St. Paul daily globe., 1888-10-19
Indignant Merchants Protest
Against Scurrility and
Abuse.
Showing UP a Persistent
Violation Of a City
Ordinance.
Proprietors of the Pioneer
Press Should Lay New
Sidewalks.
A Law More HOnoped in the
Breach Than By OBJ
Sepvance.

sidewalk in front of their places OF buSl-
ness. Matters came to a climax yeSter-
day morning, when patrolman on the
beat ordered all goods removed from
the sidewalk in front of the different
Robert street business houses. A dele
CATION of fifteen to twenty representa-
tive business men Immediately called at
the mayors Office to enter complaint.
That official being out of the city
they were referred TO Acting
Mayor Bickel, upon whom they waited
in body. Chief Clark was also sum-
moned, and before these officials the
commission men stated their grievances.
1t was shown that as there are no alleys
in the rear of the buildings on Robert
street it was necessary to handle all
goods through the front entrance, which
at times made it necessary to pile goods
upon the sidewalks. 1t being shown to
the satisfaction of both Acting Mayor
Bickel and Chief Clark that strict en-
fOrcement of the ordinance prohibiting
merchandise from being placed on the
sidewalks would drive all the commission
HOUSES FROM THE STREET.
it was deemed advisable to allow the
merchants to use portion OF the walk,
provided four feet neXtto the buildings
were always kept clear. The commits
sion men stated that they had always
kept at least that much of the sidewalk
clear.
While the patrolman who ordered the
merchandise removed, was not acting
under the directions of his superior
officers. his action was in accordance
with the ordinance now in force.
When the members of the board of
trade met yesterday morning at the
chamber of commerce a great deal of
Indignation was expressed against the
Pioneer Press for its unjust and out
rageOuS attacks upon the members of
the board, and especially for its spite
ful abuse of F. B. Jerrard and the in
sulting language bestowed uDOn him.
Mr.. Jerrard, it seems, especially of
Tended the Pioneer Press by writing a
letter to that paper in reply to the
attacks made upon the commission men
who do
BUSINESS ON ROBERT STREET.
Several of the members stated that
they read the letter and declared that
there was nothing offensive in it, and
that the Pioneer Press promised to pub
liSh it, but did not do so. Instead of
publishing 1t, that paper made garbled
extracts from it and opened a general
luolllbNiC VI 0DuCNs ilOb hiACSbig oSoihcb
the letter, but against what it asserted
the letter contained.
Mr.. Webster Smith, of the firm of
BohrCr & Smith, who has been engaged
in the grocery business in this city for
nearly a quarter of century, said that
ne had read Mr.. Jerrard's letter and
regarded it as a mild and inoffensive
paper. 1t was free from abuse, and
was simply a moderate, though forcible
protest against the attack made upon
the commission men.
sit is notorious fact,' said Mr.. Har
rison, ''that the Pioneer Press for years,
has continually and perSiStantly viO-
lated the ordinance in the most glaring
manner. Every citizen of st. Paul
knows that the Pioneer Press for years
had quantity of cord wood piled up on
Minnesota street. That pile contained
from ten to fifty cords. 1t was on the
sidewalk and on the roadway proper.
This was not for day or for one week,
but for years. 1t was an open, undiS-
puted fragrant violation of the ordi-
nance, for which no excuse can be Of
fered. This very day that same paper
is violating the ordinance which re-
qulres that when building is up two
stories, the owner must
PUT DOWN A SIDEWALK.
The Pioneer Press building is now up
four stories, and no sidewalk has been
laid. When the Ryan hotel was erected,
one of the very first things that was
done Immediately after the structure
reached the second story was to lay a
! stone sidewalk. Not so, though, with
| the Pioneer Press building. 1t is now
four stories high, and the prOprietors of
| that institution, who manifest such
| tender sOlicitude and earnest desire to
! have the commission merchants obey
! the law, openly and continually violate
| the same ordinance Before we get
! through with this business we VIII be
! likely to see how far the commission
men are to blame, and l should not be
surprised if, as we go along on this in
vestigating tour, it would appear that
those who live in glass houses should
! not throw stones"
!. NJ. BOhrer, president of the board
~ am surprised that the Pioneer Press
| should, IN the first place have made such
| a broad and unjustlfiable attack on the
! commission men on Robert street. l
| am equally surprised that it should have
! treated Mr.. Jerrard in the manner it
! did. The letter he wrote to the Press
was proper in form, and not offensive in
! StVlc. The fact that the Pioneer Press
promised to print it is sufficient evidence
| that il contained nothing improper. Be-
| fore this matter is settled the commits
! sion men propose to know whether the
| ordinances of the city are TO be enforced
upOn all alike, OF whether wealthy cor
poratiOns can be exempted from Obeying
| Them. The truth of the matter is that
! this ordinance is being quite generally
| infringed upon all over the city. 1t is
! -, i
| forced. and never ought to be. l do not
| passed the ordinance intended that
| it should be, nor do l believe that
the citizens of st. Paul will
! ask any such unreasonable
| application of the ordinance. What is
the Pioneer Press doing now? Look at
| the condition of the sidewalk i'll front
of the new office building of that paper.
| The whole sidewalk, or the place where
! it ought to be, and the street, as far as
the railroad track. is practically used
BY THE PIONEER PRESS PEOPLE.
Yet the ordinance requires that new
| sidewalk shall be built as soon as the
! building is up two stories. On Fifth
street, east of Robert, there stands a
! pile of brick twelve or fifteen feet high,
| and extending from Robert street down
! Fifth street, for $50 feet. This pile of
brick is for the EndicOtt building. but
! cannot be used for ten or twelve
months. There is no warrant for such
| a use of the public street. While a
! building is in process of erection par
| tial use of the street is allowed. In this
case no brick will be laid, in all prob
ability, for seven or eight months, yet
this large pile will remain all that time.
While this is not in accordance with
law, it is one of those public necessities
and cOnveniences that all good citizens
are willing to tolerate. If any one will
go down on Third street below Sibley,
he will find both sides of the Third
street sidewalk blockaded a good part