St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-01-28
MUNICIPAL &FFAIRs.

The people who live on First avenue
South, between Grant and Thirtieth
streets, do not propose to allow the
councilmen who own fast horses to ride
over them without entering vigorous
protest and there promises to be well
defined objection to the challg1 OF the
motor 0r electric line from Nicollet ave-
hue to First Avenue south. The coufl-
cilmen want Nicollet avenue 10 drive
upon, but a majority of the property
owners along First avenue south
object to having street car line
pass in front of their houses.
They say that the line is all right where
it is now, and claim that while First
avenue south never will be anything
but a residence street, Nicollet avenue
is designed to become the great bust
ness thorOughfare of the city. The
matter will be brought up at the meet
ing of the railroad committee to-day,
and Messrs. Grimes and woodward,
who favor the resolution, will probably
find they have laised hornets nest
when they advocate the proposed
change.
Yesterday the police commission was
harmonious. Of course there was moth
luS VI W COtltC DtlOlC
meeting, but then the commissioners
got along together without fight. Does
this mean that they have kissed and
made up or does it mean that at last the
three gentlemen who have charge of
the police force have seen the hand
writing on the wall and have made up
their minds to Succumb to the inevi-
table, but at the same time TO make the
most of their present opportunities?
Time will tell.
The committee of the council on fire
department paid an official visit to the
Harris theater yesterday and found
that the means of escape in case of fire
were as good as in other places of a like
resort. The boilers, which have been
the cause or complaint on the part of
the building inspector, were found to
be under the store next door to the
theater instead of directly under the
entrance. and a separate wall separates
them from that part of the building des-
ignated as the main entrance. While
everybody admits that the building in
spectOr only did his duty i'll calling the
attention of the council to the matter,
the committees report will state that
there is no cause for alarm.
Some few, and they are very few, of
the officials whose quarters are in the
city hall still hang to the theory that
they, and not the public, are the ones
most intimately concerned in every
thing pertaining to the business of their
offices. The present council held one
executive session, and it is safe to pre-
dict that it will never hold another one.
The police commission has thrown its
doors open to the public and the press,
but the health Office is tightly
sealed whenever anything new is to be
considered by DR.. KilvingtOn and the
committee OH hospitals. The reporters
are, of course, admitted while the gen.
tlemen of the committee are engaged in
the arduous task of auditing bills and
smoking expensive cigars, but in case a
word of any business is dropped while a
reporter is present he receives strict in
functions mot to print that" "While
executive" sessions may have been
necessary during the late rebellion
when a general called his aides about
him to consult as to the plans Of the cam
paign. the people of Minneapolis have
clearly shown that star chamber con-
ferences are not the ones whose results
impress the average citizen as the best.
OF course, under the present laws, the
health department is an all-poWerful
body whose mandates must be obeyed.
Practically it is responsible to no one.
but it is barely possible that it would
lose neither its usefulness nor power if
the meetings were held with open doors
and the public given.a chance to occa-
SiOnally find out just what had been
\dOne, especially as everything that is
done lis done for the public good"