The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1877-12-31
MUNICIPAL CHARTERS.

/
| The people OF the United States will I'M
doubleday solve. by continued experiments,
the question which is the best form of munich
pal government We have tried every kind
at heavy expense. There is not a city in the
Union that has not had at least dozen char
ters, a dozen different governments under
them. all of which have failed. st. Louis has
made the latest experiment. 1t is hardly
probable, however, that any other city will
follow it's example or initiate it's charter.
| st. Louis, like other cities, was suffering
| from bad government. A new charter, 1t was
declared, was the only remedy for this, and
new charter, one of the most complex
confused, and intricate pieces Of legislation
ever framed was accordingly passed by the
Legislature and fastened on the necks OF the
citizens of the future great city OF America.
This charter has been in force only short
| time, but it is hardly possible to enumerate
all the defects already discovered, 1t is SO full
of them Although passed for the purpose OF
saving the city treasury, the city govern
ment created under 1t is far more costly and
expensive than that which existed under the
old charter; officials are far more numerous,
and the whole system is 50 complicated that
the passage of the most unimportant ordi-
nance requires the utmost art and ingenuity.
Suppose, for instance, it becomes necessary
to replace broken crossing over some gut
ter. The matter is brought up before the
Board of Public improvements, who are re-
quired to give notice by thirty days conse-
cuti 70 advertising to the property holders
concerned in the matter before they can even
take up the petition praying for the replacing
of the crossing. The matter Is then referred
to one Of the commissioners, and after a re-
port from him, the necessary ordinance is
drafted and submitted to the Municipal AS
sembly, an extraordinarily large body, which
acts as the legislature of the city OF St. Louis.
The ordinance is first introduced in the
House Of Delegates, and after going through
two readings on two consecutive meeting
nights, 1t Is referred to q committee which re-
ports on it at the next meeting. Ii reported
on favorably, the ordinance Is then ordered
| to be engrossed, which means that 1t goes
| into the hands of the committee on engrossed
and enrolled bills. Upon being reported back
at the next meeting by this committee, the
bill then comes up on its passage. Here
the real fight begins If passed without
| Council with communication setting forth
the action taken on it by the House of Dele
gates.
In the City Council it has to go through all
| this ordeal over again. Read at two meet
ings, it is referred to committee, reported
back, and comes up for passage at a subse-
quent meeting. If, on its passage, the slight
est amendment be made. all the proceedings
have to be begun anew. II, however, it Is
Fortunate and passes unamended, 1t is re-
ferred to the committee on engrossed and
enrolled bills. At the next meeting it Is re-
ported back by the committee as enrolled
and, If there is no objection, is signed by the
presiding officer. This fact is communicated
in a message to the upper house. The bill is
then signed by the presiding officer, which
fact is chronicled by the clerk in another mes
sage, and is then transmitted to the other
house.
At last the bill is ready to go to the Mayor.
II he signs it, he will announce in message
his approval. With the approval the bill goes |
to the office of the City Register, where after |
having been printed, it is filed. Ten days
after it has been signed by the Mayor it be- |
comes a law. 1t is usual, however, to send |
the bill, before this, to the city counselor, in |
order that he may see that it contains moth
ing illegal
Of course great deal Of time is taken up |
in all these proceedings. 1t is impossible to |
say, exactly, how long it does take for
bill to relay street crossing to get through |
the municipal legislature of ST. Louis, but it
is certainly over some months. When the
Southern Hotel was burned in ST I,OuiS some
months ago, an ordinance was introduced for
The better protection of life in theatres and
hotels. The terrible accident that had just
appalled, st. Louis, made the city government
particularly expeditions in this matter, and
yet it was only last week that the ordinance
finally passed. A score of similar catastro-
Plies might have occurred in the meanwhile
before the city could pass this ordinance to
prevent them.
The expense Of such a cumbrous form of
government may easily beimagined. Indeed,
it generally costs more to pass an ordinance
for repairing street that it does to repair
the street itself. The idea of the Legislature
in framing the charter seems to have been that
by this complex, slow and cumbrous system,
they would prevent any jobs going through
the City Council; the objection to it is that it
equally prevents any good measures being
adopted. 1t is very much like the old plan Of
curing the toothache by blowing out ones
brains. ......5
Oh, that our legislators would give us sim
pie, straightforward, unequivocal and intelli-
gible legislation.