Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-03-05


Editor N0rHjRg NetgS: The runaway
on Monday through South Broad street
lane suggests the propriety Of calling at
tention to some of our village laws which
are being violated daily. The original
heading, to what suppose viii be use
less communication, was, "Our Dead
Laws;0 but, upon consideration, l was
appalled, by their number and changed it
to .'Our Live Laws" The numberOf these
did not form sufficient material, so l adopt
the above.
Is it not against the law to drive down
a lane? Do not the police know it is !
Have they no orders to stop it? Or are
they required to wait for orders? Yet
they stand by in sublime indifference,
at an expense Of over $4,000 a year, and
make no arrests.
1 asked a police officer, a few days
since, if it We're not contrary to the law
for q person to ride bicycles or tricycles
on the pavement, and if the police would
arrest the offender. He replied that it
was undoubtedly against the law, but
that they never interfered.
l asked an Alderman if it were not
against the law Tor parties to throw slops,
ashes, garbage, etc, into the lanes. He
said undoubtedly it was, and he had
spoken to the Mayor about it repeatedly,
but still it goes on. / asked a police Off
Ger il it were not violation OF the law to
permit COWS TO wander at large through
the streets. He replied aflirmatively, and
said he had counted seven in front OF the
police barracks the night before. 1t is
needless to add that they continued to
Craze unhiudered.
/ say nothing of rOsin and turpentine
on the Wharves, etc. 1t is useless to null
tiply examples. ! used to be under the
impression that the city officials took an
oath TO uphold and enforce the laws. Per-
haps l was mistaken, or perhaps oaths
are not considered binding nowadays.
Is there any incentive for good citizens to
try and obey the laws when the highest
officials cOuntenance their violation every
dav? Is there any use for few neat,
law-abiding citizens to try and keep their
lanes in order when their neighbOrs, liy-
ing perhaps on Bull street, make
ceSspOOl Of theirs next door?
When the City Scavenger gives orders
or the drivers say he does to empty the
dirt barrels out in the lanes and only take
away what they can gather up with
pitchfork, and this, Notwithstanding the
presence, on a neighbOring clean corner,
of a $4,000 dummy? Is there any use for
parties to plant flowers and orna-
mental shrubs in front Of their dwellings,
when the goats eat them before they have
time 30 take root? What an exquisite
satire on our boosted growth and pro-
eress. The higher the taxes 90
the more laws we have three
volumes, l believe). The finer the
police, the higher the official salaries
(including horses, dinners, etc., the
higher and stronger we have to build the
fences around the trees, shrubs lgithjn
the city limits, to protect them from cattle
and goats. Many cities OF our size not
only plant trees and shrubs with impuni-
ty, but have flower borders along the
sidewalks. Imagine that here, where we
pay 81 per cent. on a 200 per cent.
valuation, a physician Of large
experience, said that the cause of
a violent epidemic of diphtheria
which raYaged his native village, was
found in the fact that the inhabitants
were in the habit of throwing their waste
water into the streets. They had no
sewers. They had no volumes OF laws to
prevent them. They had no $4,000 pea
cocks to look on and see them do it, and,
strictly speaking, they were not entitled
to the epidemic, for they did not pay for
it; but they had it all the same. The
present Board of Parents cleaned out all
the lanes when they took their seats, and
are now waiting for them to get well satu-
rated and filled up, and then they will
spend a few more thousands of our money
to clean out what never should have been
put in.
Perhaps l am reckless in saying that
they will be cleaned out. l really have
my doubts. At any rate, diphtheria has
been here all winter, and perhaps some
thing else is coming next summer. j
wonder how many million cryptOgams
are contained in one pound of lane earth
BY the way, is the Board of Health out Of
town? / wish they would walk down
Bull street and smell the lanes. Some one
has suggested that we could get along
nicely without any Of the lawmakers.
The law enforcers certainly could 90 if
they could be found, and then just think
how much we would save in
TAXES.