Evening star., 1901-11-12

to report to the health department con-
sumptives coming to their knowledge In
their practice. The committee recommends
again this year medical inspection OF the
public schools, maintaining that the best
results for the health of the city would be
attained. The committee asks the influence
of the Board of Trade toward securing an
appropriation for this purpose.
Food supply Inspection.
The laws regulating the food supply in
spection are fairly satisfactory. The num-
ber OF inspectors has been increased the
past year. While the quality of the milk
furnished to the citizens Of Washington
has been greatly improved by inspection.
reducing the death rate of children. yet
there is further room for Improvement, to
be secured by legislation. MIX should pc
kept at proper temperature to check de-
composition.
The committee furnished additional evil
dence this year of the evil effects of the
the city, and pleads that steps should be
taken to reclaim that section and put 1t IN
good sanitary condition.
With the installment Of the filtration
plant provided for by Congress last winter
the committee is of the opinion that
death from typhoid fever in the District of
Columbia will be reduced to a nominal or
lowest possible per cent.
Sewer System.
The committee on sewers has furnished
some valuable information as to the pro-
gress and prospect Of work on the sewage
disposal system, as planned by the board
of sanitary engineers of 1890. The first Sec
ton of the Arizona avenue sewer
extending from the southern part of the
grounds of the Georgetown University, Is
nearly completed, and the contract has
been entered into for the second section,
which wiz extend the sewer to the lmme-
diate neighborhood of the Tunlaw Heights
Fol-
pleted as far as at present designed. 1t VIII
require SIS, 600 to continue the Arizona ave-
nue. sewer; and to complete the trunk
sewer in the western part OF georgetown
s62 600 which the honorable Commissioners
in their estimate have asked to be appro-
priated
The Engineer Commissioner, with an ap-
preparation made by Congress therefor, mas
made preparations of detail plans and
specifica tions for a sewage disposal system
complete" This includes survey of the
various trunk sewers the inverted siphon
crossing the Anacostia and the pumping
station. The estimates therefor have been
made. In the work so far the plans of the
board Of sanitary engineers OF 1880 nave
been followed with some modifcatlons.
These were made necessary by the rain
fall to be provided for by the b street and
New Jersey avenue sewers, increasing the
size of those sewers, as well as the capac-
Ity of the pumping MAJ chinery, and requ1r-
ing a number Of other changes more or
less important. The contract for furnish
ing the pumps and appurtenances for the
pumping station has been made and archi-
tects have been engaged to prepare It's
plans.
Expenditures on Sewer System.
The amount of expenditures on account OF
work done to date on the sewer system ag-
gregates $500 473.04. The amount now
available is 81 1862, 600, and an additional
amount of 81, ,62O, ,O97:50 is necessary to COM
plete the whole system.
1nis work might require years to COM
plete for lack of appropriation and author
ity, or 1t might be completed in COM
paratvely short time 1t is manifest that
to drag the work along, constructing 1t by
sections annually, would not be economy,
nor meet the necessities existing, and. fur
thermore, such parts Of the work as were
| finished would probably become impaired
by reason Of their non-use Therefore the
Commissioners are correctly Of the opin-
ion that authority should be given to con-
tract for the whole work and to push 1t to
completion as rapidly as possible. In this
| the Board of Trade will concur and should
add it's influence to have Congress author
ize such course.
Railroads.
| Since our last annual report Congress,
| by an act Of February r. 1901, passed a
| bill for eliminating grade crossings and
| providing suitable terminal stations. 1t
applied to both the Baltimore and Ohio and
| the Pennsylvania railroads. To the former
| 81, 100000 was granted for viaduct con-
| struction, and to the latter lands on the
| mall and streets in South Washington were
granted, which were intended as an equiva-
lent. The city secures, by this act, the ef-
| which the Board of Trade has for so many
| years endeavored to bring about. The
| board, however, has always been consist
emily opposed to the occupation Of the mall
c
| Pennsylvania railroad, since the passage Of
| this law, has acquired, as is reported, a
controlling interest in the Baltimore and
| Ohio railroad. For this and other reasons
| a union station is being considered, to be
| located at or near the site of the present
Baltimore and Ohio terminal in the city
1 AIS would remove the station entirely from
| the mall. Without knowing all the details
| involved in this change, voluntarily con-
| templated by the Pennsylvania railroad, the
| Board Of Trade and the public will readily
| and cheerfully accept it as a happy solu-
| ton Of the question, not only for the best
| interests and Identification of the city,
but in the truest interests Of the railroads
Let us hope that the report of this action
| Of the Pennsylvania railroad is correct and
will be carried out.
| Streets and Avenues.
| The solution of the problem for the proper
| provision for extension of streets and ave-
| nues has not, in the judgment of many,
| been properly settled by legislation or
| opinions rendered by the courts. To ex-
| pect that in all cases assessments for
benefits must be so per cent Of the damages
| awarded, without reference to the actual
| benefits bestowed. is wrong in principle
| and unjust to property holders.
| Damages and Benefits.
If continued, great wrong will be in
| fiicted. Damages should be awarded fairly
| and benefits assessed justly, without re-
| gard to the relations they bear one to the
other. The balance of the cost should De
| borne, as all District expenses are pro-
vided for, half paid by the general govern
ment and half from the District revenues.
| The entire cost devolved upon the District,
| as at present for the limited number of
streets and avenues extended, has extin-
| guished the surplus Of $917 ,5S1.91 in 1898,
| and will, it is estimated by the auditor.
| create a deficiency in addition this year OF
| 81 sol. No more conclusive evidence
| could be adduced to prove that the present
| method of providing for street extension is
! placed upon an incorrect basis. The bur-
| den and injustice embodied in such propo-
| sition will cause IL to fail, and fail Of its
| own weight. Future extension Of streets
and avenues will be made for two reasons,
| first, for local necessity, as the city grows,