The Civic Economy of Galway

The Galway Advertiser, Vol XIII No. 44, 2nd November, 1833

Every stranger is astonished at the backward state of Galway. Though this town is the metropolis of one of the four provinces, we are a full century behind the most obscure market—town in England. The civic economy of Galway is deplorable. The general appearance of our streets, and the utter want of order which every where meets the view, would almost seem to denote that the town rules itself. All persons who compose the thoroughfare, not even excluding schoolboys and the most roguish little urchins, appear to have full leave to act in every matter as they please. We mean at present to invite attention merely in a general way to the state or our town ; and simply to give distinctness to our remarks, we shall hint at only two or three of the more superficial of the existing grievances. There must be viewed merely as specimen ; and when we have more leisure, we shall return to the subject and endeavour to do our part to raise Galway to the neat, trim, prosperous level of a modern principal town.

There are no street lights. How comes this ? — In every modern and enlightened town in Great Britain, street lamps have not only been used but have absolutely become so antiquated that they are now thrown aside. Every town of eight or ten thousand inhabitants has for two or three years past been lighted with gas. Yet Galway, containing a population of forty thousand, and viewed as the metropolis of five great counties, has as yet absolutely not so much as one street lamp ; and except when Heaven's benevolence gives the light of the moon, persons are at all hours after twilight in danger of being knocked on the head, of running against one another, or of wading ancle deep into scores of dirty puddles, all for the want of a convenience which would not cost each inhabitant more than one penny per annum.

The streets are in wretched repair. The writer of this article remembers well the vile proof of this he had on occasion of his first visit, three years ago in Galway. He arrived on a winter's evening, and, ignorant of the filthy state of the streets, walked along part of Shop—street on the carriage way ; and he will never forget the awkward figure he cut on returning to the hotel, when the state of his legs proved him to have in some part of Shop—street literally walked eight inches deep in this mud. Since that period, the streets have been somewhat repaired ; yet even now the best of them is far inferior to any country part of any Mail road in England. They are besides not tenth part swept. Why are there not regular scavengers ? or if the sweeping of the streets must be left to the mendicants of the mendicity why are these not so regulated and superintended in their work, as to secure the streets being all swept, cleanly swept, daily swept, and swept always before breakfast hour in the morning? Why, too, are heaps of filth allowed to lie in all directions, sometimes, for days together, until they are literally trodden down and scattered into puddle by cars and passengers ? Galway has through the whole province got a proverbial name for filth, which the inhabitants ought instantly by a vigorous effort to destroy.

We have no watchmen. Through the whole night, the entire town is left to watch, keep, and guard itself ; and if any disturbance occurs, no help can be procured till some messenger run all the way to Dominick street, a place quite away from the town, and rouse up some of the police. — Yet we are greatly mistaken in our calculations if a regular system of patrole and watchmen might not be sustained at an expense exceeding by a mere trifle the cost of the present police establishment. For a town so large, so populous, so important, and containing so much wealth and merchandize, it is both highly dangerous and bitingly disgraceful to want a regular watch, a night patrol, and all the machinery of a modern influential town.

There is no proper market—place. The centre and all the principal streets of the town on a market day, exhibit a scene which might supply a witty poet with subjects of lampoon and satire for months and years of his life. The streets are no place for a general market, yet these are so crowded that a passenger can with great difficulty elbow his way along. We wonder much that the shopkeepers have not made bitter complaints on this subject, as their shops are literally so barricaded with cars and cattle that a purchaser can scarcely effect an entrance. Were some of the fields about Boherbeg, or in some other immediate vicinity of the town, purchased for the purpose of being converted into a market place, the county of the town would both do credit to itself, and confer a vast and permanent benefit on all parties who are affected either as buyers or sellers by the market.

No order is maintained in our streets. Boys and even full grown men so often in almost the very centre of the town amuse themselves with games at hand—ball, foot ball, golfing, curling &c., that frequently a passenger is either brought to stand still, or is in danger of being violently struck with a golf or a hand ball. Two of us remember that in walking one day from the Court—house by Abbeygate street to the Fishmarket, we were encountered no fewer than seven times by street—games at ball, which put us each time under the inconvenience we have mentioned. Evils of this sort, and there are many such besides ball—playing, could be very well remedied even under the existing system ; and why the police are not instructed to put an end to them, we are at a loss to conjecture.

We could mention other grievances, but as we have said we mention the few specified only to illustrate the general reference we make to the necessity of overhauling and remodelling our present civic economy. We are confident we express the sentiments of all the respectable portion of the population, in earnestly wishing the grievances to be remedied ; and as the remedy is in the people's own hands, we tell them for their encouragement that, upon a minute calculation which we have made and which we may in a future number submit to them, they may, at the annual expense of sixpence a—family, not only effectually remove all existing evils, but actually raise the civic economy of the town to a level with that of Dublin and of the first cities of the Empire. Under such circumstances, it is a burning shame to us all to suffer our town to remain longer in its present state, a nuisance to ourselves, an offence and a wonder to strangers, and a taunting proverb amongst our fellow—countrymen of other Burghs ! ??