The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1858-01-07

III CIV HOtlSt vi q oii w iSPS"N VIZ "cao
politan Police law. That that law ought to be
altered if not repealed altogether, is too OBJ
vous to need demonstration; but We object to
any such partial tnkering of our municipal
laws as bill solely directed at the defects of
the police system would clearly indicate. The
whole fabric of our city charter requires amend
ment the police system as well as, but not more
than the rest We hope that, if not Senator
Mather himself some other member of one of
the two houses will supersede the proposed re-
pealing act by a general charter, in which all
the evils and shortcomings of our present mu-
ncipal organization may be cured, once and
forever.
There is the better reason for hoping that
such reform is practicable at the present time
from the fact that majority of all parties are
now agreed on the general principle which
ought to pervade the charter of the city. We,
who have fought for years for the great princi-
pie of the concentration of authority and re-
sponsibility in the hands of the chief execu-
tive and the subordination of all executive Off
GERS to him. can remember the time when the
idea had made but slender progress a! Yong
the people; now, everybody agrees that it is the
thing wanted Mayor Ticmann forcby urges
its adoption in his message, and journals Of all
parties profess adherence to the same view. 1t
seems that, with an honest and reasonable eff
fort by the city delegation, there can be no fear
of the much needed reform failing this year.
What is wanted rs very simple: we want to
return to the old principle of central
lied authority in the hands of the Mayor;
| which principle was departed from solely in or
der to serve the corrupt purposes of politicians
at the cost of the efficiency of the city govern
ment. Let us now retrace our steps Let the
heads of all the executive departments, includ-
ing the Corporation Counsel and the City Comp
troller, be appointed by the Mayor, subject to
the approval of the Board of Aldermen; and let
him bear the blame if the departments under
their control are not properly organized, or the
business allotted to them not efficiently and
honestly transacted. Let all the several COM
missions now entrusted with executive authority
such as the Police Commission, the Board of
Education, the Emigration Commissioners, and
the Governors of the Almshouse-be abolished,
and their duties entrusted to officers appointed
by the Mayor and approved by the Board of
Aldermen. In word, let the whole executive
hand of the Mayor, just as the whole executive
business of the cOnfederacy is grasped by the
President; and let the Mayor be responsible to
the citizens for the use of his vast power
and patronage just as the President is
responsible to the people of the country
at large. Let us, for heavens sake,
have no more elections Of subordinate officials
of whose qualifications for their posts 1t is ut
terly impossible that the great body of electors
can Judge, and whose responsibility for the
faithful performance of their duties has proved,
and almost must prove, a mere delusiOn. Let
us confne our discretion to tho election of an
honest and capable man for Mayor; this we can
Judge of, and, in most cases, his own ambition
will render his responsibility real; for the rest,
let as trust to him, and to the conservative in
iuence of the Board of Aldermen.
II is unquestionable that reform In this d.
rection would give US . chance of having as
good city government as we have had bad
one. 1t now remains to be seen whether the
Legislature has common sense and patriotism
enough to give it trial.
At the same time, while the internal depart.
ments of the municipal government are being
thus simpliGed and rendered efficient, II would
be well for the Legislature to draw a line for
future reference, between the authority Of'the
State and that of the city. With all due re-
spect to Gov. King, who seems to have been
strangely misinformed on the subject of the
Metropolitan Police act, it is quite certain that
an immense majority Of the people Of
| this city do not relish the scheme Of
government by Albany Commissions. In
deed it my be questioned whether there
be singl, clear-hnadnd and unbiased
man in the whole country who is not
satisfied that the usurpation OF the Legislature
last winter was an act unjustihable in itself,
and calculated to prove highly mischievous a.
| precedent Be his politics what they may, he
must see in il a direct blow at the system of
| selfgovernment, which is the corner stone of
| all our institutions. Reflection has led many
persons who, twelve months ago, supported the
bill, to entertain different opinions now; and il
| is not quite impossible that among these may
be found many members of the Legislature. II
is not unreasonable to hope that q majority of
that body may be willing to draw bold line
between the State and the municipal jurisdic-
tons, apportioning to each its proper sphere,
retaining In the Legislature general supervi-
sorry power over the whole State, but distinctly
| conceding TO each city an undivided and indie
feasible right of selfgovernment; 80 that,
should any political party, at any future day,
desire to disfranchise this or that city with a
view to achieve political ends, this measure
might stand as an insuperable barrier and a
bulwark Of municipal liberty.
WHAT Is LIBERTY or THE PREss!-JuDaR
RUSSELL AND HIS AssAnASTs--Judge Russells