Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1899-10-15

From STAFF Correspondent of the Register
LONDON, October Elm few
months-just how soon nobody knows
what was one of the most famous
cities in the world is to be born again,
and christened over with its ancient
name, the City of Westminster. 1t will
get mayor, board Of aldermen and
board of councillors, and as complete
an outfit of individual municipal MAJ
chinery as if it were not to be cut out OF
the heart of Greater London.
The population Of Tie new-old city
is 10000 at night In the daytime it
is anywhere from 100000 to 100000,
depending upon the hour and the sea-
son. The city will contain more build
ings of historical and political import
ance to England than all of the rest OF
the country put together, and if its
newly recovered local pride were to
lead it to betake itself off the map the
English government would be wiped
out.
LONDON'S RESTORED RIVAL.
AS soon as the Queen sets her seal
on the measure, already passed by Par
lament, the City of Westminster will
be in position to sniff disdainfully
once more at it's 0fd-time rival, the
city of London. They were always at
swords points. Royal Westminster
was the home of kings and arrayed in
purple and fine linen. while London
was the abode of "shopkeepers" and
not good for much Of anything except
to make money and to be squeezed dry
from time to time fir the benefit of the
royal exchequer.
At last the "shopkeepers' patience
was exhausted, and they curbed their
kings and humbled the royal city which
became thereafter nothing but an an
omalous part of the vast mixed-up mess
of streets and buildings outside the
square mile that calls itself the city
of London.
How in the world that same mixed
up mess outside of London city gates
ever manage to keep itself in excel
lent municipal order is a mystery that
even DR.. Albert Shaw would be puZ-
zled to solve. The crooked little Size
streets of the metropolis, twisting and
turning, changing their names at every
corner or two, are not more complicat-
ed than the system of government that
has prevailed over all OF what is called
London, except the little city in the
centre. 1t was is if a few blocks in
the business section of some great
American city had been blessed with
Mayor and Aldermen, while the rest of
the town had to get along without any.
and had to look to the county for what
ever general govern ut it could get,
and managed its ICoal affairs by dis
trict boards, haphazard.
THE NEW GOVERNMENT.
So it was that Parliament at it's last
session provided way to bring order
out of chaos. They carved out the an
cient city of Westminster from the
mass, giving Il approximately its old
boundaries, and promised it practically
the same measure of individuality and
self-government that belongs to the
city of London, agreeing to restore to
1t the coveted name of City" The
rest of the metropolis outside of the
tin city of London was cut up into
twenty-seven other boroughs none of
which is labeled officially city, al
though each is to have Mayor and
Council, like Westminster.
1t will take long time to get the
machinery in motion, however, and the
first set of Councillors will not be elect
ed until November 1, 1900. The Coun-
cilors will elect the Aldermen, and the
Councillors and Aldermen-not more
than seventy in all-are to elect the
Mayors. 1t was the intention of the
government to make women eligible
for places as Councillors, but the old
fogies in the House Of Lords went out
of the way to choke that modern idea,
although the House of Commons voted
for it. and Premier Salisbury made a
speech for it. Sarah Grand of "Heav-