Waterbury evening Democrat., 1907-09-16
LINE UP VOTERS
Freemeu of the Fourth and Fifth
 Advised 10 Get Together.

The democratic primaries will be held next Friday evening and unless somebody succeeds in throwing fire brand into the camp there will rot be much doing in any district outside the fifth, where, unfortunately, pub lie questions have been lost sight of and bitter personal onslaughts sub- stituted instead. This is not right. Men who are not able to differ from their neighbors without losing their lneads and saying hard things of each other have no use entering primary contests, for as rule they give eX- pression to things which they would wish to recall when the smoke of the battle clears away. Mayor Thoms has authorized a representative of this paper to say that he is neutral in the difference in the fifth ward. Both, he said, are administration tickets and he hopes nobody will say that he is taking sides. He regards it as a matter to be settled by the voters when they go to the primary. | You hear people say that so long as there are no issues people must talk about something and that what is being said don't amount to any thing. The last part of this state ment may be true but the front of 1t conveys a very erroneous idea. There are issues and very important ones at that, especially so far as the fourth and fifth wards are concern ed, and it is too bad that they are not being talked of instead of the rot you hear trotted out at every turn of the road. It is matter of record that plans are almost perfected to remove the garbage crematory from Water vile to the south end of the city, which means that the stench that is said to have annoyed Waterville for so many years is to be removed from that place and transferred to smother and more populous region. This is itself of sufficient importance to prompt residents of the fourth and fifth wards to forget not only per sonal spites, but more than that, eschew politics for the tine being and have but one ticket in the two districts. It is matter that con cerns republicans as well as demo- crats and if such men as Senator Tracy are wise they will turn in with the democrats this year with the understanding that the garbage plant question would be fought into the last ditch. Isn't this an issue? No, not in the opinion of people who have other irons in the fire and cant see anything else.
 | Again, for years the city has made practice of spending the entire state road appropriation on highways out while streets traversed day in and day out by thousands afoor and awheel are not in proper condition for public travel. Take South Leon- ard street and Dublin street. now Hamilton avenue, for example, and lower Baldwin street, thorougnfares where there is vast amount of travel and yet you cannot convince the board of aldermen tha. these streets should have preference over the outside districts on the matter of street improvements. South Leon- ard street should be macadamized and the macadam road on Baldwin street should be continued clear down to the Pearl Lakes road. Dub lin street from the Mad river south erly needs attention and the prelimi- nary steps should be first-class macadam road. These and a hun dred other things of that character that might be mentioned are the things which should be uppermost in the minds of the people at this time, but you don't hear them even hinted at. On the contrary nearly every person you meet acts as if he felt that unless he has somebody in the race for position on the police or there is no reason why he should bother his head over the primary. | This is just where residents of the fourth and fifth wards make a very serious mistake. Positions for ones friends should not be overlooked, and all of us want to get them when they come our way, but these things are of secondary importance so far as the general welfare of the wards go. There are not many foremen in the employ of the city from Town Plot, but just the same Town Plot got more public money during the past two years than went Into any other district in the same time dur ing the history of Waterbury. But in the opinion of most people who undertake to discuss political ques- tions. sewers. sidewalks. streets. cleo tric lights, police and fire protection, sink into significance beside a com missionership or something of that sort and as a consequence where inc city puts up a beautiful .etaining wall in front of a mans property that skirts the highway in other sec tions, a bank of dirt or an unsight- ly dry stone wall suffices in the fourth and fifth wards. The present administration has done better in this respect than any of its 3rsdeces- sors and many think a mistake vas made at the meeting of fifth ward democrats the other night when the entire administration as it now stands was not indOrsed and let t go at that. Most people don't care who holds down the aIdeTmanships and who gets the jobs in the differ ent departments provided the wishes of property owners in the wards with reference to public Improvements are respected
 The electors of the fifth ward should turn their attention tO these things and try and become as fa- miIiar with them as they appear to be with the private lives of the