Evening star., 1895-06-10
THE CITY, REFUSE
How It Should Be Collected and Dis
posed Of
VEGETABLE and ANIMAL GARBAGE
The Contractor Should Know What
He is to Receive.
FIVE METHODS OF PROCEDURE
To the Editor of The Evening Star:

To the Editor of The Evening Star:
In considering means for the disposition
of city refuse, it is necessary in order
to avoid making serious errors, which
would involve the city authorities in fail
ure and waste of funds, to constantly bear
in mind the character of the refuse to be
handled. The problems that present them
selves to the authorities differ just as the
composition of the refuse differs. and all
computations as to probable cost and eff
cheney of proposed apparatus and prob
able loss or profit to the city and to the
contractor must be based upon a knowl-
edge of what can be done with the ele
ments that make I'D the refuse.
Refuse in it's broad sense includes gar
bage, street sweepngs, night soil, ashes
and miscellaneous matters. In some places
the ashes and miscellaneous matters are
conveyed to designated dumps and do not
enter the consideration of the disposition
of refuse, although such material is in
other places collected and disposed of by
the city authorities.
Ashes Should Be Kept Separate.
But whether disposed of publicly or pri-
vately, and the public collection is far pre-
ferable, ashes should be kept separate and
collected separately from all other kinds
of refuse, for there is no known process or
apparatus by means of which ashes can
be employed aid to the economical or
useful disposition of other forms Of refuse.
Where there is mixed with the ashes such
miscellaneous matter as paper, straw, tin
cans, glass, etc, it would probably be no
object to attempt a separation; but on the
score of cleanliness the separation of light
matters. which if not destroyed would be
blown around the streets, is advisable.
Where the refuse, other than ashes, is to
wood, etc, could be utilized.
The night soil question is practically solv
ed in larger cities and towns, and need not
be examined further at present.
So, too, with the street SweepingS, which
while fairly well disposed of, should be a
source of some revenue to the city. They
have value fertilizer, which should in
part if not wholly pay for their collection.
If they could be sold for a few cents a
load, they would during the course of a
year return to the city respectable pro-
portion of the amount paid for collecting.
1t is a wanton waste to dump them into
the river, and If they can be sold there
would seem to be no reason why instead
of paying thousands of dollars for collect
ing certain amount should not be
charged for the material collected.
Garbage is used generally in Il broad
sense to include both animal and vegetable
matters collected from the Inhabitants, as
well as ashes, stree: SweepingS and mis-
cellaneouS refuse.
At present let US look at it in its more
restricted sense, and as including only such
animal and vegetable matters are COM
monty collected from residences, hotels and
markets.
Failure to take note of the composition of
garbage has resulted in a corresponding
failure of contractors to successfully live
up to their contracts, much to the tncon-
verience and annoyance OF the authorities
and the taxpayer.
ceive everything in the nature of garbage,
and while regulations designed to insure
his receiving everything are made, they
are not enforced, and the result is that
he receives mostly vegetable and little ami
NAL matters.
Some persons proceed upon the theory
that if they have a plant for the DISPOSE
ton of garbage they can successfully dis
pose of the garbage they receive, seldom
stopping to consider the character or COM
position of the material on which they are
to work.
The First Thing Necessary.
The first thing that is necessary, if the
city is to dispose of the garbage, is to de-
term.ne the character of the garbage to be
delivered or collected by the collector. and
then hold the latter strictly to his contract,
which should, by the way, provide for
more frequent collections than are made in
Washington.
And, above all, let a contract to no one
unless he knows what he has to do and
how to do it.
Animal ana VeSetaDle matters require
different treatment t. effectually dispose
of them and to render them profitable.
If the matter is all vegetable, 1t can best
be disposed of by drying alone or by
drying and burning, but as it con-
tains such a large percentage of moist
ure, very large amount of heat is
required to effect the drying. The cost of
maintaining fire sufficient to dry, say, $50
tons OF vegetable matter day Is consid-
cradle; and the cost IS increased largely by
failure to properly drain the garbage be-
fore it is placed in the drier. and also by
attempting to dry it while in heaps or piles,
instead of spreading 1t out in thin layer.
Vegetable matter, being thoroughly dried,
burns readily; and. having quantity of
dried garbage, the heat given off In its con-
sumption can readily be used to dry or as
sist in drying subsequent charges, by hav-
ing the drying chamber connect with the
combustion chamber in such manner as
that the products of combustion pass
through the drier in one direction, while
the wet material is carried toward the
combustion chamber and is dried by the
escaping products. By the time the gar
bage reaches the furnace proper or com-
bustion chamber it will, if it has been eX-
posed sufficiently to the heated products of
combustion given off by the burning Of the
previously dried garbage, be found to be
thoroughly dried
Thus we would have a continuously op-
Grating plant for drying and destroying
vegetable (and also animaD matters, which
would require no extraneous fuel outside
of that required to dry the first charge.
Such plan has been proposed and pat
ented. and seems to be based upon sound
principles, the saving in fuel being the
most important feature.
Where the animal matter alone is to be
treated it can be handled at a profit. and
that is the reason why such material is not
delivered to the garbage man.
Every bit of meat fat, bone and skin is
utilized to advantage in the Chicago pack
ing houses, and this same material col