Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-04-20
THAT STREET STABLE
r. s.
The 0 Street Junction Becomes q
Question Of Interest. -.
TEE COMMISSIONERS ARE CAUTIOUS
Police Are Passive and Awaiting
Official Orders. -
THE NUS ANCE ROWS

| Ten days have rolled away since the resi-
dents in the neighborhood of 18th and %
streets northwest filed a complaint with
the Commissioners against the use of that
vicinity as a stable for the Belt line rail-
road, and still nothing has been done.
| Several days ago an inspector of the
er gineer department was detailed to make
a report on the matter. The report was
prompt and corroborated the complaint in
every detail. The press, as has been the
recent custom, was denied a glance at the
document, which was of such great i'm
portance to those residents and taxpayers
who were interested, and all trace Of it
| was lost. Engineer Commissioner Powell
reported to the Commissioners that he had
driven past the place on his way to the
District building and saw nothing to com
plain of. He thought the railroad had
ceased operations there. re"
| Shortly afterward a property holder in
| terested In the matter, and who had I'M
| mediately left the place, reported to Com
missioner Ross the facts as they existed.
| He said when he left the corner of 18th and
/ o streets he saw eight horses drawn up to
the curb, gazing mournfully into the dining
room window of a house opposite. They
| were miserable specimens of horse flesh,
and the air was heavy with the odors of
| the stable. Commissioner Ross assured
II
missioner Truesdell said this morning that
| the Commissioners were waiting for some
more reports, and Capt. Powell dismissed
| the inquiry OF the reporter with the remark
| that the Commissioners had not yet settled
| the matter.
Several property holders in the vicinity
Of this stable called at the District build
| ing today to learn something of the case.
One of them remarked to a reporter Of The
| Star:
Ever since the day we presented the Pc
I.aA
| The Star to learn what was being done.
| but I was disappointed. l suppose that
+ foolish order of the Commissioners which
keeps these important things out of the
papers is responsible for 1t. What show
| have the people of learning what is being
| done? Personally, I am busy man and
have not the time to run to the District
| building every day to learn these things.
| The papers are the only representatives the
| taxpayers have, and when you take away
| from them the right to information that
properly belongs to the public you are di-
| rectly injuring the taxpayers and resi-
dents" 's
More of Official Mysteriousness.
| Messrs. Job Barnard, T. B. Hood and E.
| I. Booraem called upon the Commissioners
| shortly before noon, but they were told
| that nothing had been done, and that the
| Commissioners were waiting for reports.
| Exactly what is meant by that the Com
missIonerS will not say. The place has been
|
ers at least knows the facts from personal
| observation, and the board body Is
| convinced of the situation. 1t may be the
attorney fer the District has been called
upon for legal opinion as to the Com
| missioners' Jurisdiction in the premises. 1t
| was impossible to learn from any of the
| officials what reports they are waiting for,
| SO the merry clatter of the broken-down
car horses will continue to disturb the
| peaceful citizens of o street from $50 I'm.
| until the IL 80 pm. change is made.
| Commissioners Truesdell is Very Cnu-
| tiOus.
| Mr. E. l. Booraem, zoos o street, was in
| the party that went to the District build
! ing this morning to urge the complaint
against the nuisance. He tells The Star
that after some difficulty they managed to
| secure an audience with Commissioner
| Truesdell, who said that the question was
| under investigation, and that the matter
| would have to be looked into with some
| care, as there were certain legal points to
be exploited. The Commissioner did not
know but that there was something in the
| charter to permit this encroachment on
the public street, but he wanted to be sure
before action, so he had referred the mat
| ter to the attorney for the District Mr.
s. T. Thomas. from whom he expected a
| reply in a few days.
| Mr.. Booraem and the lawyers were walk
Ing down the street after leaving the Dis
| trict building, and CHANGED to meet Mr..
Thomas. who told them that he would prob
| ably take the case up in a few days and
look into it. One Of the complaining citi-
| zens asked him how he, in his capacity as
attorney for the District, expected to rem
| der a satisfactory decision in the matter
affecting the rights of the Belt line road,
| by which he is employed as counsel. Mr..
| Thomas laughed, and replied that he might
turn the matter over to one of his assist
| ants
| A Great Nuisance.
The warm weather is making the nuis-
ance more uncomfortable each day, as the
windows of the houses in the vicinity are
kept open more frequently, thus giving free
| ingress to the foul odors which arise from
| the street stables. One of the residents.
| living next door to the corner of 18th and
| ., on 11th, east side, suffered severely
from this cause last evening. when the
northwest wind bore the stencil through
his windows and permeated his house with
| an aroma that would cause a livery stable
to be declared nuisance without delay.
This Is not the only nuisance Of which the
neighbors complain. The horse tenders
| the water boys, as well as the conductors
| and drivers. make the corner a loafing
place and engage In conversation that IL
not noted for its quiet or its elegance.
Pickets Of the fences in front Of the park
| ing are utilized as hat and coat racks and
pegs on which to hang dinner pals and
| feed bags. The neighbors are frequently
| shocked by witnessing spectacles that could
| not be classed as polite, participated in
| by the employees of the road, who make con-
/
| manner. The chance Of lucrative trade
held out by the short lay-over time of the
! conductors and drivers has attracted num-
| bers Of fakirs and peanut and banana VEN
| ders to the corner and they add to the gen.
| eral confusion and the growing nuisance
| 1t is remarked by the neighbors that these
men are not interfered with by the police
at this corner, although they are being con-
stantly driven from place to place in other
parts of town.
l. What the Police Are Doing.
/ The part that the police are playing in
| this matter is the cause Of much speeula-
ton en- the part Of the people living near
| the nuisance. One Of the residents Of the
block in which the stabling is done took a.
number OF photographs of the scene a day
or two ago. and just before he uncovered
his lens he noticed Lieut.. Teeple Of the
second precinct standing on the front plat
form, that happened to be waiting at the
juncticn for starting time. The officer saw
| the photographer at the same time, and,
in evident effort to avoid becaming
Fart of the pictorial history of the case
| stepped hastily off the platform anu walned
down the street at a rapid gait
| Later this same citizen called on Major
Moore. superintendent Of police to obtain