Municipal St. Petersburg.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XXXIII, Issue VI, 6 August 1904, Page 40

Municipal St. Petersburg.

St. Petersburg takes fifth rank in Europe in bulk of population. In the year 1901, the number of inhabitants of the city was ascertained to be 1,281,108 within the city boundaries, and 208,463 in the suburbs. The number of premises, ail having courts or yards, in the city of St. Petersburg, is 10.340. of which 874 per cent, are dwelling-houses. Of these 7947, or 88 per eent., are of private ownership; 573, or 54 per cent., belong to Government ; 226. or 2.8 per cent., belong to charitable societies; and 169, or 1.8 per cent., belong to trading associations. According to the report of the Inventory Committee of the Citv Executive

Council, the total number of residential buildings in 1901 was 18,931, containing 137.000 tenements. The houses are generally built in two storeys. This is the prevailing type, and represents 42 per cent, of the total number. In consequence of the rapid growth of the population, there is a deficiency of lodgings; rents have accordingly risen, and at the same time many new houses have been built on the outskirts of the city, most of them on Peterburgski Island. Tn the lowest estimate formed by the Inventory Committee of the present year, the value of all the Government

properties is put at 867 million roubles (£91,902,000), municipal property is valued at 209.681.135 roubles ( £22.226.000), and private property at 633 million roubles (£67.098,000). As a general rule the streets in St. Petersburg are straight and of great length, the total number of streets being 681, and the collective length 237 miles. The main artery is the Nevski Prospect, three miles in length, but beside this many other wide and handsome thoroughfares have been made within recent years. The total length of the quays—which are granite built—and riverside ways is seventy-four miles. Most of the streets are paved with

cobble stone (covering 1350 acres); some of the best streets are paved with octagonal wood blocks, underlaid with planking on a tarred and gravelled foundation. But this does not last long; the subsoil and surface water, and the effects of winter frost and snow render this mode of street paving very unsatisfactory. Experiments are constantly being made, but no system has yet been found to suit local conditions. The wood-block system covers an area of about six acres. Highways leading into the suburbs are macadamised, but these are gener ally in a very bad condition. Fully 150 streets, with an area of 360 acres, remain in a primitive state, their surface representing 20 per cent, of the entire street acreage of the city. The footwalks in the main streets are laid with granite slabs and hard clay; in other parts planking is laid down. Boulevards form a prominent feature in St. Petersburg, and there are 53 gardens and parks open to the public, occupying about 352 acres. Exclusive of footbridges over canals, there are 120 bridges in St. Petersburg. Many of these are arches in masonry, cast-iron and wrought-iron; five are suspension bridges; and two are built on boats over the Neva. The Neva is spanned by only two permanent bridges —the Nikolai and the Alexander—both very handsome structures. The Nikolai bridge is 980 ft long, and is supported by seven granite piers, calculated to withstand the severest pressure of ice. It has a splendid bronze balustrade, and on the north side it is adorned with a handsome chapel of marble, and provision is made at the same side for the passage of vessels. The Alexander Bridge, 1519 ft, is an arched structure with granite piers. Very little attention is paid by the municipality to the provision of facilities for street traffic. Only three lines of tramways, all worked by horses, are owned by the city authorities, and the length of these lines is less than five miles. Including the undertakings of private companies the total length of the tramway system is about 90 miles, intersecting the city in all directions, and affording means of eommuncation with the islands and suburbs. Nearly 90.900.000 tramway passengers are carried annually, and in addition about 10.000.000 passengers are conveyed by services of steamers on the Neva and some of the canals. Several of the main streets and publicplaces, as well as the offices of the municipality of St. Petersburg are lighted by electricity', under contract with three private companies. Street lighting is still effected in many parts of the city by means of kerosene lamps, which, however, are of an improved type, with incandescent “Rossia” burners of Galkin’s system. The conduct of the fire brigades was taken over by the municipality in January, 1901. There are 14 fire stations, seven reserve depots, and two river fire-boats with all necessary appliances. The staff consists of a chief officer called the Brand Major, 16 Brand Meisters, or officers in charge of the different stations; two officials under the Pallace Authorities, four supernumeraries, and fourteen assistant Brand Meisters, with a force of 983 firemen. Over and above these, eleven men are engaged to be on guard at the private theatres, and eight men, not in receipt of pay, arc told off to service with a private brigade maintained by Prince Lvof. One of the most serious blots on the municipal government of St. Petersburg is the antiquated and insanitary' nature of the drainage system. The

