The Dalles times-mountaineer. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1882-1904, 1897-07-10
SIGNS OF PROGRESS.
a Sure Indication Of Growth In
American Cities.
Tbs Number of Miles of Street Pave
Z .nent Shows Their Material De-
velopment-SOme Inter-
esting Figures.

There is no surer way of determin-
| ng the growth of an American mu-
| nicipality in respect of material devel-
opment than by comparing the relation
which its paved streets bear to it's un-
paved. The civil engineer is an impor-
tant functionary in the foundation of
municipal corporations in the United
States, and especially in such of them
| as are in the region west of the Allie
ghanies. But street pavements are ex-
pensive, and it is not until a city is
opulent enough to enjoy the luxury of
| big municipal debt and large credit
that the question of modern and i'm
proved pavements secures adequate at
tention.
In Boston, for instance, one of the old
cities, there are 312 miles of paved and
140 miles of unpaved streets. In Balti-
more there are BOG miles of paved and
only AZ miles of unpaved streets. In
Philadelphia there are 942 miles of
paved and 433 miles of unpaved streets.
But in the newer cities of the country
this condition is reversed, and Chicago,
which has 1000 miles of paved, has
800 miles of unpaved streets. In ST.
Louis the number of miles of paved
streets is $40 and of unpaved 500. In
Omaha there are SO miles of paved
streets and 450 miles of unpaved. In
Minneapolis, city which is growing
rapidly in population, there are SO
miles of paved and 800 miles of un-
paved streets. In Brooklyn there are
SIS miles of paved and 999.5 miles of
unpaved streets. The pavement of
Brooklyn streets, which is now SUBJ
1ect of local grievance and complaint,
shows a certain backwardness, which
it is expected the Greater New York
project will do away with by making
available the municipal credit neces-
sary for the issuance of bonds for new
pavements. At the present time
more than 260 miles of Brooklyn streets
more than one-haf the whole length
of paved streets-have the primitive,
unsatisfactory and unpopular cobble-
stones. There are 11O miles of streets
paved with granite, 60 miles, especial
ly in the neighborhood of the parks
and parkways, macadamized; A miles
paved with Belgium blocks, 40 miles
with asphalt, and one mile with still
more primitive method, practically un-
known to New York, though quite IA
miliar in Philadelphia-brick pave
ments. A meeting was held in the
annexed district of Brooklyn last week
for the purpose of agitating the ques-
ton of the improvement of the pave
ments of that city, but in this respect,
as in some others, Brooklyn, for OBJ
vious reasons, is much behind New |
York.
In this city there are no streets
paved with brick, and there is less than
of a mile of cobblestone
pavement in all. This is to be found
n one of the streets of the Ninth ward.
There is small section of town-a par
ion of one street-paved with wood,
out wooden pavements have long ago
,een voted failure in practical opera
ion in New York. The city has 1S5
niles of granite, 142 miles of macad-
lmized roads and streets, "a miles of
asphalt, and 80 miles of Belgium pave
nent. The city of Philadelphia, much
arger territorially than New York, has
81 miles of Belgium block pavement,
72 of asphalt, 152 macadam, 76 of vetri-
led brick, II of granolithic, three of
lag, and nearly 200 of co[bblestone.
The growth of an American city is 1
hown clearly by the number of miles
f improved pavement in streets, and
is believed by public works officials
hat after January 1, 1898, there will be
visible improvement in all the pave
nents of the city outside of it's present
Y. Sun.