Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1879-03-16

ers, upon which the existence or nom exist
ence, the life or death of Memphis, depends.
At last, after long years and yearly
recurring admOnIhOns, after almost in
credible negligence, afl-r The terri
bic repeated punishment, which the
CITY has suffered ny the vis,taIobs Of the yell
low-.evg-. Memphis seems e. have come to
the CONVICTION tual upon the observance of
strict SANITARY measures depends the entire
future o. Der inhabitants. At last the public
journals seem TO perceive also that II Is better
10 pay the teE-toid taxes than to let the pesti-
lence rage through the streets IN coming
years aud % have 10 bury five thousand fever
cOrpses. The condition of the city as regards
streets, public places GEt the haTbor, beggars
description. The writer Of tins article has
seen macy Hungarian, Bulgarian, Turkish
and Russian towns, but 6ll put together they
are like marble compared 60 this mudhOle IN
which the houses OF Memphis are built, and in
which her inhabitants had rather sink to their
knees than to pay Tor the ameHoration Of this
miserable condition. One thing seems GER
tain-the streets Of Memphis have never seen
bes I'm. Like the taxes lave been in abey-
ance for jha last t"n years so 10 has also been
with the ga .-aa dat q the city The past
years misery she eau asCuhg to herself.
Coming down the Mississippi river, Memphis
presents herself 20 the traveller Ike verita-
BILE iairy-cityt Ike IN 1ulLauEmenA. When
after a thrse-cags passage from st. Louis,
through the waste Of water ant sand, and the
sombet shores u the u Iss,ssIpYl, the last
bend OF the river is reached, vlea the proud,
majestic front OF the buildings On the steep
and rather high bank become It last visible,
one cannot believe ia8- this magnificent
Memphis can have been the hearth Of that
epidemic. But JUST SD; Ike with its twin
sister Cairo THAT ct ErYut, lot the one of
Illinois,. yOu must Eot be deceived by
splendid appearances. Already the miser-
able streets leading from the river to the
city let Us sugmlse Jhe mud Of winter and
spring and the pan5t-lGug dust Of the dog
summer. The man streets run parallel
with the river, and arc crossed by fine,
broad streets leading ll-o The country. The
friendly, and even Ia .Stc houses on Main
arU Monroe streets, tue nigh situation, the
parks within and without the clty, the mag
n5iia and cypress tIees, with which the
houses OF tine a-lstCCTsuC Vance street and
OF other streets are adorned, al present a
different picture from the one expected.
but there comes reverse side of the pic
ture. The city IS cnc;r.l.& az its back by q
bayou narrow, clGse dup arm al the Mis-
sIss!ppl, which emptIEs into Wolf river, but
Only water Il It IN j1e spring, or when the
Mississippi Is high. Iuto this bayou empty
the few sewers OF Menu his. It receives all
the dial, all the refuse, ali the filth of the
city. Ali this lays there aul ro.s through
out the summer, ti.i the waters Of the
autumn carry u !uto the river. Il would be
an easy and not expensive work to canal
the bayou and also Wo't river, and bring
water into 1t, but the model city council has
even declined any proposals for such an I'M
dertaklng- The streets of tue Clty-the
finest and FIRST, rs well as the l0west-are IN
the most miserable condition. No one has
any idea what mountains, hollOWs and holes
the Nlc1isou pavement has made in the
streets. The poor horses aod mules sink
into the mudhO.es. The cotton wagons
Z
and axes. The city railways have taken add
vantage OF the situation and re-
PAIR as little as possible of their
roadbed. New York. ia her harbor- strrets,
cannot boast OF tbeIC paveuents; but they
are marble slabs when compared with the
fGthomless mudhoies Of Memp his. Take In
addition thereto the mud IN ia side streets,
the stagnant pools Of the vacant lots. and the
filth accumulated for years ia yards and al
leys, and you have picture Of the culture
OF the Bulgaria Of America; and IN these
streets lived whlt5s people. They passed
through them every GIy; they knew the ter
uOle results Of TINS state CT thiGgs-Of the
mlasma and malaria generated thereby-and
still they refused to pay the most pressing
taxes for the cleaning and paving of the
streets. Last years fever was to them a
terrible lesson. Yet another month and
spring, and with it the warm season will have
commenced; then IL the breath OF the bloom
ing fruit trees will raise itself the malaria
which Is the germ of the fever. And yet
there Is not one cent ca hand for the clean
ing OF the streets ANS rs a small picture
OF one OF the greatest cities of the south; an
example OF northern 5wlndhng paired with
southern iazness.
II the correspondent could visit Memphis now
he would mud tina, things have changed, and that
Te are putting O1T house I'm order rapidly, the
APPEAL