Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-03-21
SLEEPS MAY COST MORE
City Trying to Clean Up Insanitary
Public Sleeping Places.
NEED MORE AIR AND WATER
Many Undesirable Lodgers May Leave
aotham - Modern Buildings to
Supplant old-Fashioned Nests.


raise the price of sleeps and may serve
to drive away from New York some of the
undesirable dodgers Mendicancy officer
James Forbes of the Charity Organization
society furnished suggestions and advice
gathered from long and very accurate ex-
perience to the Joint application bureau
winch Is maintained by the society and by
the New York Association for Improving
the Condition of the Poor.
Inc bureau was at work long time on
the plan Of cleaning up lodging houses in
Manhattan and Brooklyn and when II had
rounded up the subject pretty we'll it set its
ideas before Health Commissioner Darling
ton. Commissioner Darlington amended
the plan little. but adopted It in the
main. Some people had an idea that as
Mayor McClellans officeholder he was quite
willing to do so because Ii would hurt some
of the mayors opponents like the Sulli-
vans, who are interested In the lodging
house VOTE They don't think that is the
case at the Charity Organization Society,
but give the commissioner credit for max
ing possible reform for reforms sake.
The new rules, which will go into effect
as soon as lodging house keepers get their
copies and have time to study the pro-
visions. are designed not merely to make
the lodging houses decently clean, but to
cut down the number of boarderS and get
rid Of, If possible, many dangerous and
evil crooks. They We're explained yesterday
by a man who had much to do with draw
ing them up.
Nests of Crooks.
There are at the present t,me," said he.
"1O1 cheap lodging houses in Manhattan
and twenty-nine in Brooklyn. They are
almost without exception foul. overcrowded
and the nests of crooks. The Manhattan
houses sell beds to Is, 4s5 people: the Brook
lyn houses to 3,O}s. The approximate num-
hnrT - lode hos. Ia
the winter months is 1879, in the summer
months 1O.971. Multiplying the winter fig
ures and the summer figures each by six
months we have a total of 1850, 900 Man
haitian lodgings for the year. Adding
100000 as an average estimate for Brook
lyn gives n total OF $500, 600 lodgings sold
every year in the two boroughs. The Mills
hotels accommodate about 100000 dodgers
a year. There should be added to these
estimates number OF Cheap hotels OF the
Raines law variety which accommodate
men that are practically destitute. In addi-
ton lhere are number of homeless men
concerning whom no statistics can be Sc
cured. who sleep in alleyways. I'm sheds on
scows, under bridges. on trucks and over
gratings, particularly during the summer
months.
You often hear people say that 70 900
homeless persons crawl to cheap lodgings
every night. That is absurd. Allowing a
wide margin. there not more than 25 900
such in the whole city. The new rules will
give them cleaner. sweeter quarters even
If against their will. and IL thousands OF
them are driven away from town the cfty
will be the gamer. Here are several of tho
more important new rules
Better Ventilation.
I'm every sleeping room there shall al
ways be for each ledger to be accommo-
dated therein at least 600 cubic feet of air
space. There were only 400 ordered under
the old rules. 1t means that the beds must
be kept further apart
In the of all lodging houses for
which permits shall be applied for the first
time no beds or hunks shall be placed ons
above the other. That, in time, will do
away with the double deckers, cutting
down profits.
''All apartments shall be properly ven
tilated at all times All windows of dor
mitories and sleeping rooms shall be open
one foot at the bottom and one foot from
the top from 10 am. until 2 pm. daily
Beds occupied at night shall be vacated by
10 am. Special rooms shall be set apart
for the accommodation Of dodgers working
at night. Nowadays the air in such places
is rotten.
"There shall be provided for each lodeer
a separate bed with bedding and bed
clothes satisfactory to the department OF
health, and no ledger is to be allowed to
sleep elsewhere than in such bed. That
will cut out the 7-cent hammock, the Scent
chairs and make men take their clothes
off.
Clean sheets and pillow cases shall be
provided daily for each bed. We figure
that this will increase the cost of lodging
cents a night on account Of laundry ex-
penses.
I'm every sleeping room all windows
opening to the outer air shall be separated
from any cubicle in such room by an I'M
INSTRUCTED corridor at least three feet wide
AT least one wash room shall be pro-
vided on each floor. In every such wash
room adequate washing facilities shall be
provided in the shape of long porcelain
troughs, set basins or other adequate ap-
paratus. Shower baths or tub baths shall
be provided. with hot and cold water, and
hours free of charge. An adequate supply
of clean towels shall be provided. At pres
ent there is no definite requirement as to
baths.
1.-The floors of all rooms, passages AMI
stairways must be scrubbed or wet swept
at least once daily before pm"
Lodging Houses in Panic.
Proprietors of cheap lodging houses have
surrendered to the board of health and
placed themselves under the jurisdiction OF
that department by asking for permits Ten
of them have applied for the necessary
authority to continue conducting their bust
ness, but not until they have complied with
the new regulations will they be allowed To
do SO. One of the Bowery establishments
was inspected and the sanitary inspector
granted a permit.
Owners of most of the 1O5 lodging houses
in the borough of Manhattan have for
years been defying the authority or the
board of health and under various pretexts
have tried to make 1t appear that they were
conducting the places either as Raines law
hotels or as hostleries of the first class.
Hurry calls were sent out yesterday Tor
plumbers carpenters and painters, and the
unaccustomed swish Of brooms was heard
in many an establishment where no clean
ing had been done for many months.
mopo the frstSto be subjected to the new
rules will be the places where for cents
a canvas hammock is rented. Each ledger
must now have cot, with spring mattress.
clean sheets and pillows daily and whatever
bod cIothinr may be required. Double
decked beds or hunks must also go.
The so-called 1O-cent lodging house can
not exist under the new regime, for IL the
owners can afford to make the necessary
changes they will have to advance their
rates by 5 or 10 cents.