Morning journal and courier., 1883-12-06
THE ToWN AND oITY NLEoT1oNs.

THE TOWN AND CITY ELECTIONs The election in New Haven Tuesday re- suited about as everybody supposed it would in contest between straight party tickets. Scarcely any attention was paid to the qualifications of the canAdatss. They were elected or defeated not because of their fitness or their want of it. but because they were Democrats or Republicans. John L. Treat, whose qualifications for the office of Town Agent nobody doubted, was defeated because he vas Republican. He ran ahead of his ticket, which indicates that he rscsiv ed some independent votes in recognition of his fitness for the office. But the bulk of the votes, both for and against him, were of course cast for party reasons. In the First ward Professor Newton of Yale collsge,a man by whom the ward ought to have bsen proud to be represented, was defeated solely because he vas Democrss. Without passing upon the question whether the successful competi- tors in both these instances are as we'll ouaIi- fled for the offices to which they have been elected as the defeated candidates, it is clear enough that they are not bettsr qualified be- cause one of them is Democrat aad the other Republican. A candidate for Town Clerk who was known to have knowledge of the duties of the office, because he served In it as a subordinate, was defeated by candidat te who, we venture to say, has no more praoti- cal knowledge of the duties of the Town Clerk than he has of those of the Oommis- sioner of Patents. He was not elected be- cause he knows how to keep the town rec npdA huk haao,1oo ha Sn o
 There is nothing especially novel in these facts. They are about what usually hap pens at city and town election. very fair illustration indeed of the usual results of such elections. We call attention to them nov because the need of reformation in our city and town affairs waS vory generally rec ogDiKed. Taxation had reached e point where it was universally felt to be intolera- ble The politicians of both parties showed themselves utterly indifferent to the stste of things by nominating, as usual, straight par ty tickets. and tho v0tsrs-shoss of them who went to the polls at all-cass their bal lots. as usual, not for the meu who were best qualified to fill the ofioss, but for Demo- crets and Republicans. We might aak them what they have gained. The gover nment of the city and town will be substantially 1n the same hands as it Is now. There ia nothing in the result of the election that gives any promise of more economical sdministra- tion.
 About the only hopeful sign we discover is that one-half of the voters stayed at home. :" One half of the voters apparently recognize tho fact that nothing is to be gained by a partisan election. They recognize it as com mon sense that capable men are not to be chosen by voting for candidates simply be- cause they are Democrats or Republicans We find no fault with anyone for his indifer. ence to the result of 8 party contest at 8 town or city election. The trouble is that the citizens will not present ticket os their own. We believe that if ticket which utterly disregarded personal and party con alterations, and which placed in nomination the best men who could be induced to ac- cept, had been placed in the field it would have met with a very hearty support and could have been successful There are many indications that this community was ready for just such a movement.