The daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1873-1877, 1875-07-13
The Mayors Law.

The people of Illinois, for many years,
have implanted of want of efficient city
governments, Of the negligence, careless
ness, and incompetency of city officers,
aud of bad city governments generally
After the great Chicago fire it was seen to
be imperative that the man placed at the
head OF city government by the people
to watch their interests and enforce their
local laws and the laws of the state must
have more absolute power over subordi-
mates, in order to secure good government
not only in Chicago but in other cities.
The result was the Mayors Law The
legislature provided that the law should
cease to be operative after two years. 1t
would then be seen whether there was a
necessity for its reenactment. Our last
legislature saw the necessity for reenact-
ing such law, in order to secure good
and efficient city governments.
Besides giving Mayors power to veto Or
dinances passed by the council, or any
portion thereof, and requiring two thirds
of all the aldermen, authorized'to be elect
ed, to pass any vetoed ordinance or por-
ton thereof, the law also provides as fol-
lows:
I'm all cities in this state, the Mayors
thereof shall have power to appoint all
city officers Whose election by the voters
of such city is not provided for by law by
and with the consent of the city council
by a vote of majority of all
its members authorized by law to be
elected, to be taken by yeas and nays and
entered upon its records.
And the Mayor shall also have power
to remove any officer so appointed, when.
ever, in his opinion, the interests of the
city require such removal. He shall re-
port such removal, with his reasons there
for, to the council at its next
Irregular meeting; and if the council, by a
two-thirds vote of all its members author
lied by law to be elected. by yeas and
nays, to be entered upon its records, shall
disapprove of such removal, such officer
shall thereby become restored to the office
from which he was so removed, but he
shall give new bonds and take new oath
OF Office.
The Mayor may appoint any suitable
person to discharge the duties of the Of
flee from which he shall have removed
any officer, until his successor is appointed
and Qualified, or such officer restored to
office in the manner aforesaid"
The Butler clique claim that the phrase,
$50 appointed, restricts Mayors from in.
terfering with any officer not appointed
under this law The claiW is preposter
Gus. The law was intended to give Mayors
instant power over all appointed city off
GERS, all men in office who we're not elected
by the people. Were the position of the
Butterflies correct the law would be shorr
of nearly all it's usefulness. 1t was passed
on the 10th of last April. Nearly all the
cities had then held their spring elections
Chicago, which was more especially inter
ested in the reenactment of the law thar
any other city, had held its election a veal
previously and had yet year to run be
fore another could be held. Every city
had its full quota of officers, and all Of
them had nearly year to run. And, be
sides, nearly all cities passed their annua
appropriation bills before the LIST of July
and the law would not be in force till July
list without an emergency clause. The leg