The evening leader. (Tarpon Springs, Fla.) 191?-19??, 1919-05-10

Coast All His Life; He is Govern
ment Sponge Inspector; He Certain
ly Knows Conditions Here and His
Suggestions Are Worth Considering
Tarpon Springs, Fla, May 8, 1919.
Editor Leader.
Dear Sir: l have read Mr.. John
FassoTs letter, published in The Lead
er, relative to city bonding. 1 have
also talked with Mr.. Fassol regarding
same, and it seems that he did not
quite clearly express his thoughts with
regard to the building of the bridge.
AS l understand it now, his thought
was to get to the gulf by the best and
most feasible route. In this l heartily
agree with him. l approve of his "get
to the gulf" idea, and in my estima-
ton it is a case of self-preservation
for the city of Tarpon Springs if we
ever hope to continue to grow, as we
have used up all other sources of at
tracing tourists, business men, health
seekers, and labor, and what is the
result? There are two things needed
to attract people to this town. They
are profit (by that l mean an oppor-
tunity of supporting themselves) and
entertainment lin this case a place to
amuse themselves by fishing).
Instead of the city bonding for the
improvement of streets in the outly-
ing parts of town where there is no
one living, when there is number of
short connecting streets, fairly well
built up, within short distance of the
city hall, without any paving-such as
Ring avenue;-dredging sand out of
a lake to make yacht basins and parks,
while the whole state of Florida is
nothing but park lin fact what we
are trying to do is to induce enough
people to come and settle and over
come the park-looking aspect of the
landscape) and our yachting fleet has
decreased by more than half in the
last ten years; or spending, as I'M
derstand, forty-fve thousand dollars
to build or improve cement walls
around the bayou, which the majority
of the present owners of the property
do not seem to think we'll enough of
to keep in repair themselves, so as to
retain the riparian rights, and the best
improved, most desirably located prop
erty on same bayou cannot find pur-
chaser for about one-fourth it's COST
I think the citizens should try some
other method of attracting people,
business and money.
When. the city is bonded we all have
to pay whether we own property or
not for every time you purchase an
article in a store you are paying lit
tie extra to help the merchant pay his
taxes and his clerk to pay his. Some
people think bonding stimulates bust
ness, but it is a false stimulus, like
taking money from one Of your pock
cts and putting it in another and let
ting a large percentage slip through
your fingers in transit. This loss cor
responding with the materials pur-
chased out of town, freight charges,
etc. If we send a portion of our bond
money to Tennessee for brick to place
on the ground, a portion to New York
for cement to place in a cement wall,
what chance has a man coming here
to make a living to get any of this
money to spend? What inducement is
this brick or cement for him to stay,
as no doubt he has left as good and
probably more of the same materials
at home? But he will come and stay
if we can offer him a good climate and
good fishing and we will not have to
build him roads, parks, or walls-he
will build them for us. But no variety
of Florida fish Except land sharks)
subsist on vitrifed brick or cement
walls.
So before bonding, the issue should
plainly state certain stated amounts
for certain specific work, and nothing
to be changed or altered without plac-
ing the matter before the taxpayers
to be voted upon again.
And to start again on the "get to
the gulf" idea. The city should first
of all extend the south boundary line
westward to the gulf (bay) shore and
lished.