.
AN INTERESTING REPORT
Covering the Entire Subject Fully
Discussed and Adopted.
COLONEL ROBERTS HAS HOPES,
though the Evil Is Admitted to Be One
That Is Hard to Eeach.
AN INTERESTING REPORT
COLONEL ROBERTS HAS HOPES,
REMEDIES THAT WORKED ELSEWHERE

sylvania, with many conspicuous figures in
the industrial world of the two cities, ana
many ladies from the local Health Protect
i've Association, last night considered the
smoke nuisance. The report of the
committee named some months ago
TO consider the smoke question
was presented and was literally discussed.
The committee was appointed last spring
and had made an exhaustive investigation
of the matter The members are Colonel
T ?. Roberts, chairman; w. L. Scaife,
Charles Hyde, Prof John Langley, Daniel
Ashworth, 7. II. Johnston and Captain A.
f Hunt. Considerable discussion of the
subject followed the reading of the report.
When some regular business had been
disposed of, President Hunt called for the
report. 1t was read by Mr. W. L. Scaife.
The discussion on the report was started
by President Hunt He said his impress
sion was that one of the most important
things to remedy was the lack of steam
capacity to do the work required, resulting
in driving boilers to their utmost and pro-
ducing the most smoke. Especially was
this the case in smaller plants using boilers
of 100-horse power or less
Colonel Roberts Hopeful.
Colonel Roberts said the report showed
that smoke can be abolished under steam
boilers and in most all cases greatly re-
duced. 1t was only question of time until
smoke would be abolished in the business
section of the city. The East End district,
he said, covers an area of about five square
miles. 1t is surrounded by hills and doesn't
consequence, with less smoke, fogs are
more frequent than in other parts of the
city. In this respect the East Liberty
valley in its conditions much resembled
London. 'There in the chosen place OF
our city is the last place we will have to
fight smoke. 1 think the in ventor who
comes forth with an invention for the i'm
provement of our domestic freplaces will
get the biggest crumb."
John A. Brashear told of some investi-
cations he had made in London when there,
at the request OF the committee. The Lon
don CRATES, he found, are the worst con-
stituted of any for smoke consumption.
Claws" he said, 'have been laid down for
perfect combustion. 1t is done in our
everyday work, and think the fact that
we cannot get it into our freplsces is dis
grace to our American inventors.
Colonel W. A. Heron spoke OF the good
results from the use of an automatic stoker
under boilers
j. McGeary referred to the construction
of furnaces and various appliances to de-
crease smoke.
Emil Swensson SAID that as to domestic
fires the use alternately of hard and soft
coal did away with smoke and was an eco
nomical fire.
Opposed to Gas.
r. n. Clark, secretary of the society,
said that many people in the East End use
hard coal and gas coke in their furnaces.
There is no smoke and there is no cheaper
fuel in the world when properly used.
Mr. Cotton said the essential thing in
getting rid of smoke was proper mixture
of air at a right temperature with the gases
as emitted One important point, he said,
is that architects have not learned in max |
ing plans for buildings to leave proper |
space for boilers. leaving them 10 be erected |
wherever they can be put alter the plans |
have been completed.
Mr.. Brashear, after referring to the waste |
of gas and coal as fuel, suggested that they |
90 to the source of all heat the sun, and an |
ticipate the years to come by utilizing its |
heat, thus preparing for the future, when
coal will be exhausted.
When the discussion ended a motion was
adopted to approve the report, print it and |
send copies to the Mayors and Councilmen |
of Pitts5urg and Allegheny.
The Smoke Commit ee's Report
The report of the committee was compre- |
hensive and interesting, and its reading was |
listened to with marked attention. The re- |
port says:
Your committee, appointed at the March |
meeting of the society, have had neither the |
time nor the opportunity to make a detailed |
or experiment tai investigation of the general |
subject of smoke abatement. We believe |
we have, however, obtained sufficient facts |
directly bearing on our local conditions to |
show that there is In this respect a chance |
for considerable Improvements at the pres
ent time in Pittscurg and Allegheny. As |
the subject is one OF general interest, and as |
all permanent smoke abatement is depend |
emit on the public demand for it, you will |
probably pardon us for giving some histori- |
cal and technical details with which most |
of you are familiar.
1t is a matter of common remark that the |
few years of comparative freedom from coal /
smoke due to the use OF natural gas have |
given the people of this community a strong
desire TO avoid the evil now menacing us
from the rapidly increasing consumption of
sort coal. 1t is. therefore, not so surprising
that the English people of the fourteenth
century should have enacted a law making
it a capital offense to burn coal ana pollute
the atmosphere within the precincts of
London.
over three centuries were required to re-
move the prejudice OF the English people
against the use of soft coal. 1t is related
that an ambassador at Paris, early I'm the
nresent century, sent out Invitations for !
large party, but was astonished to flnd that
none but gentlemen attended. The ladies
60 had hoor |
that His Lordship used English coal to warm
his house. Even at the present day in Paris
very little coal is used, the price of gas coke |
being kept so as to make it cheaper than |
coal The result is that while Paris even in
rainy and foggy weather Is well-lighted dur
ing the day, London, at noon, is sometimes
shrouded In the darkness of night.
What England Has Done.
Nevertheless, during the present century,
England has done considerable to abate the
nuisance In August, 1858, Parliament passed
q bill ''to abate the nuisance arising from
the smoke of furnaces in the metropolis and
from steam vessels above London Bridge"
This act applied only to London. 1t pro-
yided for official inspection under the au-
tboTitv of the Commissioner of Police.
AS illustrating the great advantage of
nlacine the execution of such a law in the |
proper hands. we may add that the inspec-
tor appointed under this act discharged his
dutv With such zeal and efficiency tnat in
the words of our English historian, "a clean
shirt. which formerly lasted only one day. |
now lasts four days in good condition"
About a century ago our own Franklin was
prod uction and prevention. Although his
writings deal more with smoky" than with
Smoking" chfmneys, yet he describes two
stoves designed by him.