surface drainage of the streets and the partial drainage of premises in the central parts of the city are effected through pipes discharging either into the nearest canal or into the river. So many pipes and conduits discharge into the rivers and canals that all the waterways of St. Petersburg are seriously polluted. This state of things is largely responsible for the maladies and epidemics from which the city suffers. The question of drainage has been, and still is, under the consideration of the municipality. Two projects are now be before the city authorities —one embodying underground canalisation, and the other a network of cast iron culverts with a pneumatic system of discharge. The disposal of house refuse is also effected by cartage to depositing areas in the suburbs. For dealing with both departments of sanitary work the city authorities maintain three so-called “parks” in the suburbs, each having its own complement of earts, horses, and other necessary equipment, and forming separate departments of transport under the control of the Sanitary Committee of the Council. The clearances from private premises are effected by private contracts witli these “parks,” the city authorities removing the refuse from municipal buildings, police barracks, and stations. St. Petersburg is supplied with water drawn from the Neva, a little distance above the city, near the Smolni Monastery. The water furnished from this source was formerly believed to be of good quality, but recent analyses have made clear the fact that even samples taken from the centre of the river contain bacteria in far greater numbers than are permissible. In 1883 the quantity of water delivered daily to the south side of the city amounted to about 7,000,000 gallons, and seventeen pumping engines were then employed by the waterworks company. The steam bath forms a great feature in Russian life, and is indulged in. in most cases, once a week. There are 350 establishments leased by the municipality, where such baths can be taken in St. Petersburg. On the Neva, and on some of the canals, there are altogether thirteen floating bathing houses. Under the control of the Hospital Committee are ten city hospitals with 6171 beds, various almshouses containing 3185 beds, two public disinfecting stations, attached to two of the hospitals belonging to the School for Midwives, and eight free ambulance surgeries where medicine is dispensed without charge. Among the public works of the municipality of St- Petersburg, we may class its charitable and benevolent work, conducted by the Charity and Benevolence Committee, and which is expressed in the care and education of orphans, in donations of fuel and money to the indigent and helpless classes of the community, and in contributions to various charitable institutions. A striking figure under the head of benevolence is the pecuniary assistance given to certain stipendiary students ami pensioners, who, besides a regular money allowance, are relieved by the municipality of fees for courses of study and learning in universities, colleges and schools. Taking all things into account, St. Petersburg is fairly well off with regard to educational advantages. The first two Free Libraries were opened in the year 1887. and a six years’ experience having shown their utility, four others were established in the capital, one in each succeeding year, from 1894 to 1897; two more were opened in 1900, and one has recently been added. There are seventeen large markets in St. Petersburg. The largest and most important market place is the Gastinnoi Dvor, of which the great facade fronts

the Nevski Prospect. This is not. however, a provision market. Food supplies are quartered separately in different parts of the city. Considering the public municipal works of St. Petersburg as a whole, the chief conclusion to be drawn is that the city offers almost virgin soil for the planting of Western ideas with regard to sanitation and the responsibilities of a municipal council. The Gradonaehalnik or Chief of the City, who is also head of the police, exercises a supreme controlling power over the municipality. The Mayor, or Golova of the Duma, is a man of little consequence. The real ■’operatives” and executive heads are the chairmen of the various committees of the Uprava.