The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1905-05-30
vi.
Nm 1876 the most squalid district in

Scr1peus ny GOuuSSlOL w n1tc II aA SiV-
Quent plea before the town council for
improved conditions:
'It is not easy to imagine the dreary
desolation which acre after acre in the
very heart Of the town presents to
those who VIII take the trouble to Wis
1t it. Little else Is to be seen but bow
ing roofs, tottering chimneys, tumble
down and disused shops, heaps of
bricks, broken windows and coarse
rough pavements, damp and sloppy. In
one case / found a house Of only two
rooms, about nine feet square and six
and half feet high, and in this novel
lived husband, wife and four children.
Amid such deplorable conditions r.
600 of our fellow townsmen are spend
ing their lives, with no bright thing
about them and nothing Of joy or glad
ness in their homes"
Joseph Chamberlain was then mayor
OF Birmingham, and the city had not
yet attained the proud distinction OF
the metropolis Of midland England, nor
had that brilliant young man climbed
far toward his present fame. He had
evinced marked talents in municipal
affairs and was an enthusiastic advo-
cate of public ownership-so much so,
In fact, that his political enemies de-
clared him a Socialist. 1t was due to
his efforts and energy that Birming-
ham had purchased the gas plant and
the waterworizs from private owners,
and the success which followed these
ventures gave him prestige Of which
he wRs not slow to take advantage.
The desolate tract populated with thou
sands Of miserable persons aroused his
sympathy, but he was more than So
cial reformer; he was one Of the
shrewdest business men in Great Brit
ain. He surveyed the field as gen
eral does one of coming battle. He
formulated a plan, one SO startling in
Its originality, so radical in its scope
and SO stupendous in its magnitude
that his friends and supporters hesi-
tated when he proposed 1t to them.
Mr. Chamberlain urged that Birming-
ham proceed to purchase every foot Of
land in this contaminated area, and he
included in it fifty or more acres prac-
tically in the center Of the city. He
proposed to ignore all existing street
lines and to devote large percentage
Of the land to broad thoroughfares. He
proposed to demolish every house in
this district, to lease part Of the site
to reputable landlords who would
erect dwellings under the supervision
Of the city authorities and to lease the
remainder Of the land for business
purposes. He admitted that for years
this investment would impose burden
on the taxpayers, but contended that
in the end it would prove splendid
investment. More than that, the Grad
zcation Of the slum area would increase
the value Of every foot of property in
the city.
The future statesman formally intro
duced the matter to the town council
and, in one Of the most mastery
speeches of his career, urged Its adop-
tion He claimed that Birmingham
could never aspire to the commercial
supremacy of its natural territory so
long as it permitted thousands Of its
townsmen to live in misery.
IT believe" he said, that the town
and, above all, the next generation,
will have cause to bless the town coun-
ell Of Birmingham If it carries out
this scheme and exercises what | ven
ture to call sagacious audacity. We
know how from time to time upon our
coast vast operations have been under
taken by which large tracts Of land
have been redeemed from the sea, and
what was formerly the sandy bed of
the ocean has been converted into smil-
ing fields. say that no less merito-
rious and no less necessary is the work
which we are undertaking in this In
land city by which we hope to wrest
from the fell grasp of disease, misery
and crime whole populations which
would otherwise be abandoned to them.
II heard It said the other day that
the position OF these people was their
own fault Their fault? Yes, it is le-
gaIly their fault If they steal, and when
they do we send them to Jail, and If
they commit murder we hang them for
1t. But IL the members Of this council
had been placed under similar condi-
tions--lf from infancy we had grown
up in the same way-does any Of us
believe that he should have run no risk
Of the hangman or the jail? For my
part have not sufficient confidence in
my Gym inherent goodness to believe
that anything can make Roadway
against such frightful conditions as
have described. The fact Is It Is no
more the fault Of these people that
they are vicious and Incorporate than
It is that they are stunted, deformed.
debilitated and diseased. The one is
due to the physical atmosphere. The
moral atmosphere as necessarily and
surely produces the other. 1t is the
only occasion for which ever wish 20
live beyond the ordinary term Of hui
man life in order to see the results OF
these Improvements and to hear the
blessings which win be showered on
those who have the courage to begin
them"
The above is brief extract from
speech which aroused the staid Biz
mingham councillors and aldermen to
enthusiasm, as BY unanimous vote
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