Semi-weekly south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1883-1889, 1888-03-23
SOME POINTERS
ON CITY GOVERNMENT, WHICH
SHOULD BE PROPERLY
CONSIDERED.

The following able editorial, on the
management of municipal affairs,
from the Evansville Saturday Call,
is 80 well adapted TO Hopkinsville,
that we reproduce it, and ask its care
full perusal:
For years the conviction has been
steadily forcing itself on all intelligent
citizens that the worst results in city
government lie at the door Of parti-
sanship. The insane delusion that
partisan politics should be carried in
to our city elections, has worked out
its inevitable result in a mismanage-
ment of city affairs, which has been
dire obstacle to the growth of the
city, and stencil in the nostrils of
all honest men. The heelers and
strickers and organs of the two part
les may howl at this statement If
they like, but it is true, nevertheless
and all intelligent men know 1t to
be true.
1t is right that political parties
should exist, and that they should
nominate candidates from certain po-
litical offices. Parties are aggrega-
tions of men who believe in certain
policies and theories of governments
and their candidates stand as the re-
representatives. of those policies, and
are pledged, if elected, to try to have
them carried out in the legislation of
the country. This is Legitimate and
proper. But municipal government
has nothing in the world to do with
political parties or policies. 1t is
wholly q matter of business. City
government exists, not for political
legislation, about which men may
honestly differ, but to accomplish
certain plain, simple, economic results
about which men of all parties are
agreed, the public order, public Sc
curity, the public health. These
ends are to be secured along certain
definite business lines prescribed by
the law of the land, and differing on
~ In detail. and not at all in princi-
pie, from the transaction or any otbor
business. Intelligence, honesty and
economy must be applied to this bus
mess Of the city, just as they must be
to any other business, if it is to be
properly done; and if q Councilman
will faithfully bring these qualities
to bear on the transaction of the city
business, who cares whether he is
Democrat, Republican, a Prohibi-
ZIONIST, or Henry George man Let
his political views be what they may
let him stick 10 them and assert them
on all proper occasions but as Coun-
Gilman, they should not influence his
conduct in the Council Chamber to
represent any party" as business
trustee for the people of the city
and his responsibility is not TO any
party" but to all OF his fellow -citi-
zens.
The truth is, ii is this uneasy sense
of party obligation that renders many
an otherwise good man very poor
Councilman. Once in the Council
Chamber he feels that he must do
something for his "party," and, polit-
ical legislation being out of the ques-
ton, there are only two things that
be can do. One is to find as many
soft places and contracts as he can
for his party of his friends, and the
other is to oppose with howl, and
without hesitation, anything that
may be proposed by political OPP
ponent. Child-play at the Council
meetings. and inefficiency, and worse |
things than inefilciency, in the public
service, are the natural results, and
they will continue to be the results
as long as the old vicious system of
electing Councilmen continues.