The Washington times., 1901-09-14

| under separate contracts, which cost
! much more than the present method for
| the reason that two forces had to go over
| the same territory; whereas under the
| present method the same force can clean
/ both classes Of alleys while they are on
| the ground, ana thereby save much time
! The only time now lost by the men is in
I going from one alley TO another.
The alleys are cleaned once a week.
! schedules for each day having been pre-
pared at the beginning of the year. The
city is divided INTO three divisions. each
( division in charge of an inspector with
/ a force sufficient to clean the area sched-
! uied for each day of the week.
} To keep the alleys clean Is a different
I task, and one that requires special pains
! Tor the reason tlat a great many OF them
1 are SO narrow that horse and cart can
| not be gotten into them, the laborers in
! such instances having to scrape the filth
TO the entrance, or carry II out IN small
! receptacles. 1t is into this class Of al
/ legs that most all of the filth and rub
! blsh from adjacent premises finds its way
I be- sides being made a dumping ground by
/. the scavenger or ash man.
! During the year there has been de
posted on these dumps 26 l59 loads of
street cleanings, lSi.004 loads of ashes and
| 1853 loads of dirt, making in all 57S.292
/ loads Of refuse. The seventeen dump men
employed by the department are in charge
, OF u l5l,u man hose duty il is TO visit
| each dump daily. He sees that the
| of the dump men. the number of loads
of refuse deposited daily, and the general
condition of the dumps to this office.
| Much annoyance to citizens and the
| department has been caused by deposits
! of paper and other Objectionable material
on these dumps after the hours of the
men in charge of them. The paper is
| frequently set on fire by mis-, ;hieYous per
| sons. or is blown by the wind over the
streets parkings. etc.
The depositing of this Objectionable
material on the dumps is not the only
source of annoyance. for II is frequently
| dumped on the streets, in the alleys and
on vacant lots in the city to be blown
| about by the wind The material in ques-
ton is hauled from the various business
places in the city by the old ash man.
there being no provision or appropriation
fer collecting 1t from these premises This
material should be separated, so that the
ashes could be taken to the dumps and
| the combustible matter to the crematory
at the foot Of South Capitol Street.
The sprinkling of our unimproved
streets and avenues is class of work
that, owing to our limited appropriation,
has been sadly neglected. The funds
available permitted of hiring but four
large and three small sprinklers. and
these were used to sprinkle some of the
heavily Travelled streets and avenues.
With the seven sprinklers we could only
care for about ten miles of streets and
avenues. whereas all of the unimproved
streets and avenues should be sprinkled
during the summer months.
Citizens who live unimproved
streets and avenues. and those who travel
over them, are constantly complaining of
the dust raised by the wind or by pass
Ing vehicles. If all were sprinkled this
nuisance would be avoided, and the sur
face of the streets would also be pre-
served. thus reducing the cost OF re-
pairs.
Although a comparatively small sum
has been expended on this class of work,
as shown by the foregoing table the limit
ed service has been appreciated by those
who have benefited thereby. On the
other hand citizens who live on unim-
ST nd
now sprinlSled, condemn us for not eX-
tending the service
Snow and ice work was very light
during the past winter, there having been
but two snow storms that required at
tention. The work was done by the reg
ular hand cleaning force, and the only
charge against the snow and Ice appro-
priation was for the labor employed, as
the horses and wagons used in carting
away the snow were owned by the Dis
trict. Had teams been hired for the re-
moval of the snow and ice the cost of
same would have increased the amount
expended by about one third. 1t will.
therefore, be seen that quite saving is
effected by the District owning its own
teams, not only in the regular street
cleaning work, but in that of snow and
Ice as well.
THE work of collection and disposal
of garbage and dead animals is done un-
der contract with the Washington Ferti
lizer Company. which company is COM
posed principally of prominent business
NJ. Parker president. The contract was
entered into for a period of five years.
commencing December l. 1900, at cost of
IS, 500 per annum.
THE companys stables and transfer
station are located at New Jersey Avenue
and X Street southeast. The equipment
consists of stables sufficiently large to ac-
Commodate 100 horses. office, scales, tele-
phone, blacksmith shop eleven fiat and two
box cars, one stationary steam engine for
hoisting garbage tanks to and from the
cars and for switching the cars from place
to place in the yard sixty-hve wagons for
hauling garbage, $50 iron tanks, especially
designed for the wagons. two large and
two small dead animal wagons three bug
gies and eighty-fve horses. The force
employed by the company consists of one
superintendent of collection. two inspect
ors, yard master, engineer of hosting
engine. watchman, stable boss, three host
lers and siXty-five collectors; making in
all seventy-five employees on the collec-
ton service.
1.-The collectors start out on their re-
spective routes at $50 a. m, and when
they have collected a sufficient quantity
of garbage to fill the tanks. each of which
holds over a ton, they return to the trans
fer station, where the loaded wagons are
driven on to the scales ana weighed Dy
the weighma ster, who is employed by the
department for that purpose. After the
load is weighed ii Is driven to the end of
the fiat car where the tank is hoisted by
means of steam power hoisting engine,
and is carried back by an overhead pulley
to a vacant space on the car, and as each
loaded tank is placed on the car an empty
one. which has been scalded out and re-
turned from the factory, is taken forward
and put on the wagon, and the garbage
man Is ready for another trip.
THE fiat cars hold twenty tanks, eaca
car having been especially designed for
the purpose, and soon as two or three
Of the cars, which are owned by the com
pany, are loaded they are transported to
Cherry Hill. Va, about twenty eight
miles down the Potomac River over the
Seaboard Air Line tracks of the Pennsyl-
vania Railroad Company. There, at a
point pleasantly situated on the river. is
the mammoth reduction plant of the com
pany
"The tanks or garbage upon arriving at
the plant are lifted by steam power to the
second story of the works. and there emp
tied upon the floor, after which the tanks
are scalded out with hot water and re-
placed on the cars to be returned to the
city Here the garbage is raked over by
employees, and all foreign substances.