Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-01-11
BY IMOGEN B. OAKLEY

! The citizens Of Philadelphia evidently
began many years ago to complain of the
ANNOYANCE created by ashes drifting over
the streets, for in 1864 their representa-
( tiyes Of Councils legishted on the sub
iect. An the ed of September of that
wear two ordinances were approved whicn
declared 1t q public nuisance and there
fore prohibited under penalty, hrst:
ITO cast or place any coal or wood
ashes into or upon, any public paved
street or the footway thereof, except IN
suitable boxes or vessels upon the toot-
wav near tho curbstonc," and, second:
"'ro saw or cut any wood, or TO pile
or place any wood. bricks, stones, boards.
or other lumber. or any shavings, ashes,
kitchen orfal or NTH upon any footway
in any street or alley within said city.
AS the city grew the necessity Of having
ashes hauled periodically from all dwell
ings, coupled with the carelessness and
untidincss of the drivers Of the ash carts,
led TO still another ordinance On March
:, 1882, Councils declared it to be nui-
sance:
'To let fall, spill or dump any ashes.
dirt, rubbish or garbage from any cart.
wagon or other vehicle upon the public
highways of the city"
Notwithstanding these very explicit or
dinances. we still see every day of the
year ashes dumped into alleys. overflow
ing from ash cans and falling or spillinG
on the highways from overloaded carts.
INSTRUCT THE HOUSEKEEPERS.
Would IL not be entirely practicable to
provide every housekecper in the city with
a strong, durable card that could he
tackled upon the kitchen wall, and on
which should be printed In simple lam
guage all the laws governing the subject
of waste in the streets, with the penalties
for their violation?
Should 1t become evident from the con-
dition of tho pavement in front of any
house that the laws are not needed by
the housekeepcr the policeman on the
beat should notify her that the penalties
must he enforced If the offence con-
tnues.
1t would seem that this plan ought to
work since 1t is founded on common sense,
but here again the unfortunate political
system which prevails in the majority of
American cities, and in no one of them
more than in Philadelphia. interferes and
blocks the whole sensible plan.
The complaint of the police department
is that d person arrested and taken be-
fore n magistrate for littering the streets
in any Illegal way is too apt to be dis
charged and the policeman who was en-
deavoring to enforce the law, repri-
manded.
ARE MAGISTRATES ABOVE LAW.
The question the public would like to
nave answered is Have the magistrates
the authority thus to set aside a city
ordinance? If ;hey have, why 30 to the
trouble OF enacting ordinances? Why not
leave everything TO the discretion of the
To enact laws and then
allow them to go unheeded, or be set
aside for partisan purposes, is to bring
both the law and the law making power
into contempt.
II, as is claimed, magistrates not only
fail to uphold the law. but bring 1t into
by discharglng offenders on
account of their political pulls, why can
not Intelligent citizens, who realize the
ultimate effect of lawlessness, combine
either to elect better magistrates, or to
abolish the office of magistrate altogether.
II they say IL is tCo much trouble to
make the attempt or they are too much
absorbed in their own affairs to care
whether the laws are enforced or not.
then democracy is failure and the
sooner we revert to dictatorship the
better