The San Francisco call., 1898-10-19

The project to cleanse the city in the vicinity of Dupont and California streets of vice and moral pollution Is receiving the support of the public, but not the support of the city officials. Father Otis of St. Marys Church, when asked if he knew anything about the ordinance clos ing the streets, said:
 do. and very much that is hard to be ex- plained. We have taken an interest Tn the closing of Bacon place because 1t has direct influence upon the work which St. Mary s Park Association has undertaken besides being an open violation of the law and in opposition to decency and morality. We have taken G1,e Eo1e than an interest; we have taken action some three or four weeks ago, after consulting iegai authorities, we were informed that Bacon place, appearing upon the official maps of the city, was in consequence public street. and. there fore, no individual has right to obstruct thls public street by erecting gates or other ea, oO stacles. MT. Shadburne called at the office or Superintendent of Streets Ambrose and re- quested him to remove the gates, as they were there in violation of the law. Mir. Ambrose was absent at the time. His deputy promised to lay the matter before him on his return and volunteered the assurance that he would un- doubtedly take action at once. We waited a few days. No action was taken. MT. Shad- burne. our representative. called several times at MT. Ambroses office, but failed to meet him. After a week or ten days called MT. Ambrose by telephone and asked him if he intended to take action or not. 1 simply wanted an answer from him-yes or no. He expressed himself as willing to do so, but that he was not certain that Bacon place was public or private, ana he wanted time to consider it. l requested him to give me direct answer whether he would act or not act. He said he could not. bade him good day. Since then he has taken no action, and evidently, from his standpoint, the question is one that cannot be decided In a month It stated that If Mayor Phelan would give the order to have the gates re- moved it would be acted upon. Why public officials cannot take action in a case in which their duty seems clear without receiving orders from the Mayor to do so Is something cannot understand. Mayor Phelan has shown himself to be in favor of every movement Tor the inn provement of the city, and we honor him and acknowledge our debt of gratitude for his as- sistance in the work of eradicating the nuisance which has so long defiled the fair name of San Francisco.
 We did more than appeal to the Superintend- ent of Streets. We called the attention of the Society for the Suppression of Vice to the state of affairs existing on Bacon place ana re- quested it to take action against the open vice Mir Kane at took an active interest In the matter. We concluded first to ask the Chief of Police to take action. As repre- sentative of St. Mary's Park Association MT Kane called upon Chief Lees and asked him to abolish the nuisance he stated that the existence of public vice in the immediate neighborhood of the condemned property had q retarding effect upon the purchase of the nIace and declared that St. Mary and Quincy streets would be reopened. The Shiet reIuse9 to take any action He declared that ne WouIo not be made tool to depreclate tne T,tIue 9a 3s the adjoining property. and toIo MI, MI hane II inc matter was to be discussed to tell the prln- cipais ce to come to see him. MT, Shadburne called upon the Chief and requested hlIn t9 act in accordance with the law to eI9se & rIe paauI paIt because it was standing scandal; IHe ts Lesuis of the interview was that the ChleA ieiuSeu