The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-04-02

(Exclusive Service The Survey Press
 Bureau)
 With the beginning of the use of soft coal as a fuel arose the problem of how to get rid of the disagreeable smoke The question has grown more serious Nearly in every growing city where bi- luminous coal is burned The dweller in such a town needs no definition of the nuisance and it has become a matter oi real importance 10 every large com munity to rid itself as far as possible of this nuisance. Interest in the ques- tion is widespread. More than 1900 pa tents have been granted by the Unified States Bureau of Patents to inventors ot so-called smoke consumers and smoke burners and every where municipal governments have taken up seriously the ebating of smoke.
 Experience has demonstrated that ob- jectionable smoke may be prevented even though soft or bituminous coal is used exclusively as fuel. By careful firing, either by hand or a mechanical stoker ar feeder, fresh coal can be evenly dis tributed over the hot furance bed This with the aid of sufficient uniform degree Of heat 10 reach all parts of the coal, avoids a "smothering" which produces a lower degree of heat favorable to the separation of the material which makes smoke from the body of the coal. Some times an entirely new furnace equipment Is the only remedy.
 In Chicago an estimate by the smoke Inspector shows that smoke besides being a nuisance causes a loss to the citizens of S21, ,S30,000 annually or about sl0 per ca apita The laundries. clothing mer- chants. dyers. house renovators and painters. and operators of vacuum clean- ing machines are reaping a harvest. Tn St Louis six hundred pupils in one of the public schools had to be dismissed at II o'clock on one of the darkest days while at other schools within the smoke belt the children were entertained with stories by their teacher during the time 1t was too dark to study.
 Tn many cities special smoke abatement leagues exist because it is recognized that those who live in a smoke laden atmosphere are especially liable to dis eases of the respiratory system. Fred ericl L. Hoffman. statistieian of the Prudential Life Insurance company goes so far as to say that the dust and smoke problem underlies all deliberate efforts 10 improve the conditions which deter mine human life. Other things equal. the length of life will be in almost ex- act proportion to the degree and kind Of dust and smoke exposure.
 What is required today is effective public supervision for all matters of this kind involve the question -of commun- fly responsibility The control of the smoke nuisance must needs have its ef- feet on real estate values which are now i'm many places depressed because of it.
 Smoke abatement which is simply com- plete combustion and utilization of all heat-producing parts of the coal, is economy to the consumer of fuel. In every case smoke is preventable nuis- ance, and every smoking plant or loco- motive is sign of wastefulness and Il disregard for the rights of the public. Creating dense smoke is a waste in It. self, and it's emission creates additional waste. Thus it follows that the interests of the private owner and the require ments for public health, comfort and convenience run in parallel lines.
 Proper laws for the regulation. pre- vention and abatement of dense smoke are, therefore just to the consumer of