The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-06-27
ITS DEATH KNELL.
Second Ward Sewer Remon-
STRANGE Is Filed Today.
Large Enough to Prevent Con-
structi0n of Sewer.
OVER 100000 FEET.
That Much Property Represent
ed on the Paper.
City Engineer Will Check Up
the Names.
OVER 100000 FEET.

At 10 o'clock this morning, the
monster protest against the Second
ward sewer was filed with the city
clerk, and if the bulk of the document
indicates anything, the friends of the
proposed sewer project might as well
go and write the sewers obituary.
If all the people whose names are
on this remonstrance had legal
right to sign, there is approximately
1O,OOO,OOO square feet of property
represented on the remonstrance. This
is plenty to beat the sewer. OF course
this will no doubt be cut down some
hauls the document and strikes off
all the duplicate signatures, and the
signatures which for some reason are
not valid 1t will be a long job to
do this.
There are about SIS different
signatures on the remonstrance, which
is combination of a dozen different
circumstances. These signatures
represent approximately $500 lots.
Besides this there are ten or a dozen
tracts of various sizes. Most of them
comprise at least four lots, and some
a good deal more.
The signature of the Santa Fe Rail
way company occupies a prominent
place on the first page of the remon-
STRANGE 1t is put there with a red
rubber stamp, countersigned by H. u.
Nudge. It represents 1912 lots, or
about 100000 square feet of resi-
dent property.
Among other residents who sign for
large blocks of property are these:
$50 lots. Joab Mulvane.
los lots. J. r. Mulvane, for the In
vestment Land & Lot company.
100 lots. ]. w. Farnsworth.
81 lots, z. R. Taylor & Sons.
80 lots, Mrs. Mile Klein Nichols.
20 lots. Mrs. Josie Webb.
80 lots. E. w. Rake.
25 lots, A. Bergen.
% lots, A P Benson.
$40 acre. Frank Curry.
rms remonsuance viii come before
the city council at its meeting on July
1, and will be referred to the commit
tee on sewers. The committee on sewers
will then refer it to the city engineer
for the purpose of ascertaining whether
the remonstrance contains the sigma
lures of the owners of a majority of
the square feet of land in the proposed
district owned by resident property
owners. A nonresident has no right to
sign the remonstrance and only the
signatures of those in whose name the
property stands on the county records
are eligible The city engineer must
first find out how much resident prop
erty there is in the proposed district.
This in itself is a big job, and requires
a careful study of the county records
He must then take up every one of the
675 signatures on the remonstrance,a and
see if the county records credit them
with the ownership of the property
which is signed for by them. All in
valid signatures are stricken from the
petition.
There is not much doubt, however.
that this remonstrance is strong enough
to accomplish the purpose 1t was IN
tended to accomplish. There are several
different forms of renonstrance includ-
ed in the big bunch of documents
which has all been bound into one fold
er and filed. One form of remonstrance
!
1--WE the undersigned property owners
in the Second ward sewer most cordial
/ ly demonstrate against said sewer Tor
/ the following reasons:
I'VE are eternally opposed to dry
I'VE are not in a financial condition
to pay for it.
ut is impracticable at the present
4 time"
The remonstrance which was signed
4 by the Santa Fe management and by
| a great number of other petitioners,
| is as follows:
I'VE, the undersigned owners of
4 property in the proposed sewer dis
! trict in the Second ward of the city
of Topeka. where it is proposed to
! construct a sewer, do hereby respect
! fully demonstrate against the con-
| structiOn of such sewer at the present
/ time for the reason that such sewer
will not be of any substantial benefit
( to our property for a long time to
4 come, and the expense of such sewer
which will be taxed against our prop
erty will be a serious burden to US.
MANY of us are paying for our
/ homes upon the installment plan and
are not able to assume any new bur
dens. Nearly all of US are not con-
nected with the waterworks and are
not likely to be connected for a con-
| siderable time to come Only one
water main runs east of the Santa Fe
tracks on Fourth street, and there is
no water in the district which lies
north Of the Santa Fe tracks east of
/ Branner street south of the river.
"Our property generally is upon
sandy ground, the nature of which is
amply sufficient for drainage purposes
and none of us would have use for q
sewer for domestic purposes"