, 1875-04-04
THE NEW CHARTER,

remove from the brute in thought or purpose
TIE NEW CHARTER.
The Times pretends 10 ray thai tho legislative power
.mps 5 to anend or modify that act incorporation
7ines also pretends to say, even Ounce with his
eyes open should be sbIs to see that what the Legs-
latura proposes to do ia not to amend that ac to
modify that aot nor to repeal that act but to pass
second scs ana to provide that this and that xcs
9hall eaea be in force as general law." Tho Time:
things impossible tor my legislative power, not au
pes3or to tae power Of Almighty God, to do such 4
thing. Way7 Because two bodies cannot occupy the
/ came space 1T the sama htue.-W. F. 8roRz1.
| This is sheer nonsense. The general act Of
1872 provides two forms Of government, and
leaves it to the people Of each community to
organize under either. Chicago, under that
| act, may organize as q city, or as q village,
adopting whichever end Of the act Of 1872 it
may think proper. The act Of 1872 further
provided, that the people Of any city might
adopt certain portion Of that act without
adopting the whole, and Chicago, year and
more ago, actually adopted large part OF
the act Of 1872 without adopting the whole,
| and it is now part Of tho present City
| Charter:
The Legislature Of Illinois may enact any
number Of general laws suitable for any
class Of cities. The law Of 1872 provides for
two classes Of municipal corporatiors; the
law of 1876 provides third form of incor-
poration; and it is optional with tile people
Of each city to adopt either Of them. Until
adopted, the law has no possible application
anywhere; when adopted, it has no app1ica-
ton beyond tho city adopting it. A 1arge
number of small places have reorganized un-
der the oct Of 1872; other places have not
adopted it. because it was unsuitable to them
The law Of 1879 contained no provision
for second Board in the Municipal Legisla-
ture; it provided for no restriction upon sal
aries nor upon the rnte Of taxation; these are
contained in the general act Of 1875, together
with variety Of other pro7iaionsnot contained
in the act Of 1872. The Legislature has
provided the means by which any city can or
ganize under charter vita these provisions,
or under a charter without them. How can
that charter be special legislation for Chicago,
when any and every other city in the State
can, if they choose, organize under it?
The Constitution reads:
4Ao 6HAEI11 A3sG4AAA3 F2A9
laws in any Of tho following enumerated il
to cay: For
incorporating cdtes town., or villages, or changing
or amending the charter Of any town, city, village.
The assumption Of the Times is that every
city in Illinois must have the same charter
without the change Of word The autho1i-
ty Of the Legislature is unrestricted in the
form Of the charters; it may prescribe as
many forms as the necessities and pecuGari-
ties OF the municipalities may require, leaving
it optional for any city to adopt whichever
form Of charter it may deem best suited to its
peculiar wants So long as any and every
city in Illinois may sdopt the charter of 1875,
this charter cannot be said to be 't1oca or
special" legislation To say that every city
in Illinois must have ttc0 Boards in the Coun-
eli, Or shall neoe~ have but o7as; OF that the
rate of tax shall never exceed Is mills, or may
be unlimited; and that the Legislature can
not leave it optional with all cities to adopt
either form, is the sublinity Of stupidity.
The Constitution required no such cast-iron
legislation It prohibited local amendments
to charters; it prohibited special amend
ments to charters; it did not in any way
restrain the Legislature in comforting upon
the municipalities any powers or form
Of government needed for their existence
save that such powers and forms Of
government should apply generally to
all cities that might think proper to adopt |
them. The Legislature might have added the |
act Of 1875 to that Of 1879, and added any |
other form Of government to the act of 1872;
it might in a single act provide half a-dozon
varying forms OF charter, and left it optional
with the people OF any city to adopt
either Of them or any part Of either
Of them. As. we have said, the act Of
1872 does provide that any city may
adopt certain portions Of that <sgeneral"
law, and not adopt the rest Of it. If the
Legislature could provide two forms Of char
;er in one act, why not three Or four? and if
t could provide three or four varying and
1itferent charters in one act, leaving it
optional for the cities to adopt either, why
nay it not provide these varying charters in
20 Or any number Of acts? l.
-
GRAMMAR.
The opposition to the study Of technical
,rammar in the public schools seems to be
aiming strength We read Of it on all sides.
The Cincinnati experiment made profound
IMPRESSION In that city two divisions Of p1-