New-York tribune., 1909-03-28
CITY'S COAL BILL
Some of the Things This Tcn3y Er.
penditurc WOUid Do.

To provide for the illumination and for TIE hsHs
ing and FOR the maintenance Of its Industries. New
York City consumes in twelve months iI the 1lanr-
facture OF gas enough coal build se- %;
pyramids In Egypt and 20 supply the entire -e-i~-
atlantic fleet that plies between fits noble haroor
and the foreign ports of the world. and then laf3
enough left 10 run the biggest steel plant IN
the United states. The consumption of coal f'r
this purpose Is So stupendous as ro sta=-er ths
imagination. but the dryEess Or statistics is trans
formed almost into an AIaddin-Iike dream when IL
IS considered that I'm year the coal used pm sup
plying gas for all purposes in New York would:
Build obeIisk eight times high as the tower
OF the Metropolitan Life Building ~ .}h street and
Madison avenue which rises 20 feet from founda-
ton stone its apex
Load train Of the largest freight ears ever
built, extending. closely coupled. in one solid h"s
from Brooklyn to Moutsuk Point Long Island .
distance OF more than 30 miles
Furnish carpet of coal nearly one foot thiek
covering the entire of Central Park, and m
cluding the water reservoirs contained Vlthih 10
SO acres.
Provide a fuel supply for a family that began
using coal a thousand years before the year - anu
continuing through its descendants for two 1ol-
sard years 10 come.
Require for storage a cavern larger than rs
. M0mmOtE Cave of Kentucky and the sorss .
Niagara combined.
The most familiar comparison. and one Snic1
brings to the minds eye quick conception O. -
vastness OF the gas coal supply deman1ea 80 80
year by New York is gained by the picture Oh =
white marble tower that pierces the SKY InS -
Madison avenue Fanny. II You can. no" -
mighty structure would be dwarfed were o4o- ~
shaft formed OF the coal consumed for gas-rrAAL,s
purposes alone erected alongside OF 1t! The H rs
building OF the Metropolitan Life occupies -
tangle 200 by 426 feet and is 164 feet hlsh- -
tower is 70 by So feet In the ground space II 80 -
pies, and it's hftieth story is 200 feet aooes
foundation line. The total weight OF the onIuhs
S5. 200 tons and OF the tower about +4ooO tons n
The coal used in the manufacture or gas 10
purposes IN New York last year was S-S'lVo -
Let this be packed into compact mass. VIZ Wa
spaces for windows other openings and Il - -
be 1858 feet in height. occupying exactly l-7 -
ground space as the insurance company +s me-
monument. Its weight would be Iso0OOo'0V pos.s
The highest point would not be visible 10 th7 -,
eve, even II the observation attenpts1 -.
the summit Of Eiffel towers. one on TOP ~ = "a
other. To travel from the surface OF tns go 60
the summit would require by the modern s. es Nv
running top speed longer tkan pa..,n
train the East River Bridge and oacA s,ra
than twice long a journey - snd
the Hudson River tunnels to the Jersey S-O
the return trip the island OF Manhattan. ,ss
Resolve this wonderful obelisk Of black ui--,n n,rn
into the rough. broken Jumps OF coal Wiz .s-~ss.
familiar Pile them into carts-tn0 - ths
YOU find. say. four tons each-and i'.-t .sv.rsl
procession of O7Oo6 vehicles. with ZOt'uoo -, A
There you would nave a population sumo
sonstitute big cIty.-Gas Losts-