Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1902-08-30
ENGLISH CITIES WHICH MANAGE YH BUSINESS 4

lngs Is a system Of arcades which run
here and there through them from
street 10 street. These are beautiful
structures rooted with iron ana glass,
forming large passageWays containing
stores as good as YOU viii find In Eng
land. The interior walls are OF tiles
and the fronts Of the stores are plate
glass
These arcades are filed with shoppers
at the busiest times of the day, ana
they form a promenade and visiting
place for the people. They are extreme
BY light. Indeed, | took some snapshot
photographs within them which have
come out very well.
In my strolls about the arcades | saw
many evidences Of the American inya-
sion one shop was filled with Ameri-
can candy, another had tomato hetchup
from Philadelphia, sweet pickles and
baked beans from Baltimore, and a
third Jars OF apple butter from Pitts
burg and canned soups from Chicago.
The most important sign that met my
eye as / came up from the new station
To the junction Of Corporation street
and New street was that OF the New
York Life Insurance company and the
hcXt thing | saw was the American
iIag waving from the third story Of
bls pink building further down the
way, with the words United states
Consulate on the window behind II.
A little later on ! walked into the con-
silate and spent an hour or SO there
81 IN MIR. Marshall Halstead, who Is
Uncle Sans consul and business rep
rCsentative in this industrial section.
lie was free enough IN expressing his
opinions about American trade, but
said ihat he could not allow himself
To- be- quoted as the Birmingham peO-
Elc have become 80 sensitive on the
sui iect Of the American invasion thai
"a interview upon such lines would
do more harm than good.
IN A CITY GAS OFFICE,
Il was In company with Mr. Halstead
that l visited the city gas office in tie
Council house 20 learn something about
how these corporations manage their
gas works. | find that nearly all the
cities Of England are now gradually
buying the gas plants. Two hundred
and thirty Of them have already done
3d. aud they are extending the service
so that the poorest man can have his
gas at low cost
We first entered the gas counting
rCcm, where we found clerks taking IN
money from the consumers, and from
there went on into the sales room,
where all sorts of gas fixtures from
gas tips TO gas stoves, are sold. The
Birmingham Gas company, which col
trolled the business when the city de-
cidcd to own it, had fixture store and
the corporation bought this with the
liant. The prices of the fixtures are
about the same as In the United States,
but the terms Of payment are much
more lenient. The city will sell you
gas fixtures on time, and 1t win even
rent them out for a consideration.
GAS COOKERS FOR A DOLLAR A
YEAR
Il the Birmingham man does not care
to buy gas stove the city will put H.
one for him AT a rent Of cents a week
on N.0i cents year, or he can have a
larger stove for cents per week A
small gas boiler about as big around as
a tea plate. with little holes about the
edge, is furnished for nothing.
The gas for poor people IL largely dis
tributed through penny in the-slot me-
ters. These meters are like the ordinary
gas meters save that each has hole
Ia the top, Dropping a penny in the
mole opens a valve, which let's out
enough gas to run three burners for
three hours. The gas can be turned On
and of. so that the economical man can
burn less and have his lights for per-
haps ] cent per night The meter Is
connected also with gas stove, and
am told that l penny will give enough
gas to cook dinner for family.
There are other meters so arranged
that you can put a shilling In the slot
and get a proportionately largeramourt
OF gas. These meters are used to some
extent by the better class families. /
ro;lced especially that an the flexible
connecting tubes in this gas office were
of American make. ana the manager
told me that the city bought all such
supplies from the United States.