The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1896-08-18

granite in Brandywine hundred through
TO pennsylvania. 1t has two trunk rail-
roads running through 1t which are of very
Ittle advantage other than to take our
people to other cities to spend the money
earned here 1t has also II line Of well
equipped steam boats whose occupation is
inc same as the railroads. 1t Is bounded
on the south by the CEristiana river that
was used AS far back as 1850 for shipping
freight from Newport from the ware.
houses now going to decay, which was
Drought down from the interior of Penn
sylvania by four and six horse teams and
shipped In barges to Philadelphia.
IL was ut Newport that tho first high
pressure engine of any note was built, in
l7s6, and run, in the worlds history, by
man named Oliver Evans, great in
ventor. The invention Of tho first steam.
boat lies between him and man by tho
name OF Fulton, who run tho first steam.
boat on the Hudson river, New York. SO
you see that was notable river for its
business and carrying trade long before
fhe Harlan u Holingsworth Co. tho
Eusey q Jones Co., the Ibatchers. the
hhycn Moore or Jackson a. Sharp Cos.
We're heard OF.
merely give the garbled history of the
Chrlstlana to show the opportunities lost
3y not improving this natural inland har-
poT, winch by strengthening, deepening
anu Widening would have brought untold
wealth. to our city in commerce, rs we
were once an importing city, having i'm
ported sugar and molasscs from Cuba, and
took in exchange cornmeal and flour to
them in 1910
lthink we also sent out whaling vessels
and one SLAYER, which was captured by the
British. The Swcdes, who were a thrifty
people, settled on this river over two hun
dred years ago, and built the Old Swcdcs
Church, which stands to-day AS Il memo
rial to their memory.
1t is never too late to do well. Make
a start and every spare load of dirt you
| can haul to make up the road to the river
| Will be that much done in the interest of
tho doubling of our city's population,
which will bring wealth and prosperity to
| our inhabitants. Our city is bounded on
| the north by the historic Brandywino
| with its once boastful scenery that was
| the resort of our city's people, but is now
| dug up in holes which tho men who COM
poses the commission call park, but
which call Il dig out. 1t is idiotism mix
rd with prodigaliy with the peoples !
taxes wrung from them these distressing
plnky times s
hardly know which is the worst, The !
city council to give them $i5, 900 to sink in |
spelling our once memorable Brandywinc !
walk or those who spend tho money on |
such spollintion. Now sir NV ,icw Of
park would have teen Very different i |
have two plans; the first plan would have
been to make an eight foot road way from
Market street bridge to Moore's paper
mill, cleaned out all under brush, taken
down all tho rotten trees and cut them in
to cord wood, which would have helped TO !
pay for the expense, trimmed all the other
trees that needed trimming and that
would have left the old natural Brandy
wine Just rs the tcOple wanted it, with
mere fraction of the cost put on it, for
spelling it.
Second way, l would have blasted all
the rocks in the bed of tho BrRndywine
and put in two portable derricks and built
two retaining walls, high enough to keep
the water when at its height in spring |
within said walls, from Market street
bridge up to Moore's paper mill Iwould
have made as many dambreHstS us there |
are now or as would he reqLi ed, which |
would lave made boating and fishing
dams, and in the winter skating dams. / |
would have put five 4fcot iron pipes in
the south long race one for Il sewer and
four to convey The drinking water to the
pumps to be forced up to the basin ! |
would have manhCes in these pipes so as
TO clean them ou1 if required. would
have covered all these pipes with dirt aud
made nacadnmizcd road from Market |
street bi ;dgc up to MG,re's paper mill, and
II the Rancroits ana the DuPonts wanted !
the road extended up in front of their |
homes they could do so at their own cost |
poor people, and not at the cost Of our tax.
payers.
Notwithstanding this great pbilantrc.
phst, Mr.. Bancrolt's gift of all the rough |
rocks from Riddle mill to the mill which
is undesirable for sinking money in
making road out of rocks would have /
made an Iron bridge at .Moores Paper
mill so as to make n continuous drive |
frt III Market street bridge round and back. |
] would have graded from these two walls |
IN lpn .lHr,,t ttp., ,.l.e II
and set it in grass | would have trimmed |
all the trees ard taken down the dead
ones, and planted others where needed |
The trolley could have made a circuit
round this road which would have made
n Pleasant ride without dust would not
have bought any Ct the Iatnall farm, as it
will never be used for a rark, only for
some rich people to build around if. for
thor children to play IN, and at the citys
expense. The city of Wilmington is
park ofitsGlf and all it wants is good ma
:adamsed roads, kept well wateied in tho
summer, and to make the smoothest, |
incest roads for all purposes that can be |
gotten up. All tho lalks we have got
thrown into one would net make g0ol
one.
Yet we have moro parks in this city
considering the population. than any
other city on this continent. But in order I
to get to these numerous parks the City
y
ing places for the poor people. Kirk {
wood Park, | call mosquito park, the
ground being SO sterile it will not grow |
tree. Now, Mr.. Editor, to go back to the
.BrandywiDC pnrk; they built n sewer | !
from Raltlesnake run TO below the city !
mills at cost Of about $4,000, which is /,
only feet in diameter and about in !
chrs fail, about mile long. How will !
this clean itself should it be ed to its
fullest capacity? Isn't my idea, the four !,
foot iron pire the best and cheapest by \
500. They had to burrow through rocks !
to lay it nearly all its entire length.
Let aninjunction be put upon the park
commission and stop. them from spending
the peoples taxes. After they have work
ed on this park for several years you can't
see what they have done beyond digging 4
it in holes. If they had put the pipes in I
The south long race and made the road I
over it they would have saved that much +
ground and saved children and drunken !
men from falling into the water and get Il
ting drowned. Besides the DRAWINGS of | !
the corpses tOf the Brandywine cemetery | s
which don't think adds to the flavor Of | i
water. Never speak of dead dogs.
cats rats and dust which no filter can n
eradicate. We have the Eden park, the y
park. the city hall park. the !. !
court house park, without shade or trees,
We have the Franklin park we have the
Cool Spring park, we have the Brandy.
wine park, we have the Union park, we
have the Shcllpot park, we have the Cor. i
don Heights park.
These last three parks are run in the in
tercst of the city railway, who pay no tax
but get ali tho patronage Of the people by n
their entertainments. The water com. A
mission has the single standard, the COLL; | "a
they boast of their economy, saving SlOO.-
~ over and above their lavish expenses, Of
wrnng from tho poor taxpayers in these fr
distressing times, and If the poor can't pay Of
5hc wafer rent they order the reverend | fr
Thomas NJ. Culbcrt to cut the water off
md the poor can drink mud. The water
rnt o. tax, as you may term it, was going
o be reduced 80 per cent, which it ought
o he this coming legislation, but they give nj
,ur honorable city council Si5 900 hush -
money to let them go on taxing the poor Sc
,porlc, who, very many Of them, have not 81
:o' the neccssarics of life to live on, while o
lp hrce water commissioners have all got | ID
lucrative businesses Of their own and get \
flr rEf w baD |