Los Angeles herald., 1891-07-11
A TIMELY PROPOSITION.

The Taxpayers Union are in position
to do good work for the people OF Los
Angeles, if they will enter upon it's
timely discussion. There is no doubt
that the next legislature will be besieged
with propositions to carve at least one,
if not two new counties out OF Los An
geles and part of San Bernardino.
There will be bills to create Pomona and
Riverside, and, perhaps, other counties,
all of which will directly or indirectly
intrench upon the territory of Los An
geles. The only opposition that can
come from this city against these pro-
posed new counties is in the fact that
their formation will leave Los Angeles
with undiminished public expenses,
but with diminished taxable resources
to meet them.
Why not look the inevitable in the
face? No one doubts that the divisions
agitated heretofore will ultimately sue
ceed. Orange. which has perhaps less
raison d'etre than either of the proposed
new counties, hammered at division
till she got it; and what was curious, at
the last moment she was able to present
petition from leading merchants and
business men OF this city in favor OF her
departure. Now as Pomona will in all
probability follow on the same lines,
why not concede the fact and take steps
to meet the new contingency by prepar-
ing plan for consolidated city and
county of Los Angeles with single set
of officers, instead of the expensive
compound government we now have. 1t
will be too late to do anything effective
in this matter if we wait till the legisla-
ture meets before maturing our plans.
The first thing for the Taxpayers
Union to do is to take the broad question
into serious consideration, would con-
solidated city and county with one set of
officers be an economical advantage to
the people within the new Jurisdiction?
We believe that this question would,
upon discussion, be answered in the af-
irmative. Next, what territory would
be compact and homogeneous for such
consolidated jurisdiction, and could it
be brought under the rule of single set
OF officials to the satisfaction of all the
people included in it? After these prop
ositions had been satisfactorily passed
upon, bill could be formulated in ac-
cordance with the conclusions reached.
1t may be said that the proposed new
county or counties outside would not
wish to take all the territory assigned
to them, and that there would be many
unforeseen objections raised to the
boundaries proposed. We could meet
all that with the reply that our first OBJ
ject was to create for ourselves terri
tory that would be convenient for our
purpose as a consolidated city and
county, and that we should insist upon
this consolidation in spite of all opposi-
ton. 1t would make but little differ
ence to Pomona whether her lines were
zigzag or ran into corners, while with
us it would be actually necessary that
for our purpose we should have co M
pact and symmetrical territory.
If the people who desire to put up
new counties interposed serious obiec-
tions to the plans we had decided upon,
we could say to them: Every we'll; if
you refuse to take the territory we as
sign you when you secede, we shall op-
pose your secession altogether. You
must go out leaving us the territory we
want, or you shall not go out at ALL" AS
we would be in position to make our de-
mand imperative, and they could not
secede against our determined opposi-
ton, they could not do otherwise than
yield.
We are glad that we have popular
and representative body like the Tax
payers Union to take this subject in
hand. 1t is in direct line with
the work they have undertaken and
they are the very organization that
should take hold of the matter and carry
it to a successful issue. If they will en-
ter upon this important task they will
soon find that it is feasible, and that
there will be fewer obstacles in the way
of its success than may appear at first.