The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1877-04-02
the Proposed "Omnibus Cha rter"-A
Good step I'm the Right Direction.

economy are succeeding in the Senate ana
have fair prospect of success in the Assem-
bly,. The main bill passed the Senate three
or four days ago, and the two supplementary
bills will go through that body without any
doubt. The Albany correspondence which
we printed on Saturday made this clear
enough by showing that the democratic OPP
position has been broken in the Senate,
several of the democratic Senators who voted
against the main bill having discovered
their mistake, and wishing to correct it SO
far as may yet remain in their power Quite
number of the democratic Assemblymen
will support the new charter, and although
it's friends still feel the need of vigilance
and effort they are confident of its passage.
In spite of the growing of Tammany Hall
and denunciations by Comptroller Kelly it
is wholesome measure. The opposition of
Mr.. Kelly and Tammany will influence the
Judgment of no fair-minded citizen or in
dependent legislator, its motive is SO easily
seen through. They oppose the new
measure because it is heavy blow at
machine politics. 1t curtails the number
and reduces the salaries of city officers and
thereby interferes with the election funds
raised by assessments on the city's servants.
By depriving the Common Council of con-
troll over the nominations of the Mayor it
strips the satellites of Tammany OF their
power to make bargains in the interest Of
their friends. BY changing the charter cleo
ton to April, thus separating it from State
and national politics, the proposed charter
precludes corrupt bargains between candi-
dates for tho Assembly, Senate and Con-
gress and candidates for city offices. They
will no longer be able to put all their
contributions into o common electioneer-
ing fund and lend mutual assistance
in electing unfit men. The new charter
will thus assist the people in emancipating
themselves from the tyranny of machine
politics and ring rule; and this is precisely
the reason why Mr.. Kelly and the Tammany
chiefs SO stiffiy oppose it. City officers who
neither drag others nor are dragged them
selves at the wheels of the machine favor
the proposed charter. The most conspicu-
Gus example is that of the Commissioner Of
Public Works, who keeps himself chastely
aloof from vulgar politics and is admins
tering his department with remarkable sue
cess. He strongly approves of the consoli-
dalton Of departments and single heads,
thinking that the present system is rs
clumsy and absurd as it would be to have
three or four heads Of the federal depart
ments at Washington, which would impair
efficiency of administration and multiply
officers and salaries for the benefit of trading
politicians. Should it be proposed in Con-
gress to reorganize the departments on the
model Of our present city system, with three
or four equal secretaries under the name Of
commissioners, and commission of five to
manage the postal service, the whole coun-
try would pour scorn upon such an absur-
dity. But the Washington departments are
much larger in their scope and more multi
farious and complex in the business they
transact than any Of the many-headed
branches of our city government.
Some of the details Of the proposed char
ter are open to just criticism, but its
main outlines ore excellent. The HERALD
is constrained to indorse it strongly, both
by its deliberate judgment and by its sense
of consistency. For years we have been
strenuously advocating the substance of its
leading changes. In the last months of
1876, during the interval between the cleo
ton and the meeting Of the Legislature
which preceded this, we incurred the
expense of sending reporters to inter-
view every memberi and when they
expressed their unbiased sentiments
at their own homes there was on immense
preponderance in favor of municipal cleo
tions in the spring. The result of those in
terviews encouraged us to make o vigorous
campaign in behalf of this reform ; but when
we had kept it up for eight or ten weeks
after the assembling of the Legislature we
were mortified to find that neither our argu-
ments nor the personal committals of
large majority Of the members were of any
avail for carrying the reform ut that time.
The bad influences which are always active
ct Albany and the absorption of the public
mind in the approaching Presidential can
vass blocked the path of reform. But it is
better late than never and we rejoice that
after so short IN interval as one year our
hopes are likely to be realized. There is no
difference of opinion among intelligent, i'm
partial men respecting the necessity Of sep
arating the municipal from the State and fed
eral elections So long ngo as 1870 Mr.. Tilden
contended that this is an indispensable step
toward municipal reform +; and although he
had not changed his mind when he became
Governor he preferred to have action post
poned lest he should increase the hostility
Of q powerful faction of his own party in
this State at time when he was
straining oil his energies to secure
the Presidential nomination. The HERALD
had already put majority of the
last Legislature on record as favoring
q spring election but they were as reluc-