The San Francisco call., 1896-03-27
Alameda Is Getting Ready to
Establish a Crema.
tory.
OBJECTIONS TO THE DUMPS.
Bay Farm Islanders Think That Their
Typhoid Fever Results From
the Present System.

The proposition to establish crematory
at or near Bay Farm Island, for the pur-
pose of burning the Alameda garbage
instead of dumping 1t on the island, the
latter method being in operation at pres
ent, has aroused much interest across the
bay, and is meeting with general favor.
The health officers say that the crematory
is necessary in order to ensure satisfactory
sanitary conditions if the garbage is not
TO be removed entirely from this vicinity,
and with the furnaces in use about the
only nuisance that could be charged
against the city would be abolished.
Under the present system, most OF the
garbage is hauled to Bay Farm Island,
which is part of Alameda, and is dumped
there. Another dumping ground is on
the lowland near Webster street and the
estuary. Recently a tract of land near
the southern end of Mound street was de-
voted to the same purpose, but the City
Trustees have remedied the condition that
long existed there.
The offensive nature of this system OF
dispos1ng OF the refuse materials from the
Alameda homes is the principal objection,
for the regular burning of the garbage at
the West End dumps removes the danger
to health.
Bav Farm Island property owners are
inclined to believe that the garbage has
been one of the chief causes of the typhoid
fever that has caused proportionately
large number of deaths on the island dur
ing several years and they will be glad to
have the conditions changed, but the
health officers declare that the garbage has
not been a cause of the sickness.
DIR. Thomas Carpenter, the veterinary
surgeon of the health board, has made
numerous official visits to the island and
in connection with his work he has studied
what he believes to be the real causes OF
the typhoid.
.In the first place." said he, Yesterday,
There are no sewers on the Island ana the
land is so low that there is little natural
drainage The impurities cannot be thor
oughly washed away by the rains.
"Decomposed matter is used to an enor-
nous extent in fertiliZing the gardens that
are numerous on the island. Asparagus,
which is grown in immense quantities,
and other vegetables are trim near the
houses OF the emarket-gardeners and heaps
of the refuse vegetable matter decay and
are allowed to remain for months. With
these conditions and the lack of drainage
it is no wonder that typhoid fever breaks
out on the island.
''Of course the dumping of garbage on
the island does not help matters any, but
there are more important objections for
the islanders to raise. With ordinary
sanitary conditions Bay Farm Island, sit
uated as it is, ought to be about as free
from disease AS anv place in the world
DIR. c.. II. Lubbock, the health officer,
expressed the same views when inter
viewed by CALL representative.
81 have seen typhoid fever patient on
the island in a room whose windows
opened on heap of decompose vege-
table matter that was piled right up
against the house" he said.
Surface wells are used by most of the
people on the island, and where the de-
composed matter is spread so thick over
the ground it would be impossible to pre-.
vent the water from becoming con-
taminated.
'sThe island is splendidly situated. Sur
rounded by the salt water of the bay and
with strong and steady winds blowing
over the entire expanse, nature has en-
dowed it with great advantages. There
ought to be no typhoid fever there, and
there need be none, even though the
dumping of garbage at one end is con-
tinued. Only the islanders who allow t he
decomposed matter to lie thick about their
premises have had typhoid fever"
DR.. Lubbock suggests that the planting
of rows of eucalyptus trees about the
entire island would result In great I'M
provement and would give a decidedly
picturesque appearance. He says that the
trees, as they should be planted, would
not interfere with the sweep of the wind.
In regard to the disposal of the Alameda
garbage, DIR. Lubbock strongly favored a
crematory. He is opposed to the mainte-
nance of dumps in Alameda, as the homes
of the people reach to almost every limit
of the city.
The City Trustees are to take up the
garbage question at their next meeting.