The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1902-12-17
Mayor Parker Is Aroused Over
Sanitary Situation.
Intends to See If His Orders
Are to Be Disregarded.
is ALL ABOUT HARR.
Removal of Health Officer
Starts the Trouble.
Attack on Mayor by DIR. Davis
Intensifie Situation.

Strained relations which have for
some time existed between Mayor Park
er and the city board of health threaten
to come to an issue The mayor is like
ly to take a hand in the controversy
concerning Sanitary Policeman James
Harr
Harr was set to work guarding
smallpox case in Oakland. Sanitary
Sergeant vanderpool received a report
that Harr was neglecting his duties.
Acting under authority from City Physi-
clan Judd, Vanderpool relieved Harr
from duty as guard, and appointed E
w. Allen, an outsider. to do the work
Harr produced evidence that he had
done his work as guard faithfully.
Mayor Parker sides with Harr. and
intimates that he will see whether the
health officers can disregard his ORDERS
and override the city ordinances by ap-
pointing extra sanitary men. The Ordt-
nauces vest all the appointive power
with the mayor. The mayor insists that
the sanitary policemen have little or
nothing to do which is true, and that
they ought to be set to work guarding
cases of contagion, instead of putting
the city to the expense of extra guards.
Wen see whether the city physician
or anybody else but myself can appoint
extra men to do the work the sanitary
police ought to do said the mayor this
morning "As l understand it, Harr did
his work all right, and 1 can see no
reason for displacing him. And in gem
eral l might say also that these reports
from the city physicians office that all
of the men Parker appointed on the
sanitary force are incompetent are false.
The people in the wards affected have
made no complaints to me about these
men, and they seem to do their work
all right. But because I appointed them
of course the other fellows would like
To 10
doing their duty"
The dispute brings up the whole sques-
ton of sanitary policemen. and the re-
cent silent refusal of the mavor to dis
when requested to do so bv the board
of health.
The attitude of the mayor is peculiar.
for at one time he expressed himself as
sanitary men should be dropped Now
he continues to retain all the men in
spite of the board.
The reason for this is the personal at
tack which Dr. o. p. Davis. member
of the board. made on the mayor at a
board meeting some time since. Prior
to this meeting, it had been practically
agreed that four men could do the work
of the department, and arrangements
had been all but completed to let out
DR. Davis jumped into the game, and
made violent attack on Mayor Parker
and on all of the Parker appointees. He
said that the sanitary force should not
be reduced by a single man. but that
Mayor Parker should change all of the
men whom he had appointed
This attack made the mayor mad. and
he has since refused to make any
changes whatever. His attitude is that
if members of the board think that six
men are absolutely necessary that the
six men they have are just as good as
any.
There is noe enough work in the city
to keep six sanitary men busy. It would
bother three men to find ten hours
work a day, except III very busy times
during an epidemic. Under DIR. Judd's
extravagant management, there is no
desire to reduce the number of employees.
but there is to get rid of the Parker ap-
pointees.