Third or Bust

Sprawling Los Angeles yearns for the day when it will replace Philadelphia as the nation's third largest city. Local boosters confidently expected the great day was at hand when the 1950 census was tabulated, but they were disappointed: Philadelphia was still half a head taller, by a margin of 101,247 citizens. Last week Los Angeles added up a special-tax reapportionment census, and the results were maddening. In all Los Angeles, there were just 2,071,271 citizens. Philadelphia, with a 1950 population of 2,071,605, was still --barely--bigger. But chagrined city fathers were not to be done.out of the title by a mere 334 Philadelphians. Three days after the census was announced, Los Angeles stood on tiptoe and announced the annexation of neighboring Howard Addition and its 7,500 residents. Blandly ignoring Philadelphia's estimated 1953 population of 2,125,000, Los Angeles proudly and loudly claimed the title of Third City.

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