The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-02-12
MAYOR BAILEY GOES
OVER THE ROUTES
Wanted TO See Just the Condition OF At-
fairs That Exists on South Side.
NECESSITY OF PROPOSED SEWER
Ii Was Made Painfully Apparent DUR
ing Yesterdays Visit to the District
in Which 1t Is Intended to Construct
a Main Scwcr--COndition of the
Streets That Were Passed Over
by the Party--some of the Argu-
ments Presented.

Mayor James q. Bailey accompanied
by City Engineer Joseph Phillips and
Street Commissioner Kinsley, yester-
day made a tour of inspection of the
district on the South Side in which it
is proposed to construct a main sew
er. An ordinance providing for the
construction of the sewer has been
passed by councils and is now in the
hands of the mayor for approval or
disapproval. 1t was with a view to
making q personal investigation into
the necessity of a sewer in that part
of the city that the mayor visited the
South Side yesterday. What he saw
certainly must have convinced him
that a sewer in that part of the city
Is crying necessity.
His honor, of course, refused to COM
nit himself as to what his action with
reference to the ordinance will be, but
after the light that was thrown on the
subject for him yesterday, 1t is not
likely he will veto the measure unless
he decides that the building of the
sewer under the present ordinance
would entail considerable litigation and
finally result in leaving the city with
a lot of sewer liens on it's hands that
it would have no means of collecting.
1t has been the general impression that
the fifteen days allowed the mayor to
sign the ordinance would elapse next
Monday, but he announced yesterday
that the ordinance was not placed in
his hands until Feb. and that he has
until Wednesday, Feb. II, to decide
what action he will take relative to
it. This being true, it is more than
probable that he will hold his approval
or disapproval of the ordinance back
until after next Tuesday-election day.
THE TOUR OF INVESTIGATION.
The mayor. and his companions left
the city hall yesterday afternoon at
2.30 and reached the South Side by
way of the new bridge, touching the
sewer route at Front and Moosc
streets. The party drove east on
Moosic street to Stone avenue, cross
ing an open sewer several feet wide
which flows under Moosic street, be-
tween Pittston and Prospect avenues.
Along Stone avenue the cutters We're
choked with ice, and at the street in
tersections great sheets of ice COM
pletely covered the roadway At
Orchard street and Stone avenue an
old man was al work cutting away the
ice so that the gutter might be opened
up.
At Stone avenue and Willow street,
the end of the Willow street branch
of the proposed sewer, there was an
other mass of ice, and Notwithstanding
the warm weather of the last few days
which has dissipated every vestige o.
ice in almost every other section of the
city, Willow street down to Pittston
avenue was more than half covered
n
ing down the hill had frozen and
caused great quantities of ice to accu-
mulate What the hill must have
looked like during the cold spell of
two weeks ago, it required no very
vivid imagination to picture. Beech
| street hill was in the same deplorable
| condition, and when the party was
going along that street the attention
| of the mayor was called to the fact
that nearly every cellar has more OF
| less water in it for the greater part OF
| the year
KEEPS AN ENGINE AT WORK.
one man on Pittston avenue has an
| automatic engine in his cellar which
| ne Keeps running almost constantly
pumping water and yet he is not able
to keep the cellar dry. 1t is claimed
| that the cellars are not naturally wet
and that their condition is due to the
surface water that comes tumbling
down the hill in great volume during
storms and spring thaws Elm street
! had it's share of ice above and be.
| low Cedar avenue. That thoroughfart
| was not afflicted with ice, but muG
| and stagnant pools of water are equal
| ly as great nuisance there. At Elm
| street and Remington avenue there i!
! a pest hole that must be a great disease
| breeder in warm weather From Elm
| street the party moved along Cedar
| avenue to Maple street and then Wen
east until Pittston avenue was reached
AS the wagon turned into Pittstol
avenue City Engineer Phillips said
| This is nothing better than a Ces
| pool" The appearance of the stree
seemed to warrant the statement. Il
the deep cutters on each side of tn
street streams Of water We're running
and here and there were great heaps o
ice. A thick pasty mud covered tn
street and puddles of dirty water wer
encountered every few yards. At thi
point Pittston avenue is at the foot o
the hill and is the lodging place of ev
erythng that comes down in the opel
sewers from the hill. Further soutl
the land takes dip and Cedar avenu,
becomes the common repository for tn
filth of the district above. On Pitts
ton avenue Select Councilman West
pfahl, S. S. Spruks and others wer
met who grew eloquent in relating tn
necessity of a sewer in that part OF tn
city
MIR. SPRUKS' ARGUMENT.
Il have a house here that cost m
$4,000" said Mr. Spruks, "and | don
suppose l could get $4,000 for it becaus
the man who would buy that kind of
house would insist on having sanitar.
surroundings"
Edward Maloney has been desirou
nf =