Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1895-05-25
BealI Street Improvement.

To the MINING JOURNAL.
We, the welsh Baptist congre-
gation''-rather the Welsh Baptist
church-are blamed Gf there is blame
to be found for the grading of Beall
street, which has been commenced.
| have been asked to publish
through your paper, with your con-
sent, OF course-a few facts that the
public may judge whether we de-
serve praise rather than blame for
what we did and are doing.
1t is beyond any shadow of doubt
that we would not go into any extra
expense whatever in these slow times if
we could help it, much less put the
rate payers and our neighbors to any
expense which would be of no earthly
profit tous.
Then be it known that this is the
third time the church has gone pretty
deep into expense with its sidewalks,
and that without any grumbling. A
few years ago the fencing and side
walks were fixed the second time. The
sidewalks were curbed with 1l-lnch
deal planks, and made dry, clean and
safe, and would have remained so for
years to come. No one found any
fault with them. In 1893 parts of
Charles and Beall streets were graded
and their surfaces cut about 20 inches
deeper than they were-deeper than
our curbing. The consequence was
that the outsides of the footwalks were
washed away in different places, there
by making them dangerous, especially
after dark. They were repaired in
1894, but this spring, after the thaw,
they We're worse than before.
The church had to do something
more substantial than patching the
walks, or something might happen to
cause litigation. A resolution was
passed to fix the walks once for all,
and pave them with bricks, thereby
improving our property as well.
If the church were the Council the
probability is that it would keep the
surface of its pavement little farther
from the earth's centre than it will be,
but it happened that other folks were
members of the Town Council at the
time and they had the power to say
how far the surface of our sidewalks
should be from the nearest fixed star,
or in vulgar language, to ''give us the
grade" 1t was given, but we found
that our pavement on that mathe-
NAUTICAL line would be full three feet
below the surface of Beall street in
front of our property. We did not
relish the idea of being buried in that
ditch before our time, and | was
delegated to state that grievance to
the Council. | did, and was told to go
on-that the street should be graded
also to correspond. We commenced
the work as dutiful citizens. Com
plants were made and the work was
stopped.
When the new Council came INTO
power it travelled this way in body
and examined the whole problem care
fully, confirmed the grade and COM
manded US to go on. We obeyed and
our walks are graded.
That is the whole matter in nut
shell, and people who are thought to
have little wisdom more than the
rest of mankind say that the grading
will improve the street about 70 pc,
cent. and also the properties on the
street in equal ratio.
The work will cost US more money
than we are able at present to make
among ourselves, but some kind friends
outside have generously said they will
assist us, and |, or some other brother
duly authorized, will have the pleasure
of calling upon those friends and others
to receive their charitable gifts.
And ''the end of the song is the
penny"-on each side of the question
Yours in behalf of the church,
HENRY THOMAS,
Pastor