The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1897-05-03
:COUNCILMEN MAKE
I A GOOD START
Judge Gibson Still Has the
Spirit of a Past GEN
GRAFTON.
The CITY Hall Will Some Day
Met the Fate of Many
Recommendations.
Contract Street Cleaning Consists of
Removing the Dust Into Stores
and Residences.
OAKLAND OFFICE SAN Francisco CALL
908 Broadway, Nav 2.

908 Broadway, May 2
The action of the Council in refusing TO
grant any licenses contrary to the wishes
OF the residents at Twenty-third avenue
will be commended by all those who de-
sire to keep saloons out of the residence
territory. The Seventh Ward, of which
Ywenty-third avenue is part, was one of
the few wards in the city that at the re-
cent election gave majority in favor of
the closing of.saloons at all times. This
being so, a protest from that ward should
naturally have more weight than one from
a ward in which majority was given for
keeping saloons open.
During the campaign preceding the cleo
ton it was stated by the Liquor Mems
Protective Association that they would
prefer to have all the deadfalls in the city
closed up, so that they could no longer
bring discredit on the legitimate dealers
The records of the Police Court show that
these outside saloons and roadside houses
are productive OF much crime, and the
. City Council certainly did right in re-
specting the wishes OF the large number
of protestanrs
The object of many, but not all, OF these
outside saloons is not to profit by the
business in the locality where they wish
to be established, but to draw from the
center of Oakland an element which is not
desirable, but which is probably less I'M
desirable when on the outskirts. This is
the argument made by the protestants
and which the respectable liquor dealers
.indorse.
Ex-Judge Gibson still retains that old
feeling that animated him when he
marched under the Union flag genera
ton ago. A little incident that happened
in a restaurant few days ago shows very
strongly the Judges character.
He sat down to his meal and Just as he
was commencing a colored man, a we'll
known janitor, walked into the restaurant
and going to the most secluded corner took
a seat.
What are you doing down there,
Allen ?" cried the Judge.
We'll, sir, generally gets into the
quietest corner" said Allen.
o." Are you too proud to eat with me?"
= asked Judge Gibson.
'No, sah."
Then come up here" and the Judge
and the colored ianitor ate their dinner
together on one check and conYersed of
thirty years ago.
The old barn that passes for City Hall
periodically furnishes an argument why
it should at least be succeeded by build
ing hot inferior in size or architecture 10
that of our smaller sister city of Ala
media.
During the week one more man walked
: out of his cell and to liberty, and he was
not missed for several days The conve-
nient old prison had so far decayed that
boys have been known to creep out of the
top of cells, men have broken he piece OF
rust that restrained them, and on one oc
.casion an inmate removed a portion of the
stone wall and crawled through. There
Is nothing to prevent an ingenious fellow
from getting out of the jail, and each year
=: the chances for escaping increase as the
old place rots.
On several occasions Mayors have adyo-
Gated the issuing of bonds and the erec-
tien OF decent municipal pile, but the
suggestions have fallen to the ground, and
- like fate will overtake the old building
il some radical improvements are not
made.
g.. The greatest, most offensive and most
expensive of all the official nuisanoes now
being maintained in Oaklandis the farcical
- method adopted for cleaning the streets
Merchants and residents have protested
against the nuisance for years, but in
vain. When the street sweeper goes by,
beating all the dirt and dust on the street
high into the air, ladies walk into entran-
ces and storekeepeTs rush to close their
doors and windows. Sometimes as early
asst o'clock in the evening the abomipa-
ton commences and more goods are
spoiled by this stupid system than would
pay for sweeping all the streets by hand.
o." Before the present contract was let an
attempt was made TO have the work done
by hand, as lie done in San Francisco, but
it was found that this would cost fe W
more dollars. The main fact, however,
that after the streets were swept by hand
they would be clean and no nuisance
would have been nmitted did not seem
to impress itself upon local officials. If
any one wishing to make fame by carl
caturing the public con tract system of Oak
land were to be on Broadway while the
street is being cleaned" he could not
wish better subject.
STUART w. Booth.