, 1881-10-09

Chicago since the lire: 49,.
. Cast
From Oct Q ISL, to Oct. 9. 1s5s....::.s o.Es5 90
| From Jan. !. 15554. to Oct. y, 1881, as per
= previous table, e.-.,--................. 6s934, g.
Amount expended on new Custom-
An1oant 1 expended it on new Court ~
Amount expended on new City HAIL. S:J,6.
49, rotal from fire to date. $l36, e}o e5{
About all the comment that is needed i,
| connection with so palpablc showing IL
| this is, that the first Two items are rathel
underestiulateA than otherwise. The cost Of
| 4 pronoset building, as stated IN the permit
! for its erection, is, as q rule, somewhat
| under, and very rarely over, the mark. :rllt
! reason is obvious, even if it be not alto
| gether complimentary TO the average mars
| honesty: the figures are put as low as IS con-
! sistent with the promptlngs OF conscience.
BECAUSE the Assessors are in tho habit OF
| referring 10 the SttIbs Of these pernit~b0oks
before waking their annual in1uisition into
| tile taxable property III their respective bail
| iwickS. a largt s!uWing<1n the pernasl~book
! and smaller one. III the taxpayers schedule
| wuulu Involve an Inconsistency OF which the
| average taxpayer would scorn to be guilty.
| This little explanation will satisfactorily ac-
| count for the fact that the cost Of Il certain
] strcel-railwny. conl]H,ny's new barns CUES m
] into tile building permit therefor at LOU,
whereas III truth and III fact those barlls are
likely to cost ut least twice that sum, and
| possibly more 1t should alsu be added that
the perlnit0ooks frequently contain nothing.
whatever with regard to cost of additions
and iMproyencnts-an omission which ought
to be speedily corrected In future, lit Justice
to the cause Of statistics If for no other
reason.
ENOUGH HAS BEEN SAID
Of the class OF buildings which, as a rule,
the city learned from experience the neees-
sty OF improved construction. The building
ordinance, while not as vigorously enforced
ut times MS it should have been. has proved
Il valuable measure of protection, and has
survived tile schemes OF reckless speculators
To wipe itofT the municipal statute-books.
The Fire Department is stronger aud better
than ever before. The Water-supply has
been duplicated BY the: completion Of the
second lake-tunnel aud the West Side pump
! in case Chicago should be visited by another
| destructive contlagrntiOn. For drinking pur-
poses, 1t may not be, and is not, all that it
Should be, and the next few years will prob.
ably witness tile erection Of Il crib several
miles farther out into tic lake; but its suf-
ticiency, fur tirc-extinguishing purposes at
least, Is beyond all qustion, even if the
Water-NOrks pressure isn't ut all times
in the upper stories Of .the high buildings in
the downtown section. Chicago. at the be-
g;n;;;;:y ,;;..y of the present year, had oyer1
sHiies Of i1llpr6ved Streets, iiiSid than TO
miles OF sidewalk. and more than ], ISL, Gs9
linear feet OF sewerage, and the work which
has since been accomplished in these depart
ments run the figures up several n0fcf1es
higher.
MARVELLOUS
rs is the record Of the city's trade, It's gjg1n-
tic building operations and the statistics OF,
its public works, its steady and rapid growth
in population must ever remain one IT the
~, t,ro., u nn,r,i eli thn,snn,l ,ylo were
t te tt1tI -. IL ti,,n ~ nv ire tha unnn1ati tinn
hes tese ,.,,ost T.. I ,hl..d u Tho iast censns com
tinnres ti.c,Te at S The Increase slice then
- @ 80 ,. ~ ~ ~ r1i~>otaI I.f,n T,;t,- niroctorv
for for Inst % war contaiueI 170.;;Ss names, Willie
the population. as ascertained by the census,
WINS ,95 times greater. The directory Tor
1881, issued near the close of the first half of
Of i, o04 over the number Of directory names
1or lust year. Using the corrected multiplier;
! 295, as ascertained by the census, would
bring the present popnlation--..or rather that
t .le date of Ssui9r The he dffctorip to
It waill not be Forgotten, however, that these
figures show merely tile population inside
tie strict corporate limits, emitting the
closely y-bni1t residence districts Immediately
beyord the border line, the swarals ofpeopIa
Yartis-and tbe numerous, populous, and
thriving suburban towns, ill of which
are us really portions of Chicago rs
the several city wards. and whose
residents are scarcely less closely connected
with and interested III its daily life. Chicago
llas not adopted the "anllexing'' policy
which has enablcd some its would ld-be rivals,
rs they are won't 10 fondiy style themselves.
10 appear considerably greater than they
really are. Whit it las and what it claii.ls
san its OWN, and, instead Of following the
'grat-al!- you-can'' policy Of the communi-
ties which must needs have recourse thereto
in order to swell what would otherwise be
their own paltry showing, it proposes in the
future, as It mas done ~ ule past, 70 tea 70 IL
alone, ana lel inc results t'|ke cale VI tnel1-
selves.
PREDICTIONS
as to the future, in view. Of the splendid
achievements of the past ami all the glories
of tile living present. are scarcely needed.
Tile city itself, and all the vast material ln-
tgrests tributary to it and day by day en-
| ha11cl1ly its i1nportarce as the commercial
1netro1lniis nf tha infnr;nr. , wnre never so
| rr.at .s nn,r rt'i,a ni,l,timc rnnrrv nf
~ on,,,, ia, io.r,asat o r,thar tha,,
"a peoL'e 1 naa !l'cl .~n snro tn"r
utoreasEu, alu - hoN Lnolo I't.i
ever tne one, distinguishing !tall qi
those whom neither tire nor ~, panlc coula ld