Morning journal and courier., 1881-04-08

within the next few weeks. (5.) All admit that under efficient officers, who are willing to do their work honestly, the trade can be so circumscribed that the oyster houses and drug stores will go out of it altogether, while get liquor at the hotels, and that the outside drinking will be confined to the clubs and the lowest dens in the city"
 What trouble such winter as that just past makes western railroad men is illustra- ted by the experience of the Northwestern railroad company, which has spent over three hundred thousand dollars in the fight against snow since October last. Thirty-four i'm mense snow ploughs have had plenty of work, and these have been backed up tremendously by from two to six locomotives each. The might of these ploughs and the great power of snowdrift may be estimated from the fact that one plough weighing 4s, 1000 pounds, ballasted by sO,OoO pounds of rail way iron and driven by six locomotives, at tackled a snow-choked cutting, but was de- feated. The drift was fifty-two feet high. When the workmen, after the tremendous charge, caught glimpse of the immense plough, they found that it. with all it's 12s,- GOO pounds, had been repelled as if it were feather, and that it had rolled disconsolately over the drift and had lodged against some forest trees, where it proposes to remain til summer. From one cut 324,0O cubic yards of snow were taken but in eight hours the wind had piled it up full again. Nine thousand men have been employed from time to time during the winter as shovellers.
 Mayor King of Philadelphia has tackled" big job, namely. to free the city from a partisan police He speaks thus:
 It will be my duty to free the city from partisan police. An observation of many years has convinced me that police force, in order to be truly effective must be entirely disconnected from politics and that it's mem- bers should hold their positions as long as they conduct themselves honestly. soberly and efficiently. The very knowledge that they hold their positions on these terms will make them the terror of every violator of the law. By the present system, when votes l are to be secured, laws and ordinances are | d1sregarded crime connived at, and known l and open violators of the most salutary laws | go free and unpunished. Under my admin | istration the members of the police force will |
  in the nominating conventions of either party, and every violation of this rule will cause an immediate discharge, and no mem Der of the force so discharged will | ever be able to regain his position. In making this declaration it is proper for me to say, further, that I am aware that in some wards of the city members of the police force have been used by so-called political leaders for their own purposes. Nominally on the force, they have been the political agents to carry out the views and partisan designs of these leaders. Every case of this kind shall be fairly investigated and if vacancies are created the places will be filled irrespective of party affiliations. As on the police for political pur- poaes shall no longer be tolerated. Con- tributions and assessments for political pur- poses have produced, and will continue to produce, the worst possible results to the whole body polite. Whilst nominally pro- cured for honest and legitimate election ex- penses, they are used to corrupt the voter and purchase the election officer. If corpo- rate bodies and wealthy citizens will continue to contribute their money, with the knowl- edge that the money thus contributed is used to corrupt our elections, it shall be known that during my administration the police Of shall not be made accessories to such crimes by contributions for such nefa- rious purposes, which strike at the founda- tions of our civil government.
 This is the right kind of talk, and it is to be hoped that Mayor King will succeed in carrying out his plan.