The herald., 1897-10-16
StreetSweeping Discussion
Leads to No Result
ANTI HITCHING ORDINANCE
CHAMBER OF COMMERCE COM
MITTEE AND STREET SIGNS
Board Of Public Works Holds a Lively
Session-Secretary Zeehandelaar
and Councilman Toll

What, with street naming, street
sweeping and house numbering, the
board Of public works held most en-
joyable session yesterday, and almost
decided some momentous question. The
matter Of the public morgue was post
poned for week at the suggestion of
Senator Bulla, as more time was needed
to investigate the question satisfac-
torily.
c. A. Servis and Deputy Constable ].
H. De la Monte then appeared before the
board and requested an immediate in
vestigation of the drainage on North
Figueroa, between Temple and Boston
streets. The residents of that section
had Systematically registered COM
plants on that score for the last two
years, and it was about time that some
thing should be dose in the matter. The
complaint was noted, and then came the
vital question of street sweeping by
hand, which was opened by Councilman
Toll reading a communication from
Secretary Zeehandelaar of the Mer-
chants and Manufacturers association,
who was present, wherein the failure of
he board to attend to the Merchants
and Manufacturers associations petit
ton Of some months ago was severely
criticised. At the conclusion of the
reading of the letter, Councilman Toll
rose to his feet with the paper in his
hand and his eyes ablaze with the fire
of outraged dignity.
THE REASON FOR DELAY
1--WE have not neglected our duty"
said the iCjured councilman, "these
things take time to look into, and this
board isn't an exception TO any we'll
regulated body in any city. 1 think
that we have been badly misrepresented
or misunderstood, and I'm sure that the
august body which Mr.. Zeehandelaar
represents does not thoroughly uv1der-
stand, the facts of the case The delay
has been caused through the necessity
Of having a map of the streets made by
the engineer, which was only received
on Monday, and consequently little time
has been allowed us in which to arrive
at decision" AT this poirt Mr.. Zee
ha adelaar rose and protested against a
misin.terpretation of his letter; in fact,
nothing was farther from his mind
than a desire to criticise the actions of
the board in the matter; all that he
wished to know was whether the board
was not in a position to give him def
dsite answer one way or the other, as the
association which he represented was
anxious to know to what extent, and
how soon, they could start out them
selves, and have one clean street, at any
rate, in the city of chuck holes. A lively
discussion then followed, wherein the
tall figure Of the interested councilman
loomed majestically above that of the
short, little secretary. The matter was
discussed in all it's phases and from
every side, the chief difficulty seeming to
be whether transfer Of the contract for
three months from w. I. Hollingsworth
to the Merchants and Manufacturers
association could legally be effected, and
if so, what the position Of the city
would be in the event of such move.
Another question which troubled the
board was that of expense on. the part of
the city, despite Mr.. Zeehandelaar's
heroic efforts to explain that not one
cent of extra expenditure should fall on
the taxpayers His association would
endeavor, should the decision of the.
necessary to make the experiment for
three mos,ths, take the work in hand
and carry it out successfully. The re-
suit, he was sure, would be highly satis-
factory.
AT this juncture Mr.. Toll again rose
and delivered some extraordinary fig
ures with surprising degree of rapid
ity, wherein it was conclusively proved
that whereas the estimated d cost of ma
chine sweeping would be $57SS for the
balance of the fiscal year, the most cor-
servatiye estimate for the same work by
hand placed the bare expenditure at the
enormous sum of SIC, ,260, nearly four
times as much. If the taxpayers would
like to increase the appropriation for
that department to four times its pres
ent figure, then the long expected and
much desired method would be feasible.
but until that was done everyone could
see the abs,urdity of attempting $40 900
job on a $4,000 appropriation
THE HITCHING ORDINANCE
Another question which involved a
considerable expenditure Of gray matter
was the hitchng ordinance, which he
believed was also subject of much an
noyance to the association, and which he
thought might be touched on for short
time by way of varying the monotony
What did the worthy secretary of the
Merchants ard Manufacturers associa-
tion desire done in the matter?
Mr. Zeehandelaar rose and explained
that he was asked to bring this question
before the board at the earliest possible
moment ard he took the liberty of doing
it. "It is a scandalous thing" he con-
tinued that the streets of large city
like Los Angeles should be disfigured at
all times during the day by the neglect
and laZiness of the citizens who were
both too mean and cruel to afford protec-
tion to their tired animals to place them
in barn or stable where they would not
have the hide roasted of their backs and
their feet blistered by the unyielding
paving. I wish to call the boards at
tention to the necessity of having an b.
soute anti-hitching ordinance passed
which will do away with this growing g
evil; not one-sided, half-hearted, am
biguous plaything, as the present one
seems, to be, but one which can ard will
be enforced and which will be benefit
to the community at large, including the
quadrupeds."
After some discussion MI Zeedande-
laar finally agreed to have an investiga-
tion made as to the distribution of
stands for public vehicles on the princi-
pal streets and present the same, with