The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1894-06-24
AMID THE RESIDENCES.


sidewalks-only hard, slippery, greer
impressions of where they were once
laid. Here are whole rows of dwellings
almost floating in sewerage, and this
afternoon, with the sun streaming on
the scene, a perfect, blue sky overhead,
the place looked like a city of the dead.
In a few houses 1 saw women moving
about, gazing oil the piled up wreck OF
fences about their windows, ard half
suffoc1ted by the vile odors arising ~
every hand. 1t gives me sick headaches
to ever walk quickly through this dis
trict. Think, then, f the sufferings of
the residents who eat and sleep sur
rounded by all this contamination. Be-
tween C and Davis is a beautiful resi-
dence running the length of d whole
block, with wide lawns sweeping in
from: of it. The fences are all in pieces
round it, and in their fall have dragged
down hundreds Of rose bushes planted
the whole way round the outer edge Of
the garden. One large. sldepost of The
front gate, nearly two feet through, lies
across a large bed of pansies in the cen
tire of the lawn, held from going farther
by n strip of barbed wire that still
hangs onto the fence lying outside. The
house itself is a wreck, and the family
long ago moved out. The lawn grass is
Of a dirty white color, emitting a fear
full stcnch, and in q corner of the eX-
tensive grounds are half a dozen
cherry trees loaded with fruit. Several
children, most Of them in gum boots,
were ~houndering round in the soft,
DOGGY grass. sinking to their ankles at
every step, and trying to knock eff the
cherries with long poles. There was no.
body to modest them, and they seemed
to be enjoying themselves. On the oppo-
site corner is the fine residence of Mrs.
George i. Story. It's basement is torn
clean away from the first floor, the
steps are thrown all out Of line, and
fences demolished, while the havoc
wrought in the garden is very great.
From here along to Aukeny, for three
HlpIS DlOClNSi 10 lue SdIHe SlChelnnS
series of sights and smells. 1t is i'm
possible to go at length into the details
of each separate wreck, for the repeti-
items would become wearlsome. l know
that as far as l am concerned I will not
again go into this district in it's pres
ent condition. The chances are too
many and too serious to take, without
being absolutely necessary, and the
filth and garbage fostering in the sun,
the rotting houses and sidewalks, the
ruined gardens and furniture, all make
a picture and leave a remembrance that
does not need any second visit in order
to impress it on the memory.
Mr.. Sc2,t, looking 600 yards from his
Oregonian tower. can see it all; SO can
his friend, the city physician, and the
street cleaning department. But the
only difference is that they don't see it
for publication. l do.
The loss in this particular residence
district will not fall a cent short of $780,
BOO, including the repairing of sidewalks,
roads and sewers.
Mr.. Max Young, of Astoria, of the
firm of Young G. Lewis, has been up
here for some days. He knows Portland
very well indeed, and stated to me this
morning that he would give the total
damage to the city, after a careful esti-
mate, at 1850, 900, certainly not under I
hat figure. He is about right.