Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1861-07-19
AMENDMENTS TO THE CHARTER

Among the amendments which the commit
tee appointed by council upon he subject pro-
pose to ask the Legislature to make to the city
charter, is the following: That at the next
city election one-hslf of the members OF the
board OF aldermen shall be elected for two
years, and one-half for one year-the long and
the short terms to be determined by lot-and
that hereafter only one alderman shall be
elected annually from each ward, whose term
of Office shall be two years. This is a most
important and valuable provision.
No one can have attended regularly the
meetings Of the board of aldermen with
out noticing the Injurious consequences which
spring from the great change which takes
place in the persons forming the board at such
election. At the election Of a new board, quite
a large proportion of the new members are
likely to be unscquainted with city affairs,
ana with the manner in which business is done
in the board. AS months pass by they begin
to understand the business they are called upon
to perform. They discover where abuses have
crep. in, whore errors have been committed,
where the hand Of reform is wanted, and where
improvement is required. Before the incipi-
ent steps for the changes required can be COM
pleted, before the advantages obtained by ex-
perienco can be applied to the benefit Of the
city, the year has slipped bv, a new election
comes, The board is almost entirely changed,
new members have to begin to attain a new
experience, and they, too, are gone before
their knowledge can be made available.
The remedy for this, and other results Of an
annual change Of the members composing
the board, a remedy that will also prevent the
cold fogyismo and cred tape' practices of
bodies into which new bIaod is not periodically
elected, is evidently to combine sou per-
manencv Of Office with frequent elections.
By electing one half the board each year a
proper infusion Of new blood is secured; by
permitting one-half of the members Of the
preceding year to continue in their seats, The
experience that motley has acquired is made
available for tie assistance of the next board.
In this way, while the popular will has a fair
and frequent influence upon the beard, The
new board does not have to the
entire mass o. the city's business anew, but it
carries the businss on from The point to which
the previous board had carried it. Another
advantage would be secured BY this arrange
ment-sbe voters in each ward having only
one candidate to vote for at each annual cleo
ton, instead Of two, the claims Of the single
individual would have q better chance Of mi
mute Investigation, and an unacceptable man
would not be "got through by the adroitness Of
'm~9uagsrso having coupled him with a popu-
lar Individual. We are inclined to think that
popular choice would be better than lot, to
determine at the next city election which Of
the two members shsuld sit for the long and
which for the short term. The voter might
say on his ballot, "for long tern-Brown;"
"for short term-Smith;'' or he might vote as
usual. and that the one Of the two members
receiving the highest vote might take the long
term. In case Of an equal lumber Of votes,
the recourse to lot would be necessary. We
respectfully suggest to the committee that
when members are elected to council for
double the present time,a change in section Al,
page I27 Of the city charter, would be desira-
Die so as to make it necessary that the people
by election should fill vacancies in the board,
when The vacancy would extend over a period
Of, say three months.