The Bessemer indicator., 1893-06-03
STILL FIGHTING SMOKE.
St. Louis Getting Rid of an Old-Time
Nuisancs-5olIdity o. Western Banks.

~ ASass oettAAB Asto oA Ill AiaS
Nuisanos-solidity o. westsrn Banks.
ST. Louis, May 2o.-Thc agitation
against smoke has proved great sue
cess in st. Louis and it is nov cvi-
dent that consuming devices will be
in use generally within few months
Nearly two thousand citizens have
joined the local Smoke Abatement As
sociation and some of the worst Of
tenders are included in these. Tho
Willingness expressed on all hands to
put In smoke-consuming devices is so
great, and SO many nre going to do
the work this summer, that by tho
time the fall festivity season opens
there will be comparatively little
smoke in the business section of the
city and one very unsatisfactory
feature of most advertising cities will
disappear entirely.
The action OF the st. Louis banks in
contributing some 81, 600, goo in gold to
assist in restoring the traditional
hundred millions, and the ease with
which ten times the amount could
have been contributed had it bee n
needed, has calico attention to the
very conservative manner in which the
banks Of st. Louis are run. While
the bank clcarings have been doub
ling themselves the number of banks
has increased but slightly. Hence
nearly all the financial institutions
are old established and the business
they are transacting is of most
profitable character. Most of them
have been through no less than three
periods OF diScouraging, financial de-
preston and have weathered the
storms without an effort. 1t Is many
years since there was run on bank
in st. Louis and such an event is
really we'll nigh impossible.
The Travellers Protective Associn-
tion, whose national president re-
sides in st. Louis, is arranging for q
remarkable celebration in Chicago on
June 10, after the holding of the
Peoria convention. For all practical
purposes June 10 will be II. p A. day
at the Worlds Fair, and several thou
sand angels of commerce will be on
hand on that occasion. Mr. Geo. S.
McGrew, who has been national presi-
dent for several successive years, has
definitely declined to serve again ow-
ing to the pressure of business engage
ments, and ono of the important events
at the convention will be the selection
OF his successor.
Last year there was lad working
in florists shop here who thought he
was not getting on fast enough. 1t
occurred to him that many people of
small means would be willing to pay
a trite to have small bouquets de-
livered to them every day for their
dinner table. He spoke to his en-
ployer about it, and was sneefed at.
Me got friend to lend him enough
money to send out several thousand
circulars, choosing his names judi
ciously, and enclosed postal cards in
each circular for an answer. He got
so many encouraging responses that
he felt justified in plunging into busi-
ness for himself, and left his employer.
Now, a little over twelve months
since he sent out his first circulars, he
Ia letting the contracts for a store and
hot house which will cost him several
thousand dollars. His idea was n
good one, and he says that he sends
ont several hundred bouquets day,
chsrging from twenty-five cents to ten
dollars apiece for them.
The plans for the free bath-houses
which are to be built this spring in
time to be used this summer have been
completed by the architects of the
Board of Public improvements. There
will be three. one in South st. Louis
one In the center OF the city, and tho
other in North st. Louis. The cost OF
the three is to be S135. 600. They will
not be put on the river, but will be
away from it some distance. and the
water will come from the city water
works