The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1881-08-03
A CITY'S SHAME.

It's matter of ep regre. to all coed
c teens that some satisfactory arrangement
has not been arrived at between the city
co lacil and the water works and gas work
Companies. The present state Of things is
SC "a ialou, and totally unworthy of city Of
the szs and pretensions of Dallas To be
Ihout water in the very midst of the suns
m # season. to be without lighted streets ard
in utter darkness of nights, is simply
outrageous. The HERALD, al the outset,
sta.ed that in the absence OF street lighting
oil manner of burglary, robbery, knock
downs. etc, would ensue, and sure enough,
to thl inexcusable shame of our fair name,
thes'vllsnies have been perpetrated night
after night, rs our columns have daily re-.
cor1ed; and they will continue to be
pracIiced upon citizens who are paying taxes
for projection to life, limb and property,
and upon strangers WAC will return hence
with accounts of the abominAbe condition of
things in Dallns that will deter many good
man aud many thousands of dollars from
coming to plsce as this now goes. W.
know Of no city in this union of cur popu-
lation, size, prospects and im4ll municipal
indebtedness where exists such conditions
Water We naed, ga we need and yet neither
wa have. OF course we can possibly got
along without these. d alias got along with
out them squarter ola century ago, and 10
tn Iss who like the good old timsI of sp erm
and tallow candies and torch lights in front
of the log cabin, the ox,c4rt and the cop
perM brooches, ths delft backward may
be deliciOu, Of contemplation. Blu! there be
soma people, VINO, il this is to DO the state of
Affairs in the city of alias, prefer smigrating
10 SONS liver and moro modarniz Sd city
The . be those, who 're casting about from
other states for tho selection Of homes for
them selves and their families; one visit here
viii settle their conviction against this city
Of deplorsble darkness and this city of dis
tre.sins droutb. The difference of price
upon which the council is standing does in =
dad seem to us absurd and tiiaIog, consider
int the immensity of importance of wa er and
lights TO these tax paying people, who are
now deprived of both. Ii the water works
com Sany or the gss company vera charging
exorbitant 6gures for their commodities,
there would DO show of reason in this per,
sistent resistance to keep these citi
zens dry and in the dark but
tho truth is that both corpora.
tons disclose and demonstrate tao uncon-
trovsrted and incontrovertibe fact tbs
neither of them are paying heavy dividends,
nor small dividends. nor any div
den1s at oil. Further, that they
are not laying up any surplus
earnings whatever, aud further still, that they
are paying insignificant salaries, and thst
their expense accounts are reduced to the
consisten! wit h anything like unto
efficient service. Hence reduction of rates
would beget inability to conduct them 10 the
general interest. Besides this, both corpora.
lions contend that the city cf Dallas has been
offered gas and water a. lower figures than
arc to-day pal 1 by any other municipality
within the state of Texas. la
view of these facts, we utterly
fsil to comprehend tho policy tina. 'hus
persists in crying estoruon, and thus de.
priving US of bensa.s tina. are mad by every
)sher respectable community in the U Aited
States, especially in thase Aush and prosper
lus times II all tins is dJnJ with the view
10 forcing tho gas aud water companies to
el on; cheap TO the city, we heartily cons
Tenn tho policy. Let dealings be on a
nora liberal, fairor and more gen
'rous principle AMI lot it be
aid to those corporations frankly, "the
ty wants your works, what will you
axe for them" II the prices are too high,
hen let preparations be inaugursted to
scure new works; bu.in the name common |
prudence and justice to suffering com
NUDITY, let the best possible arrangement
or the time being bs made to furnish 20
me people sutic.ency of water during
his he.t,d term, and when at any moment
, disastrous conflgrstion may occur, end
uffl .iency Of street light to protect them on
heir way homo, from the garroter, and from
he burglar during thoir absence, and
% enable tbs policeman to see what
'asc 'liis are being perpetrsted upon the
,heek of night. Az We previously remarked,
hat man who, because he objects to the high
entail Of hi, landlord, quits the house, and
Iince he hiss none Of his own, lives out of
loors with his family, forcing upon them
because Of his obstinacy, all sorts of depri.
gs.ions, is hardly in the condition to be called
\ good "father." Water works nor ga,
works can be built and put in operation here
inside of yeN or more, and are these tax
payers to do without light and water 10 all
the interlmP