St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1895-08-10
PRoTEsTERs ARE HEARD,
AND MIR. HORR KNOCKS OUT
PRESIDENT wHEELOCK BY -
A REMARK.
ALL SHOT AT ONE TARGET.
Of Public Works Will Do
Wrong.

'iio Pun oSe OI dUOpC1nS the neCeS-.
| sary resolutions instructing the
| board of public works to begin pro-
ceedingS to condemn land to be taken
| for Phalen park. Instead, however.
| OF the brief session expectation the
| board accomplished the business be-
fore 1t in less than fifteen minutes
the commissioners found a deIega-
| ton of First ward citizens await
| ing them, armed with the protest
against the purchase of Phalen park
which was adopted at last weeks
mass meeting. Col. Kiefer, George
f. Woolsey, John SandelI and the
inevitable G. w. Horn headed the
delegation. Aid. Lindahl was also a
member of the party, and was heard
from once. Mr.. Horn spoke oftener
than that, and SO did Col. Kiefer and
Mr. Woolsey.
The burden Of their complaint was
the hardship of being compelled to
pay for a park in these times, the
] injustice of laying out such limited
assessment district as had been pro-
posed IN the former proceedings, the
inflated prices placed upon the land
by real estate spectators, and lastly,
the unjust treatment they assume
they will receive at the hands of the
board of public works if the proceed
ings continue.
Mr. Horr, Mr.. WoolseN and Aid Lin
| dahl dWelt upon this last feat ure Of the
case, and freely criticised the board OF
public works, expressing the fear that
q VIZ hoo y
ter by ordering the board of public
works to condemn the land, they would
| not get justice.
MI. Woolsey handed the protest to
the secretary of the park board, and
| followed it with little speech in which
he declared that the people to be as
sessed for the park were too poor to
pay their share and that many homes
would be jeopardized in consequence of
| the assessment, and some actually sac
| riticed.
Col. Kiefer followed with few re-
marks to the effect that it was not
| proper time to purchase property for
parks, but if the land is to be bought
then its value should be measured bv
the worth of its soil and the assess
| ment district should be extended
Park Commissioner Hamm agreed
! with the last proposition, as to the JUS
t1ce OF greatly charging the assess
| ment district.
WHEELOCK SMILED.
Then Mr.. Horn came forward with his
calamity speech. His first announce
ment was 81 am not a kicker" This
nearly upset the gravity of Commits.
| sloner Wheelock, but Mr.. Horn was
| permitted to continue. He apologizedi
Tor being poor, and then implored the
| park board not to let the proceedings
for acquiring Phalen park go any fur
Their for the present. He feared the
consequences if the board of public
| works ever got another chance to con-
| denim the land
Why, Mr.. President" exclaimed Mr..
Hort, Il heard it said only the other
day that it would be useless to opnose
Phalen park after the park board had
left the matter in the hands of the
board of public works, because there
1 is powerful influence behind that
| body
Commissioner Wheelock-Who said
| that, Mr.. Horn?
MIR. Horn did not answer the cues
ton, but proceeded to explain that the
| First ward citizens were afraid the
land would be valued too high and that
they could not get justice. In con-
clusion Mr.. Horn became excited and
wound up with this declaration:
We don't propose to quietly submit
to being robbed by a set of men who
want to unload this property on US at
fictitious prices. I tell you, gentlemen,
three is a difference between a park
and what is called a park SYSTEM
VIEWS OF THE BOARD.
Commissioner AberIe insisted that
| the only question at issue was whether
the people of the First ward wanted
a park. If they did, then they should
have it. The park board could not and
would not assume that the board of
public works would act unfairly in
the matter, and the citizens of the
First ward had no right to so assume.
President Wheelock spoke in the
same vein, and also pointed out the
beneficial results of the park 1t
would increase the value of real estate
and the desirability of residences in
the First ward. 1t would also make
it a center Of life and activity and in
troduce a business interest in the
ward, which is now isolated. He ex-
pressed the opinion that the assess
ment would not average over SO or 81
a lot.
Aid. Lindahl made a few remarks to
the effect that his experience had con-
WINGED him that justice could not be
obtained from the board of public
works.
Mr.. Horn then asked the board to
defer the matter for a week, but this
request was emphatically refused.
Mr. Horn and Mr.. Woolsey then
wanted the park board to agree to use
it's influence to arrest the proceedings
before the board of public works, in
case an excessive price was fixed on
the land.
| President Wheelock assured the gen.
tlemen that if at any time the park
board was satisfied that an injustice
was about to be perpetrated, it would
annul the proceedings.
| The upshot of the matter was that
the board laid the protesting resolu-
tons on the table, and the First ward
delegation withdrew, the majority of
them apparently satisfied with the
understanding arrived at, for, as Com
missioner Aber1e said, he knew of his
own knowledge gained from his many
years residence in the First ward, that
the great majority of it's citizens were
in favor of the park.
After the departure of the delegation
the park board adopted the necessary
resolutions for condemnation. By the
first resolution, the board approved
and adopted the plat of the land to be
taken submitted by the city engineer.
The second resolution sets aside from
the park fund the sum of SIS, 600 to be
applied in part payment for the land,
and the third resolution directs the
board of public works to proceed to
condemn the land desired.