New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-11-27
DUST THOU ART"
Genesis I'll, -
: nd NezC- Workers Are Reminded
of 1t at EUery Turn.

The old saying that every man must eat his
2 ok of dirt before he dies is not pleasant to con-
template, but when one reflects how much dust
is constantly flying about in the busy streets of
this city it is really surprising that more death
certificates In New-York do not read Cause:
He had eaten his peck of dirt" or its equivalent
III the language which physicians There
opportunities and enough to spare here for Secur
ing this quota early In life All over the city
there are fruit, fish and vegetable stands ex
Osed to the vagaries of the winds and the car
goes of dust gathered from the street surface by
them It is not unusual experience to grit"
ones teeth something unpleasantly hard
while eating Strawberries or lettuce bought from
stands in the street.
The innumerable candy stands distributed all
the city catch-alls for the clouds of
dust which whirl up from the street The sticky
cocoanut sticks and brown cocoanut balls hold
the dirt as tenaciouSly as fypaper does a fly.
The dust harmonizes we'll In color with the soft
chocolate paste stick. Many people patronize
the stands, for they do not decrease in number.
but rather increase.
No means reach the public from the
mothers of the Wall Street office and messenger
boys, but it is probable that not all of the boys
fail to reap the fruit of their sowing. The "au
hots' the ice cream sandwiches and the WELL
nigh indgestible articles sold by the throng of
pushcart men who fill the bottom of Broad-st.,
after being seasoned with the dust of that thor
oughfare, ought to double some of them up with
the pains of green apple cramp."
In the berry season the grocers, especially in
certain parts of Brooklyn, display baskets Of
fruit low stands fronting on the sidewalk
The streets are seldom cleaned and whenever
a street sweeper's broom passes the sur
face it is usually done without taking the house
wfe's precaution of sprinkling. This does not
decrease the amount of dust flying in the air.
Dust may be harmless in ITSELF but certainly
not all the dust of the street is wholesome as a
,ondiment. Those who are fearful of germs
may find good reason to object to eating food
displayed in this way.
At the public markets meats and fish are ex-
hbted in the same way On the East Side the
pushcart is one of the commercial institutions
Of the district. All kinds of food supplies are
distributed from them Italians make macarOni
and hang it sticks outside their doors to
cry in the sun-and in the dust. Tenement house
jewellers have a cheerful habit, too of shaking
rugs out of windows regardless of whom or
what the dust falls
Dust laden air is bad for those predisposed
to tuberculosis, because of its irritation of the
lungs. According to medical journals the dust
of the streets makes living in New-York in
die summer injurious for persons How
a.uch free dust the air of New York carries is
;trikinSly demonstrated by the apparatus re-
GENTLY installed at the Hotel st. Regis to
screen and filter the air before it enters the
house The St Regis stands in part of the city
which is much less dusty than most Others and
yet almost barrel of dust day is filtered out
of the air which the guests subsequently
breathe. sample of this dust taken from the
tanks of the St Regis, on being subjected to
chemical and microscopic analysis, showed
mong other bacteria, some tuberce bacilli and
Some of the common influenza type