New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-06-12
UNHAPPY "WHTTEWINGS."
One-Ffth of the Force Said To BE
TubercuL0us.

A squad Of -whitewIngs'' was busy sweeping
a downtown street on the East Side one bright
morning last week Suddenly Of the men
threw down his big brush. and. stepping aside
with one hand cIutching at his throat and the
other pressed hard against his breast fell TO
coughing violently His fellow workmen paused
4 moment the midst % the cloud of dust
they had raised and watched the suffering
He's got it. all right whispered one Of the
group 10 the him
Got what" asked the newest man on the
Job. The others turned on him suddenly almost
fiercey
''S-e-s-sh' they fairly Kissed. and added
in undertOne. Cant yer see the old cons
got hold o Nike Don't be maxim any blame
fool breaks now, dyer hear Then. pulling
flask from his pocket. the spokesman offered IT
TO the coughing man. saying as he did so: Here
Old man. take a taste o this. Twill clear yer
throat" The pale faced. stoop shOuldered
man. who looked as if he had barely strength
enough to WELD MS big broom: took deep
draught of the liquor and returned 10 his work,
coughing III irregular intervals
An Inspector who had stopped TO survey the
work OF the squad shook his head as he drove
along To friend an the carriage with him he
said simply There's another one gone TO the
bad III bet another manll be wearing his
number inside of 4 month. II beats the deuce.
i don't how II BE- but ! guess the doc
tors right"
It was the astonishing claim recently made by
certain medical men. that large proportion Of
New-York's street cleaning force is suffering
from tuberculosis. which led the inspector to
conjecture that the doctors are right"
" hateyer doubts the inspectors may have
concerning the general health Of NETWORKS
white wings" they are not shared by Commits
sioner Woodbury.. head of the Street Cleaning
Department DR.. Woodbury. is awake to the
fact that the germ laden dust they
stantly InhaIing their work Of sweeping the
streets has developed tuberculosis to alarm
ing degree among his sweepers So general has
become the trouble among them and so numer-
Gus are the requests for sick leave that DR..
Woodbury. is having general examination
Of the l.so0 sweepers made to determine the
exact physical condition Of each man Expert
rnents with chlorides are also being conducted.
with a view to getting some disinfectant, at
once germ destroying and not possessing an
offensive odor. that may be used for sprinkling
the streets before they are swept Tests Of this
kind. said to have resulted satisfactorily. have
been conducted in Philadelphia.
Until Dr WoOdbury's examination is COM
plete nothing definite can be stated concerning
the inroads Of the great white plague" upon
New-Yorks street cleaners. but il is esti-
mated that fully One-fifth IF the force is af-
ficted IN varying degrees with tuberculosis
While DIR Woodbury. assigns sweeping only as
the cause Of the pulmonary trouble among his
men, and bames the public for indiscriminate
and reckless expectoration. the men themselves
say the sweepers are not alone the sufferers
They say that the employed at the in
cinerators. where the dry rubbish is sorted and
burned are more exposed TO the disease laden
Dust than even the sweepers- The few men
vhose duty Il IS TO get into the great hOppers