Daily Republican., 1880-02-14
CARD PROM DAVID LEMON.
what ne Has TO Say About street
Mark elsa Sharp Criticism.

a. 1
|
d what ne HIS to Say About StFes
o Markets-A Sharp Criticism.
VI MEssRs EDIToRs:-I herewith ask pei
:" mission Of you to allow me space in you
valuable paper, TO set myself right 1
}, giving my views TO the people of Wi
d mington. see by Fridays Mornin
= Herald" that q majority OF City Couu
Q oil has nullified the ordinance, by pei
r mittirg an Italian aud his wife, who ar
y strangers In our community, and non
Q tax payers, TO sell goods, wares an,
l merchandise on the corner Of Sixth an,
8 Market streets, on the ground OF charity
a not on the groand of equity. kno,
Q charity covers q multitude Of sins, &c.
but the good Book tells us II we give al
! our goods to the poor and have no
charity in our hearts, is good for moth
ing. Now, Sirs, II these eleven mem
bers-whioh Is doubtful question o
, two of them being entitled TO be ii
Council at all, from the fact OF some o
the unfortunates who voted illegally
serving out q term in jail wish to b,
charitable, let them put their hands II
their pockets, In place Of voting away
the.tax payers rights to nonresident
Of the city, and against the interest o
our own poor people, who keep LITTLE
stores east and west OF Market street
and who are notified by tax collectors
in every issue Of the "Gazstta," If they
don't pay their taxes their goodP will
be sold for the same with costs. Now,
Sirs, the whole system is pernicious.
This is an incorporated city, with power
to enact ordinance for the protection Of
her citizens, in framing those ordi-
nances 1t has been found by experience
of majority Of our people to be adapt
ed to the wants of all our citizens. II
the ordinances are good, they ought to
be carried cut, and if bad they ought to
be repealed. The right ofdomain belongs
not TO the monopoly of a corporation,
nor to an individual, but to the whole
travelling community, not from curb to
curb, but from building line to building
line, for q street that has so many feet
and inches in 1t must be cleared from
building line to building line, which is
the Fundamental law Of not only our
country and State, but Of all civilized
nations Of the world, and especially Of
England, whom We copy Of in law, and
quote in our courts Of justice as our
only precedent and gaide. Now, Sirs,
Mayor Whiteley fned me five dollars
and costs for having barrel with
brooms set on the curb before my door.
Mayor Almond fined me for loading
one OF my wagons before my door, and
II am to be fined for utilizing the front
before the property, that spent all the
labors of my life on, in doing legiti.
mate business, hew Is 1t that fifteen of
those itinerant non-tax paying Italians
can squat down on the best business
corners of our Streets, and sell with
impunity, and after they are fined bid
defiance to the Mayor and City Council,
and sell on regardless Of consequences
In order to help them cut in their law
lessness, our charitable Lewis Paynter
gets up and gives them special psrmis-
sion to rob our tax paying community
out of their living. Poor, old-sainted
Gregg Chandler gets the benefit of rent
ing our public side walks and pocketing
the proceeds. Poor man, property
that only runs half way through the
square that he asks $4,000 for, and
gets rent from the tenants now occupy
ing it in proportion to the price. He ia
not satisfied with that, but is 80
yrasping as to rent the sidewalks.
And so it is also with the broker
shop at the corner of Fourth and Mar
ket. They are making living from
heir fellow mems necessities, and rent
'ut the whole pavement for $3.50 per
year for property that belongs to the
ax-payers, and in extenuation of his
awlessness they go before the Mayor to
wear that he was doing legitimate
business. What is law? Is it rule
made for one to obey and another to
lisobeyl The ordinance now in ques-
ion, in my mind, is nullity. You
lave granted permission to squatter
o sell and have fined your best and
ldest citizens for an infraction OF the
aw. You gentlemen have NO extenua-
ing excuse, for applied through q
'etition to refund my fine and costs,
nd you refused. Twill therefore say
o you now if you DO not do so l will
ue the city for the amount. As before :
tated, your law is nullity. What is
verybody's business it seems to me is :
obody's ,basiness. Whose duty is 1t :
0 enforce the law that the clerk of the .
larket was to carry out the ordinance q
nder his oath of Office, and the mayor v
nd police were to sustain him If re- !, =
uired! That is what they are paid II
,r. II they are too delicate to do SO
t them resign and not tax us for a non a
,mpliance of duty. | consider that it y. =
the mayors duty to instruct the Pc ., .
CO to have all the ordinances of the II
ty carried out aud not be visiting for
sgrieved citizens to make complaint.
Jhen Cornelius hpps was clerk he "
ads one of the best officers ever in n
so far as carrying out the ordinances i
concerned-he did it without fear or II
.vor, prejudice or partiality, which SC
ight to be the case with all our Off at
ais. Notwithstanding the economy ro
lat is preached up by the Gazette" A.
our present City Council, if Lewis N
aynter had his way he would have Ar
ID two or three hundred thousand W.
,llars more debt upon the city by buy A,
q up the rocks of the Brandywine and w
acing our pumping machinery out in fs,
wilderness. Lewis, you were very in
in that, but the taxpayers oe
ocked your game. We got enough of br
9 other big water job. Let the tax wi
,yers rise in their might and hurl ev
ose political tricksters from power Tb
10 are ever willing to be charitable at bc