The New York herald., 1879-08-09
The Police Commission.

| his letter of acceptance, to the plan OF
what is called non-partisan commissions.
and especially to non-partisan Police
| Commission. ~ shall deem it my duty"
he wrote, ''to maintain an equal represen-
tation of democrats and republicans in the
| Board of Police which is charged with the
preservation of the peace and order OF the
city and with the ministerial management
of elections" It was but natural that he
should make this engagement, for he
was the candidate of coalition OF
democrats and republicans. But as
Mr.. Cooper is a man OF business,
we believe he must have seen before this
time, what an increasing number OF the
citizens of New York certainly see, that the
attempt to rule by boards, and more espe-
cially by non-partisan boards, SO called. is
sure to lead to maladministration, because
it gives power without fixing responsible
ity. ''Boards are screens" Jeremy Ben
than pthily said, and non-partisan boards,
as they are called-commissions composed
of an equal number of members from
each party-form one OF the most
ingenious devices for the protection
of inefficiency, waste and corruption.
Police Board composed of two democrats
and two republicans is not non-partisan,
as it is the fashion to call it, but the con-
rary. 1t is piece OF machinery which
serves only to conceal the misconduct of its
members, for both parties are thus inter-
ested in concealing wrong-doing, and what
is intended for government becomes in fact
little better than conspiracy. Each party
having its representatives in the admins
tration, both become interested in conceal
ing from the people the authors Of malad-
ministration.
1t would be bad enough if the city COM
missions consisted entirely of democrats or
republicans In that case, even, it would
be impossible to fix blame upon any one
person. and misgovernment would be cer-
tain. But the party in power could at least
be held responsible at the polls and to
public opinion for the abuses of its COM
missions and boards. With a non-partisan
board, as it is called, each party screens its
own members for the sake of its share of
the patronage and public plunder, and the
people are left without protection. Under
such system as this ineficiency is certain,
maladministration is probable, and good
and able men are constantly repelled from
taking share in the management of public
| affairs.
| The Erening Post has some sensible and
| timely words on this subject, which we
transfer to our columns elsewhere. The
HERALD, which has on very many occasions
called attention to this matter, agrees en-
tirely with the EOening Post 1t is quite
right in urging that the system OF governing
the city by commissions has been it's curse.
and that each department should be under
| a single head, accountable to the Mayor. In
| this way only can there be that union of
responsibility with power which alone can
insure even tolerably good government.
1t is not extravagant to say that if the
federal constitution had provided system
of commissions for executive work the
country would have sunk long ago under q
load of ineficiency and corruption; and
no attempts to reform the city government
will succeed until we adopt here sub
! stantially the same simple and effec-
tive system which has worked so we'll in the
federal constitutional Chief Executive
responsible to the people, and single head
to each subordinate department response
BILE to the chief Under that sys tenn, pro-
vided by the authors of the federal consti-
| tuition, the most momentous interests of
the country have been cared for, on the
whole well, and, what is vital to any sys-
tenn of government, the people have been
able to fix the responsibility for abuses of
power or trust. and to enforce reforms
whenever they wished.
Under our plan of boards or commits
sions, it is like looking for needle in q
haystack to try to put responsibility for
misconduct on any particular member; and
even the Mayor, the head of the city gov
ernment, cannot remedy mismanagement
without removing the whole Board, and
coups detdt such as Mr.. Cooper is now
with more or less success. consider
ing the decision of Judge Westbrook,
engaged upon. five could be assured that
the present policy Of the Mayor and his
friends in regard to the Police Commits
sioners was really intended tor the welfare
Of the city we should be satisfied that he
was doing as well as he could under
a vicious system; but it is another conse-
quence of this plan of government that it
subjects even SO eminent citi-
zen as Mr.. Cooper to the suspi-
cion that he is acting not entirely from a
desire to promote the public welfare. II
he compares his own promise, in his letter
of acceptance, to conduct the city govern
ment upon the principles which guide
prudent and economical, yet liberal minded
men of business" with tho motives i'm
puted to him by the city press, he cannot.
it seems to us, help but feel sense oi
humiliation, ns Of one who is attempting