Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-07-01

| der what characteristics John Weaver had
| brought to the mayors chair.
| Not until John Weaver, late in May. de-
| feated the plan of the republican organiza-
| ton to make a new lease for a period of
seventy-five years with the private corpora
| ton now running the gas works under the
| terms of the lease passed in 1897, did Phila-
delphians generally find out that John Wea-
yer is John Weaver-thats all. and that
| one of his marked characteristics is bris-
| Ting pugnacty.
| Nor any man who knows him justly
deny that John Weaver possesses persist
| ence. 1t. too, has ever been one of his
| distinguishing traits, and the manner In
| which he exercised it in contest with the
Paramount Park commission beginning
| shortly after his assuming the mayoralty.
| is illuminating.
A Typical Weaver Fight.
The commission. from time to time, has
| controlled plots of land outside the bounda-
ries of Paramount Park, but facing it. thus
| making these plots exceeding valuable as
| sites for dwelling houses, and 1t has been
| the policy of the commission to trade these
| plots for park area in sections where land
| IS not SO valuable; several acres of land
| have frequently been given in exchange for
| two or three building lots along the park
| front.
The commission was holding just such
| plot in the neighborhood of Dauphn and
| I'D streets, in the twenty-eighth ward,
| when it was decided to erect new school
| building in the ward, and the mayor, think
| ing to save the city money for the site,
| asked the commission of which he is an
| ex- ofcio member, to transfer to the board
| of education much of the Dauphin street
| plot as would be necessary to provide
| site for the school house. But the commits
| sion laughed at the mayor. THAT would
! 70 %
| at some later day" said the members, and
! anyway, the board of education has not
made a formal request that we do this
| thing you propose"
The mayor hunted up the chairman of
| the property committee of the board of ed
| ucatiOn, and when the park commission
held its next regular meeting before them
| came a request from the property commit
! tee for the transfer of the site.
Again the commission laughed. THE
board of education is not run by the prop
| erty committee" said the members so We
won't pay any attention to the request"
Mayor Said Nothing.
| The mayor said nothing, but when the
| commission next met it was to learn that
tn, board of education in the meantime had
| put in a request for the site The mayor
urged action, holding that the commission
could legally transfer the plot, but still the
| commission refused to act
So matters dragged along until there came
| a meeting At which the mayor was not
| present. Selling on this advantage, the
| men. bers present lost no time in deciding
against the mayors plan, and further
| agreed, since the mayor had been so insist
| ent. to advertise the whole plot for sale,
| and use the money thus secured for perma-
| nent improvements. In this fashion they
| fondly hoped they would put to end
| all efforts of the mayor to get the school
| site.
When the mayor heard of the commits
| sions move all he said was: II propose to
| have that plot for school purposes" Up to
| this time most of the ex-officio members,
| the heads of various city departments, APP
| pointees of the mayor, had been opposing
| him. Shortly before the next stated meet
| ing of the commission to be held these
men were called into the mayors office and
! undoubtedly were reminded by whose grace
| they drew fat salaries from the city treas
ury. At any rate, at the meeting when the
| mayors proposition was called up for re-
! consideration the eX-officio members
| changed front completely, and, with sew
eral of the other members who had also
| been won over to the mayors way of think
| ing by his threat to block all permanent
| park improvements. it was finally deter
| mined to set aside a site for school pur-
| poses and offer for sale the remainder of
the plot.
| 1t had taken the mayor almost a year to
| gain his object, and the remnant of the
| plot is still awaiting purchaser.
Making Friends His Enemies.
delphia has turned more of his old friends
| into inveterate enemies than has John
| Weaver, and many of these alterations oc-
| Cured months before the gas lease fight
came to a head in the air even.
| For example, when he was simply q COM
mercial lawyer John Weaver had client
| who wanted to sell to the city for park pur-
| poses plot of ground on the northern
| boundary of the city, near Logan station.
| On account of the extreme length of the
| plot and its scant depth it was unsuitable
for building lots. but quite satisfactory
| from the park viewpoint.
| Weaver entered into negotiations with the
| proper authorities, but there was some bag
| Cling over the price, which, he held. was
not remuneratiYe enough, and finally the
deal was declared off.
Not long after Weaver became mayor
! councils passed an ordinance setting aside
| a certain sum of money for the purchase OF
| this plot which John Weaver, lawyer had
| tried to sell ito the city. In due course Of
| time the ordinance was sent to him for ac-
| ton. and those who knew of his previous
| relations between the. owner of the lot ana
the mayor winked knowingly and declared
| that the mayors action would certainly be
| highly favorable to his old clients inter
| ests. They were greatly surprised, there
| fore, when the ordinance was returned to
| concils with the mayors veto and the COM
| ment: price too high As for the pots
| owner he has been a bitter enemy of the
mayor ever since.
On the other hand. the mayor has not
been AFRAID TO Slanu Dy MS tllenuS WLlen
| he has thought them to~be in the right.
Long before the mayor, in order to de-
| feat the gas lease. was obliged 10 GUST from
| office Director of Public Works Costello and
| Director of Public Safety Smyth, numerous
| organizations had made repeated and vehe-
| ment demands that he remove S-nyth, the
charges being that he was using the police
| and firemen for political purposes and let
| ting the city become a sink of iniquity. To
all these demands and recriminations the
mayor turned deaf ear and sturdily de-
| Tended the accused director. who had been
| one of his assistant district attorneys, both
| in private and public.
| On one occasion, when the mayor and
| Smyth were guests at a Hibernian society
| dinner the mayor asked to present his
| director with police baton made of black
| thorn
| AS he arose to make the presentation, he
| caught sight of one of his and the directors
| bitterest critics-Judge James Jay Gordon
| and, looking Gordon squarely in the eyes as
| he held out the baton to Smyth, the mayor
| said
| Take 1t, Mr.. Smyth, and If necessary.
| don't hesitate to use 1t on the heads of your
| enemies