The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1899-01-28

does not pass through the hands of the
[! treasurer.
The total assessed valuations In 1898
! were s2252s. 1893, and the assessed taxes
| S450.56s.0G. The tax rate is /. per cent.
| The assessor says the assessments are base d
| upon about two-thirds OF the value OF the
| property. The figures given include school
! taxes.
| The total assessed valuations in Calves
| ton are about 2s.000.000; tax rate, in
elusive of school tax, SIR assessed taxes
| for fiscal year 1898, approximately
| s420, 900. YE ls- 1's.l,fs s4 h.
| Houston las not carried anything 10
sinking funds TO provide for payment OF
outstanding bonds. Galveston applies a
certain percentage of her annual taxes to
| the sinking funds for bonds. These re-
spective practices give Houston larger
proportionate amount OF taxes for current
expenses and improvements than the Cal
weston council is able to devote to like
purposes. E.ss
1t will be seen that while Houston has
done considerable In the way Of paving and
has some very line streets, the greater por-.
ton of the work Is of recent date. Until O.
few years ago the city was paved prinL
cipally with good intentions.
The sewer. water and gas pipes are being
relaid on streets that are next TO be paved
so that the pavement will not have to be
disturbed after II is laid. Work is now1in7
progress on Main street in the business
district The old rough stone pavement Is
TO come UP and asphalt Is to be used In its
place.
The general appearance of the paved
streets is good, but they do not seem to be
swept any oftener, II as often. as the
streets OF Galveston. The Drainage of
Houston Is much easier, accomplished than
that of Galveston, and az n consequence.
there is but little water standing on the
streets. But there are some patches even
in the CUTTERS OF tho paved streets TINS
unpaved streets, owing to the black soil,
are badly cut up In winter. and are fully
as bad, IL not worse, than the streets OF
Galveston.
The streets as rule are clean. Little
filth or waste matter is to be seen. This is
probably due In part to the fact that the
city has general sewerage plant, aud that
connections are compulsory. Probably the
absence of alleys has something to do with
It. Citizens are required TO place their gar
bage in barrels on the sidewalk, where the
garbage wagons get 1t. The incentive to
throw 9Th In front Of ones house is not
great, but II there is alley IL is not
treated with so much consideration as the
street II is stated, however. that the san
itary regulations of Houston are very rig
idly enforced and the disposal OF garbage
other than according to regulations is not
permitted
Houston is pretty well provided with
sidewalks. Many Of them are of asphalt.
either side and are we'll kept. Some of
them are little too narrow. but they are
much better than the general run of side
walks and paths In Galveston.
The above covers some of the ground
that was gone over yesterday sonic OF the
observations made and the matters dis
cussed. Mayor Brashear has promised
further information which was not read
lily available yesterday, and this will
doubtless be in hand before the committee
makes its report TO the city councif on
Monday after next, 1t will then be able
to connect the facts and to institute some
comparisons between the resources of the
two cities for improvements, as well MS to
report upon the ACCESSIBILITY of adopting
any OF the various kinds of pavement in
spected.
Note-The above from tho Galveston
News Is reproduced as being OF Interest In
showing the Impressions gained by the
Galveston committee In reference to Hous-
tons street improvements. The article is
in the main correct but one or two In
accuracies are likely to mislead
Engineer Millers statement in reference
to the durability of the surface of the as
phalt pavement was evidently msunder-
stood by The News representative.
Mr.. Millers statement was that statistics
in other cities where asphalt pavement has
been In use for a number of years show
that so per cent of the total wearing sur
face mot the entire wearing surface) will
have TO be replaced in eighteen years.
Again. there is no contract existing be-
tween the city and the asphalt companies
that have laid pavements here guarantee
ing after Eve years to keep the pavement
in repair for cents yard per year for
the entire surface OF the pavement
Such a proposition. however, was em-
bodied in one of the bids recently submit
ted for the pavement of Main street but
the bid embodying this proposition was
not considered favorably by the board of
public works.