The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-06-10

The Journal has, from time to time, been
importuned ito kick about the nasty
streets" Some of the importunate citizens
are Democrats. 1t has been told times
without number that the streets are so
| filthy that they are disgrace to the city.
| The one response is that the whole matter
| is in the hands of the mayor and his boards,
who have the best means of knowing the
conditions and of applying remedy.
1t seems, however, that the parties who
| have the contract for sweeping the streets
| have heard of the general dissatisfaction
| and have given reasons why the work is not
| done better than it is. At the outset the
| spokesman of the contractors says that the
! filth of which people complain is dropped
| in the streets after the sweeping. This
would seem reasonable, but there are peo-
pie who voted for Mr.. Taggart who indig-
nantly affirm that the little sweeping that
| is done does not remove the filth in the
streets just before the alleged sweeping
| process. since little more is done than to
pulverize the filth and fill the air with it.
| to be deposited in the houses which have
| open windows.
| The Journal does not undertake to enter
| into the merits of this controversy. 1t may
however, be allowed to remark that if the
| the filth complained of is deposited after
the sweeping, it could be removed by twice
| as many sweepings. If the sweepings are
worse than useless, as many affirm, the
mayor and his board could bring a suit
| against the contractors and their bonds
men for breach of contract, and the grand
jury could indct the sweepers as a nuisance.
| If the spokesman of the contractors has
been correctly reported he admits that the
| work is not we'll done, but, in defense, as
serts that he does more sweeping for the
small compensation which he receives than
! did the monopoly which controlled the pneu-
matte machines In effect, he says that the
present contractors remove two-thirds Of
| the filth for one-fourth of the money for
merly paid for removing the whole of it.
The Inference is that, if duplicate contracts
were given, the entire accumulation of dirt
might be removed for half the money paid
to the machine monopoly.
1t is unfortunate that the contractors had
not known that the inspectors of sweeping
would affirm, in the same article, that the
| sweeping was never better done than it now
is If they had waited for this vindication
they would not have confessed, as they
have to the inadequacy of their work.
! The Journal does not even know the names
| of the inspectors of sweeping, because it
would be an endless task to keep roll of
| the various inspectors connected with the
| Taggart regime; it makes bold to say in
| behalf of the inspectors of sweeping
| that they are experts in dirt The facility
with which they down the silver push
| and anti-Taggart crowds in primaries at
| tests it. Furthermore, if the inspectors OF
| sweeping declare that the streets are swept
and garnished as a house floor, it must be
so; and the hundreds of excellent citizens
who have been averrng the contrary al
ways with heat and often in explosives sug
| costing blaspheny, are the victims of a
| contagious alteration of the imagination or
! they are the victims of some expert in hyp-
notism who is the malignant foe of the con-
| scientious high-mindcd and strictly bust
ness administration of Mayor Taggart.