The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1891-08-24
SOCIAL STATISTICS OF CITIES.

The Census Bureau has recently issued
bulletin No. 100, on the social statistics OF
cities. With few exceptions the discourses
which the public read on city affairs are
based on guesswork, and are not unfrP-
Quently full of errors. Il is hardly possible
TO get absolute statements of facts, but the
census officers have better facilities man
any other investigators for getting near the
TRUTH For these statistics of cities Messrs.
Harry Tiffany and John S. Billings are re-
sponsible
The total number of the cities passed
under review is 345, and the increase in
their population during the past decade is
found 10 be 6.522 1858, or 60.57 per cent. In
California the cities examined increased in
population 17l,120 dnring the decade, or
So 50 per cent. Out of the whole number of
cities reviewed, selection of fifty was
made by the census officials for purposes of
minute comparison. Among these are San
Francisco and Los Angeles. In the CLASH
ficaliOn by population the former is eighth
on the list, the latter thirty-fifth. San Fran
cisco contains 3022 persons 10 the acre, Los
Angeles 2.S5. New \ ork and Brooklyn con-
tain IS and Al people respectively TO the acre :;
being much more denSely pe0pled than
other cities which spread over large tracts
OF country. as for instance Chicago, which
only contains 1910 persons TO the square
acre; Philadelphia, which contains II. and
St. Louis which contains II.
In comparing streets the census officials
have taken the same fifty of the largest
cities in the United States. In street mile
age San Francisco is away behind all the
large cities, and a number of smaller ones,
having only 342 miles of streets as against
204S in Chicago, 1151 in Philadelphia. 1C61 in
ST. Louis. But as the tables show that
New York has only SO miles Of streets, as
compared with 500 in Minneapolis, go in ST.
Paul, 100 in Denver, AMI 500 in Los Angeles.
it is evident that the mere laying out OF
streets is no test OF prosperity or progress.
The proportion of streets paved to streets
not paved, is in San Francisco 90 to $40,
about one-fourth; in New York it is about
three-ffths, in Chicago something over one
third, in Philadelphia nearly three quarters,
in MilW aukee 6ne-siXtb, in st. Paul one
| twenty-fourth, in Los Angeles about one
tenth, while in Denver there are no pave
ments. and Ill Boston every street is paved.
| The average amount spent on street con-
strnction and repairs is given for San Fran
| cisco as S95S. 7i3, while New York's outlay
| for the same object is only S1,024 16l, and
| yet New \ urk is far from being a finished
city. The municipal ring at New York is
| apparently more mereiful to property
owners than our ring. Our annual taxation
| per head for that purpose is 81 q, as against
! 6S cents in New York, 81 cents in Phladel-
| phia, ~ cents in Brooklyn, 81 So in ST.
| Louis, 81 81 in Boston, IS cents in Balti-
more, 81 IS in Cincinnati, and 81 81 in
i Cleveland.
Similar disparities are disclosed by CON-
| parison Of street-lightiug here with the same
service elsewhere. We have 500 public
street gas-lamps here, onc-ffth as many as
they have in New York AID Chicago and
about half as many as they have in Boston
and Broo klyn, but the average annual cost
OF each gas lamp is S43 so here, Us against
| SIS IS in New York. $50 in Chicago, SD 90
in Philadelphia, SCI Is in Brooklyn, $50 in
| Boston, SO Is IN Cincinnati, S33 i'll St Paul,
| SIS 80 i'll Minneapolis. SO 10 in Nashville,
| Teen. Our electric street-lights cost each
$40 81 per year, which is more than twice
The cost Of electric stIeet-lights in any other
| city in the United States.
OF the fifteen largest cities, which include
seven with larger population than San
| Francisco and seven with less population,
| there are but fOur--St. Louis, New Orleans,
| DtliUlI ana AlliNduket-WUlCHu nave not q
| larger water reservoir capacity than San
| Francisco, and but two-NeW Orleans and
Brooklyn which do not consume more
water 10 head Of population than we do.
Every one, except Baltimore, New Orleans,
| Milwaukee and Washington, d. c., has more
hydrants than we have, but we have more
meters in use than any one Of the fifty
leading cities, with the single exception OF
| New York The alleged cost OF the water
works III this city exceeds the cost of the
! water-werks in any of the same fifty cities
except New York, PHILADELPHIA, Brooklyn
and Boston. The annual charge for water
for an average dwelling CT seven rooms
with bath-r DOM and closet, is $50 in Sar
Francisco. This is more than is paid by
the deni2ens of any one Of the same fifty
cities, with the exception of New Orleans
Nashville, Los Angeles, Dallas and Port
land. Me. In New York the charge for thu
same water is Sc year, in Philadelphia 50
in Minneapolis S.
We have all the modern improvement
here, but it seems that We have to pay fol-
l thant