The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-03-13
PARIS AND LONDON.
What Halstead Saw in France
and England.
THE STREETS NONE TOO CLEAN.
Electric Railways Of the Worlds Mo-
tropolis-The Royal Family and the
Duke of CIarence's Death.

It's III observing that Europeans arc not III
a supreme sense polite, careful, cleanly
and considerate always. admit, with
conjunction and horror, the American
habit of expectoration-the fearful spit
ting, the frightful ouspidors, the scattering
tobacco juice-and yet there are public
nuisances along the best streets IN French
and Italian towns that surpass all the
spattered spittons l have seen in the
marble halls and on the stairs of the ma
tionai capitol. and tobacco Juice is not
quite as diffusive as the rank odors of the
continental cigar or the British pipe; and
L grow dizzy with sense OF response
bility when say that American splitting
does not exceed. in aggregate capacity to
disgust, the European custom of blowing
the nose. especially during the prevalence
OF the plague of influenza.
While l am comparing the matters
American with the things European,
should say that the cleanliness of the
streets of Paris and London is not so pro-
fusely above the New York standard in
the winter months as some of us Travelled
people have been accustomed to assert.
The discovery of dust and mud, according
to the weather, in the streets of Paris is
not difficult, and in London, on the great
thoroughfares, there is a large supply of
plain dirt; and when | ventIred to speak
of 1t in a tone of remonstrance, / was told
it was the unavoidable consequence of an
enormous traffic. 1t is proper to say,
however, there is in the French and Brit
ish capitals evidence of honest street clean
ing work, and monumental piles of
dirt, scraped together and allowed
to remain, are not seen. Nor do
we encounter barrels of garbage, mixed
with ashes, on the sidewalks in the best
streets al midday. 1t surprises me to see
that the craze that set up few years
ago for wooden pavements in Paris and
London has not been suppressed but is
vastly extended. The principal streets of
both cities are paved with wood. The
imperfections of wooden paying are &C.
knowledged; but the plea for it is that no
proper system has been found; that as
phalt wears out rapidly and is excep-
tionally slippery; that granite blocks are
hideously noisy; that macadam does not
wear evenly, is noisy and must
be dirty; that while wood wears
quickly, it is easily repaired and has
the overbearing merit of comparative
noiselessness. 1 have been shaken in the
presumption that wood must soon be dis
carded from the streets most travelled by
the consideration that the real merit of
pavement is chiefly in the foundation;
that the surface is not of primary impor-
tance. In the wooden pavements of Lon
don the first thing is to secure solid and
durable basis. This is done by digging
deep and putting down, first, layer of
fine broken stone and thena thick one of
l., Oh, Eel l. Il,
invulnerable rock. Upon this the wooden
blocks, with interstices for tar and gravel.
are placed, and serve as a covering to
deaden the sound of hurrying hoofs and
wheels. When the wood wears it
is easily removed and new blocks
are placed in the vacancy. This is
done by inclosing small spaces in the
midst OF the currents of traffic. The En-
glish insist that the work is highly salts
factory. We cannot quote the American
experiments with wood, as conclusive
evidence against those of England and
France, until we are able to secure honest
work in the preparation and placing of
materials. 1t is hard to prevent the
wooden pavements from becoming slip
perry. | noticed on the frosty pavements
of Paris several tumbles of horses and
riders, and in London that heavy draught
horses were sorely embarrassed by inse-
cure footing The insuperable objection
at least to wooden pavements, l should
think, must be found in their bad-smell-
ing unwholesomeness; but it may be that
it is, like bad water and tainted ice, in the
nature of an evil it is necessary in high
and crowded civilization to endure.
| shall venture upon a comparison of
the docks of New York and those of Liver
pool, so far as they affect the lines of
steamers between the two ports. Of
course. the univeral idea is that the Liver
pools docks are incomparably the better
that it is an act of impertinence to place
the great works in durable masonry of
Liverpool on view with the wooden and
ratty docks of New York. Let us see how
it works with the steamships on arrival
and departure at the two cities in ques-
ton. Leaving New York for Liverpool
we always walk from the dock upon the
boat by which we have taken passage
Arriving at New York, no matter from
what part of the world, We walk
ashore, the steamer having been
duly secured to the dock where
she belongs. When we depart
from Liverpool for New York by any line
perhaps the gene raj gentle reader pre-
sumes we drive TO magnificent dock and
board the boat in a style superior to the
AGILITY afforded by New York; but the
general gentle reader has no such pre-
sumption after making the Journey.
When we arrive in Liverpool our great
ship anchors somewhere in the stream.
and it is often so rainy and foggy one does
not know where, and are tumbled with the
small baggage down steep ships ladder,
probably very wet and slippery. upon 4
ting that barely affords standing room for
the passengers. who are crowded like
beasts in cattle car, and after steaming
miles or farlongs, according to the tide, to
the landing-place, the trunks are found,
after = delay conso!ing to the
reflective American, who remembers the
New York cUstom-house, upon a counter,
and inquiry is made for silver, books,
tobacco and spirits, and sometimes there
is a quiet inquisition for International
dynamite. Such is the delay that il is
good point for travellers to leave their
luggage 10 be arranged by the officious
pOrIers and other officials, and go TO the
hotel, partaking of supper and returning
with abundant leisure to overcome the
formalities incident to entering a free
trade country. Leaving Liverpool for
home. you lind by study of the advertise
ments that Mt fixed hour you are to be
at specified landing, to go aboard-not
the ocean steamer, but tender, that is
to convey you to the celebrated racer
and record-bre2ker, whatever her name
may be. The tide rises and tails
az Liverpool about fifteen feet, and it is
the regular thing 10 walk down long
slide to get to the tender; and you are
shipped in a chaos of trunks, many of
fantastic shapes and marked with initials