The record-union., 1899-10-01
A LOCAL QUESTION THAT WILL
NOT DOWN.

Lie 1ctSL QudI lC1 VI Il SGAAl0A
rate of taxation is much lessened and
will probably be sent still lower. Build
ing is going on in almost every sec
tion of the city. There is a push III
all directions towards the outer boun-
daries of the city, and a rapidly grow
ing demand that must be needed for
betterment of street conditions.
The simple fact is, and it cannot be
truthfully denied, that some of our res
idence streets are in a deplorably bad
condition. Those gravelled long ago
have in all these years been wearing
away until there is no longer a true
surface, but merely coarse unpacked
gravel and large loose stones. Some
others which were gravelled but over
a boulder substructure, have now ex-
posed the latter. Such streets are abb
solutely inferior to the poorest cobb.ed
highway.
As an example of the first class take
Sixth street south from l., and Of the
0CSO4lQ S10oS lchC ~ SlACCI cast 4OiAA
Fifteenth. Still another order of
streets have fair gravel surfacing, but
are without cutters, rendering it al
most impossible to clean them even
If there was a fund for the purpose.
OF this class P street is a notable ex-
ample of malconstruction.
yNbiIa raoonStr1,o+iop of c+rco+c ic a
great necessity, it is not likely that
very much will be accomplished in
that direction speedily, since under the
law abutting property has to pay the
cost, and it's ownership can determine
the time when improvement shall be
made, if ever.
But there is another direction in
which there should be Improvement
that is not dependent upon petitions
or protests of property owners. Refer
ence is had to the cleaning of residence
streets. The subject has been the
cause Of bitter complaining and Of
much shame for years, but to this date
Sacramento has taken not a single step
In advance in the matter We are now,
however, approaching time when
there must be provided distinct fund
for the sole purpose of cleaning every
residence graded street in the city at
least once a week.
AS matters now are there is no such
fund. The very best the Superintend-
ent of Streets can do is to squeeze from
the general appropriation for streets
and sewers enough occasionally, about
twice a year. to. send men and teams
through the streets to dig from the
cutters the accumulated filth washed
and blown in from the street crowns.
Occasionally he is able by ''scrimp-
ing to clean off deposits from macad-
amized streets, but the infrequency of
that work is such that all the macad-
am streets are suffering severely In
winter most of them are coated from
one to three inches in depth with mud
dy filth which crowds to and clogs the
drains. 1t retains the water also
which passes down to the substructure.
and sinking and degeneracy of the
costly street is the consequence.
A careful estimate discloses that
there are between eight and ten tons of
animal droppings daily deposited upon
the residence streets alone. There the
offense remains to be dried in the sun
or dissolved by sprinkled water and
washed into the cutters; or as is mainly
true. to be ground into harmful and
disgusting dust. and blown into the
air to be breathed by the people,
There is neither provision for clean
ing up this refuse nor direction to do
so, and the Superintendent of Streets
very properly and justifably excuses
himself on the ground that he has not
a cent for the purpose. Yet the ami
NAL droppings are but a small part of
street deposits, as any observer may
take note. Vegetable filth of danger
Gus character is to be found in nearly
all the cutters, cast off clothing, 1e-
jected utensils, paper and waste. to-
gether with garden cuttings are depos-
tied upon the highway, and there re-
main until the semi-annual dig out
takes place.
We expend a good many thousands
of dollars for the daily, indeed the con-
slant sweeping of the bituminized
streets 1t is an absolute necessity.
Let any one suppose these latter
streets to be neglected for say three
days, and the amount of deposition
upon them and the resulting offense
can be easily fancied. Yet it would
not be very much greater than the
actual daily deposits upon the un-
cleaned residence streets.
Alameda is a smaller city than Sac
ramento. 1t has many more miles of
macadamized streets; indeed about all
the highways Of that place are ma
cadamized. AS rule the streets aye
wider than with US. They are all
cleaned however constantly, and there
is never there the reproach of any ac-
cumulated filth. OF course there is
greatly less traffic upon Alameda
streets. However, relatively consid-
cred, the business ability to bear the
burden and the benefit in each case
compared, and we are just as able to
clean our residence streets as Ala
media is to keep hers in excellent con-