Los Angeles herald., 1892-11-29
SLOvENLY ENGINEERING.
THE ABoMINABLE GRADIENTS OF
SOME OF THE STREETS.
Buildings Undermined and Cellars All
Filled with water-Nfetropolitan
Lakes at Every Street Cross
ing-Streets Impassable.

portion lying south of the San Fernando
depot and north of Temple street. was
built and the grades of it's streets estsb-
lished under Democratic rule. Most of
the street contractors of that period
were gentlemen of Milesian extraction,
who had learned their trade with pick
and shovel in hand; and who, in the
hope of getting further contracts, were
content to give their work the benefit of
practical experience. This insured us
good street work from the edge Of $50
nora town" up to the junction of Main
and Spring streets, where Temple street
comes down from the hill. But about
the time that the city began to cross
Second street, there was an influx of
Republican voters into this city and
county and with them came lot of pro-
fessional patriots who formulated
Union League; who elected city and
county government OF their own politi
cal complexion; and whose ability to
get street contracts for themselves and
their Pinafore relatives lies in political
influence at the primaries rather than
in any knowledge, practical or theoret-
ical. OF their business.
hu eotGlOu vi tne Clly
seems to be that bordered by Tenth,
Flower, Third and Spring streets. Here
are to be seen evidences of the most
outrageous botchwork in street grading
that has ever been seen in any place as.
piripg to the dignity Of metropolitan
city. Instead OF having the CUTTERS of
equal depth at each eide OF the street,
one side is sure to be lower than the
other. The consequence of this is that
one gutter is trickling rivulet, while
the other is swollen to the dimensions
OF an angry torrent. Yesterday there
were large pools to be seen at the inter-
section of the following named streets ::
Third and Spring, Fourth and Broad
way, Sixth and Hope, Sixth and Olive,
| Fifth and Hill and at Seventh and
Grand avenue. In some places the
drift covered the cable slots. 60 that the
cars had to come to o halt.
From that time until two years ago
such outrageously slovenly work was
done on our streets and conn;ved at by
the city engineer, that an exasperated
people rose in their might.
A Democrat, J. H. Dockweiler, was
nominated for city engineer and elected
to that Office with an overwhelming Re-
publican majority presumably against
! him. He has made good and intelli-
gent officer, but no one man could be
expected to undo, in the short space of
! two years, the botch work that his prede-
I cessors had been from twelve to fourteen
years in accumulating. Mr.. Dockweiler
is candidate for reelection and appears
to enjoy the confidence of the voters. In
what new thoroughfares he has opened,
he has given much better and more uni
form grades, curbs, sidewalks and cross
irgs than did his predecessors and it
goes without saying that he could not
give us anything worse.
This thing of precipitating all tn
water to one eide Of the street can have
but one effect, that of filling cellars and
undermining houses. The mishap to
the Hellman building, situated on Third
street, between Spring and Main, op.
posite the jackson house, is simply the
outgrowth of this defective and shpshod
engineering which allowed the water to
go down under the building and under
mine its foundation. The foundation of
the building became unsettled by yes
terday's heavy rain and one corner Of
the building sank about three inches.
The walls were cracked in several places,
in consequence, and the chow windows
in front were broken. The building
becoming unsafe the occupants moved
out,
This is a lesson which property hold
ers will do we'll TO heed. II they elect
to the city engineers Office man who
allows himself to be used by the noble
army of shoddy street contractors they
must expect to have their costly brick
buildings toppling down about their
ears.