The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-02-17
THESE LECTURERS
SAID SOMETHING
THEY, HOWEVER, HAD A RE-
oRETABLY SMALL AUDIENCE.

tFsETABLY SMALL AUDIENCE.
Under the Auspices of the House
hold Economics section of the
Green Ridge Women's Club, Col.
onel Morse and Mr.. Wingate, Two
Of New York's Celebrated Engi.
neers, Interestingly Discuss Prac-
tical Sanitation and Point Out How
Scranton Can Be Improved Effec-
tually and Cheaply.
1t Is to be deeply regretted that less
than half u hundred persons attended
the lectures given by Colonel w. +.
Morse and Charles L. Wingate, of New
York. given last night at the board Of
trade assembly room under the auspi-
ces of the household economies section
of the Green Ridge Women's club.
There were two hours of solid intornia-
tion of which many should have taken
advantage, especially those for whom
it was more directly intended.
Colonel Morse lectured on "Munici-
pal Sanitation" Two city officials
heard him. Mr.. Wingatc. reputed to
be the leading sanitarian of the coun-
try, dealt with what Every One
should Know About Household Sani-
tation." Few women outside of the
members of the club were present to
avail themselves of this knowledge.
Mayor Moir, who presided at the
meeting, expressed himself as almost
disgusted at the meagre attendance.
The two distinguished engineers give
up two days of their time, undertake
ten hours travel and go to the trouble
of preparing addresses based on a per-
Sonal diagnosis of the city's ailments
and then for their "thank you job
are repaid with very uncomplimen-
tary audience, in the matter of size.
1t was rather unencouraging to the
members of the women's club. too, as
this was their most pretentious effort
along their line of work.
1t was especially desirable, the may
or said, that the city fathers should
have attended the lectures. The pro-
found ignorance of the principles of
sanitary science that prevails is most
remarkable, he said. The city faith
ers, he added, do not know its \, B G.
sanitation has made London one of the
most healthy, if not the most healthy,
of the big cities, the mayor pointed
out. 1t has reduced the death rate
from eighty in a thousand to twenty
two in a thousand. His honor also
paid high compliment to the work
the Women's club has done and is do
ing, and assured them of his hearty CO.
operation.
COLONEL MORSE'S LECTURE.
Colonel Morse's lecture was made
especially interesting from Tie fact
he localized it in a large measure.
Dealing with the sewage question
he pointed out the fact that many
states have forbidden the dumping Of
sewage into running streams; that
Pennsylvania is about to pass a SINH
lar law and that when it does Scran-
ton will h confronted with the prob
lem of finding something to substitute
for the Lackawanna river as a sewage
receiver.
Of the various means of meeting this
emergency he considered the scheme
used at the Worlds Fair to he the
best and cheapest. The sewage is car
ried into large tanks by process of
chemical precipitation, the water is
separated from the deletorious matter
and can be run off into the river. for
it is no longer pollution. The residue
is solidiicd and can be burned in a
crematory without giving the least sam
itary offense. The ashes make a most
excellent fertilizer
al,
bage collection in this city was the
object of some attention from Colonel
Morse. He figured, by using statistics,
that the householdors of this city spend
from $4,000 to 100000 year for hav-
ing garbage, refuse and ashes carted
away. In twenty cities where this
work is done by the city through con-
tractor the cost per capita is IS cents
year. In a dozen large cities that
do the work themselves the cost Is 90
cents. Applying this to Scranton,
saving could be made every year of
from $4,000 to $4,000, or more than
half, and the work would not be so
imperfectly done as at present. At
this juncture he commented on ash
piles containing putrefying matter,
which he saw in many localities while
being shown about the city yesterday.
The plan of dealing with refuse
brought to this country from BuGa
Pesth by the late Colonel Warlng, of
New York, is sure to be generally
adopted, Colonel Morse predicted. This
scheme is to have the refuse lSnt sep
arate from the garbage by providing
separate receptacles to the household
ers.
The refuse is dumped on a wide NOV
ing strip of canvass and twenty or
thirty men on either side of it pcl,
from it everything that may be made
use of, such as paper, rags, glass
bottles, metal of any description, and
so on.
CAN BE MARKETED.
Each man looks out for a different
sort of article and as he picks it up he
packs it in case or crate by his side,
ready to be shipped to market. Ex-
periments in Boston showed thai sixty
per cent. of the city's refuse could be
\ contractor in one district
in New York pays the city for the privi-
lege OF dispostnG of its refuse. The
forty per cent. waste at the Boston