Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1900-02-15
THE GARBAGE COMPLICATION.

Much of Thursdays session of City
Council was devoted to discussing the
complicated condition of affairs con-
corning garbage, and during the meet
ing Mr.. Oberly offered an amendment
to the garbage collection ordinance
making it the duty of the health officers
to give attention to complaints and
report to City Council negligence on
the part Of contractors. The amend
ment. which was read twice and referred
to the committee on law, is as follows:
ut shall be the duty of the executive
officers of the Board Of Health to report
all complaints from the residents Of
their respective districts of failure on
the part of persons employed as afore-
said to collect and remove garbage and
offal to the secretary Of the Board of
Health, ard it shall be the duty of the
SECRETARY of the Board of Health to
receive and carefully note all COM
plants lodged with him either by the
executive officers or otherwise, and to
report the same promptly to the con-
tractors fer the respective districts. And
the contractors shall apply at least twice
daily to the secretary Of the Board Of
Health for a list of complaints filed
with him. Further, the secretary of the
Board of Health shall report on the
first of each month to the Council the
number Of complaints that has been
lodged with him for each district for
the month Immediately p, ecsding, and
after notice to the contractors, and where
such complaints have not been promptly
attended to by the contractors it shall
also be the duty of the secretary of the
Board of Health to forthwith report
the failure to remove the garbage to the
chairman Of the creamtory committee
of the Council. -"
Mr.. Oberly said it is the intention of
Council to require the contractors to
live up to their contracts and make
deductions from their bills If the work
is not properly done.
Prior to the introduction of the
amendatory ordinance the matter of gar
bage was debated at length. The sub
ject was preached by Mr.. Stewart. the
member from the Seventh ward, who,
after calling attention to the fact that
many people are complaining about
their garbage net being removed and
stating that he had beon worried con-
sIderably by his constituents, had two
letters read. one from John B. Bid
and the other from Henry B. Thomp-
son, both residents of his ward. Each
complained about the garbage not being
removed from his premises and pointed
out the evils of such neglect.
Mr.. Smith said the matter had been
given much notoriety by the news
papers, but he thought Council was not
to blame, as most of the complaints
covered periods antedatlng that at
which Council assumed control CT the
work. He held the trouble to be due
to gross eglect, either on the part of
the Board of Health, for not requiring
contractors to do their work prior to
the time when the matter passed out of
its hands, or the people who had the
garbage, for not reporting the neglect
to the Board of Health. He thought
the board did not do Its duty il the
complaints were received before Coun-
Gil took control and did not require
the contractors to perform the work or
refuse to approve the bills until the
work was properly done. 81 haze been
informed he said, that the work
has been done better since Council
took control than before. Council is
not to be blamed for the present con-
dition of affairs. Give it time and
there will be no cause for complaint. :"
President Alexander said the garbage
was not gathered from his premises
just prior to the time when the Board
of Health relinquished control, but it
had been collected since Council took
hold of the matter. Referring to COM
plants about collections not being
made for two or three weeks, he said
such complaints should have been made
to the Board of Health, and Council
should not be held responsible for
what was left undone by the contractors
who were subject to the board. Mr..
Healey put an end to the discussion by
making motion to adjourn, which
prevailed.
A peculiar incident occurred at the
health Office Thursday. One of the
contractors was there during the day
and Secretary Wigglesworth told him
the contractor on his district had not
taken the garbage from his residence
since Council assumed control, but he
had not made complaint, as he did
not know where to complain.