St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-02-18
Its Main Points Examined and Unfavor-
able Conclusions Reached.
ADVISED TO GO SLOW.
Too Much Machinery and Too Few
Elections Are Some Of the Points
lei Urged Against It.
Special to the Globe.

-
Nearly year ago the city of Mandan
nothing would do but to adopt the new
law, which had some very good points
to it, which were plainly visible, but in
practice it has been found that there
werea good many hidden evils that are
found out only in the working. 1t is a
matter of question if any of the towns
that are now working under the new
charter would be doing this if it were
possible to go back to their old ones. 1t
may be that where the charters that
were thrown away for the new one were
radically bad and cumbrous and cramp-
ing, there is little or no complaints at the
general provisions of the new, but even
there the wonder is constantly eX
pressed that the trainers of the measure
did not take better advantages of their
opportunities to give the territory
good law. They had the accumulated
experience of other states, and if suffi-
cient time and ability had been be-
slowed upon it. the result would have
been law with fewer loopholes for the
searching criticisms that are offered Oh
it now.
Some of the objections may be given
at hap-llazard with the hope that they
will aid some other cities of the terri
tory il deciding whether or not they
desire to come under it. 1t may be well
to say, though, that the few cities that
were in hurry to operate under this
new law rushed to the conclusion too
quickly that a law framed as this was
would necessarily be better than char
tiers that were prepared voluntarily by
the representatives of individual cities.
AS a matter of fact, individual charters
prepared for Individual cities would, if
prepared by men of ordinary ability, be
great deal etter adapted for indi-
vidual cities than general charter for
because 1t is built after pattern that
prevails generally. A family may have
reasons why it should be Accommodated
in a house specially constructed for it.
LII the first place the mayor and Off
GERS are elected under the new charter
for two years. In most of the charters
under which the cities of Dakota are
working. the term is one year. This has
been found to work better than longer
term. 1t would not work as well in a
town with a population of more per-
manent character. But the two-year
term will work badly in most Dakota
towns, especially when it is remem-
bered that all vacancies of aldermen and
other officials must he filled by new
election instead of by appointment, as is
usual in cities under the old charters.
If the experience of the next year or
two in Mandan be like that of the past.
I'VE shall always be in the throeS of an
election. for aldermen and school direc-
tors are often moving from one ward
to another, and, too, it is not an unusual
thing for people to leave town; of
course, others come in their places, but
the elections must be had. In town such
as Mandan is, and other towns in d new
country are good deal like it. the men
who have the most at stake, and who are
times and bad, do not get elected as
aldermeh-that is to say, they do not
get elected as frequently as they should.
tThe result is that OR official population
is very movable in quality. SO many
new elections is very burdenSome
= In most of the old charters there are
limits to the amount of tax levieS for
different funds. In the old Mandan
charter the general fund levy could not
be above mills. The street improve
ment and other levies were also limited.
In the general charter there is no such
limit. In September appropriations
sufficient to pay for these appropria-
lions. This is d good method. probably,
in city that is at stand-still, or whose
growth is gradual and easily measured.
But in cities in Dakota. where new
railroad enterprise or new manu-
featuring project may make quick and
radical changes and demand increased
expenditures, and where new enter
prises are likely to show themselves in
the early spring, after the apprOpria-
tons have been made, the efforts of
the city fathers are liable to be badly
cramped.
Quoting from the new edition of the
compiled laws, | would say that section
S57 provides that ''the mayor shall pre-
side at all meetings of the city council"
In section S7S we find provision to the
effect that 1.-The council shall at its first
regular meeting after the annual cleo
ton i'll each year proceed to elect from
out of its own members a president and
vice president. The president of the
council shall be the presiding officer of
the council, and shall, during the alb
sence of the mayor from the city, be the
acting mayor" Any one who desires
to say after this that the law quoted
has a strange idea as to what constitutes
carefulnesS.
The machinery to be set in operation
for the performance of local improve
1nentS is cumbersome, and as much red
tape has to be observed in small i'm
improvements amounting TO few dol
lars as if thousands of dollars were in
volved. The Mandan charter. under
which the city worked prior to year
ago, had a provision as to the cOndem-
nation of land for sewerage purposes.
The clause was put in with especial ref
ence to the needs of the city. That has
the new charter.
The less red tapeism there is sur
rounding the passage of resolutions and
ordinances the better. Of course, they
should be protected by certain safe
guards, but there are some wholly use
less requirements at times, the diSre-
gard of which will nullify important
work, and work irreparable wrong on
the community. For eXample-in county
government tits required of the county
commissioners that not only shall they
pass resolutions as to the tax levy and
accept the assessor S report as equaliZed,
and sign this and that, but they shall
sign the warrant ordering the county
treasurer to go ahead and collect the
tax. Of course, that is what the county
treasurer has been elected for. He
knows it, and so does everybody else.
This signing of a paper ordering him to
do his duty in this respect is needless,
viewed from common sense stand
point. But the law wants it, and it
must be done. 1t this county the COM
misSioners overlooked this duty in 1888,
and they did not sign the warrant in
queStion-at least everybody said SO
who looked for it in the place where it
should have been. The taxes were
partly collected, but one heavy tax
payer, owing to the depression of
the times. neglected TO nav. and looked