Belt Valley times. [volume] (Armington, Mont.) 1894-1977, 1923-05-10
THE CITY CLEANUP.

All throughout last week householders were busy cleaning
their grounds. On Friday afternoon the schools were dismissed
early and the children scattered to the different districts where
armed with rakes and shovels, they spent the balance of the day
in clearing vacant lots of tin cans and rubbish, raking parking,
picking cobbles out of the streets and making alleys presentable
Besides the committees and the drivers of trucks and wagons,
about a dozen public spirited citizens assisted the school boys and
girls In the cleanup.
Trucks were busy all the afternoon hauling refuse to the frog
pond in the park which has been condemned and will be filled as
rapidly as possible. Fully 100 loads have been dumped there
which serves to Iengthen the ball grounds, but there will be room
for all the ashes which may accumulate in the next two years.
Henceforth there will be no excuse for people to dump their
ashes and cans in unsightly dumps wherever their fancy suits
them, for within the reach of all but the LATEST there is a place
provided. The mayor should see that the city ordinance forbid
ding the dumping of ashes in the streets is rgidly enforced as
well as the hauling of garbage after dark and dumping it on the
riprapping or vacant lots. We will never have q decent looking
city unless this is done. Nothing will stop it except the plastering
of a few stiff fines. No one has the right to render his neighbours
place less valuable by using the adjoining lot for a city dump. No
one has the right to render any portion of the city unsightly. If
any householder can not afford to have his ashes hauled away,
with a wheel barrow he can cart them to help fill up the frog pond
without expense. The dumping of ashes in the streets does not
benefit the streets. Temporarily they may be pressed down to fill
some hole, but when dry weather comes they powder up rapidly
to be blown into peoples houses, upon lines of newly washed
clothes and into the stores. The white of coal ashes in the streets
may well be considered the sign manual of a shiftless town. Ev-
eryone knows that there is an ordinance against it and if some one
is arrested and fined for it there will be weeping and crashing of
teeth, but underneath the sorrowful exterior of their neighbors
will be secret joy that this unseemly practice is being checked
To keep the city clean requires the active cooperation of ev-
cry resident. The citizen who refuses to join in the movement
and does things detrimental to the expressed wish of the majority
deserves no sympathy if he pays for his obstinacy.
The school children who helped were presented with tickets
for a matinee on Monday afternoon for which Mr.. Anderson do
mated the use of the Pythian theatre. The members of some COM
mittees were unable to fill their positions because of work but in
almost every case they sent their better halves to represent them
and it may be added with no loss of effectiveness.
Trucks were furnished by JAS. Brodie & Son, McConkey Mere
Co, Willard Coal Co. Dahl, Nick Browning, Jos. Peters, and teams
by D. w. Burnett, F. Koran, E. w, Coleman and Gus Probst.
The cleanup was very effective and many piles of rubbish
could not be hauled until Saturday, or Monday. Suhould any have
been overlooked, it would be well to notify Mayor Willard.
The town looks better and is in better condition. A determin-
alton to keep it so has been voiced by many.