New Britain herald., 1915-05-20

again by insisting upon a better con- struction, you are not increasing the burdens of cost, but in the course or few years you are distinctly lessen ing it.
 Another consideration which l would ask you to most urgently con- slider is the effect of the wooden six tenement block on a neighborhood. Such building begins to depreciate the moment it is finished. This means that the very poor who ought to have our intelligent help, who arc least capable of helping themselves, have to take the neglected leavings of tue class above them, instead of being i'm telligentIy housed within their means. If means also that a neighborhood is ruined for any permanent imrove- ment. .t
 The third other important ob- jection to the six-tenement wooden block is a social one. 1 am sure that you will admit that anything which tends to raise the self respect of the working people to increase their love of their home, to make them feel q part of the soil. to give them a sense of ownership in the city and desire to contribute to its prosperity should be welcomed by every reasonable means The six tenement block en- courages migration and thereby sub stitutes a shifting population for one attached to a locality, thereby also incidentally checking civic pride and destroying a. sense of district citizen ship. The wooden six tenement block discourages any attempt of final and just solution of the housing problem. because it allows the speculative builder whose interests are only in turning over his money quickly, to do as he pleases, without any consid- eration for general plan that would give poor people what they want with out calling for so great sacrifice of the personal relations.
 Human greed will always be stronger than any altruistic attempt to take proper care of the housing problem and if we should allow this most pernicious construction to be ex- teded through New Britain and the outlying districts, we will simply have another repitition of the worst phases of the present six tenement district and that district itself will immediate ly sink to g. low level, for tenants naturally move out, go to a new place to be replaced by a less desirable class
 ELECTRIC CAR SERVICE. During the past year very little improvement has been noted in the electric car service.
 "The management has been impor- tuned from time to time to furnish better service but the appeals have not been needed.
 "Old cars which should have been reglated to the scrap heap years ago are still being used, passengers are forced to stand, blocking the aisles and platforms of the cars, causing much inconvenience.
 During the noon hour and at night, when the people going to and from the factories increase the traffic, very little effort is made to handle this increased traffic and the cars are in- variably overcrowded.
 The continuance of this condition cannot be tolerated and I would re- commend to the railroad committee that they immediately take this mat ter up with the Public Utilities com mission.
 Extension of the Electric Car Service.
 'The absolute necessity of the ex- tension of the electric car service to the outlying districts of the city grows more apparent each year.
 Lack of proper car service Is hold ing back the paper growth of the city and is one of the contributing cause of our present housing condition.
 Accompanied by several citizens I made repeated trips to the office of the management in New Haven, where the matter of extensions were dis cussed and an appeal made for an ex- tension through the northwestern sec ton of the city.
 Realizing that further appeal to | the company was futile, a bill was | drafted and presented to the lesisla- ture incorporating the New Britain | company and asking that this be given the franchise.
 "A hearing was held before the rail- 'oad committee of the legislature, who seemed inclined to grant our request the railway company re- Iuested that the bill be withdrawn and hey would agree to build the north vest extension before August l. 1915.
 While this victory was very gratf- ying and will prove to be of great inn ortance in developing the northwest ection of the city, we must not cease UT efforts until further extensions are nade and I would earnestly recom- ,end to your honorable body that you ake this matter up and give it the erious attention which it merits.
 CHARITY DEPARTMENT.
 This department owing to indus rial conditions prevalent during the asst year was called upon to relieve a unparalleled amount of want and stress.
 This department owing to the con- n