The Parma herald. (Parma, Idaho) 1903-1917, 1909-09-02
A FEW FIGURES
Little Old New York will Some
Day be a City if it Continues to
Grow.

Just 253 years ago the whole Of Nan
haitian Island was bought by stout Pc
ter Minuet, the New York governor OF
the West India Company, for few
trinkets valued at S2l. The Indians
were glad to get SO much from the
Dutch for their hunting grounds.
Several years ago ground at the cor
ner OF Broadway and Wall streets sold
at $24 for six square inches, when a lot
measuring 30 by 80 feet brought $780,
900. SO tremendous is the city s growth
that one years building plans represent
cost OF $3.50 900, 900.
1t is bewildering, overwhelming, this
city Of many tongues and many bloods,
where a procession of $4,000 Roman
Catholics recently marched through
festal streets to their great cathedral
although it was once crime punish
able by death for "popish priest 40
enter New York--and 10000 Jews
abide and flourish where once no Jews
might vote.
There are nearly 10000 policemen in
the 5000 miles of streets. Their pay
alone yearly amounts to $l2,S65 25s.
They made PA 1922 arrests last year. To
clean the streets they guard cost 81, AIS,
299 for single year.
The parks OF the city cover A square
miles, including some of its choicest
ground. 1t is said that they contain
more than 2,5O0,000 trees and are val.
ued a. l ,G00, 900.
In other words the parks owned by
New York contain more land than the
big city of Rochester, n. Y, and could
be sold for enough to pay the entire
national debts OF Holland, Switzerland,
Sweden and Turkey.
Think of city that has built 5l4
schoo!honses at a cost Of about 100000
600 and that has more than l6,00C
teachers and superintendent educating
65l ,0C0 children, the salaries alone be-
ing $l7 ,5sl 900 a year. The Depart
ment OF Education will spend $27, 40,
736 this year.
And ii the giant skyline of New Yorl
staggers the imagination, what of tn,
marvellous network OF pipes and wire
and tunnels under the streets? I'll,
separate wires buried under the pave
ments of the metropolis would reach q
times around the world.
There is more than Sl2,O00,OOO o
copper in them. Single cables carr,
a thousand wires. With thousands o
wires under the streets and hundred
of wireless stations on the rooftops, mil
lions OF messages are whispered under
ground or overhead every day, an,
news comes whispering through the at
mosphere from distance ships or cont
nents.
J Down beside the myriad electri
channels hidden under the city rushes
daily supply of about 4s0, 100000 gallon
. OF sparkling water, of which 325, 600, 90
gallons come from clear mountai
lake through two aqueducts, one G
them tunneled through rock and cart
for 2S miles. New Workers pay thei
city sl1,OO0,OUO a year for drlnkin
water
1t takes ten million pounds of food
day to supply the city. There ar
abont 100 theatres, 1900 churches an
nearly l0, 900 saloons. In the midst {
this rushing life 1o5, ,535 cases of contag
; ious diseases are reported in a year.
On aud over and Under the streets {
New York are S65 miles of surface, sui
way and elevated railway tracks. owne
by one corporation and capitalized i
stocks and bonds at the well nigh II
credible sum of s7ol 1881.