The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1899-05-23
EXPERT PITNEY
Vice Chancellor as Well Pos.
ted in Medicine and En-
cheering as in
Equity.
or IUnv,c cEWEp GkcE
ST. LUCY'S SEWER CASE
DR.. John D.. McGill Does Not
Think the Situation as
Black as Painted.

Vice Chancellor Pitney's court room this
morning greatly resembled the chemistry
lecture room of a medical college with
the Vice Chancellor himself and DR.. John
ID. McGill as lecturers. The opportunity
for this display of his chemical knowledge
was afforded the Vice Chancellor by the
case of ST. Lucy's Catholic Church against
the Mayor and Aldermen of Jersey clty,
to abate the alleged nuisance at Fifteenth
and Grove streets, where the Rayine foao
sewer crosses the Grove street sewer py
emptying into a large wooden pit built al
that corner. Father Beylan OF st. Lucys
Church and residents of that section claim
that the sewage which accumulates IN
this pit produces a sewer gas which backs
IN into the house and. e~ndangers the
health of the occupants.
Frank P. Woodcock, the Permit Clerk
of the Street and Water Board. produced
the records of his office to show that the
Grove street sewer at this point is a pri-
waite drain. He was followed by DR.. Jonn
T.. McGnl, and then the trouble began
After telling who he is. the doctor SAID
that on Saturday, at the request OIL the
Mayor. he examined the sewers in the
vicinity of Grove and Fifteenth streets
He found that the pit did its duty very
well and that the manholes on each side
of the Ravine Road sewer was a good
thin as the pit caught the sewage and
the manholes allowed it to be cleaned out,
He examined some of the sewage deposit
ed In the pit and found it the same as is
found in other sewers
There was also some odor about the
pit of gas, which is found in every sewer.
He examined the Grove street sewer
north of Fifteenth street some distance,
and he found the condition of the w
there q trihe worse thai it was at the
pit. There were holes in the covers to
the manholes, which the Doctor consider
ed an excellent thing inasmuch as they
allowed the gas to escape into the open
air, where it was comparatively harm
less. The Doctor said that the sewer gas
itself did not necessarily produce disease
unless it was impregnated with disease
germs.
The old notion that the mere smell was
productive of disease was an exploded
theory. This aroused the Vice Chancel-
lor's combativeness at once and he en-
gagged in a long discussion with DR.. McGill
during which he showed a wonderful
knowledge of pathology. The air was
thick with terms which sounded ike
ehlorides, hydrochlorides, germs, pha-
eocytes and other names altogether for
eign to a Court of Equity.
ssyyhat is malaria, doctor?" asked the
Vice Chancellor.
Malaria began the doctor, SIS a dis
ease
NO, it amt a disease at all" interrupt
ed the Vice-Chancellor. and he launched
out into a learned discourse on the sub
ject. He was very anxious to combat the
DOCTORS germ theory and the doctor was
ready to meet him and another long dis
cussion ensued.
When the Vice Chancellor got through
with the doctor, young Mr.. Speer, counsel
for the church, took the doctor in hand
and soon dropped. Mr.. Speer's knowl-
edge of pathology is not as extensive as
that which he has of the law.
Chief Engineer Charles A. a Keuren
was the next witness and testified to
some technical points of the sewers. He
afforded the Vice Chancellor an oppor-
tunity to air his knowledge of engineer
ing. which is almost as great as his I'M
Outstanding of diseases. He said that the
engineer who built the pit did not know
much about engineering and then proceed
ed to show how the problem which, the
meeting sewers presented should have
been solved.
The case was on at recess.
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