638 TRANSACTIONS OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 



He had inquired among stage owners, and a Broadway stage 

 proprietor had assured him that the salt did no injury to the horses. 

 Salt had been the means of enabling the people to use the rail- 

 roads. Without salt the roads would be practically blocked with 

 snow, and the people compelled to avoid the upper part of the 

 city, and live in Brooklyn and Jersey city instead. Salt, by 

 thawing away the snow, quickly promotes rather than injures the 

 health of the people. It makes the track dry in a short time. 



He had found little but theory on the subject as regards the 

 effect on the lungs by exhalations. But the Sanitary Committee 

 of Philadelphia had actually recommended salt for the streets. 



Mr. J. H. Churchill said that he had obtained statistics from 

 one of the city railroads, which led to a different conclusion from 

 that presented by Mr. Ebbitt. It is well known to horsemen 

 that the grease and similar effects mentioned by him are produced 

 by chill from wet and deficient circulation, will remain a stand- 

 ing complaint, and in this condition horses will be particularly 

 subject to inflammation of the extremities from exposure, even 

 weeks after the removal of the first cause. Salt, it is true, dries 

 up grease again, and in fact the feet of horses in this city are 

 injuriously hardened. 



It would seem idle to discuss the question whether wet feet 

 are injurious to men, women or children, and equally so whether 

 cold and wet feet are an aggravated evil. 



On the other hand the removal of the snow^ is a paramount 

 necessity, as shown to-night and the last season, for travel ; and 

 if the common council or those in authority would insist upon 

 the railways doing what they allege now that they can do, viz : 

 remove at once the slush and water by opening channels to the 

 sewers, all the objections would be reduced to practicable limits. 

 The idea of malaria must be left to the doctors, who will possi- 

 bly differ ; but it is a fact that the salt is not carried up in any 

 water evaporated from the slush. But there is a question of 

 much interest which is at the bottom of this matter : The boil- 

 ing point of a mixture of salt and snow is raised ; does such a 

 mixture evaporate more slowly at low temperatures than snow or 

 water? At any rate the evaporation is slow and practically 

 during a long continuance of snow; we have for all this time 

 ■wet crossings, and when the snow breaks up we have none the 

 less all the usual inconveniences of a thaw. In fact, our misfor- 

 tunes are doubled. The task is to shorten it. Remove the water 



