Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-07-31
SWEEPING THE STREETS
Major Davis Gives Some Interesting Data
on the Subject.
The Area Swept Now and in 1S02-The
Appropriation for the Conn
ing Year.

Maj. Davis, superintendent Of the street
cleaning department, speaking to a repre-
sentative OF Tho Star today in reference
TO the work Of machine sweeping now being
done In comparison with what was done
by his department when he took charge OF
1t In March. 1892. gave some interesting fig
ures. AT that time" he said, twenty
five streets were being swept six times q
week, fifteen three times fifty-six twice
and I'D onca. During the fiscal year end
Ing June 80. 1894, thirty-two streets were
swept six times week, sixty-nine three
times. eighty-six twice and 175 once.
During the year ending June 80, 1892,
1S4, S42. 59S square yards were swept costing
s64. e94.20. During the year ending June 80
1891. 248O94.4i5 square yards costing
$50, 1922. were swept In, other words, al
though we swept 63.25l SAT square yards
more Of street surface than were swept in
ls91-92, the cost to the District was 81. 531. 3S
less than that Of 1892.
What the appropriation for my depart
ment will be for the year uron which we
have just entered can only be coEjectured.
The House bill carries s12o.OOO, the same
amount we had last year. When II, reached
he Senate the committee On appropra-
items made IT SlJ9,OOO.~but when the bill
came up for final passage an amendment
was adopted setting apart S. OO0- Of that
amount for sprinklins suburban drive@ays,
which left $145.OO0 as the sum designated for
paying the expenses Of the street sweeping
department for the present year The bill
is now in conference. where J. trust the
5000 clause will be eliminated. The
sprinkling may be necessary, but Its cost
should not be taken out Of the fund set
aside for sprinkliny. sweeping and .cleanirg
the streets Of WASHINGTON ami Georgetown.
II the amount shall be made, $3.50 600, as 1t
should be. u will warrant the schedl!n .
OF lis streets to be swept twice II week
instead Of once. Better iEul that, the
following thoroughfares can be swept five
times a week instead Of three times. which
will make them shine almost like a clean
house floor compared with their present
appearance: Connecticut avenue from III
street north to Dupont Circle; X street
north from nth street west to Washington
Circle; Massachusetts, avenue from 9th
street west to Dupont Circle: 18th street
west from Il streot .iortA TO end Of asphalt.
Besides this the following streets which
have long deserved sTch treatmenS, can be
changed from twice TO three times 4 week :.
Maryland avenue from list street east to
10Th street east: East Capitol street frcm
LIST street east to lltn street east, 11th
street east from Las: Capitol to river;
Pennsylvania ave1ce from al street east
to l1tn street east. an1 Sth street east from
Pennsylvania avenue - navy yard gate"
Or, by way Of comparison. $4,000 would
enable the department to sweep In the
EeiGhborhood OF 100.1D,G,Q square yarls
during the present year. as against 2iS.-
000,0OO for the year lust close1 a prospect
not unpleasant to contemplate. il would
mean very much cleaner city than we
have ever had.
1T should not have been expected of this
department that II could have wrought
any better results than II did last year,
when I was compelled, by reason of the
inadequacy Of the appropriation. to cut off
end not sweep. on the average, 22S. 1871
square yards Of street surface every day
that had been scheduled to be swept and
also, from the same cause, when more than
half Of our paved streets were swept but
once q week. When I tell you that those
229 737 square yards Of themselves repre-
sent an area equal to that Of all the paved
streets running north and south in North
east and Southeast Washington from New
Jersey avenue to 18th street east, or that
an area of streets equal to this combination
Of streets was unswept everyday during the
past year simply because of the failure of
Congress to make the necessary appropria
ton, you can forp an intelligent idea Of
how much more cleanly our streets would
have looked had they been swept accord
ing TO the CREDIBLE. AS It was. however.
one-third n ore street surface was swept
than ever before, and the most conclusive
proof that the quality of the work done
hns at least never been excelled lies in
the fact that but fifty-four complaints of
dirty streets were received during the year
Just closed, notwithstanding the season of
cholera scare last summer. in place of 161
the Drece,iiu1 wear"