The Richmond palladium. (Richmond, Ind.) 1906-1907, 1906-04-27
Publishers Press1


San Francisco, April 26.- For the
first time since the earthquake and
the resultant fire, the electric lights
are burning in the city of San Fran
cisco tonight. True there are not a
great many of them, but as an evil
dence of the great work of regenera-
tion that has already been done, the
sight of the few in the suburbs and a.
long one or two of the principal thor
ough-fares, and especially in the vi
cinity of the Oakland ferry house. is
an inspiration to all of those whose
confidence in the future OF the me
tropolis of the Golden Slope has
never been shaken.
Clearing Away Ruins.
Great work was done today in
clearing away ruins and in preparing
for the rebuilding or the "City Beau
tiful", as former Mayor Phelan and
his associates on the Citizens Com
mittee declare this city will be when
II rises triumphant from its present
ruin. A great part of the city on the
outskirts of the ruins and in the un-
burned sections resembled a. boom
town on the frontier.
~ Temporary Offices Erected.
Temporary offices of all kinds were
being erected, talk of real estate
booms filled the afr in the board
shacks that have been hastily thrown
up in vacant lots, all manner of busl-
ness was being transacted, and about
every inhabitable residence in the
city bore a sign on it, showing that
some business was being placed back
upon a working basis therein. One
rather unusual vocation is evidenced
by the sign seen in many parts of the
city: "Stoves detached from houses
and erected in the Streets The tide
of exodus has slackened considerably
and everyone is out of the city who
expects to go. BY order of the mayor
and his committee the railroads VIII
again begin to charge passenger rates
to all those who leave the city. An
official estimate is that San Francisco
has lost, temporarily at least, 20O,-
600 of her population, but unofficially
. a statement is made that If the truth
were told $4,000 could easily be add
ed to this total This fact is causing
the officials grave concern, inasmuch
as while many of those who have gone
are sure to return, labor famine is
imminent for a time at least. Former
Mayor Phelan in discussing this sub
ject today said:
There will be more work in San
Francisco this year than there are
people in all California to do it, and
we will all have to hustle"
Cook in the Streets.
Every single resident who is eating
cooked food is obliged to have 1t
prepared in the street, and this, OF
course, causes Inconvenience. The
ordinary sanitary conveniences can
not be used Many of the existing
residences are without water. The
use of the sewers is positively for
hidden, but despite this fact all hands
continue cheerful.
There was little improvement in the
water situation today, although many
breaks have been found and repaired
and the nearby reservoirs are filling
as the result of the connecting up OF
the new batteries of pumps and en-
gines, fourteen million more gallons a
day will be available Friday morning.
1t is impossible, however, to turn the
water into the burned district as yet
although mains are being repaired as
rapidly as possible, and the water of
ficials estimate that within week at
the outside all of the mains can have
been repaired and tested.