The Topeka state journal., 1909-03-26
Prospects for Very Quiet EIee-
tiOn Assured.
1 TELEPHONE SCRAP.
Hello Companies Plant Their
Poles in the Street.
Other Items of Interest From
City Building.

one week will rival the proverbial ca
with the muff1ed purr.
There is nothing in the world that
can possibly excite any interest in tbs
coming city election. All of the can
didates who were nominated havs
their places practically cinched and
they are spending their spare time
learning the office and getting onto the
ropes
The city officials who are sched-
uled to replace themselves and take
up their own administration are not
bothered in the least about the coming
election The State Journal reporter
asked one of them this morning con-
cerning the election and he looked up
rather blankly from his desk and said
Let's see-When is that city cleo
ton? 1 have not been keeping any
track of it and I really don't know just
when II all happens. Yes, / guess 1t
will be a quiet AFFAIR." have not heard
a word about It myself"
Mayor William Green is besieged by
offceseekerS at this stage of the game
in spite of the fact that he is not
elected as mayor for the second term.
Everyone seems to think-and they
think rightly-that Mr.. Green viii
carry away the executive honors in a
walk and they have depended upon
him as a second termer already. The
main office appealing to the officeSeek-
ers is the position of sanitary sergeant.
son who was nominated as city treas
urer in the late primaries The office
is a comfortable position and is espe-
cially desirable for man who is ad-
applications for the office and all of
them come well recommended.
The city and the telephone COM
panies are going to have a good, old
fashioned row before a few days have
passed unless there is a change in the
policy of one or the other. 1t has
been customary for a long time to al
low the telephone. and street car
companies to install their poles on
their own good faith. 1t seems that
they have used their own judgment
on the matter and they have carried
out their plans to the entire satisfac-
tion of the city officers in charge.
But something is going to happen
unless there is change in the Gus
toms in North Topeka where the tel
ephOne company has been removing
electric light poles belonging to the
city and replacing them with their
own private poles. This is a crime
that will have the city attorney and
the whole police force UP in arms in
a very short time.
Then there is another incident that
has raised the wrath of the city Of
ficials-on Morris avenue in North
Topeka, the telephone company has
been attempting a scheme of connect
such manner that at the intersec-
tions only one pole is necessary. The
scheme is all right and the company
has succeeded in saving a pole or two
and an unnecessary lot of work, but
they have. violated city ordinance
and they will have to desist and re-
trace their tracks at once. At several
alley intersections they have inserted
one pole clear out into the alley right
of way in such manner that it would
fTnnOSSihlP a enter
or make an exit.
If another pole or two could be
planted in the corners near the curb
ing at their real right of way this
could be remedied easily. but 1t would
cost the company another pole and
additional work. Probably the tele-
phone company is not acquainted with
this ordinance but the act is against
1t just the same and the contracts,
franchises, etc, should be studied
more carefully att takes a lot of
nerve to do a thing like this" said
the city engineer this morning, land
the city will have to keep watch here
after. We do not want to get into a
controversy with the telephone COM
panies- but they must realize that
there are city interests when they set
out their poles"
Discoveries at the city hall are as
plentiful as paving contractors these
days This morning Councilman Jordan
from the first WarQ. found through
communication with state officials that
the enabling act allowing the county of
ficials to extend the Melan bridge on
the south end for the purpose of allow
ing the flood waters to pass under it
was not passed by the legislature. At
the big meeting of the drainage board
In North Topeka not long ago it was
understood through information given
out by the secretary to Governor Stubbs
that the act had passed and the drain
age board had acted in this sense But
now it has been found that it was kill
ed and all of the plans and specifica-
tions are useless. This is a very un-
fortunate state of affairs and means
q gigantic undertaking to straighten
matters out again.
As far as the city is concerned it
means that a special election will have
to be called in order to vote bonds for
the work. In the state law it meant
that the county would have to help pay
for the work. AS 1t is now the city
viii have to pay for it with the bonds
voted at the special election. The
Kansas law says that a city cannot
spend over $4,000 without asking the
people about it-therefore the council
will pop The question. Councilman Jor-
dan will introduce a resolution at the
council tonight asking for the special
election clause.
The registration books in the outlying
precincts were closed last night and the
clerks who attended to them are none
the worse for their labors. In fact they
did not have any labor-it was a regu-
lar meeting of the fancy work club and
all the latest topics of the day were
discussed. The registration was very
light.
The dog taxes are coming in about
100 a day but there are still any num-
Der of dogs with a fear of death hang
ing over their heads. There are prob
ably ] 900 dogs in the city that are
awaiting the time when William Core
the dog catcher spreads out his drag
act But here is a proposition that
\ stnta In,lrnal rennrter found this