Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1914-12-11

rea. estate agent happens to he a trust COM
pany. It is rarely true that strong opposl
ton is heard to this act save from those per-
sonaly affected in some such way as Just in
dicated The fact that there men of the
uu est prominence who have seen nj to op-
pose he bill does not In any way alter this
statement, for unfortunately more than one
man of that character in this city is making
r7oicy today out of properties inhabited by
men ard women, but unfit to house dogs.
1t is not merely the poor man who would
profit by the creation of Division of H1us-
ing and Sanitation in this city, through the
machinery Of which this ac. might he en-
forced, Most men who are capable of clear
thinking and who have taken the trouble TO
give the matter any thought are clearly con-
WINGED today of the truth of the statement
that mo man liveth or dieth unto himself
In ether words, you may give your child
every physical safeguard that love and
money can provide and yet that child may
be stricken down by a disease contracted as
the result of the insanitary- conditions OF
soH.e Hague spot in your neghborhbod in
which neither you nor your child has ever
set foot
Pouring Water Into Sieve
Philadelphia has always been known as tha
City OF Homes" We Pride ourselves and
justly, ON magnificent parks: we ars
gradually building up adequate system oi
Fairgrounds. we are spending money for
public taths; providing medical inspectors
for our schcol children; milk inspectors and
meat and cattle inspect ~, and yet, without
an Improvement In our housing conditions
this is apt Il mean but li.tle more than pour
Ing water iu,o a sieve
The fundamental principle underlying this
Ia, H. of
community not only i'm this country but in
every civilized country in the world There
is lot ore provision In the act which is not
in force today somewhere In this country
In the effort to make 1t a fair and reasonable
act, Inc dTafters went so far that some of
the leading experts on this subject in other
cities have severely criticised II for not going
far enough If there is any proper objection
TO this, tnet or the other particular provisfon
in the act. there should be no difficulty ia
scouting its amendment at the coming ses-
sim cf the Legislature II there is any pro-
vision in the act which is Unconstitutional,
that win take care Of itself. The vast ma
iority OF its provisions are sound and their
reasonableness ineontrovertihle.
II Messrs. Connolly and seger are sincere
in their desire TO relieve distress In Phila-
delphia today; II they regard It as of any im-
portanee TO interest themselves in the pre-
Yention of disease; il they consider that the
poor as well as the rich have right. not only
10 live, but to live under wholesome eondi-
uons II they have enough interest in their
own families and in the families OF their
friends 10 heed the almost unanimous opin-
ions cf experts on sanitation as to the rela-
tions between bad housing conditions and the
health not only Of the occupants of insani-
tary dwellings, but of the general neighbor-
hood, they viii pay less attention 10 the
opponents Of this bill; and by voting for the
creation Of the Division OF Housing ana sanI
tation5 by EIpFoPriating adequate money Tor
its maintenance and support. they will con-
fsr far more zeal and lasting beneht on ne
poor OF PhiiaaelPhis than viii ever result
even from $4,000 appropriation for the
nrezart limo