The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1907-12-14
WHAT'S THE MATTER WITH SALT LAKE?


book of about 400 pages entitled statistics of
Cities Having Population of Over 10000: 1905
Before the census bureau took up this task sew
eral years ago. there statistical information
available by which the progress of cities could be
compared, and if comparison will stir to emula-
ton of the progressive all those cities which
have fallen short there is a broad and sufficient
justification for the expense attaching to the coll
lection and publication of the data
Municipal problems are very similar in different
towns The people must cope with an outworn
partisan political system of government, and eff
fciency and economy in department is very
generally Offset by inefciency in another, SO that
net results of the administration of the various
cities business i'll some cases do not show wherein
one has outstripped another to any startling de-
gree. Fortunate, however, is the city whose citi-
zens will study the figures and by comparison force
home upon these administrations the points where
in other towns excel and spur them on to an emu
lation of the more worthy. Better results must
! follow.
There are 154 cities in the nation with 10000
or more population divided in the report into four
groups. The first group, those cities having pop
uation of 100000 and over contains Is cities. Cities
of 100000 to 100000 make group two, which con-
tains % cities. Group three, cities of $4,000 to
100000, contains Al cities. in which group Salt
Lake appears No IS. Group four has 81 cities
having population of 10000 to $4,000
In comparison with other cities of about the
same population, Salt Lakes showing in some re-
spects is very favorable In some other respects
the report shows a woeful deficiency The area of
Salt Lake is 29S8 acres which is greater than that
of Boston, Baltimore Cleveland, Buffalo, Pittsburg
Cincinnati or Detroit, which cities have popua-
tions of from 100000 down to 325,O0O Salt Lake
has 120 acres of parks inside the city limits and so
acres outside. The city also has As acres of play
grounds. In these two respects comparison with
others of approximately the same population is not
unfavorabIe.
If we are to judge from the statistics of the po-
lice departments, Salt Lake had either a remark
ably efficient force or remarkably wicked popu-
lation With So patrolmen, which is far less than
the average for cities of group three, Utica n Y,
and Waterbury, Conn, having 81 and Sc respec-
lively, being the only cities in the group with few
er patrolmen Salt Lake is credited with 1919 ar
rests for all oenses Only IA other cities of group
three al cities) had more arrests than Salt Lake
Drunkenness and disturbing the peace are very
largely causes of arrest, and in these two things,
Salt Lake is not especially pre-eminent
Homicide the cause of % arrests in Salt
Lake. In this delectable pastime Salt Lakers have
outdone the people of every other city in the
group and only fourteen other cities of the ma
ton stand above her. Of these all but one Dir
mingham, Ala, with 100 arrests for homicide) are
very much larger cities. There were 427 arrests
for gambling. Only ten cities of the nation had
more. The social evil" was the cause of 1O45
arrests In this respect Salt Lake is the eighth
city of the nation, trotting in the same class with
New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, ST. Louis, Pitts
burg, Kansas City ONo) and Des Moines
In the matter of paved streets Git should be re-
membered these figures are for 1905) Salt Lake was
in class almost by itself, with grand total of I
miles, % of which was granite block and 48 as
phalt. Of the 154 cities with population of 80
900 over, there were Just five cities with less
paved streets than Salt Lake-Spokane, Al miles:
Butte, 26; South Omaha, SO; Macon, SIS; Pueblo.
IA
Financial operations show that only IS of the A
cities of group three had larger gross incomes
than Salt Lake $3,OS96SS. The portion accredited
to Getty government" was $2580,603 there being
only eleven cities in the group with larger amounts
Schools are credited with $4S7323, and only ten
cities in the group had more money to spend on
the public schools.
Expenses for general government aggregated
$97 III with nine cities in the group greater the
per capita being S165, the highest in the group,
the average being 90 cents. Only seven cities-New
York, 1886; Philadelphia Sis; st. Louis S1.S3.
Boston, $685. Denver, $685.; Syracuse, 81 .68; New
q L
pense for general government
Salt Lake had Sc miles of all classes of sewers in
in 1905. Only ten cities of the group had less.
Whereas Pueblo, city No. 1872 had only IA miles
Of paved streets, the town had I'LL miles of sew
srs which fact compensates some for Pueblo but
makes Salt Lakes showing only more deficient