The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-06-02
CHANEY CALLED TO TIME
City Engineer Says Plumbing Inspect
ing Is Being Neglected.

A sharp letter, almost in the nature
OF reprimand, written by City Engt-
neer McCabe to Plumbing Inspector Z.
a. CLANCY, is likely to cause consider
able excitement in city hall circles be-
fore the last is heard of it.
City Engineer McCabe notifies Mr..
Chaney that the bad condition of the
brick LaVement in some places is due
to the neglect of tn plumbing inspec-
ton oeIaI tTnent, and calls upon him to
enforce the laws more strictly.
AT the same time, Mr.. McCabe auth
or1zes Mr.. CLANCY to tell the plumbers
and the gas and water companies that
unless they comply strictly with the
city ordinances regulating the filing of
excavations and repair of pavements.
he will refuse to issue to them excaVa-
ton permits. The law gives the engi-
neer the right to withhold permits
whenever work is not properly done.
Without permit to eXcavate in the
streets, plumber would have to go
out of business, and the gas and water
companies would be crippled so seri-
ously that they would practically have
to go out of business.
Plumbing Inspector CLANCY occupies
a peculiar position. He is noninally an
independent city official, and head of a
department of his own. But as a mat
ter OF Iact, there is no official who has
so many different bosses as has the
plumbing inspector. He is bossed by
the plumbing board, by the city engi-
neer, and to some extent by the board
OF health. The worst of it is for the
plumbing inspector that he can't help
himself. The law ties him up to vari-
Gus existing officials.
The letter which City Engineer Nc
Cabe has sent to Plumbing Inspector
CLANCY is as follows:
E. o. CLANCY, Plumbing Inspector
Dear Sir: I wish to again call your
attention to the manner in which the
plumbers and gas and water companies
are reflling their excavations In some
instances & fa f0I
the party doing the work but reflects
on the department allowing such work
to be done.
In this connection wish to call your
attention to part of section 8, ordinance
No. 2446, which reads as follows: All
permits shall be issued in the name of
the city engineer. All work done under
said permits shall be done under the
direction of and to the satisfaction of
the city engineer. If any person, COM
pany or corporation shall persistently
fail, refuse or neglect to comply with
the provisions of this ordinance or any
reasonable orders or directions of the
city engineer in reference thereto, the
city engineer may refuse to issue any
further permits to such party.
Section of ordinance PAS provides
that it shall be the duty of the plumb
ing inspector, under the direction of the
city engineer, to superintend and in
spect all excavations, and I therefore
shall hold you responsible for any
doing the excavating.
The city in the last sixty days has
been to considerable expense in repair
ing brick pavements, Most of these
repairs were made necessary on account
of the shiftless manner in which back
filling has been done by the parties ex-
cavating under the pavement.
I wish you to take this matter up
with the plumbers, and gas and water
companies Immediately and impress
upon their minds the fact that if there
is not a decided improvement in the
class of work done by them in the
streets and alleys I will absolutely re-
fuse to grant them any more permits.
1 have argued and pleaded as long
as I intend to, and shall henceforth
pursue another course. There are in
stances which nave come under my
observation lately where a wagon load
of dirt has been hauled away after the
back filing had been completed All
of the dirt taken out must be put back
in the ditch, and the pavement relaid
to conform to the surrounding pave
ment by competent PAYERS. If they
can't do this they will have to stop
tearing up the pavement
There may be plumbers mere that do
the work as it should be done If so.
of course this letter does not refer to
them.