The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-12-22
1T WILL NOT DOWN
Street Naming Proposition
Eeritable BanquO's Ghost.
Aldermen Shudder But Can Not
Avoid 1t.
MIR. BLAKELY'S BOMB.
Charges That COuncilmen Are
Playing Politics.
Next Springs Election Held Up
as the Object.

| tons the street naming proposition
| which has been before the city council
| for almost two months will appear
| again and with the exception of a few
additional frills will have the same
! front, sides and back. At the council
meeting last night the members dread
ed the appearance of that old ghost
again and they postponed it as long as
| they could but as the lobby in the
council chamber increased and the
| hall began to fill they decided that the
fewer the enemy the quicker the an
initiation, and they commenced.
Before the contest Councilman Jor-
| dan moved that the special committee
| be discharged. Chairman Stanley OF
the committee took up the motion and
| w G. Tandy the other unlucky mem
Der came in on the chorus. But the
council was not going to have the re-
sponSibility fall upon them without a
warning and in such short order and
they voted down the action of the COM
mittee.
Then the business started in earnest.
! The first thing to be done was to APP
prove the remaining of nineteen of the
streets mentioned last week and the
ones that had received no fire and
birthstone from the residents. When
this was done the lobby got busy and
Councilman Stanley moved that the
visitors be heard from at once. L. r.
Manley. Mrs. L. M Couchman and W.
E. Craft made talks before the council
favoring the changing of West street
to Westlawn boulevard. Mrs. Couch
man read a lengthy series of notes as
a representative of her district and
she related the woes of the people who
had to be mistaken for living out in
the 'rubarbS" and who were jollied by
their out of town relatives. She told
of their central location but the mis-
leading name of the street made them
look like the outskirts to their
country cousins. The other represent
atives told of the mixup of
store deliveries on their street and the
ed by every resident in the district
came to the council. After all the
complaints had been heard the council
referred the matter to the streets and
walks committee and the lobby left the
hall in silence. They seemed to know
what a committee reference meant.
The streets in the Martin & Dennis
addition are the ones that have been
bothering the council for a long time
and last night the aldermen touched
upon the matter for a few minutes but
not long enough to let any one get
warmed up to it. A new special COM
mittee was appointed who will take
the matter in hand, rehash it and
make their report to the council
which will happen in about three or
four weeks. This new committee will
take the whole trouble on their hands
and make another attempt to admin
lister the soothing syrup. 1t will DE
hard task and they realize 1t.
The streets that have been changed
will be inserted in the ordinance to
that effect and the work was referred
to the city attorney. Later it was de-
cided to wait until the new committee
could be heard from and then have
it will be too late to get the new names
in the directory and the council has
been working up to this point for some
time. Since it is too late for this ac-
ont he
drag along and be inserted when there
is nothing else to- do.
MarshalIs band was secured for an
other outdoor season last night when
the council decided that the old con-
tract should be renewed. This was a
wise thing to do.
Is the city council a hotbed of poll
tics? Are the councilmen paying too
much attention to the coming election
and not enough to the real needs of the
city? These questions were brought to
Blakeiy from the Third ward made his
first ''muckral<e" speech But when he
had finished his few words of condem-
nation there was silence in the council
chamber and a number of guilty faces
peeked around from behind their papers
BILE that the councilman from the Third
ward unearthed a deep laid plot last
night and it is again possible that he
was mistaken-but from reports from
other sources it looks as though he was
right.
The whole fight resulted from the
late paving petitions. For the last two
or three years the Third ward alder
man has been trying to get some of his
paving through the council but they
would not have it. They declared that
it was not needed at the present time.
But in the last year or so almost all
49, owl, s.@-,-. II
wards have been passed upon and APP
proved and Mr.. BIakely has noticed the
with a suspicious eye Last
night he burst forth and told the coun-
ell just what he thought of the actions
Of the other councilmen. The fight was
for Kansas avenue from Euclid to
rwenty-f1rst street. 1t was upheld by
Councilman Stanley. kutz. Tandy and
Horn. They all scorned the idea of
politics. Then Councilman Fraser took
side with Mr.. Blakely-as has been the
custom of the two men to hold together
and the fight ragged. To an uninter-
ssted onlooker, it looked as though Mr..
3lakely and his partner had told a few |
hings which should not have been men,
toned outside of the mayors Office but
he council voted it all down and ap-l
proved the Kansas avenue pavement. |
But long after the vote had been cast !
he council transacted business as if in
/ dream. studying over the points |
out by the suspicious council |
nan. i
The ordinance drawn up by Council |
nan Van Ness relating to the taxing of
Tray wagons passed the council last |
right 1t provided for the necessary |
license of dray wagons according to the |
lumber of horses used. A one horse |
Tray wagon will be licensed S. a year
md a license will not be granted for less
han a year on the basis of every year |
,nding on June go A two or more horse
affair will cost the owner SO a year
Ind can be taken out for no less than !
Xix months. On every dray wagon there
must be card denoting the holding |
If the necessary license. Watch for the |
ards. It was suggested that num- |