A NEW SAN FRANCISCO.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 146, 11 June 1908, Page 4

A NEW SAN FRANCISCO.

AFTKK TUK KA!M"II(»LAKK AN I) Til K KIHK. INTEUKSXIM; IXTLUVIKW. Auckland; Monday. An American visitor lo Auckland is Mr. K. D. Taylor, -on of the present Mayor of Sail Francisco. Chatting with a "Star" representative, Mr. Taylor imparted »onie interesting information regarding the wonderful progress of San Francisco since the earthquake, fire, and disclosure of the hugo graft" fraud* perpetrated by Mayor Schmitz and Ini associates.

"L read in au Aucklauu paper the other day,"' said .Mr. Taylor, "thill there is more grafting going on in San Iran-c-isco bow than when Schmitz held tin* powers of administration. That is absolutely incorrect. My father in now j Mayor" of the city, and ever since )»' took over the control there has la-en a wonderful change. Immediately upon taking olliee lie up ended the constitution of every local 1».ar.1. and those who had control of the virion- ilr|i;ii"lniciit > in Sclimitz's time have lu'en superseded. '1 hi' Education and Sclkkil Lioards, the l*olicc Department, the l"' 1 "' Commissioners, Department of Public Works, and hospital authorities have all been placed under a new administration, with most excellent results. Sneaking of the tremendous "gralting" frauds worked hy Mayor s ;')"" ltz and his associate, Abe ltuef. Mr. lajl.n says that each mail must have dcaiel «t least a million dollars per year « hue | the control of the city wa» m ..enhands. It was impossible, lie said, to get an tilling done without briben. whether it were a l«' nmt for a '""" h fight or a franchise for street cai>. wis only possible to receive ; sanction by a liberal grcasi,g ">* Dalm which would then won*. nM magic. Even in the case of street. maintenance or a broken sewer. l s , ! possible to get any thing done without paying from 1W dollars m attqrney's fees. One of „• •crafts" on record was woikul Semite and Ruel in h"'"<--ssiS^Fsrsrs P» id - a monoHJout. bchmitz guiRIO ilolfr.nehise to for]nwl wS-... —I" 11 -' "ST'jS'siSi., - »■ «;;;«■ SSsr^ Hirowin" the administration \et t has been stated that Spreckels was only wrving hi, own end, in exposing Schniiu. This, of my own know Ua ~ I can sav is absolutely untrue, anil tliere was never a man actuated with a truer spirit of citizenship. To-day -San l vancisco is, from a municipal standpoint!one of the cleanest and most moral cities in the world. "Since the earthquake and the fire of a little over two years ago, artaccl Mr. Taylor, "a wonderful ehangr has been brought about, and H i* alnina* as if Aladdin's lamp had boon brought in-1 to rennlsition. After the firo the *U?bris | was piled up 40ft high in the street*. It was not the earthquake, so mnoli as the fire, that did the damage. The scene was one of absolute desolation, and there were some who thought it would In- .*» years before the city was replaced. Yet to-day a new San Francisco has arisen from the ruins of the old. Already buildings to the value of 100.000 dnl. have lieen erected. The Talaee Hotel. one of the largest in the world, has been pulled down, anil is again in course of construction. It will have a height of 1(> storeys, will cover 400 ft each way, and contain 2000 rooms. Before the fire the population totalled about half a million; after the fire it fell to 17.1.000; to-day it has sprang up to 430,000. Oakland, and the other smaller centres which surrounded 'Frisco, were so thickly populated after the fire that the land went up to enormous values, ycl within two years the people have returned in overwhelming numliers. and a new San Francisco is springing up with modern buildings and modern improvements. which under model administration will make it one of the most wwm 1 derful cities in the world. The traces of the disaster which followed earthquake and firp are now bing effaced. What has helped towards the r«storation of the city as much as anything is the way the fire insurance companies have paid up."