residence districts. It had directed extent, to those exhibited on certain the attention of the building depart- hoardings. Local authorities, in exment to numerous violations, and ercising the concurrent powers of regdrafted a communication suggesting ulation and prohibition, may be exrequirements and a routine of action pected to be controlled by the general which will necessitate the verification opinions of their rate-payers; and it of frontage consent petitions. The is obviously desirable that, if they two bodies mentioned are planning determine to prohibit at all, they for such investigation and follow-up should not be compelled to prohibit work as will more strictly enforce throughout the whole of their district, the terms of the existing ordinance, in all parts of which the same conand probably reduce the number ditions may not obtain. It is proof billboards. (See "Billboard and posed, therefore, that they may deal American Forms of Outdoor Adver- with parts of their district differentising," City Club Bulletin, Dec. 16, tially, so that they may prohibit 1912.) "alien" advertisements in rural and residential areas, and regulate those in the business parts. Hartford. About three years ago there was formed in Hartford a society known as "The United Associations Committee for Billboard Regulation." Information was sought in cities throughout the country and the good features as they appeared selected, and in turn adapted to fit the requirements of Hartford. The committee was enabled to present an ordinance which was adopted with practically no change. The organization is now agitating the question of regulating sheet-iron, electric and other signs that are a danger to property, or a menace to life. Bristol, R. I.-The assessors have decided to levy a tax on every board which bears an advertisement. Great Britain.-A bill has been introduced into Parliament to amend and extend the Advertisements Regulation Act, 1907. The amendment of the Act is justified by the difficulty which has been experienced in determining its proper construction and the precise limits of the powers of local authorities under it. The extension is justified alike by the narrow limitations of the Act, and by the steady growth of opinion on the subject among the municipalities. The bill proposes that the exhibition of all advertisements on land or buildings shall be subject to regulations, while power is given to prohibit those which do not relate to the land on which they are exhibited. Advertisements exhibited by public authorities, and those within buildings, are exempt. Temporary exemption must also be given to advertisements already exhibited when the by-laws come into operation, and also, to some NOISE Baltimore.-Noise is receiving more attention at the hands of municipal legislators and societies than formerly. An effort to suppress unnecessary noise is being made in Baltimore. The committee having the matter in charge is seeking the aid of the Federation of Labor and particularly of the night trades, which have been active in the anti-noise crusades in Massachusetts. A nine year old girl has called the committee's attention to the fact that children go to school without being called by bell or whistle, and it is argued that grown men should be able to do without such a summons. An elaborate report on the whole question of noise has been published by the Anti-Noise Committee of the Baltimore City Medical Society, in the bulletin of the Society. New York. An anti-noise ordinance for New York City has been signed by the mayor and is now effective. The ordinance provides that no peddler, vender or huckster who plies a trade or calling of whatsoever nature on the streets and thoroughfares of New York shall blow or use any horn or other instrument, nor make any improper noise tending to disturb the peace and quiet of a neighborhood for the purpose of directing attention to his wares, trade or calling, under a penalty of not more than $5 for each offense. Chicago is also about to adopt a similar ordinance, as is Duluth, Minn. BIBLIOGRAPHY Plan. (Columbus, Federal Printing BEARD, Charles A.-American City Gov- RUDISILL, George F.-The Commission ernment. (New York, Century Co.) "City Planning Studies for the National Conference on City Planning." (Landscape Architecture, April, 1913.) CLAY, S. H.-City Building. (Cincinnati, Clark Publishing Co.) CLOPPER, Edward N.-Child Labor in CROKER, Edward F.-Fire Prevention. (New York, Dodd, Mead & Co.) COHEN, Julius B., and RUSHTON, Arthur G.-Smoke, a Study of Town Air. (New York, Longmans, Green & Co.) CUNNINGHAM, Jesse.-List of Books and Articles on City Planning and Civic Centres. (St. Louis. Municipal Reference Branch of Public Library.) HARRIS, Percy A.-London and Its Gov Sons.) WARD, Edward J.-The Social Center. call. lishing Co.) An important element of the bibli ernment. (London, J. M. Dent &ography of municipal government is now the official municipal gazettes of EATON, Allan H.-The Oregon System: a number of cities, of which the folThe Story of Direct Legislation in Ore-lowing is a complete list: gon. (Chicago, McClurg & Co.) ELLIS, Havelock.-The Task of Social (New York, FORD, James.-Coöperation in New Eng- JEPHSON, A. W.-Municipal Work from Lloyd.-Statute Law MCCLELLAND, Ellwood H.-Bibliography Atlantic City, N. J., Commission Government. Boston, Mass., Monthly Bulletin; issued by the statistics department. Baltimore, Md., Municipal Journal, semi-monthly. Burlington, Iowa, Proceedings of the City Council under the Commission Plan of Government, monthly. Centralia, Wash., Monthly Summary Proceedings, with itemized statement in detail of the receipts and expenditures of the city commission. Chattanooga, Tenn., Municipal Record, monthly. Colorado Springs, Col., Summary of Proceedings monthly. and Department Reports, Denver, Colo., The City of Denver, issued semi-monthly by the city and county of Smoke and Smoke Prevention. of Denver; successor to Denver Mu(Pittsburgh, University of Pitts-nicipal Facts. burgh.) MCKEON, Peter J.-Fire Prevention. (New York, Chief Publishing Co.) MCVEY, Frank L.-The Making of a Town. (Chicago, McClurg & Co.) MACKAYE, Percy.-The Civic Theatre. In Relation to the Redemption of Leisure. (New York, Mitchell Kennerley.) MINTZ, Frances S.