Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1892-09-24
OUR ST. LOUIS LETTER.

No Alarm Felt as Regards the Chol-
era-A Useful Official in Large
Office Buildings.
ST.. LOUIS, Mo-, September 19,-Of all the
large cities in the country, st. Louis seems
to be the least affected by the talk about
| cholera. Numerous sanitary officers have
been appointed who are looking after the
| cleanliness of the city, but the ordinary c.ti-
zen does not concern himself at all about the
reports coming from the East. If you ask
one of them why he is not alarmed, his reply
will likely be-
''Why, there could be no epidemic disease
here, with such system of sewerage as we
have"
And he would be right. From all sides st.
Louis slopes down.to the river and 20 the Mill
Creek valley. The small sewers run directly
into the river and through the valley is laid
one enormous sewer through which furni-
ture van could be drawn by two horses
abreast. There has never been anything like
an epidemic in the city since these sewers
were built, even when it was most endan-
gered by disease coming from other points.
Tie sanitary officers feel confident that with
the advantage they. have in this respect they
could protect the city even if the cholera ap-
preached as near as Chicago.
The pneumatic tube will be used in st.
Louis for the transmission of mails through
the city, some time before Philadelphia, the
only other town which has adopted the plan,
gets Its apparatus in working order. Ar
rangements have just been made there to lay
the conduits through which the tubes will be
run. Here, we already have the conduits,
which is to be the railway tunnel, running
under the city from the bridge to the Union
depot. The plans for the pneumatic ma
chinery are now completed, and the mails
will be distributed by this means about the
first of the year. A new postoffice is to be
established at the end of the tunnel, where
the mails from the tube will be received. The
tube and this Office will save the work of
dozen letter-carriers and will handle about
one-sixth of the entire mail of the city.
One of the large buildings which have
lately gone up down town has just made an
improvement in its elevator service which 10
to be recommended to other big cities.
There is nothing 90 annoying to q man in
hurry as to 60 into building where he
knows someone whom he wishes to see has
an Office, and have to depend on one of the
several elevator boys for information about
the location of the Office and the present
whereabouts of the one sought. Generally
tho boy knows the number of the Office.
Sometimes he doesn't. He seldom knows
whether or not the man Is in his Office, and
the hurried visitor has to 60 up himself and |
see about it. In this building there stands q
ing a cap marked ''Guide." He has nothing |
to do but watch the movements of the men !
who have offices in the building and tell peo- |
pie who come to see them where they are. |
This man has an accurate memory, of
course, or he would be useless. He can tell |
you If the person you come to see is in his |
Office or not; when he went out and when he |
got back. If messages are left with him by |
men passing out he will deliver them to cali |
ers. II many cases he makes an Office boy |
entirely unnecessary.