The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-06-04

BwELLEVILLE'S Wall
The Pollution Commission
Hears How the Passaic
FoulneSs Hurts That
Town.
DEAD ANIMALS AND SEWAGE
Death and Disease Lurk in ths
Water Jersey City has
To Drink.

The Passaic Sewerage Commission, as
Governor Griggs' commission to inquire
into the pollution of the Passaic
,River. has designated itself, had a
y-busy day yesterday. In the after
noon DR.. Marsh of Passaic. DR.. Herold
and William Hunt, Esq, of Newark, the
elnembers of the commission, held a con-
ference in their office in the Globe Build
ting, on Broad street, Newark. They dis
eussed the work they have already ac-
ecomplished, and laid out plans for further
action.
Up to this time the commissions labors
shave been directed to ascertaining
the causes of the rivers pollu-
fion, and for that reason have
listened to the engineers of the
various municipalities which sewer into
the Passaic and have obtained from them
data concerning the amount of sewage
(which these cities empty into the river,
and the probable amount which viii flow
: into the river in ten years from now.
thereafter they will devote their atten-i
aion mainly to the citizens who live upon
srhe banks OF the stream and consider the
scomplaints they have to make concerning
Fhe present condition of the stream. The
Afirst step in this direction was taken
last evening when the commission held
"a public meeting in the Town Hall of
Belleville. Among those present was
Chairman Underwood of the Town Com
mittee. Dr., D. NJ. Skinner, Health Off
Ger of the town; DIR. Philhower, Health
Officer of Franklin; AssembIyman Alfred
q. Skinner, Mr.. Cosebolt, of the Cosebolt
Manufacturing Company; Surrogate Jack
son, of Essex, and his brothers, ex-As-
semblyman Edward W. and Percy jack
Leon.
Mr.. Hunt of the commission called the
meeting TO order and spoke of the OBJ
,ject for which the commission was APP
pointed Aand the work it had thus far
done. He said that before taking up
the subject Of a remedy the commission
desired ITO ascertain what was the exact
condition which it was desired to remedy.
For that reason the commission had held
its conferences with the officials of the
various cities and towns producing the
%pollutionl by sewering into the river; but
now theE Commissioners wished to ascer-
tain. as near as possible the exact con-
dition of the river today, and it was for
that purpose that they had come to
Belleville to talk with her citizens, and
they wanted to hear some pretty stiff
talk They wanted nothing disguised, but
did want the plain, un%varnished truth.
He suggested hat DR.. Skinner preside
and. the suggestion was accepted.
Fifteen gentlemen spoke, ard the bur-
den of the song was such as to make
those who have to drink and battle in the
Passsic water sick. These addresses
were all in one line, and all to The same
purport, that the river is nothing more
or less than one big, open fostering sewer.
They also prefaced their remarks with
the observation that they had no desire
TO FOUL their OWn.naStS that they would
rather remain silent and say nothing
about the condition which existed and
injury if it was known abroad, but the
evil was so great and the need of a
remedy 50 urgent, that they felt con-
strained to speak out.
DR.. Skinner was the first speaker. He
said that the stencil which came from the
river in summer time when the Their
sickening that the people could not endure
it. and on warm nights such a vile odor
would come from the stream that people
would be awakened and would have to
get up and close all the windows and doors
upon the natural resources OF, Belleville
as a delightful place Of residence; He
spoke Of the outdoor life which the in
habitants used to lead sitting on their
boating on the river. But now. owing
doors s. and aisf the refuse efas 4 floating thlge around aiI aonudI
the odor together has driven all the boat
1Eg parties from the river. No one except
hN Sh2oA v Seems llC 1lsCI
Assemblyman Skinner followed his
people of Belleville, Nutley, FRANKLIN and
tine other villages in the vicinity of the
river could be summed up in the one
word damn. The condition of the river,
ne said, had been getting worse during
the past two years, which he Thought was
ers emptied into the river be
low and the Passaic sewers above
the town, thus Belleville was be
the tide ebbed and flowed they caught
the full benefit Of the sewag and Were
body of a dead dog which he used to see
in the river every day. It was ane sport
Of the tide. but never got away from
the town and now below, and # he had no
means of doing SO he could always tell
bow the tide was by this dog; Mr.. Skim
said that they had to suffer for others. as
their town did not sewer into the river
and added nothing to the pollution.
The next speaker was a manufactures
whose mills are on the river just above
he had a pipe laid from the river in order
to feed his boiler with Passaic water. The
water which had flowed through the pipe
1T had eaten clear through the iron pipe
something he had never seen before. He
ediment In the pipe, and It was a cur
wi you kindly let the Commission
with pleasure replied the speaker.
IT will send it to you"
sef Seaer Which, Faai the ssea fith asa' eond iRexe q e f fhe
river had upon the real estate market of
that vicinity. 1t was said that the
stencil was offensive a mile back from
the river, and almost unbearable one
quarter of a mile inland. The loss to
BE 0 induced to i've along the banks s Of fo the
Stream, and only the cheapest kind of
houses, and very few Of them, had been
built lately.
Dr.. PhiIhower spoke of the natural as
poets Of the banks of the Passaic as a
place of residence, but said that owing to
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