The Portland daily press., 1867-10-03
s'rhe Uestfaeiiea Of the Easiera esenie.

10 the Editor of the Press.
This object is to be "cuddled" through in
some way, and the elaborate and quasi scien-
tihc style of the articles bearing the signature
OF Ward Six sufficiently indicate, if net the
person, yet the inspiration of the writer.
Referring to article No H., in Fridays Press,
it is quite observable how fluent the writer Is
in the use of sounding generalities. 1t would
be much more scientific to come down to par
ticulars. Then we could form some judg-
ment of our own about the matter, as well as
test the soundness of the writer himself
For instance, article No. II asserts aud re-
peats two or three times, that certain SPAR
ties"-a most indefinite term-"three parties"
"to-day, party" another party" atwo par
ties"-have heretofore proposed" to purchase,
or have purchased, or want to build upon. land
on the northeast front, SO called
Now, as this is put forward as great public
matter, why not be little more particular,
and set forth the names of these 'parties"2
The writer says he knows them-tell us acho
they were, or are. Were any Of them land
spectators or contractors? Were any of
them members of the City Council, or of the
Committee on Streets? Did any of them pro-
pose to make large extents of new land on the
Hats, unless they could get somebody to help
them bear the heavy cost of flIingP
This writer, for another generality, treats
this subject as if it were only question of
opening way to the fats. But the particular
fact, which he keeps out of sight, is, that these
flats are perfectly worthless, unless they are
filled up with solid earth. Now, to make new
land by moving large quantities Of earth is an
exceedingly expensive business, as everybody
knows who has tried it. Many persons who
have commenced such works have had to stop
and look round for somebody to help them
This is an old story. Those who have watched
the progress of such matters in this city for
the last fifteen or twenty years, are aware that
very few cases have occurred of deep exSava-
lions for new streets, or cutting down old ones,
but what it has turned out at length that
somebody aoanted the material for I'LL some
aohere else, and generally on some private ac-
count, ID Fs.-.....e f...... ID. .i.i.r. g
This leads to the mention of another of the
loose generalities of article No. H., and very
inaccurate one. The writer reminds us that
some years ago there was steep bank on the
west side of Munjoy-that it has been graded,
cut down-and he says the result is, that "the
hill has become village, a town of itself, COW
cred over, scores of acres, with houses" &c.,
&c. Now, the notorious fact is, that in by far
the largest and best portion of the settlement
on the Hill the streets are lafd, and the houses
were built, on the natural surface of the
ground, with no excavation at all. Look at
ST T,aWranca
street, Lafayette street, and the cross streets
between-not only not excavated at all, but
not settled by reason of any excavation any
where else. On the other hand, go to the juno
ton of Cumberland street and Washington
street, and walk along towards the north, look
ing to the right hand, where those excavations
We're. There i5 specimen of "village," ga
town. such as Ward Six" proposes to have
built on the eastern slope of the Hill. For it
is perfectly certain, that if in the outskirts of
town like Portland you cut up the land with
deep excavations, the adjoining lots will be oc
cupied, for an indefinite period, only by those
who had as lief have house lots in gulleys and
sand-holes as any where else if they can get
the land at low rate, as they certainly will if
it is in that shape.
Further, does this scientific writer suppose
that we are all ignorant of the fact that nearly
the entire mass of the excavation on the west
slope of the hill was made by private parties.
at their oaon e1pCnseq Would he have us be-
heve that city committee caused all that
earth to be removed By contract, at heavy cost
to the city? Does he know, or does he not
know, that even the streets there-large por-
lions of them, if not the whole--werc graded
by individual operators, who took out the grav-
el for nothing, because they wanted to use it
somewhere else?
The truth is that modern methods of man.
nuvre have made a sad and fearfully expensive
business for the city out Of such wastes We
are indebted to Ward Six" for the mention of
an instance. He tells or Ine extension of
Commercial street westward, by Vaugban's
bridge, involving VASTLY large removal Of
earth" and he says that "the parties" who are
pushing the work are men of great wealth,
of influence, sc, &c. Generalities again
Why not give us the names, and the cost 2
Why not tell us the number of thousands of
dollars that the city has been made to spend on
that work, in this year of our severe distress.
and the number of thousands more that be
desires to have spent in cutting and digging at
the east?o liit 1lCa4 ri .e
Strange to say, no newspaper account or
statement has yet given us the contract cost Ct
the work lately stopped by the Supreme Court.
The people OF the city are unfortunately left
in the dark upon these matters Few of those
who see, day by day, the ruinous and sorrowful
condition Oh our own streets and lots in the
burnt districts, are aware of the heavy lob
that has been going on this very summer, by
the east end of Vaughan's bridge. For that
job, performed in this terrible year, the city
has paid twenty-five thousand dOllars!-or to
be particular, has paid the larger part of that
sum, out of borrowed money, and is going TO
pay the balance schen the tdres come In And
"Ward Six" wishes the city to spend good
many thousand more, on q similar jon, at the
other end of the town, while the city is unable
to borrow money on its bonds at 80! At what
rate will the city hire money next year as
things are going on? And what will be the
rate of taxation?
For another particatlQr-I repeat a PROPOSE
ton, substantially such as have advanced be-
fore, and which will make good if decent
opportunity is furnished for discussion of
this whole matter before a responsible body
that the entire body OF flats on the northeast
front" can be made conveniently aud usefully.
accessible to and from the present business To-
caities of the city, without the slightest inter-
ference with the Promenade, and without
tenth part of the cost of the Congress street
job. H5iw silsala a. 9siiilaIao3 - ~
But aoho shall bear the cost of J ling these flats
to make them into wharves and ship-yards, is
another question. tn- i1954a lai4s -fl NJ