New-York tribune., 1911-03-04
IT'S DUSTY, FOLKS SAY
Flush, Squeeze and Squirt, the
Remedies Edwards Proposes.
BUT THEY ALL COST MONEY
Appropriations Cut, Commits
sioner Thinks II Useless to
Discuss Conditions.

The gus;y winds OF March have man
aged 10 kick up such dust in the streets
during the last few days Of dry weather
tnat there are a lot Of people convinced they
haven't seen the streets 50 dirty in years.
The loudest compIainers were those with
the biggest beams In their eyes, but even
those with unimpaired vision said the
streets we're Uttered to an unusual degree
with paper. refuse and dirt. and that the
air was filed with dangerous. wind driven
dust
Where is the much boasted Improvement
in the efficiency Of the Street Cleaning De-
partment?" they asked.
When all this was mentioned to big
Bill" Edwards. Commissioner Of Street
Cleaning. Yesterday. he remarked that he
had no apologies 10 offer for the. streets.
The public he said could judge for them
selves about the streets. but as for himself
he knew they We're in just as good con-
diton as they possibly could be with The
facilities allowed him.
"In the budget for 1911" he said ''re-
quest was made for 100000 for flushing.
OF this amotnt S352OO was for the hose
flushing This would leave SG4,S0O fol the
work by flushing machines and squeegees-
this was enough 20 provide for forty flush
ing machines, twenty squeegees and seven
extra squeegee rollers. This allowance
asked for was cut to $4,000, the under
standing being that there was no allowance
TO be made tor hose.
Il have nothing to say about the condi-
ton OF the streets now" he went on but i
know that II the department were equipped
with the flushing devices asked for there
could be no complaints on the score of
dusty streets from any one. They would do
the job and do it perfectly--so that you
could. eat off Of them if you wanted to-"
The big Commissioner looked patiently
bored when he was pressed for detailed
information Of just how his proposed sys-
TEN would bring about such a utopian con-
dition OF the streets. as II he had told that
so often in vain to the powers above that
there was no use explaining ii all again.
He had Just come from a conference on
flushing apparatus with Mr. Mitchell and
Mr. McAneny in the Borough Presidents
office. and did not seem elated with the
results of the conference.
There are three methods by which the
flushing OF streets may be performed he
said. There is the flushing machine,
which is a barrel on wheels, with COM
pressed air chamber to expel the water
with sufficient force 20 scour the pave
ments. Then there is the squeegee, which
is tank with an outfit 10 sprinkle water
in front of the scrubber. so that the filth
may be disodged from the pavement and
swept in windows at one side. In our re-
quest we also asked for ordinary hand fire
hose with a nozzle of "A particular type 10
give the best effect Of the water in this
work All these things were made impos-
sible when the appropriation was cut
down"
BY this time the Commissioner had got
Interested in his subject again, and plunged
into a fluent recital OF figures to prove that
his plans would keep the dust out OF the
ewes Of good and bad alike. The flushing
machine would clean in an eight-hour
working day, he said. thirty-six street
blocks sixty feet wide. The squeegee
would do even better than this for it would
clean sixty street blocks, while the hand
hose would make twenty-nine blocks spick
and span.
II know what l am talking about he
said. because tests have proved that these
devices will do what | assert for them
We have the plans for the practical de-
livery OF the water to these machines all
prepared. but"-and he shrugged his
shoulders as II to say, What's the use?'
President Mitchell Of the Board Of Alder
men ard Borough President McAneny, to
whom Commissioner Edwards preferred a
request for 100000 for apparatus aud
$50 900 for hose. yesterday afternoon de
cided that Mr. Edwards could have $4,000
for hose at this time, but no more.
The Commissioner has $4,000 available
for flushing machines, which was put in
the budget for that purpose He has beel
irving 10 ge- the Board Of Aldermen to let
him spend this money without rublic bid
ding. on the ground that there IS only cne
make Of machine that will answer the pur-
pose They cost $1,000 each He will
arrange a test Of these machines
Another concern has offered 10 operate,
free Of charge, for a week, machine which
combines the three principles Of llusher,
squeegee and sweeper taking up the dirt in
q hopper as il moves along