Omaha daily bee., 1902-10-03
AFFAIRS At SOUTH OMAHA
Crusade Against Old Frame Buildings
Within the Fire Limits.
POLICE OFFICERS WANT PATROL WAGON
Packing Houses stIII Making Invent
cries, but omciaIs and Employees
Refuse TO Give information
Magic City Gossip.

The old agitation to have the frame
buildings that exist within the FIRE limits
Of the city done away with seems to have
been renewed in earnest again. But this
time, instead OF simply discussing the mat
ter between themselves. the parties who
claim to be materially interested have
adopted another means Of doing away with
the different so-called FIRE traps"
The ordinances of the city prevent the
erection Of frame buildings within the FIRE
limits of the town, yet these laws seem
to be very lax as regards the destruction
and removal Of buildings in a tumble-down
condition. A great deal OF red tape is
necessary to remove even the tottering
walls Of a building after a fire has de-
vastated the entire building, and when the
building has only been slightly damaged,
yet is unable to stand unsupported, and Is
In no immediate danger OF falling, the ordi-
nance is silent.
Owners of real estate within the fire
limits claim that insurance rates are ex-
tremely high on account Of the fact that
these buildings are allowed to stand. They
state that the insurance rate on the build
ings along the south side Of N street, be-
tween Twenty-fouTth and Twenty-nfth
streets, is nearly doubled by reason Of the
little frame shanties that have been stand
ing in their present location almost since
the town was organized. Until the letter
brewery agreed to remove the little tumble
down place on the corner Of Twenty-fifth
and N streets, the city had always been
powerless to do anything with It. notwith-
standing that the place had been on fire
times without number, and the building
itself was almost in a state Of collapse.
Now these property owners are drafting
an ordinance which. they say, will enable
a board Of arbitrators to decide which
buildings are DANGEROUS. which board shall
allow Just compensation for the building
and empowering It to remove such struc-
ture.
Want n Patrol Wagon.
The police force seems determined to
have a patrol wagon in the city and are
raising a cry for one that seems to have
attracted the attention Of the city council.
II what the police say Is true. they are
compelled to get every drunken man or
suspicious character from away out at The
city limits to the Jail. and sometimes the
arrested party is unable to walk and they
are compelled to carry the offender to jail.
They say that the buggy now in use is
entirely too small to accommodate their
uetusf III hnN II 10 " NoAiobN "ASh
needed The worst. II q enc horse pntrol
can be secured. the police say that it's cost
can be more than made up in fines upon
drunken offenders who are allowed at the
present time to go at large on account OF
their inability to convey them and other
offenders.
Status of Packing Houses.
No change seems to have occurred In the
taking of the inventories at the packing
houses. At the Cudahy plant the work Of
taking inventory still continues. and it is
thought that a secret invoice is going on at
ell OF the different plants. What the OBJ
ject OF the inventories Is, or whether the
packing houses have reconsidered their de-
termination not to become tied up in a
merger Of all the plants, is unknown. En-
pIoyes at the different houses refuse to
discuss what is being done, some Of them
saying that their orders we're to talk to no
one as to what was being done within the
place where they are at work.
Drive Out FIimnammers.
The police say that they have succeeded
in Kidding the city OF the gang Of himlam-
mers that located here some lime ago. As
fast as a suspicious character showed up
on the streets he was promptly Jailed, and
the diligence of the police in this respect
seems to have had the effect Of discourage
ing the crowd, for they have apparently
abandoned the city.
Magic City Gossip.
Miss Lenagh Leigh OF Bloomfield, H.. is
here. the guest OF her brother, E. r.
Leigh.
Miss Mary Askren of Denver has taken
the position Of assistant nurse In the city
hospital.
w. A. Jackson. formerly of South Omaha
but now Of Creston, Ia, is visiting with
friends In the city.
Roscoe Rowley, who has been seriously
i'll for several days with an attack of brain
fever, was reported some better last even
ing.
The funeral OF Mrs. Peter Mulally will be
held this morning at s o'clock from st.