Los Angeles herald., 1890-11-16

mento with the assistance of one who
until recently was upon the street
commission in our city, for the purpose
of furnishing employment to himself
and other hungry parasites, and this
same individual, at his special instance
and request, had inserted Sub. z of said
street law, thereby giving unlimited
power to the street commissioners to
incur expenses in said work. All of
which under the provisions of that act
of March 9th, 1889, must come out of
the property holders along the line of
the proposed street. The most iniuui-
tous, oppressive and piratical of all
these villainous schemes, for so-called
street improvement, is that sought to be
saddled upon the people along the line
of the proposed opening and extension
of Los Angeles street. The city council
have been urgently pushing the opening
of that street for year past, have laid
out as q district of assessment, narrow
strip of land 100 feet wide upon each
side, upon which they propose to levy
all the burdens of that vast expense,
and of course, under the said law, will
cause all property to be sold upon which
the assessments are unpaid. A year
ago it was unreservedly stated by a GER
tain councilman, that the district of as
sessment thus laid out was 80 ordered
that there might be less number of
people to object.
CHOW this small district of assessment
was mapped out by direction of city au-
thority, when Section % of said street.
law, page rs, Stat. 1889, provides in eff
feet that the city council may lay out
the whole city as district of assess
ment. They preferred to confscate
private property for private use. In
1887, A. @. Shafer, now in the city
council, was large operator in city real
estate. He and one or two others laid
out and mapped out three large tracts
of land, between Adams and Jefferson
streets, viz: Mundsley tract, Dimmick
tract and Montague tract. He desired
to make as many lots and as much
money as possible out of these tracts,
and therefore did not reserve any room
for the street which he now proposes to
run through all these tracts, in order to
bring into market his other property,
just below the city limits. Many of
these lots in said tracts he sold, receiv-
ing cash and notes secured by mortgage.
Now it is proposed to confiscate this
property for his benefit, upon which lots
purchasers have made valuable i'm
provements, never dreaming when in
vesting and improving their small
homes that they lay in the path of a
conspiracy which sought to confscate
their property for private gain.
"There is a principle of the law of
eminent domain that private property
may be taken for public use, by paying
just compensation. But the use must
be public, not private. 1t is also pro-
posed to open Hill street from Washing
ton south to the city limits, and a large
number of other streets, regardless in
all these matters of the ruin of property
owners along the line and within the
narrow districts of assessment of each
proposed street. OF course, it is under
stood that there are a great crowd OF
graders, contractors and city employees
who must be provided for, and that there
must be division and silence.
Let the people rise in their might
and say to these freebooters: This rob-
berry must stop. We will not be despoiled
of our homes, and forced to protect them
from destruction at heavy expense in
the courts. The people, without regard
to party, should retire all these conspir-
ators to the shades Of private life, and
elect in their places honest, capable and
conscientious men, who will administer
each public office as public trust"