The critic., 1891-01-31
LOCAL TALKS.
what Persons, Prominent ana Other
MIsc. FIND To Inlcrcst Them.


wise. Find to Interest Them.
w. C.. Dodge am in favor of single
executive for the people of Washington
instead of the present government of three
Commissioners, which does not place the
responsibility of their rulings, I've they
Objectionable or not, on any one man, but
keeps the people who desire redress guess
ing which one Is responsible for the wrong
doing This single commissioner, gov.
cnor, or whatever IL pleascs you to call
him, should be elected by the citizens of
the District. Is II not singular that out of
every city, town and village in this great
country ours is the only one that is denied
the right of suffrage, and proves to the
world that in Washington, at least, the
glorious right of franchise Is n failurcP
j. Y. Potts-ludgc Miller and ! have
both determined that the straw and pro-
fcssonal bond business must be broken
up. II has been a practice to accept GER
tain securities that are not legitimate, and
in the future only men who have uncn-
numbered real estate will be accepted as
bondsmen, 1t is common talk about
town that $40 will purchase 500 bond,
and $50 a bond of 500. The rule that
any one having mortgage or trust deed
ON his property is not acceptable as q
bOndsman is unreasonable.
A man may own $4,000 worth OF real
estate, but IL he has 800 cncumbrancc
upon IL he cannot he taken as d bonds
man. Ii has been stated that no bond
can be collected in the District, and for
this reason there has been considerable
inducement for people to engage in the
professional surety business. There will
be determined effort on the part of Dis
trict-Attorney Hoge to break up the straw
bond business.
J. X. Smith-lIave you noticed that
there has been an appreciable decrease i'll
the popularity of the light novels that
were all the craze ubt a few months ago.
It's a fact. The public seem to have
grown tired of the unadulterated slush
that was cast upon them during the alb
surd craze for the style of novel that 1
speak of. You don't hear them quoted
so frequently lately, and lisa good thing.
Now, there seems to be demand for
novels of q healthier turn, and the sales
of the standard and really literary novels
have increased noticeably. Watch the
light novel slowly losing its hold on the
public taste. OF course, it cannot die out
altogether, but its death knell has been
sounded.
Captain Jack Brown-I want to say that
| the Health Department in this city is q
| great thing, and is benefit to lawyers in
looking after their cases. 1t was ncces-
sary the other day for me to get certain
records of marriages, births and deaths to
use in case in which am interested in
| Savannah, Ga. went over to the De-
| partment, and in an hours time the papers
were in my office under seal. Baltimore
did not have health department until n
| few years ago, and have been trying for
ever so long to get certain records from
there, but cannot.
| Alexander Beasley-This has been q
hard winter on brickmasons, and espe-
cially non-union men. 1t has been twelve
weeks since picked up my trowel, and
some of my money is still due. Some OF
our largest contractors find collections
difficult. | have been solicited to join the
union, but do not think 1t would be wise,
as understand strike will be made the
first of May for eight hours, and then
the chances are many will be out of work.
+. NJ. Emerson-lt seems as If we have
enough public cconveyances ON the Avenue
now, don't 1t? / hardly think it possible
that another line will get on the Avenue,
but heard of a scheme the other day
which number of business men are dis
cussing, by which they intend to run a
line of herdics into the southern portion
of the city, and they may take in the
Avenue ON the route. No; / can't give
you any information about it, for the
matter is still in embroyo and may never
materializc although the chances are that
it will. Watch for it, and you will see il
some day, for the region intended tc
reach is almost inaccessible nowadays.