From the Lawrence Daily Journal-World for Dec. 28, 1914:

• “Tomorrow the city officials will go out in North Lawrence and will tell the people what the number of their house is according to the new system of numbering that has recently been adopted by the commissioners. Formerly the houses were numbered in an irregular manner and it was a difficult matter to find a house number, but by the new method the houses are numbered in regular order so that it will be an easy matter to find a house number. The officials will have numbers with them and if it is the desire of the people they may purchase the numbers from the city officials as the same price they pay at the hardware stores, which is five cents for each number. The officials think this is the best method by which to get the numbers put into use so that the people will get used to the new system of numbering. If the people had to call the city clerk’s office for their number they would keep putting it off and the new system would come into use slowly.”
• “Lawrence is not the only town in the state that is bothered with a superfluity of professional beggars. Reports indicate that there is a clique of this class of people working along the Santa Fe lines in Kansas. Complaint has been so general that an article has appeared in one of the leading trade journals of the state dealing with this situation. In one town a beggar became so obnoxious that the secretary of the local merchants’ association offered him a lump sum to leave the city. He declared that a day’s work always netted him $10 and sometimes much more, so refused to leave for anything less than that sum.”
• “Patent on a device which is a saver of energy as well as one which will add comfort to the patrons of the street cars has been granted to Mr. J. T. Skinner, Manager of the Lawrence Street Railway and Light Company. The device is known as the Rheostat Car Heater. It is of the grid type. It was used on many of the Lawrence street cars last winter and did phenomenal work. Besides heating the car and making it comfortable for passengers it decreased the amount of energy which is ordinarily wasted. Forty-five per cent of the energy used in starting the street cars is wasted by being thrown into the resistance coil. It is impossible to throw the current directly into the motor, for it is so strong that it would burn the motor out and consequently it is thrown into the resistance coil and is wasted. By using the rheostat grids 75 per cent of the wasted energy is saved…. This system is so arranged that the grid may be placed on the inside of the car in winter and used for heating purposes and placed on the outside of the car in summer. It is impossible for the grids to get too hot for there is a constant draft of air on them and the heat is always steady. The cost of installation of this system is not large and a great saving is made…. Many of the larger street car companies have applied to Mr. Skinner to send them some of these new devices to try out on the cars and if they will do the same as they have done for the Lawrence company they expect to install them on all of their cars…. The Lawrence company has kept one of their cars fitted with the old system so that they will be able to check up a comparison between the modern device and the old way. Statistics on the result will be published.”
• “The record-breaking cold wave that has held the whole country from the Rocky Mountains to the Atlantic coast has been broken and the snow has been melting since early yesterday. Generally rising temperature is reported for the entire country and it is probable that the snow which has covered the ground for almost two weeks will disappear.”
• “‘Christmas was very quiet this year so far as the Police court was concerned,’ said Judge Henry Albach this morning in speaking of the number of arrests that were made last week. It seemed that everyone was happy and no one needed the aid of spirits to put them in a condition to enjoy the beautiful Christmas Lawrence has enjoyed. Every one is expressing their joys of the season and say that Santa was very good to them and they are very well pleased with their Christmas. There was not an arrest made by the police for drunkenness. It is a usual happening that there are several arrests made during the holiday season of men who imagine they need liquor in order that they may properly enjoy the season.”
• “An exceptional amount of illness has been reported in town. It seems that the bad colds are the chief element of complaint. The damp weather of the past few days is probably accountable for the disease. While colds are not considered serious as a general rule, the United States Health Department published a circular which shows that a large number of the most dangerous diseases originate in a bad cold. With the present precipitation of moisture and melting of snow the chances for taking cold are greater. The physicians warn the people to be careful at this time of the years.”
• “The city commissioners have ordered that the snow be removed from the curbing today so that in the melting it will have a chance to flow off. The streets are in a very bad condition today on account of the melting snow.”
• “If there is any truth in old superstitions of good luck T. J. Sweeney will experience the same prosperity during the year of 1915 as in the past. Mr. Sweeney received from friends in Denver a genuine rabbit foot mounted in gold and bearing a ribbon with the legend, ‘Good Luck for 1915.'”