Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1872-01-02

put uuQet con-
..,uuon to furnish accommodations for, how
independent of each other these various de-
partnents are, and that upon the orders of
any committee Of these various departments in
the prosecution of the voriOus enterprises COM
mitted to their charge street may be dug up,
blocked up, and rendered impossible half Il
dozen times year, tn wonder is, not SO much,
that they are in such miserable plight but
rather that they are in as good condition as they
are.
There are seven different commissions, which
have authority over the streets, as our mode of
managing the various departments Of the pub
lie work is at present constituted, viz: the com
mitee on highways, the committee on side
walks, the committee on lighting Streets the
committee on water, the committee on sewers
together with the gas company and the horse
railroad company. Each of these commissions
is conducted and managed separately and indie
pendently of the others, without harmony or
concert and in the excavations necessary for
laying pipes and sewers in the streets and in
many other ways, each incurs the expense OF
performing its work, when, if properly man
aged and conducted under one head. with one
board OF executive officers, very great proper
ton of the expense of doing the work might be
saved, the work be better DONE and the
streets and highways kept in better repair.
Thus if sewer, water and gas are TO be intro
duced into street, there is no reason why the
work of excavation might not all be done at
once.
Nm of the opinion that the work now con-,
Quoted under the direction of the Joint standing
committee on highways, the Joint standing com
mttee on sewers, the joint standing committee
on water, the Joint standing committee on side
walks, and the Joint standing committee on
lighting streets, should ali be committed to the
direction Of Il board Of public works. | have
not undertaken to state all, or nearly ALL, the
reasons which force themselves on the mind in
support of this change. The great enterprises
OF improvement which we are in process of es-
tabliShing, calling as they do for the disburse-
ment Of more than half a million dollars an
nualyi require more exact, systematic and Judi
cious methods of execution than would Ordi-
narily be required in enterprises of lesser mag
nitude The old methods are entirely insult
able, One executive head, 10 whom the people
could look for Il faithful execution of the duties
of these various committees, would tend 10
create a sense Of responsibility ON the part of
this department directly to tue people, and
would, more than anything else, prevent the
enormous waste, which, BY the best possible
management under our present system, can NOT
be entirely avoided, the work be better done, and
the discomfort and Inconvenience to the people,
necessarily incident to the prosecution Of these
enterprises, very greatly lessened.
Having carefully examined this subject. and
feeling the responsibility assume IN recon-
mending this change, am urged 10 do 1t by a
sense OF obligation 10 my constituents, and can
but express the hope that you may be so inl-
pressed with the desiraoility, not 10 say absolute
necessity, OF this reform, that il will receive your
early attention, aud that we may begin our
operations of the spring under newly organ
lied administration Of these affairs.
may be permitted 70 add that | see no rea-
son why the authority 20 inaugurate this change
does not, under our ordinances reside in the
city council, and that we need no new lcgisla-
ton to enable US 70 effect II, But II we should,