APPENDIX G. REPORT OF THE DEPUTY SUPERINTENDENT OF THE STREET WATERING DIVISION. o 904–905 TREMONT BUILDING, BosTON, February 1, 1903. HON. JAMES DONOVAN, DEAR SIR, - I respectfully submit the annual report of the Street Watering Division of the Street Department for the financial year ending January 31, 1903. All public streets were watered at an expense of $160,147.25, paid for from the general tax levy. The season opened March 24, and continued until November 30, but watering was done on February 12, 15 and 16. It was in the main a wet season, although there were many dry, windy days, difficult periods to keep dust down. The service gave general satisfaction to the citizens of every section of the city. The number of wettings given , the streets daily were as follows: Four to six in the Back Bay District, four in the South End and City Proper, three and four on the main thoroughfares of the outlying sections and two on all others. The street mileage was increased five miles by new streets, and two additional carts were employed. Attention is directed to the figures which show the tremendous amount of fresh water used by the division. Taken with the amount used by the Park, Fire and other departments, it seems proper at this time to suggest the use of salt water for street watering purposes, as its superiority over fresh water for this work is well known. The sum of $160,000 is inadequate for a service which contemplates watering in the open weather of the winter months as well as in the strict watering season. Such a sum provides for no extension of the service beyond the present limits, nor is it enough to properly water our streets under ordinary conditions. In fact, it is only possible under favorable weather conditions to water 465 miles of streets in the manner of the past for the sum appropriated. It may seem unnecessary to urge the matter so often, but interest in a service which has been specialized and improved until it has no equal of its kind anywhere compels the reiteration. An increase in the appropriation should be made to meet the requirements of the weather conditions during the entire year. The force employed was one deputy superintendent, one chief clerk, one clerk, one driver, and twenty-one bicycle tallymen. The division is indebted to Mr. J. W. Smith, local forecast official, for daily weather reports. Respectfully submitted, AMBROSE WOODs, FINANCIAL STATEMENT. Amount of appropriation . * g & $160,000 00 Transferred from “Surplus Revenue" { } g 147 25 $160,147 25 Amount of expenditures . to to e . $160,147 25 OBJECT OF ExPENDITUREs. Salaries and labor * e © e e . $16,052 29 Teaming . e * © e to 135,743 75 Water-posts, repairs, etc. . e e e to 4,922 17 Board of horses . * e & g & & 627 67 Shoeing and clipping . o & & to g 141 75 Veterinary services and medicine e e so 43 00 Harness and supplies . © go & & g 308 ()() Vehicles, repairs, etc. . § & & e to 939 77 Printing g e so & o e © e 136 59 Stationery and postage © o e † e 159 68 Bicycles, repairs, etc. . e * o e e 606 90 Telephone service e e to so te * 134 53 General supplies . § e © e to * 331 15 Total . . . . . . . . $160,147 25 Objects of Expenditures, Classified by Districts, from February 1, 1902, to January 31, 1903. The expenditures since 1899, when the city assumed, for the first time, the watering of paved streets, are as follows: 1899 . . . . . . . . . $174,625 97 1900 . . . . . . . . . 174,742 45 1901 . . . . . . . . . 164,259 36 1902 . . . . . . . . . 160,147 25 Amount of Water used in 1902. Capacity of two-horse cart (gallons) . & e 600 Average loads thrown per day, per cart & & 26 Total gallons thrown per day, per cart © o 15,600 Number of cart days worked te to & & 27,157 Total gallons of water used . to {o g . 423,649,200 Distribution of Carts, showing Entire Amount of Work done. Hired | * | Averag DISTRICT. Carts. C ão. per § South Boston . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 40 2.00 East Boston. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 25 1.78 Charlestown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . - 11 22 2.00 Brighton. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 41 1.95 West Roxbury. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 76 2.38 Dorchester. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 92 2.40 Roxbury. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 86 2.21 Back Bay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 South End. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 | 83 1.20 City Proper. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Totals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244 465 1.99 Location of Water Posts by Districts. YEAR. DISTRICT. #. 1891 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 South Boston 23 28 35 38 39 39 39 East Boston . 16 34 41°| 42 42 42 43 Charlestown. 19 20 20 21 22 22 - 22 Brighton . . . . 25 44 47 50 48 50 50 W. Roxbury. 50 67 75 86 81 84 85 Dorchester . . 61 83 88 99 100 101 101 Roxbury. . . . . 53 68 76 80 '73 '75 75 City Proper.. 24 53 69 '74 68 73 73 5 Totals . . . . . 271 397 451 490 || 473 486 488 5 NOTE. — During the past year 3 posts were relocated, 1 post abandoned, and 3 new posts erected. APPENDIX H. REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONERS FOR THE BOSTON AND CAMIBRIDGE BRIDGES. CAMBRIDGE–STREET BRIDGE. The deck of bridge was repaired by putting down four-inch plank, and the bridge and draw sheathed with two-inch spruce plank. The fences on the bridge and draw, the drawposts and the houses on the draw-piers have been painted. This work was done by the drawtenders. They also sweep bridge and piers and keep them free from snow and ice and do ordinary repairs. The drawtenders on this bridge also do the work on Western-avenue bridge. CANAL OR CRAIGIE BRIDGE. On the Cambridge end of the bridge the sidewalk was repaired by putting in two-inch spruce plank and replacing the brick; the house was shingled and repaired, and the paving on the roadway was repaired from the draw to the Cambridge end of the bridge. On the Boston side, down-stream, a new sidewalk was built for the whole length; the old timbers and planking that were very much decayed were taken out and replaced by new hard-pine timber and hard-pine flooring ; the edgestones were reset and the walks paved with new brick. The roadway was repaired for the whole length. The guard on the Cambridge side to protect the bridge from damage by vessels colliding with it had to be rebuilt. Oak piles were driven and capped with hard-pine timbers and braced securely to piles connected with the bridge. The draw-piers were repaired and the small house on the pier shingled. The draw is in very bad condition; it has been repaired as required with new hard-pine timbers and planking. The draw is old, and it should be thoroughly overhauled. There is more teaming over this bridge than over any other bridge in Boston, and it has to be watched very closely. A new |