Los Angeles daily herald., 1890-03-03
Kansas and Los Angeles.

! EDITORS HERALD-Kansas has prohi-
bition. Kansas also has a town that
boasts female Mayor and Council.
Not long since this female Mayor read
that an American had been arrested in
Paris for throwing piece of paper on
the streets.
At the next meeting of the Council she
had one OF the members whom she used
as catspaw, to introduce an ordinance
prohibiting the passing or distribution of
dodgers on the streets.
'But," said one mem ber, "this will be
an absurd law. There is no precedent
for it. Besides some of our merchants
advertise extensively that way.
Then the Mayors catspaw jumped to
her feet and exclaimed: "Preposterous
no precedent absurd Mrs - does
not know what she is talking about.
Here is a clipping showing that they
have such law in Paris, besides these
dodgers are thrown into our yards al.
most once a week. What if some of our
merchants do advertise that way? The
votes we will loose from them will be
made up ten fold by the aid we can claim
from the daily papers. Don't the Coun-
Gil know that some of the papers are
clamoring for this ordinance because
they think it will make more advertising
Tor them p"
This logic silenced all opposition. The
ordinance passed without dissenting
vote.
Before the next meeting of the Coun-
Gil the Mayor read that the authorities of
London had passed law compelling
every owner or driver of horse or COW,
mule or other animal, to provide bag
for such animal that was not a nose bag
but tail bag. This bag the owner or
driver of such animal must attach to the
rear of such animal while such animal is
in the public streets, to prevent any ex-
cretion from littering the beautiful
streets.
Here was another brilliant idea for this
female Mayor, who was bound to be re.
membered in the history of the town.
At the first regular meeting of the
Council the Mayors catspaw was loaded
for all opposition and put this London
ordinance through, but not until the
Mayor had threatened to not sign the
school bonds unless it was passed.
Alter these great laws had passed one
would think the Mayor would have
rested awhile, but no, she had some
friends who were too lazy to work. SO
she set her wits to work devising means
to get them to the city manger. At last
she conceived the idea of changing the
names of the streets and the numbers OF
the houses, 30 that they could make
money measuring the streets and putting
new names on them and numbers on the
houses.
BY this time the members of the Coun-
Gil knew that the catspsw represented
the Mayor, and had become pretty well
subjugated. When the ordinance came
up changing the number of every house
in the city, it passed with but little pro-
test from the other ladies. Then the
Mayors catspaw fred in new names
for streets ad LIB, and they passed with
no opposition.
These things were bound to raise
something of a protest from the miserable
rabble of public, so the Mayor must
manage to raise smoke in some other
quarter to distract attention. What
could she do? Cut down some of the
numerous departments, or take
deputy from each department, and make
about fifty salaries less. No, these
department heads all had considerable
political influence. That was not
feasible, although each department had
30 many deputies that none had to work
one solid hour in day, and the "head"
had nothing to do but sit in his up-
holstered chair on a moquette carr ct and
talk politics. But, hold The town
boasts one policeman who draws a salary
OF ten dollars per month. His salary
Should be reduced to nine dollars a
month. Now, as this policeman is the
brother of one member of the Council
and husband Of another, the Mayor fore.
sees that by the time this salary is re-.
duced there will be so much smoke
raised that the public will see nothing of
the expense she is heaping up. To the
contrary, she will be praised for watch
ing public interests SO closely.
Kansas is happy in the possession of
her prohibition and this town, although
the people have petitioned the Lepisis-
ture to allow them to extend the time on
their debts indefinitely and Judge has
recently decided that a farmer nav
claim the products of his farm as fnel
and thus prevent seizure for debt. There
is great analogy between Los Angeles
and this Kansas town. California should