The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1909-01-29

committee meet tonight at Z o'clock
monthly 0n mesting Of the t city cosIcI
takes place in the council chamber.
This viii be the first meeting of Feb
ruary and there will be many import
ant issues to come before the honor
able body. The voting machine propo-
1 sition and the election trouble will be
sifted TO the end.
Councilman c. w. Horn, who was
J granted a leave of absence the first of
the month in order to take a trip
| south and spend the winter among the
palms and 'baIms" has arrived an
! Cuba and has written a letter to the
| State Journal telling of his expert
ences in Havana. He still has that
municipal instinct with him because
all the way throug the letter he men
| tions the narrow street and sidewalks
| and the manner in which the city is
in Havana are only II feet wide at
| the most and some of the sidewalks
are but IA inches wide. Everybody
walks single file and Mr.. Horn can't
| decide whether his wife should go first
or whether he should take the lead
, and have her tag along behind Mr..
| to Topeka (when the weather is warm
| er) and feel free on her wide streets
and idewalks-streets that are never
| too narrow unless it be for the police
characters-and they are privileged.
On account of the extreme cold to-
day practically all of the offices on the
west side of the city building have been
moved temporarily to the east side in
the sun-lighted rooms and away from
the wind. The gas pressure is low at
the city hall again and the city officials
are the ones to suffer. Since this con-
dition of affairs it is expected that the
gas councilman from the Sixth ward
(checkered trousers, white vest and alb
will start another bunch of fireworks at
the next council meeting. 1t Will make
I,,1=i lizlr h7a nd hal
city hall has to stand many more
freezeouts it will be barely possible
that the councilman-general states
man will have Supporter or two.
Since the legislature has passed so
favorably upon the commission laws as
drawn up by the first-class cities of the
state the chances for the commission
form of government in Topeka have
been increased and today Mayor Will
lam Green is encouraged over the pros
poets. He said this morning that if the
people of the city so desired they could
vote for the new form of municipal
government and at the coming city
election in April the mayor and COM
missionerS would be a reality. At first
it was thought that it would be a year
before the new system could come into
effect but at a quick form of action on
the part of the people the new laws
would be available at once. The COM
mission form of government has been
of newspaper space that it is useless
to take any more campaign action upon |
it. 1t is simply up to the people to |
make by petition what they have de- |
sired for so many months. 1t is about |
time that some action be taken and the |
petitions and active work commenced. |
DR.. D. NJ. Campbell has at last re-
ceived the assistant that he petitiOned |
the council for so long ago and he is |
now at duty in the office at the city |
hall. ]. w. Woodford is the man to |
receive the position and he is the Office |
man for the milk inspection work. He
tests the milk and takes samples be- |
sides doing the regular Office routine |
work. He also attends to the wants, |
knocks, and pleas of the milk dealers |
who would have nothing to do with the
milk inspection department if they did |
not bring the trouble on their own /
heads. DR.. Campbell spends his time |
in the field and around the country in
specting the diaries, the creameries and |
the dealers in milk. This now makes
the milk inspection department of the
city in excellent running order and |
makes it possible for = ective sySte-
matte work on the part Of the men in
charge
The tuberculosis exhibit has aroused
the city officials to the Importance OF
the expectoration (spitting) ordinance
and the city officers at the police sta
ton viii be informed to make a more
watch for the violators of
the act. Splitting in street cars, pub
lie buildings, and on sidewalks is
strictly forbidden and the tuberculosis
scare (even though it is being instiga-
ted by the doctors) is making the pre-
vention a more important factor. The
street car company used to keep their
signs in the front of the
car in plain sight but in the last few
years they have removed them-and
naturally the bad habit has grown
upon the people again. Another thing I
the street car company should do-they
should clean out the window watts in
their cars. The cavity where the win
dows slide down in order to make a
summer car out of the closed cars is
regular spitoon and waste basket
combined. A look down into one of
those holes will disclose mass of
dirt and trash-and spit. These trash
holes in the street cars would be a
good place for a germ inspection-prO-
badly every germ in existence-except
the healthy ones-codld be found in
these places. The city health depart
ment should get busy and investigate
this death trap. There is another
habit that needs a little remedy in the
form of a therat. Merchants along
Kansas avenue who have in their en-
ploy men who get to work at o'clock
ia the morning should buy them an
alarm clock or give them different or
ders. There Is a disgusting habit of
clerks sweeping off the sidewalks and
throwing the dust and dirt up into the
faces of passersby. They are so inn
portant about their ''ten-a-week'' jobs
that they never think of anyone else
being on the street and their brooms
take on an extra amount Of energy that
Is never wasted in the store where
there is no chance to ''four-flush." If
these clerks wish to work in their class
they had better join the twhite-wings''
but when they insist on throwing germ
laden dirt into the faces of pedestrians
they should get little touch of the
law. These are just a few of the things