, 1875-04-11
A pUHLIC DANGER.

4N21~
luton, submitted for popular adoption or re-
| lection the general municipal charter Of 1872.
| The election on this question is to be held on
| Friday, April 20. There is great danger that
| this election may result disastrously, by rea-
son Of the inertness or apathy of the public,
It is conceded by everybody who has care-
fully examined the matter that that charter
is wholly inapplicahle to Chicago; no sane
taxpayer would now propose to adopt it It
has been the general understanding that it
Was to be defeated by default. But it re-
quires negative votes to defeat it. Not
voting for it Will not be sufficient.
There must be votes against it. Five
hundred votes for the charter, if q ma
jority, will be as effectuM as $4,000, and the
election Of last Tuesday shows how readily
and easily votes may be hired for an occasion.
Last Tuesday there were 5000 votes put in
the ballot-boxes in the South Division alone,
and there were not, as we are credlbly in
formed by an interested observer, exceeding
1000 legal voters who went near the polls.
In the now-celebrated Twentieth Ward there
were over 1000 votes polled It will be q
very easy thing for dozen of designing men
in each division to stuff 1000 to 10, 1000 votes
for the charter, and thus produce tho utmost
confusion and decentralization in the City Gov
eminent. To allow that charter to be adopt
ed, even by accident, would work incalculable
mischief.
In the first place, it would repeal the
present entire City Charter; not merely
amend it, but repeal it, aud the new charter
will take instant effect.
The charter Of 1879 is, as va have said,
wholly inapplicable to city like Chicago.
Its adoption would plunge the city in the
most ine1tricable CONFUSION. It would over
turn every department and substitute nothing
equivalent in its place. It would, moreover,
Introduce the utmost confusion in the terms
Of city officers. The first election under it for
Mayor could not take place until April. 1877,
while some Of the new1y-created officers
would be elected in April, 1876, and others
would have to be elected in November, 1876.
The Legislature has re-enacted in part the
law known as the Mayors hall; it has also
amended Bill 800; and with the old charter
and these supplemental bills the city can get
along until the people have IN opportunity to
vote in august next upon the new general
charter. Il by any accident the charter Of
1872 be adopted on the 23d inst, it will pre-
vent the adoption Of the new charter at the
election in August next It will not only
destroy the present charter, but also the new
charter to be voted for in August, leaving us
nothing but the inapplicable and useless
charter of 1879. It will cut off all the
limitations and safeguards of the proposed
new charter Of 1876, especially the limitations
on salaries and rates Of taxation. It will
transfer all our city elections to April, when
there Is no registry law, and reduce them to
the level Of the fGrcicl elections Of last week,
where the result was reached, not by voting,
but by st1fdng the ballots in The boxes with
out reference to the;number Of voters OF their
residence, OF their right to vote. It viii be
the funeral Of all honest or legal government
in Chicago, and tho end Of all respect for
even the forms of decent elections.
To prevent such public calamity it will
require that voters take the trouble to 70 to
their respective polls on tho Esd and vote
against the charter OF 1872, and also to organ
ize vigilance committees against ballot-hox
stu6nE.