The record-union., 1895-08-15
WHAT A LITTLE ENERGY WILL Do.
A Powerful Object Lesson in the Way
of Cooperation.
The Capital City Wheelmen Teach
Negligent Citizens and Officials
How to Clean Streets.

People living on Eighteenth street,
from o to L, will not know the street
when they arise this morning. Those three
blocks we're roughly cleaned by detach-
ment of the Capital City Wheelmen's
Club last evening in just thirty-fve min
utes by the watch. 1t was an object lesson
shat should have due effect. 1t proved
that five minutes time once week by
the occupants of each forty feet Will
serve, if devoted to street cleaning IN
front of his or her premises, TO keep the
highway in a perfectly cleanly and pre-
sentable condition. Just that, is what IS
done under the -Four Block League
plan" heretofore explained in the REC
ORD D-UNION.
The Wheelmen's detachment with vol
unteers, between thirty and forty strong,
assembled on O street. at the residence OF
Mr.. Wright, at : o'clock. Captain Read
man kept the party at a halt while be
went out to determine what street to
select for the purposes Of the object les
son.
On return he reported that beginning
would be made at Eighteenth and y. mat
. street itself was by all odds the cleanest
street in that end OF town and needed 10
special attention. Accordingly the party,
accompanied by President Bennet OF the
club, moved TO Eighteenth street, armed
with shovels, rakes, hoes and brooms,
the rear being brought up by two heavy
carts driven by i. y. Meyers ana U. Ber-
eghino. whose aid and teams were given
for the purpose.
That there was earnestness, public
spirit and fair representation IN the mat
-o unF.rs ont
embraced in its ranks leading mer-
chant, q banker, professional men,
prominent mechanics, NUM- Der OF oihce
men, clerks, salesmon, bOOkkeepers,
printers, real estate men, grocers and
others, all representative, progressive
AMI public-spirited citizens, but who take
pride III the city and hope to quicken the
pride OF others to the end that the hour
of dirty streets here may strike for the
last time soon.
The three blocks on Eighteenth street
wore cleaned IN short order. but no at
tempt was made to cut out weeds and
grass-grown cutters. All that was at
tempted-in the halI-light and toward
the last in darkness, which rendered the
work less eteCtIVe-WaS TO remove the
debris in the street, and most OF which
was placed there by the direct act or the
objectionable neglect OF the people.
Two 1ull cart loads were taken up and
the contents inventoried as they went
over the tail boards something like this:
Bundles OF wire, oil and oystercaus, tree
cuttings, garden trimmings, old shoes,
wrecked corsets, joints OF stoyepipe, cob
bles and loose round stone. sardine cans,
rotten sacks, Old flannel drawers and
petticoat5, stockings and China shoes,
broken crochery, bones, hoops, horse
shoes, lead pipe, rotten wood, branches
OF trees, hay and straw, manure, dried
weeds, broken kites, rotting hay rope,
old brooms. brick bats in variety and
quantity, piles OF ashes, remains OF
debris lres, paper, tamale shucks. decay
ing vegetables and fruit, barrel slaves,
llass. tin. broken cast iron, leaves, de-
posts of pulled up bunch grass. feathers,
and the occasional skeleton OF a deIunct
domestic animal.
Night having set in, the detachment
moved 10 j street Just east Of the inter-
section Of Sixteenth street, whore light
III some degree was had. and there cleared
up pin i few moments the worst spot of
rock misery in the city. The pile could
not be hauled away because the carts
were full and overloaded. The stones
alleged gravel but actual cObble-were
piled in the gutter as best could be dOno
at night, bat the spot, which has for
many weeks been almost impossible for
bicycles and light buggies, was fairly we'll
cleared of distractions. That on such
public corner at the termination of the
finest bitumeniZed street IN the city such
a condition should have so long continued
is simply shameful, but more shameful
IS the fact that a private club had TO turn
out and clear The street.
The detachment then moved up to Eff
teenth and !, and there managed to pile
up huge heap of loose stone found ahoat
at that intersection. In the lot is GUAM
tity of broken-up cement walk, broken
granite, old iron and the like. There is a
full WaEOn-lOad OF it on view this morn
ing to prove thar the stuff was on the
ground. but scattered.
\ lady residing at that corner informed
the detachment that some days ago men
with carts came to the spot and made a
preIense OF clearing the crossing, but
after time one exclaimed: That viii
do let the rest gO"-and they went, but
the debris from recent street construction
remained.
At this point woman bicyclist, Miss
Maine Flint. dismounted from her
wheel ANA went to work energetically
win tho rest clearing the crossing amidst
the plaudIts OF the wheelmen. At one
point on Eighteenth street. near NJ q
lady came cut and cleared up in front of
her lot and had the pile Of rubbish ready
for the wheeimen's carts.
Ii was noted throughout that the dirt
IN front o. the houses Of people we'll to-
do, or rich, and amply able to keen their
street fronts clean, while the least offensive
spots were IN front of the houses OF poor
people or people of modest means, who
90 make some effort here and there to
keep irontages clean.
Captain keadman says that his club has
not gone into the STRENGTHENING business;
that lis purposes is 10 show the people
the uselessness of living in filth; TO illus
trate now easy it is to clean residence
street; TO awaken 8 spirit OF pride in this
matter aud 10 induce the people to de-
clare ana enforce reform in the premises.
The club Will not turn out again, he
says. Ifthe people will not now act, the
club can stand it, but he hopes that last
nights example viii have the effect Of
bringing out Il large audience at Friday
nights street mass meeting. when meas
ures may De adopted TO effect the neces-
sary reform.
1t may here be noted that if the carni-
val display is 10 be made in the region of
Camtol Park, some lively work will be
needed there, or strangers will critcise
Us severely and justly. For instance,
while the south side OF \ street is as clean
and neat as any one could wish, the north
or park side Is thickly grown with weeds.
This grass and rank weedy growth
should be permitted in no street sur
rounding a publi park. Such a condi-
ton is, 10 say the least, unpardOnable.
1t Is not the office OF the Capital COmmls-
sion, but OF the city, to keep this street
clear OF weeds, if no other in the town is
attended to.