-The New American Citizen. (New York, Macmillan Co.) MOORE. Blaine Free.-The Supreme Court and Unconstitutional Legislation. (New York, Longmans, Green & Co.) MUNRO, William Bennett.-The Government of American Citics. (New York, Macmillan Co.) PRAY, James Sturgis, and KIMBALL, Theodore.-A City Planning Classiflcation. (Cambridge, Harvard versity Press.) Uni RAWIE, Henry-Our City Civilization. (Baltimore, Williams & Wilkins Co.) Report of the Philadelphia Baby Saving Show, with the Proceedings of the Conference on Infant Hygiene, 1912. (Published by the Child Hygiene Association, Philadelphia.) Houston, Tex., Progressive Houston, monthly. Jackson, Miss., Commission Government Record, quarterly. Lexington, Ky., The City of Lexington. Los Angeles, Cal.. Los Angeles Municipal News, published weekly by the municipal newspaper commission from April 17, 1912, to April 9, 1913 (see infra). Memphis, Tenn., Commission Government. Minneapolis, Minn., Municipal Statistics, monthly. New York, N. Y., The City Record, daily. Omaha, Neb., Municipal Statistics, weekly. San Jose, Cal., Municipal Record, issued monthly. Seattle, Wash., Municipal News. Spokane, Wash., Official Gazette. Tacoma, Wash., Municipal Bulletin, monthly. The Los Angeles Municipal News (R. Y. B., 1912, 286), which was the first municipal weekly newspaper, discontinued publication on April 9, 1913. This action was determined upon by the municipal newspaper commission in deference to the popular vote in the Spring election on charter amendment No. 14, which read: "Shall proposed charter amendment number fourteen, providing that the City Council shall not appropriate or provide any public money for the printing, publication, sale or distribution of a municipal newspaper, be ratified?" The vote on this amendment stood 24,089 for, and 15,788 against. The vote that created the municipal newspaper at the general election of Dec. 10, 1911, was 58,143 for, and 43,987 against. Many held that the amendment did not affect the department at all, and that the publication of the municipal newspaper could continue until the initiative ordinance creating the municipal newspaper should be repealed by a vote of the people, or at least until the appropriation made at the beginning of the fiscal year was exhausted. Witnout entering into this conflict of opinions the commission, one member dissenting, construed the vote on the amendment to be a popular command against further publication of a municipal newspaper. STATISTICS OF CITIES OF 50,000 POPULATION OR OVER The figures in the following table, courteously supplied by the treasurers or comptrollers of the various cities, are the latest available. They relate in general to the fiscal year ending in 1913; in the case of cities whose fiscal year coincides with the calendar year, the figures are for the year ending December 31, 1912. VIII. TERRITORIES AND DEPENDENCIES ALASKA FRANK MCINTYRE Economic Conditions. Economic conditions in Alaska have not materially changed. No important development may be expected until provision is made for the development of the coal and natural resources of the territory and for the construction of railroads and trails. Both of these subjects are receiving the consideration of the executive department, as well as of Congress, and the outlook for some action is now brighter than it has been at any time in the past. present. There were no serious outbreaks of epidemics during the year. Mild cases of measles and diphtheria were reported at a few places, and an epidemic of scarlet fever was confined to one town. Two cases of smallpox occurred on Kodiak Island. Railroads. The report of the Alaska Railways Commission, appointed by Act of Congress approved Aug. 24, 1912, to make a general report on the transportation question in Alaska, with special reference to the possible railroad routes from the seaboard to the coal fields and the interior, was submitted to Congress by President Taft with a special message on Feb. 6. The Commission found that railway connections with open ports on the Pacific are imperative if the fertile regions of inland Alaska and its min Government. On May 1, John F. A. Strong, of Juneau, was appointed Governor of Alaska to succeed Walter F. Clark. The first session of the Alaska legislature convened on March 3 at Juneau. During the 60-days' session considerable progressive legis-eral resources are to be utilized. The lation was enacted. Eighty-four laws were passed, the first being to extend the elective franchise to such women in the territory as had the qualifications required of male citizens. The Governor of Alaska reports that the work of the legislature was such as amply to demonstrate that the people of Alaska are fully capable of governing themselves. Education.-Six new schools for white children were established during the year, there now being 26 schools for white children, employing 37 teachers, with a total enrollment of 943 pupils. A law for compulsory education of children between eight and 16 years was passed by the legislature. Health. During the year special attention was given to the health of the natives. It is proposed to establish a chain of small hospitals along the coast. The principal disease is tuberculosis, of which all forms are report describes all of the practicable railway routes for reaching the interior and the ocean terminals. The result of a comparison of the proposed routes is thus summarized in President Taft's message: Railroad development in Alaska should proceed first by means of two independent railroad systems, hereafter to be connected and supplemented as may be justified by future development. One of these lines should connect the valley of the Yukon and its tributary, the Tanana, with tidewater; and the other should be devoted to the development and needs of the Kuskokwim and the Susitna. The railways recommended constitute two independent systems of a total of 733 miles of new construction at an estimated cost of $35,000,000. The Commission and President Taft recommended the construction and ownership of the roads by the Government, President Taft saying: I am very much opposed to government operation, but I believe that gov |