The Greeley tribune., 1905-05-11
Editor the Tribune

notice that our new marsha has
of late been quite active in arresting
wheelmen for riding on the side
walks, and | rather admire his
tactics in selecting the more promi-
nent offenders rather than the less
influential. If l were entrusted
with the duty of enforcing this par
ticular ordinance, and felt that l
must distinguish myself at all in
the matter that is the way | would
go about it. But of all the muni-
cipal regulations of the place ! know
of none so senseless and in fact in
excusable, and if ever law or ordi-
nance, anywhere, deserved to be
honored in the breach rather than in
the observance this is one OF them.
Riding on the sidewalk could and
should be regulated and restricted
but there is no good reason in a
little country town like this why it
should be entirely prohibited.
On the other hand look at the
genuine abuses that are every day
practiced in our midst and for which
there is no apparent remedy. Take,
now, this same matter of the side
walks, our council has been asked
time and again to enact some ordi-
nance to protect the grass parking
which one indeed is permitted, and in
no sense encouraged, but in no way
fostered.
For instance, l myself reside we'll
out toward the Elysian fields. and at
an expense of considerable money, and
labor as we'll, l have been foolish
enough to grade up my sidewalk and
line it with grass. But beyond me
live the barbarians of the north and
every now and then there is an in
cursion as of old, and their feet be-
ing very tender they tramp it the
whole length, and have time and
again killed 1t out: and it seems /
have no remedy. They even tell me
it is part of the sidewalk and they
have right to use it. Talk of
wheels now, l hail the wheel with
delight on my share of the walk, for
whether ridden by man or woman or
boy or girl they neither injure me,
nor themselves, nor the walk, nor
any pedestrian in the slightest de-
gree. Aud the wheels at least keep
Oft the grass.
And there are Others who resent
the attitude of the barbarian. An
acquaintance tells me that discrimi-
mating people have beaten path
diagonally across his lawn where to
save themselves the courtesy of right
angels, and perhaps three seconds in
time, they tramped through his
premises all the past winter. An
other citizen over in the southern
part of town has been obliged, for
years, to keep shield on his corner
to prevent that sort of an invasion.
But alas even this did not eventually
suffice, and | noticed that during
the past winter he was obliged to
put up line of wire fence clear
back across the center of his lawn to
the corner of his house. | mean to
ask him some day if now and then a
determined economist did not jump
hi iS 1,n rriar lar tI,nn
AT Mrs. Bisbee's corner opposite
the school house there is telephone
pole standing square on the curb
corner as established by the city.
But there was the opportunity to
save distance by crossing inside of
it; and this the beet hauler and the
pulp transporter did. l have esti-
mated that if they had been allowed
this method of ingress and ergess to
and from the city for period Of
several years each might have saved
forty rods in travel. But encroach-
ing more and more, first on public,
and then on private property they
were about to knock off the corner of
the widows house. and at last it be-
came necessary to put up row of
unsightly posts to keep the bar
barians in the highway in such
cases and for such purposes made and
provided.
In still another locality two
public spirited citizens at their
personal expense in grading the
street placed pipe under it
in order to leave no depres-
sion for the water to gather and
stand in, as it always does where an
open gutter is left for the drainage.
Then in order to define limits the
street commissioner put up two rocks
at the curb corners. And 10 the
enterprising time saving pulp trans
porter availed himself of this oppor-
tunity also and promptly drove his