The Wilmington morning star., 1947-03-02
CITY HALL
WHISPERS
BY ELIZABETH OTIS

Hall enter through the ultra-modern
front doors, few eyes spot the mys-
ferrous cake of ice, dwindling away
outside the back entrance.
Every morning the withered
block of ice is sitting there neglect
ed, and Custodian A. j. Starting
reports that the ice is intended for
the library on the third floor. The
library now sports a new set OF
flourescent lights.
When Miss Daisy Woodbury. was
passing around Easter candy"
the gift of City Clerk Mary South.
erland, n morning in the city
managers outer office, the query
arose as to how one determined the
cate of Easter Sunday. While
munching on little candy rabbits.
the group discussed what the moon
and lent had to do with the selec.
ton OF Easter, but in the end de.
clded the best way to solve the
problem was to look at a calendar.
This is not a question and answer
column, but we must repeat an
ether mystery of the city hall.
Were those distilling corporation
boxes in Benson's outer office used
to haul over the delinquent ABC
receipts, which have been talked
about SO much?"
The two reporters, who walked
MO the city managers press con
terence Thursday morning really
got stuck. On Benson's desk was
a little contraption entitled 'musi-
cal horn with the directions push
button and hear a bugle call"
with true neWspapermen's curio-
slty' each in turn sheepishly picked
up a pricked finger off the pin ON.
cealed in the button.
Here's that 'dragline" again.
City Manager Benson reported that
enc was rented by the city for
a few days but went to pieces after
three days use.
Now the ''dragline" is losing its
place in Council circles, with oil
trucks being the topic of converse
ton.
Summing up the fire hazards
voiced by approximately 20 citizens
at Fridays council session on the
proposed Seventh street truck
route, Councilman j. E. L. Wade
said that when he thought of the
1000 gallons in those oil tanks he
cidn't see how anyone could GO
to sleep thinking about it.
When the fact was brought out
that the money to construct the
route would be given by the state
and federal government only if
the city accepted the recommended.
ton of the highway commission,
Solomon Sternberger said:
IF someone gave you arsenic,
would you take it just because ii
was a gift?'
Finally after a small percentage
OF the huge crowd of interested
%objectors spoke against the truck
route proposal and advocated an
around-the-town lane. Wade began
to speak before making a motion.
So involved were his enumerated
facts that he found himself repeat
ing his fifth point when he was
supposed to be at number six.
According to Councilman Harriss
Newman, what Wilmington needs is
more influence in the state capital
Garland Currin seconded his state.
ment and said Its time We get
some"
Not all of the council wax con
sumed with the truck route prob
lem, because after the recommen-
dation of the commission was re-
jected, council members got off or
the subject of traffic lights and
pedestrians rights.
"a policeman told me that the
pedestrian had the right of way"
Councilman R. L. Burnett said
when discussion was rampant on
what to do when you were in the
middle of the street and the light
changed,
But who's going to argue with
a lotion truck?" Newman respond
ed.
Another officer did not have the
same opinion though because City
Attorney w. B. Campbell amused
ly related:
"a cop stopped me in the middle
OF the street one day to let a car
pass"
Can you imagine that rockies
expression if he later learned who
he was using his authority over?
Topping off the council meeting
was the lengthy resolution con-
corning the Civil Service commits
sion which was drawn up by Camp
bell following last weeks secret
session.
After the city attorney had been
reading the typed pages for several
minutes and. stopped for breath,
Councilman Robert LeGwin said
You surely do have those where
ases' in there properly"
Whereas this will end too