The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1900-05-08
CHIEFS WAGON
FOR POLICE USE.
Officer Ertle Hauls In Some
Sunday Morning Jags.
SMALL BOY AND SOME MATCHES
Causes Repetition of the Old, Old story =
A Big Barn Goes Up In Smoke as a
Result OF the Combination News
From the West End.
Special to News Democrat.


Massillon, May 6.-This city is proud
of its fire chiefs wagon. 1t is a modern
vehicle built expressly to carry the
chief to fires. One of the thrilling
sights following an alarm is to see
Chief Burkel apparently drop from
the skies-so suddenly does he appear
at the engine house-and then skurry
away behind a fine horse which is a
record beater. Everybody likes to. see
the chief on the road to a fire. 1t looks
as though the entire fire department
were strictly up to date, but 1t isn't.
Citizens wait until the chief disappears
in a cloud of dust and then they go
back to work before the arrival of the
anti-bellum relics from the "outside"
houses.
Sunday the chiefs wagon made an en-
tirely novel run. A pair of steel work.
ers who had done their best to drink up
all the liquor in the city, Saturday
evening, continued their libations Sun
day morning and were along toward
that period where all knowledge of
things in this mundane sphere was
| rapidly departing, when officer Ertle
put in an appearance. The men sized
up the officer and concluded he was
desired to locate them. So they spread
themselves out on six feet of Richville
avenue lawn and gurgled to the police
man to do his worst. Ertle canvassed
the neighborhood for a wheelborrow
and failing to discover one, was about
to give up in despair when an idea
chased itself under the officers number
eight helmet. He sent for the fire
chiefs wagon and in iiffy two inebri-
ated steel workers were yanked off the
grass and driven to the city prison.
Each was made to pay for the privilege
when arraigned before Mayor Wise
| this morning. Now the firemen are
wondering If the fire chiefs cart is to
be used regularly as patrol wagon for
the police department.
| BARN BURNED DOWN.
A small boy and few matches caus-
ed a blaze in Greene street at noon
Sunday. The eight years old son Of
Frank Hardgrove, who resides in the
street named, in some manner procured
matches and was playing with them in
| the barn on his fathers premises when
a quantity of inflammable materials
ignited. The flames spread rapidly and
| the barn was soon going up in smoke
An alarm from box No. 25 called the
fire department but when the firemen
arrived there was little left but a hot
spot on the ground. The loss is cover
ed by insurance.
| KICKING UP A DUST.
Many residents of East Main street
above Cedar street are up in arms
against their neighbors whom they in
sist will not pay their share of the
cost of sprinkling the street. During
the warm dry weather of the past few
weeks the dust is almost unbearable and
the costly furnishings of the swell
homes along the thoroughfare must
necessarily suffer. The city sprinkler
keeps the street wet down as far as
Cedar street and then the valves are
closed and the wagon meanders back
down town. Many residents of the
street want the service but they do not
feel incline to pay for more than their
foot frontage. They are willing to pay
well for what they get but are naturally
not willing to pay for what some other
fellow gets. 1t is this other fellow who
is causing the trouble. He seems will
ling to take the dust that comes his
way without murmur. He seems
rather to enjoy it, for when the man
who is willing to pay for sprinkling
reproaches him for not falling into line
1t is said the dust-lover gives the anti
dust resident merry ha ha and keeps
on munching his mud. All this makes
the sprinkling cart cohorts mad and
they are beginning to break into print
to tell what mean cuss the other fellow
is. The "wets," as those in favor of
sprinkling call themselves, are endea-
voring to have the council pass an
ordinance requiring the sprinkling of
East Main street beyond Cedar and
collecting the cost for same per foot
front from the property owners, who
upon failure to pay will have the
amount charged to them on the tax
duplicate. The "drys' will fight any
such measure tooth and nail. In the
meantime the dust is being kicked up
by other forces than the wind and
the outcome will be watched with con-
siderable interest by the neighbors on
this side of Cedar street who are con-
tented with their daily soaked thor
oughfare, and are amused at the saffron
hued clouds that lower about the brown
stone fronts further up the street.
LOUIS ]. BLAKE.