The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1896-01-07
What Becomes Ofthe Mass
of Garbage
Hog Feed and Fertilizer for
Nearby Farmers.
The City Disposes Of Its Refuse
Cheaply and Effectually.


lations Of great city. and from the best in
formation 8t hand IL seems that Providence
is more fortuna ately situated in this respect
than most cities The city ordinances pro-
vide that the garbage shall not he treated In
the city, but it must be- taken care OF some
how. and the geographical location OF the city
makes the solution OF the problem very
natural and easy one. Contractors do the
most Of tho collecting. and then sell largo
proportion of the garbage TO farmers who
come In from the surrounding towns. What
il not sold to the farmers. the contractors
send out Of the city at their own expense.
The majority OF us may not banker to handle
swill i'm bulk, but the old adage that dirty
work makes clean money" ~ er1phatcally
emphasized in this instapce. The price paid
the contractors by tho city is l215 cents per
head per annum. so " there is population
Of 80. 900. as generally conceded, IL would cost
S23, $50 for the year. The collections average.
DO the contractors state. about 10 tons Of offal
every working day. This is dumped in the
yard on Kinsley avenue, where about one
third Of il precipitates. a great deal Of victor
being in IL. OF the otser two-thirds the
farmers purchase about half at 20 cents per
single horse load, and ~ per double horse
load.
course, the contractors employing 30 toap.s.
all two-horse at least, with two men to team.
and the cost OF their maintenance is easily es
tiniated. But even at that there must DO n
fair profit in IL, or the contractors would give
81 up. The collections mado thrice a week
during the summer six months and twice a
week during the other halt year, and this
keeps the wagons and men employed prscti-
cally the year around. The farmers who buy
1t, and there are probably about 100 o. them.
come from various parts of this State. and
sorso come even from Massachusetts. There
is an Attleboro farmer who buys our swill
and another from near Taunton although
these fellows do not make daily trips. Pas
coag is about far as one can comfortably
transport offal daily, or perhaps three or four
times a week. They have to obtain permit
from the Board of Aldermen, being first re-
commended by the health department For
the most part the swill Is fed 10 hogs, but 10
will be readily seen thnt Providence hogs
don't get any, unless they live ON the city
line and tina trough is on the outside OF IL.
The contractors who are handling this enter
prise are the Barney Brothers. A. II. and
John, and they have held offal relations with
the city about seven years or more. John
looks after the collecting aud sale of the
garbage. taking the farmers contribution for
spin money!" while A. II. takes care Of the
bills and collects what is owing. IL lie can.
IL will be remembered that previous TO last
May the city garbage was treated, or reduced.
by the Simonin process, at plant where the
present swill yard is Kinsley avenue, and
OF which Mr.. John Barney Was superin-
tendent. This they were compelled to give
up, because there were several prominent re-
monstrants TO the odor therefrom, although
DIR. King of the health department says that
Superintendent Chaplin considered the system
y good one. the principle lack being good
condenser, tho acids In the garbage having
eaten holes in the old apparatus. This OBJ
lection has since been overcome where the
system Is in operation elsewhere. by using
brass or composition instead Of wrought iron.
But, however tho plant was given up after
the Barneys had sunk about $4,000 in build
ings, ETC., which they had 70 sell for old iron
practically. Then the city was willjngto re-
new the contract with them. and the result is
that a more satisfactory arrangement on both
sides could hardly be desired, and it will very
likely answer the city's needs for a long time
TO come.
OF course the swill has TO be collected in
water tight wagons, and it has to be taken
department sees to it that it Is not "nrted ins
milk wagons or in wagons in which there
may be milk. The only other desirability in
connection with the handling OF swill would
be TO have each house provided with covered
sheet iron barrels for the kitchen girl 20 de-
posit the swill IN. This Is compulsory in some
cities. One Providence landlord has "A novel
common swill yard to accommo late the occu-
pants of his seven houses. On the side Of n
hill he has built it of stone, with cemented
cracks and an iron door, There is also a con-
crete floor with grating in the center. The
swill is deposited here, aud the water runs
off through the hole In the floor Beside the
door is n shovel, and tho swill man opens the
door, shovels the swill into his buckets and
makes off With IT..
There was a gentleman in the city last week
who has looked into the swill problem exten'
sively in various cities. and he says the Pro.
vdsnce plan is all right In New York and
Boston the refuse is carted down tho harbor
and dumped, and Is supposed TO go, hike Nc
Ginty, to thhe bottom of the Now New
York is advertising for bids for It's treatment
by reduction, to get the grease out Of il, and
make the residue into fertilizer, the same as
was done here. Cleveland, o., is said TO have
worry costly and unsatisfactory reduction
plant. In Rochester. n. ", the garbage is
collected In barrels and sent out on trains TO
the reduction plant, which Is at present shut
down for financial reasons IL is said. Alleg-
heny City lets the contract for S27,0 per
annum. There IL population OF about 10000,
and the cost for collection and disposal Is
over So per ton. Pittsburg pays at present
$4,000 year, making the cost per ton over
81 Rochester, N. ", is low. paying $4,000
on n oyear contract The garbage Is set 10
miles out. and the total cost is less than 80
per ton, about 10000 tons being handled.
Buffalo pays S35,UOO OF about sl5) per ton.
for disposal only. The additional cost Of col.
lecting brings tho price mp 30 about 1878.
Detroit has queer contract. IL pays $4,000
for collection and disposal, and then rebates
" cents a ton on all over 1000 tons. This
nets about $4,000, or about s2.1 per ton.
Tho oTai Is sent 20 miles out Of town for