The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1913-10-07
MR.GAFFORD
CHANGE IN METHODS
OF STREET CLEANING
white Wing" Force Should
Be Substituted for
Horse BrOOms
HIS OBSERVATIONS
IN OTHER CITIES
Recommends Less Sprinkling and
More Flushing of Streets and
That Light Combustible Gar
bage Be Burned

Recomme nding that less sprinklinE
be done and more fishing. that a large
white wing force be substituted for
the horse brooms and convict sweeping
crews that are now used to sweep the
streets of the city, and suggesting other
changes Street Commissioner Frank
Gafford yesterday made O. report to the
city commissioners of his observations
during his recent vacation spent in
some of the large cities of the north
and middle west
MIR. Gafford has merely written OF
conditions as he found them existing in
these cities which he visited, Memphis,
Kansas City, Omaha, Chicago and 9TH
ers, and from them draws conclusions
and suggestions for Improvement of
conditions in Birmingham. He sug-
gests one or two ordinances compelling
citizens to burn light combustible gar
bage, to place different garbage in diff
ferent cans and other changes. His re-
port to City COMMISSIONER James
WeatherIy, commissioner in charge OF
streets, is as follows:
Mr.. Gaffords' Report
october 7. 1913.
Birmingham, Ala
Dear sir--Tn taking my vacation
this summer, ] visited several large
cities for the purpose of looking over
the manner of street cleaning. dispos-
ing of garbage, etc. and have the fol-
lowing report TO make of my findings:
IN Memphis, the first city ] visited,
found that they have two crematories
that consume most of their garbage, but
the heavier class of garbage. such as
watermelon rinds, etc, cannot be con-
sumed in this manner. and is carried off
and dumped in the river Tin cans and
such incombustible garbage is carried
off and dumped into ravines. They do
very little sprinkling in Memphis. and
this only on paved streets. They flush
their paved streets at night, and in the
mornings they take the washings up
out of the cutters with dump carts. OF
course, they use what we call a white
wing force, which rids the paved
streets of the heavy material, leaving
the lighter stuff to be washed away
by the flush tanks at night. They use
80 dump carts. and haul the garbage,
one man to each cart. They pay $3.50
% day for the drivers. Memphis has
only about 20 square miles of terri
tory; consequently their hauls are all
short They have quite a lot of oil
pavement, but the result is the same
as with us--it requires constant re-
pairs and is not at all satisfactory to
them. They are inclined to wood bloch
paving, but are using great deal ~
sheet asphalt
Few CrematOries Elsewhere
After spending two days in Mem
phis, | went to Kansas City, and stayed
two days there. l found their methods
about the same Memphis, except that
they have no crematory. They deposit
their garbage on low places near the
Missouri river, and when the freshets
come In the winter, of course. Ii washes
the garbage away. They do no sprinl<-
ling. using only flush tanks as Mem
phis does.
After leaving Memphis went TO
Omaha, Neb.. where L spent one day
They have no crematory. They are also
on the Missouri river. and have
smaller area than either Memphis or
Kansas City. They dump all their gar
bage on the commons. using a white
wing gang in the day time and flush
tanks at night.
Next l went TO Chicago. There I
CONTINUED Last PaKe)