Evening star., 1909-03-04
Street Cleaners Waged an
Uphill Battle This Morning.
ODDS WERE AGAINST THEM
Commissioner West Had Been Lulled
Into False Security.
SNOW HAD A LONG START
Ash Cart Drivers Were Mutinous,
ed Just on Time.

To make Pennsylvania avenue passable
for the inaugural parade was the task
which Commissioner Henry L. West.
Supt. James NJ. Wood and other officials
of the street cleaning department took up
long before daybreak this morning and,
despite the continuous and fierce battle
waged by the elements the street cleaning
army overcame the odds against them.
AS a result Of the work the thousands
who formed the inaugural parade found
practically no snow along the route of
march.
For weeks the officials of the street
cleaning department have feared the very
contingency which they faced this morn
ing Plans were we'll laid for meeting any
emergency, but what came was the worst
their fears had pictured.
When the rain that deluged the city
yesterday afternoon and during the early
evening turned to snow about o'clock
Commissioner West and Supt. James M.
Wood began to worry about conditions
today When the white coverlet of the
streets was noted at 10 o'clock they tele-
phoned to the weather bureau.
Weather Bureau Missed It.
1T will be clear tomorrow at daybreak.
the weather bureau officials assured the
District Commissioner. With this posi-
tive assurance the Commissioner gave
up the plan Of having the street cleaners
work all night and decided to start them
between 5 and o'clock this morning.
after all the snow had fallen.
Commissioner West was awakened at
am. by the bowling of the blizzard
outside and saw the snow piling up in the
streets. Within a short 4time, he had
n
sistant Superintendent Doyle of the
stree: cleaning department rom tne!r
beds and the task of making the route OF
the parade passaDie was taken up.
Although the elements seemed 4, flaS E
conspired against them, the officials found
that other troubles confronted them
Hundreds of wagons were desired to haul
away the banks of snow from the ave
nue.: but many of the drivers of ash carts
refused to work inauguration day. Sev-
enty-two wagons were standing idle r
the ash collectors stables and no one te
drive them. Messengers were sent in
all directions to get men to use shovels
on the snow along the route of the parade
and all that applied We're hired at once
| At Il O'Clock, Pennsylvania avenue. from
| the Peace Monument to the State, Wal
and Navy building became hive of in
dustry. Two hundred and fifty men were
put at work at that hour and additions
were being made throughout the day az
new men applied for work.
Worked Against Time.
At 10 o'clock the morning parad.
| would move from the White House tC
the Capitol and the work was rushed t.
| get a clear stretch down the avenue fol
the escort of the President and thu
| President-elect The car tracks were
| cleared first; then the snow was pushed
and shoveled back toward the curb
And by the time the morning parad,
| started out of the White House gate
way there was a clear space to the Cap
| itol sixty feet wide. This allowed th'
marchers a company front formation
without having to wade through snow
up to their knees.
| AS the last man of the escort for thu
| Presidents passed many street cleaner
Jumped into the middle of the stree
| again and scooped off the snow which
| had fallen since the pavement was frs
! cleaned Then the men worked to maxi
| the clear roadway wider and by tn.
time the parade started from the Capito
| there was clear roadway down tn
middle Of the avenue eighty feet wide.
Cleared the Court of Honor.
In the court of honor III front of III
White House a hundred men, under tn
personal supervision of Supt. Wood
worked like trojans in cleaning an
hauling away all OF tho snow from