Evening star., 1897-01-12

Tor purposes Of drainage. This absence of
Sewers marks<our poorest suburbs In az
directions. and as regards siiey nronertv
the lack of sewage facilities issconNneT tn
no one quarter Of the city. but exists,in ali.
nanoiords Ian can connect with distant sewers
Only at great expense -
Facts indicating the landlords neglect
are. however. not wanting. ,.Mhile aSsenrs,
OF ora a sewer Is jnstifiable excuse for not
furnishing drains and pipes in fourteen
cases. yet in thirty-eight instances the
FAMILY dwelling house fiat has no direct
sewer connection. This proves that in
1wents.tour aen Jour- cases conFrstidn has not been
II not the house itself. in some of these
thirty-four family dwellings has a sewer
indeed. we find twenty-six water closets
r rot representing quite SO many premises.
out nevertheless hopeful sign being one
h,ose! hn's more than hall the number. of
Primitive Conditions.
iwenty-four priries are reported Con-
sider1ng the crowded Iarea<>on which they
stand, this number repreeents primitive
conditions that are truly APPALLING in view
OF the facts that Washington is supposed
to be modern city. with no nuisances. and
with appliances up to date Apr urban needs;
that pumps and hydrsnts. hastily polluted
are IN use in all the neTkhborhoods in ques-
backs up against these very vaults. In
fact since the alley yards average barely
loxl2 feet. the priyies are invariably very
close close to the dwaIlipgs. 81 Often the home
itsei1 Is conttguouS to another person s
box privy. and the stencil from these vaults
Is reported as 'smotherirg.'
BESIDES these, urban, health, Jdestroyers
ana water rrcontaminaters. anothv-'. the. ubi-
quitous stable. is in, evidence near, six of
our nrty dwellings. One or TIVE. homes, in
deed. are located over stables. In the al
ieys themselves deccmposing rats and cats
contribute to the sitting Smells In twenty
instances there Is reported as great hard
ship either bad. or foul OR dreadful stenches
about the alleys, or premises. ,e.,,-, -.
Nor Is water for household and drinking
purposes easy to obtain or plentiful In
several cases the supply used for cooking
and cleaning must be brought fre.a, q dis
tance Of one to two blocks. Only twenty
OF the dwellings We are studying have
water In the house. In thirty cases 1t
comes from hydrant in the yard, or from
neighbor's. or from public hydrants
square or more away. On this point our
returns are Eot 30 exact as could be de-
sired, but they afford ample proof that the
convenience and saving grace of water In
the Kitchen are lacking in three out OF five
alley homes.
Condition Of the Houses.
las to the state Of repair in which these
premises are kept. gratifying number are
reported to be In good condition. fully half
indeed. The other half seem in various
stages OF decrepitude and decay. involving
a double wrong--wrong to the tenant. who
pays for decent shelter, and wrong to the
landlord with higher standards. whose
property suffers from the proximity Of I'M
slightly and dilapidated dwellings The
former District Jail is perhaps the Oldest
naRltattOn on our list, built at least CEN
tury ago. Three other houses are described
as unfit to live In. Twelve families, CON-
plain Of damp walls and floors This con-
ditien is. In the opinion of the committee.
largely due to improper surface drainage
or entire absence of facilities for the re-
moval of storm water. and the evils are
intensified by the absence of cemented
ground floors and damp-proof walls In
one case the yard drains into the Kitchen
Ing, and not built to Withstand cold or rain
Houses declared to be too far gone for
human occupancy, yet inhabited. notwfth-
standing, and at high rentals. emphasize
forced. TO empty and raze to the ground all
buildings below a certain fixed standard Of
safety and sanitation 49,
Space will not permit the committee to
enter into details regarding the relative
FAIRNESS OF the. rentals that prevail, and
which are best judged by Miss de Grafren-
reid's analysis: j.
I'm Louse alley; for example. where dis
reputable houses are reported. 4-room
bricks rent for 81 MONTH The ma at0rity
OF 4-room houses brinxu that price; indeed
even 1850 IN some cRsa8 and $3.50 in
others. A single roonp iRlTtwo instances
costs the tenant a soonth. and the can
vasser VAS says that that the Whole house OF which
month. The presence sk rssnning water In
the kitchen or from Earao hydrant seems
to affect the price but vTttFs ) !.
Some specinep HOuses.
"a group Of 4-room dwellings with water
In the house, brings aromn67.S0. to $105O
each per month. whilebAnother group. des-
titute OF this convenieh3e, qents from $6 to
1850 apiece The olda Jalk three rooms,
cost $ month before thsl new roof was
put on. and even noNu 1t Is hardly habit.
able. Water, has to he, brought half a
block. One $S dwellfnk. Of four rooms with
seven occupants has' no back yard no
water inside and only RI 3Jf6ot area where
tns Watsr closet stands. The floors of the
11uIainsS ne on the earth and the walls are
damp. Both front, rooms, upstairs and
down are only 8x1O feet the tive back
rooms nQt much larger, Directly In the
rear. within three feet Of the Wlkdows ara
the box-prtYfeA OF other yards,Skrom which
the smells are overpowering. YHt eon,
Another tsto-room dwelling IA iocat.a
over = stable with stifing fumeS5f There is
no water nearer than q block no ward at
all and the privy b In ths alley, The rent
IA a two-rpoM 4rst-dooe tenAanent on a
blind alley brings $l.s0 { month. The yard
common to two tehements 70 etxht by
twelve feet and contains ethe privy: no
sever 6si39 nssr, sippa axe thrown. lnto the
smail I'LL, oack alley: The neerest hydrsnt =
whitewashed only, ana the doors are i'm
perfect. These statements .rspsssent the
actual eurrc Yudlnnp and lack az. conveas-