New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-01-22
A DISGRACE TO THE CITY.
THE STREETS LINED WITH ASH CANS AND
GARBAGE BARRELS
BRENNAN's PrERILE EXCUSES

WHY ARE THE sCOwS NOT RELEASED?
The men who are running the city government
from the Wiewam in East Fourteenth.st. may
find out sooner than they expect it that there is
a limit to the patience and fortearance of even
the long suffering people of New-fork. The negi-
gencc and want Of system shown by the Tam
many Hall Street Cleaning Department is nowhere
more dsgrarefully evident than in the failure to
deal with the ashes and garbage problem. If thera
is my duty connected with Mr.. Brennan's depart
ment which ought TO be performed regularly and
promptly it is the removal of the daily
accumulations Of this kind. Yet nearly every
street and avenue in the city is lined with un-
emptied re"eptaclcs for asles and garbage, most
of which are oyerlowing with rceking nltl.
The SIGHT is not only disgusting and humiliatins,
but such negligence opens the door to disease
and pestilcnc' 1t is 10 cXcus, to say that the
failure TO remove this refuse is due to the inability
Of the department to obtain the needed scows to
transport it 20 SEA It could easily be taken
and piled up in convenient places along
the water front .. suggested by Chief
Engineer Greene, of the Dock Department.,
whenc. it could BE- removed in the usual way after
the thlw Leaving these quantities of offensive
and rotting material TO vcX the senses of decent
citizens and disgrace the city in the eyes of visit
ing strangers il an indcfonsibe outrage which
ought to receive the immediate attention OF the
Mayor. Commissioner Brennan became greatly
excited the other day when he found that his
night gang had deposited three cart loads OF
snow in front of Mr. Clevelands house in
West Fifty-iisf-st. in their hurry to dump
the contents of their carts and get home, and
he lost no time in putting it out of sight, buc
he is unmoved by the thousands Of piles of house
hold refuse placed upon the curbstOnes for re-
moval days ago, but left by the street-cleanine
officials to be scattered the streets by pass
ing vehicles and blown by the winds into the
eyes, ears and nostrls Of passers-by.
The defence Of Mr.. Brennan and his high
saaried associates in the Street Cleaning Depart
ment, that they are unable to dispose of this
pestental material because their dumpingscow
are frozen up in their slips and elsewhere, is
pucrile. II their neglect should be followed by an
outbreak of disease in New-lork such an excuse
would not count for much with an indignant and
cxaspcrated community. The Commissioner or
Street Cleaning is allowed the enormous appro-
priation of over $4,000. 900 this year, and last
wear he got within a fraction Of that Immense
sum OF money In an emergency like the preseno
what is he doing to prove that he has been properly
intr,lsted with the Office he holds, and is conl-
petent to direct the expenditure OF 20 great sum
A man of energy, pluck and the necessary capacny
would have found the means for hDera'lhg tho
scows on the day after the coming oil freezing
weather. New-York is full OF the necessary ap'
plances couple Of big ocean tugs wouid nave
broken through the ice at llarts Island, ana eNery
slim along the river front where the department
scows are imprisoned and would "as!iE haN0
relcas,sl them. Where the ice was found 70 re-
sist first-cIass iron tug of high power the use %
a little dynamite would undoubtedly prove aVsn-
able in the hands Of an engineer VINO uncers'ooo
his business The cost Of such experiments WIN
no small indeed in comparison with the s'ar'li'i'
r.cnsaitv nj relieving the city from the rottins
collections which are standing al the very uoy.'
of the people filling the air with noisome exhaia-
.i and pre,,rino the way for contagion or
plague ,.o;,od inn
..,.o,,on. !, tho scov situation yesterday, say
;n, that il was better than during any preceuihs
,.,, for nj least two weeks bumpers were ao
IN. Canal. Ninteenth and Forty-seventh 81. dumps
ON the East River. and at the Rutgers stanton
Seventeenth and Forty-siAth II. dumps, d oecN
scow at Old Slip and also at the SeVeh'ie'h "iu
F,obtieth ST dumps Nine bumpers were suo-
cessfully got to sea on Friday hlsht anu ''s'
day morning. Light scows had come ii ','
several points. No effort was maoe u -
- ., u,rt's Island Yesterday to recover t'e
,.,or;u scows there the Commissioner peh@'-
;rc !, IN bc a useless expenditIre of money
When the Commissioners attention was '" ,
., th. subiect he admitted that he had receNea
numerous complaints regarding ashoarres aa"
n.rhagc reccptaces winch had been lining ''''
,r6,s in every part of the cty since lhe Pc'i'"
cold and snow 1T IN, hut lie 'alu t'"'
he WAS powrrcs, to do anything i'o'D
,h,n ne was doing in the way oi removing '"o"'
,,,tiI th. weather changed. As soon as t''e wy
:; on.r.d ,o ret rid Of my collections he sali.
" T ,nrill send out All extra force oil uhtn dll" ~
nJ carry the contents OF every asnDdIioi az
"rh,gn anu nan in the city direct ~ the dumps. AZ
twenty-loIr hour, alter my rco"s aIe s.r.s.,.
,,l Ioyc every particle of re Use III ,lc ST., si.v
clrarcd AWAY" And I'll" people mus w p'ar, p'n,,
until Nature and Providence release MI D''ii'"
Hmt Mr. E,ennan ssil that hc had pcen masking
,, nroor,ss in ridding the city OF III" acT an,u
1,.3s 3 o,, p and joc Since the last SNOWFALL, u"
.a;I - have dumped about lj,O0O cartioads .!
~ al,, IN 20 tbn two rivers Last evening the nlghG
~ n'. ~ ,oornyatinc ijc men and 800 carts ana
7;~.rs ynr, ~. 10 woik Readc. Duane, lhomaa
Worth IconalL and lrnlilln SIS, between ni2au- ,
,ar and Nest Jncadway: also on White Walker
nJ Iisuerard stS between the same thorough,
Sarss The snow in Church, thamb"rs ana ,anat
a. xas also ATTACKED by the canes, and mo
cross;n"s i'm Fi't-tVc. between %ighth ana flity.
ninth SIS were swept a-aIn. 10 gct the strceo
;ntn !, nrrscntabic condition for Sunday.
,>.D CtJ'TJ DJp\ED 10 DEfTH.