New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1871-12-05
MY POLICY"

ID luc Av1hVOE HTt VI So"cAuAeAI. la
: peculiar art not appropriately his own
r is borrowed from the distinguished publ
.unctionary who vacated the Presidential
chair to make room for General Grant
4 Andy Johnson's art of government con
1 sisted in making the other branches Q
government succumb to the executiv
g branch, and thereupon war arose be
tween the President and Congress, whicl
resulted in the discontinue Of Mr. John
son. Mayor Flanders seems ambitious Q
not only following in the footsteps Of tn
great my policy man, but seems anx
ious to overshadow his great efforts t,
subdue the legislative and make it subor
dinate to the executive branch of govern
ment, and the fact that the Mayor is doing
this with a full knowledge of the Grea
fall that was experienced by the might,
Andy proves him to be brave, if not wise
in following out what his logical mint
conceives to be the art of government
Mayor Flanders is not content to contro
the small body OF respectable gentlemen
over whom he presides with so much dig
nifty and force in the work Of legislation
for this city, but be aspires to dictate to
and control the members of the State
Legislature In his message to the Coun-
Gil he says:
l do not, by any means, charge the pres
ent condition of affairs wholly upon NUM-
cipal administration, bad as it has been in
the past. and much. as l think, it NAV be
improved in the future. To a great extent
it has been brought about by unwise and
improvident legislation-tO use no harsher
term-on the part of the General Assembly
Conflicting and cont adictory laws have
| been enacted, and one by one the most i'm
portant branches Of municipal government
have been taken from under the control OF
the city authorities, and committed to the
hands OF independent, irresponsible and
often antagOnistic bodies, some of whom
| have almost unlimited power to eXpend
money, without the trouble or responsibility
OF raising it, and. consequently, do not AIDE
quately feel the necessity of economy. Tie
control of the police. the management of
the public schools. the care of the public
health, the drainage of the city, the public
printing, and the rate of fees to be paid
e"roners, sheriffs. and prosecuting officers
have been placed by legislative enactment
beyond the reach of the city government
Considerations of retrcnchment and etcien-
cy require that these branches of the city
government should be restored to the city.
at least SO far as to enable it to control their
cost
Bad as the present condition OF city
affairs now is pictured by the Mayor, he
would let in little sunshine upon a city
administration of which he is the head.
and which has nearly closed the second
year of its term, by accusing the State
Legislature of "unwise and improvident
legislation, to use no harsher term" This
is very considerate language, coming from
the Mayor who accepted Office, two years
ago, from the Republican party, with
promise that he would inaugurate an
honest and economical administration of
city affairs. If he had been equal to the
emergency occasioned by the mismanage-
ment and pro1igacy of a Democratic ad-
ministration Of city affairs he would have
started right in the work of reform that
was called for when the new charter was
adopted. At that time the dominant par
ty fully and fairly canvassed the
propriety of the present system
of police. public education, public
health, drainage Of tie city, etc. The
police law of our State was
fashioned after law passed by the New
York Legislature to help relieve tie city
Of New York OF a political tyranny that
was fastened upon it by the old system Of
police which placed it under tie control
Of the Mayor. Under that system the
police in this city had become terrible
engine of power that was often welded
against the life and property O, citizens,
instead OF serving strictly as conservators
Of the peace. We opine that but few of
our citizens would now undertake to defend
The conduct of Mayor Monroes police
when they made their attack upon a peace
.ble convention that was being held in
he Mechanics Institute. and murdered
n cold blood large number of citizens
md that was only one of many outrages
hat partisan police perpetrated to main
ain the ascendency of the Democratic
'arty. And similar outrages against life
lad been perpetrated by the Know
Nothing party when il was in power in
his city. The Republican party here, as
n New York, deemed it advisable to have
Metropolitan Police department to
emedy this sad condition of things, and ,
,r that purpose it was made, in a meas
re, an independent branch Of govern
lent.
The bitterness with which the Dem =
Gratis in this city opposed the change, c
articularly the police, who threatened t
olence, as body, to any force that t
light be appointed to succeed them, rem a
cred it necessary that the new force ,
lould be much larger than would have c
herwise been necessary, and the present a
olice law was drafted accordingly. We v
,rtainly should not have to tell Mayor I
landers that this was the cause of our n
resent large force and expensive police f;
stem. He has reason to know it, and, 7
justice to the party that has intrusted V
m with the very important position Of II
ayor, which he never could have had a,
ON the men who are now seeking to Use S;
H as evidence against his own party, he is
on of hay IN, y J. |