The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1901-10-12
WILL NOT SIGN.
Mayor Hughes VetOes the New
Garbage Ordinance.
Done to Save the NOxi0us City
Dump.
MUST GET SOME MONEY
Board of Health Trying to Clear
its Skirts.
Needs 5000 to Make Good Its
Extravagances.
lust GET SOME MONEY

Mayor Hughes refuses to sign the
garbage ordinance passed at the last
meeting of the council, because, II he
should do 50, the present city dump,
owned and operated by the board OF
health, would be obliged to quit opera
lions.
In other words the board of health is
now conducting the city dump in such
a manner that the members of the
board would be liable to a fine of from
SIS to 500 if Mayor Hughes should sign
the new ordinance, and make it a law
Moreover, the board of health is try
ing to make enough profit out of the
dump to clear it's skirts of the charge
of wasteful extravaganza in spending
$500 or $500 in repairing the broken
down old dumping machinery, after the
city council had supposedly checked
this drain on the city's finances The
action of the mayor in refusing to sign
the new garbage ordinance is to help
the board accomplish this object.
The board says that if it be allowed
to continue the operation of the dump
for a month or so, it will perhaps be
able to pull itself out of the hole.
Mayor Hughes has therefore decided
to stand by" his board, and allow 1t to
maintain the present city dump, winch
is a nuisance, and would not be per
mitted to exist if the board of health
was a private corporation. The new or
dinance is so strict that the board OF
health does not dare to operate under
it. So Mayor Hughes is holding up the
ordinance, and will return II TO tne
council unsigned.
I'm sure it will be all right with the
council said Mayor Hughes today Il
will explain the situation to them They
will simply have to repasS the ord1-
nance at the meeting next month 1
am not opposed to the ordinance, but If
1 should sign it now the board of
health would have to stop operating the
Dump"
why don't you sign the ordinance
and thus compel the board of health to
obey the sanitary rules which the city
council has made" was asked
"Oh, no, no, nor exclaimed the mayor
excitedly. THAT wouldn't do at all.
Better let the board of health go ahead
the way it is going This ordinance
works, not to regulate the board OF
health
Therefore the board of health reigns
and the noxious city dump still exists;
Mayor Hughes says that the council
did not know what it was doing when
it passed the new ordinance at its last
meeting. He says that nobody suspect
ed that the new ordinance would inter
business. until he himself happened &c
discover it, just as he was about tc
| affix his signature. He instantly wiped
his pen, and saved his board of health
The new garbage ordinance is a good
| one 1t appears to be constructed II
| such a manner that the city can en-
| force its sanitary rules. 1t is Str1ct-St
| strict that the board of health declared
| that if it should become a law at once
| the city would have to go out OF the
| d1luping business.
| Some of the important provisions o
| the ordinance will be of interest. l
| says. among other things, that any per
| son, firm or corporation may build des
| locating works beyond the limits of tn
| city and within the fve-mile sanitar!
| jurisdiction, provided the city councl
| will give it a license to do so. Tn
| license fee is $50 year.
Any works so built shall be so con
| structed that they will emit no un
| healthful or disagreeable smoke, ga
or odor. They must at all times carr,
out the rules of the mayor, board o