Centre Hall reporter. [volume] (Centre Hall, Pa.) 1868-1871, 1871-10-20

not responsible for a corrupt govern
ment imposed upon them without their
consent Is e
The most rotten part of our Inani.
cipal system, since 1857. has been the
Board of Supervisors. Deduct from
the catalogue Of frauds those which
originated in that Board, and nothing
very startling remains. But the
Board of Supervisors was a Republi'
can creation. BY n cunning contri.
vance half Of il was given to the Re.
publicans, although no Republican
could have been elected 10 Il in this
Democratic city, ltwas made TO con.
sist of twelve members, but no elector
was permitted to vote for more than
six. The consequence Was that the
Democratic ticket Of six namcs. and
the Republican ticket consisted also Of
six, The six Democrats were elected.
aud the Mayor was compslled by law
to appoint the SIX Republicans. thus
giving the Republicans one half OF
tho Board. This equal division shield
cd its transactions against party criti-
eism and exposure, and removed one
Of the chief restraints upon corruption.
But when the first Aaifand-half Board
had been elected, a Republican Legis-
lalure took still more etfectnal step
for protecting il in the perpetration of
frauds. A law was passed for dividing
the elected members and the appointed
members into six classes each, aud ex.
tending their terms Of Office 10 six
years. One Of tho elected members
and one Of the appointed members were
10 go out each year, leaving always IN
office five.sixths Of trained and veteran
eorruptionists who could not be reach
ed by the people or held TO any re-
spOnsibility in the elections. II was
tiIst so organized Us TO free il from all
party responsibility and then its or
ganiLation was 90 changed as 10 free
Il from all responsibility TO the people
by the great length Of the terms Of
office. The grasp Of the Board upon
public plunder was still further
strengthened by another act Of the
Republican Legislature providing that
when a vacancy occurred in the Board,
the place should be filed by the APP
pointment of new member by the
Board itself, which was thus made n
close corporation for filing vacan.
eies That cunning and curious In
vention of a Republican Legislature
has been the chief fountain Of mum.
eipal corruption. Ingesoll's accounts,
Garvey's accounts. Keyser's accounts,
and all the rest which have caused 90
much scandal and excitement, were
the ripened fruit Of that rotten Board
Of Supervisors, imposed upon the city
by Republican Legislature.
Corruption has not reached such gi-I
gantic proportions under the present
charter, olthough the charter was
modelled after the organization of the
Board Of Supervisors in one Of its
worst features, that is. in protecting
officers against any proper responsible.
ity to the people by giving them long
terms, aud making the city govern
ment a sort Of close corporation. This
bad charter could never have been
passed without Republican votes. IL
had the nearly unanimous support Of
the Republicans in both branches oftheI
Legislature, although its undisguised
object was TO continue and intrench
the Tammany ring in power. There
was vigorous Democratic opposition
to its passage, and il would have been
defeated if the Republicans Of the
Legislature had not come in q solid
body to its rescue. For whatever
evils and mischiefs il has wrought. the
Republican party is clearly resPonsi-
BILE.
While it is thus historically true
that the Republican party has caused
the municipal corruption at the expo
sure of which the community stands
agast. every effective blow against it
has been struck by Democratic hands.
The Democratic State Convention,
which meets at Rochester to-day, will
plant its heel on the head Of the mon
ster and crush out its life.