Los Angeles daily herald., 1890-03-15
SATURDAY. MARCH Is, 1890.
The storm Drains DOwned-DO As
Much for the Outfall.

The storm Drains DOwned-DO As
Mucn for the Outfali.
The vote yesterday was again one of
the hardest puzzles in the world to solve.
The extravagant, pig-headed and waste
ful Council had asked for more than
round half million dollars to throw away
in an unnecessary and useless scheme.
There was every motive for the ring to
get out big vote for their pet plan. 1t
would have been natural to suppose un-
der these circumstances that nearly the
whole voting force of the city woald have
been called out. Not bit of it. The
vote was smaller by about 400 tn
it was on the previous day. 1t is ex-
tremely probable that the same one-third
vote of the city that was cast on Thurs
day was cast again yesterday, while the
two.thirds of the voters who let 30 inn
portant an election 60 by default in the
first instance did the same thing in the
second.
But while the vote was discouragingly
small, the result was, thanks to capri
cious Fortune, extremely satisfactory.
The etorm-water drains will remain un-
built, as they ought to do. The total
vote for these bonds was about 1900,
while 2,4O0 votes were cast against their
iesning
What was the cause of their defeat |?
The energetic interest of the terrible
Shylocks which wild-eyed advocate Of
all ring schemes has branded as such
terrible mossbacks, usurers, skindluts
and what not? Not a bit of it.
The number Of taxpayers who
have voted on either day has been
very small. Toe storm water drains
are not to be built for the reason that
many of those who voted for the interior
system because there is some practical
use of that and some present need for it's
construction, voted against the chimer.
ical scheme of wasting half million
dollars for drains that will not be neces-
sary when the streets shall have been
paved, and viii ch are useless in heavy
foods coming off of unpaved streets,
carrying thousands of tons of cobble-
stones, gravel and other debris in their
course.
The advocates of the storm water
draine, right or wrong, did not foresee
how many such changes of sentiment
would be found in the vote of yesterday.
The overv helming majority of Thursday
DO doubt made the ring over-confdent,
and DO special effort was made to carry
the election yestel day. The result is q
revelation and warning to them. They
will not be caught mapping today. In
deed, of the two plans it lie we'll known
that the eutfall is dearer to the hearts Of
the rngsters than the storm drains. L
was stated yesterday on the street that
many votes had been trade against the
drains and for the outfall.
There is little need to discuss the mer-
it's and demerits of the outfall sewer with
the intelligent readers of the HERALD.
That was done in go thorough way last
August that it is not forgotten yet.
The bonds asked for today amount to
twice as much as have been voted for the
interior system. There is no N ore necss
sity for the construction of such an out
fall than there was for the storm drains.
The sewage is too valu able to waste in the
summer and in winters of less than the
average rainfall; and in food time the
river offers natural, safe and unobject-
ionable outlet for the surplus sewage.
But these arguments are too we'll 1n-
derstood and too stale to need or permit
of further discussion. There is only one
thing to say-come out and vote down
the bonds for the outfsll as those for the
storm drains were voted down yesterday,
and as the com bined system was voted
down last August.
There is every reason to expect that
there will be determined effort made to
carry the bonds. The statement would
probably be true that if the vote OF yes
terday is cast today, with no additions
nor substractions made, that there will
be sufficient changes to carry the
bonds for the needless and extravagant
outfall sewer. A change Of $50 in the
vote would carry the bonds. The
change yesterday from the vote OF Fri
day was so per cent. greater than that.
II the people of this city were alive 10
their own interests there would be cast
today not less than 10000 votes.