National Republican., 1883-04-02
HAVE WE BEEN DELIVERED OVER TO THE
DEMOCRATS?
To The EtffOr


WAsHINGToN, ID. c., Mar. 20.-Your cor
respondent of this morning seems disposed to
rebukc Gen. West for desiring any share in
the executive administration of the affairs of
the district and to regard II suggestion upon his
part, that the president of the board of COM
missOncrS should have the special superyis-
ion OF the police MS a sufficient reason for
stripping him of all authority. 1t is no use
for Mcssrs. Lydecker and Edmonds to at
tempt to disguise their action or their mo-
tives. They have stripped ono of the men,
bers of tho board of all authority by ASSUME
ing il all for themselves No one will be de-
ceived by reference to the triune character of
the board, for if the duties are not divisiblc,
why have thcy divided them2 1t does not
lie in their mouths to say that this action
does not accomplish just what they must
have intended, nor in the mouths of their
apologists to throw the responsibility on the
member who has been rclegated by their act
into Il mere nOnentity.
1t may be that the triumvirate form of our
government Is us bad as men say it is, but ii
is not in operative, and it is all the govern
mont we have; and it Is not wise to make it
worse by an act of usurpation by II self con-
stitutcd majority, which in effect changes it
into n dual form by practically wiping out
one member,
This board was created by congress and
vested with the entire municipal authority
over our district. 1t succeeded to the board
of public works, the governor, and legislative
assembly of the district, Its duties are to
some degree legislative and cover the entire
extent Of the executive authority TheO-
retically it is trinity, but practically gov
ernment by three, who, consulting together
on matters of general policy and exceptional
importance, leave the practical management
of special departments to the individual mcm-
bers each of whom acts in his department for
In. l,la &n.th al tsta nf ItT upn
adopted rs matter of course, and arc an in
cident to the practice Of all corporations
whether specially provided for by law or not.
Such has been the practices of the commissions
ers from their organization MIR. Dent was
content with the titular honor of the pros-
dency and abdicated all actual executive con-
troll TO his associates 1t was not to be eX-
pected that another like him would succeed
him, but these two gentlemen concluded,
by mere force, 10 continue the state of affairs
which he voluntarily established, Is IL to be
expected that any gentleman, having decent
respect for himself, would consent to be made
n mere igurehead, and while denied all par
ticipatiOn in the executive duties of the board
be made Ostensibly responsible for whatever
was done? take it there will be no differ
enco of opinion among gentlemen as TO what
Gen West owed it TO himselfto do. Nothing
else remained for him to do, except to say tC
his colleagues, You have taken to yourselve;
all the authority; take also to yourselves the
responsibility"
But how about these others2 Mai, Lydeckel
is an officer of engineers, He would be un
true 10 the traditions of that branch Of thu
service if he did not grab all the authority h,
could get aud hang on to it with the grip o
death. The engineer members of the boar,
have practically dealt with that department
as though il was their exclusive charge, ant
how utterly the wishes and the interests o
the community are disregarded by these en-
gineor officers is illustrated in their conduc
in regard to the water supply for which con
gress made liberal appropriations, and whicI