The Portland daily press., 1892-11-29
OUR CITY GOVERNMENT.

A Candid Criticism of Some of the Defects
| of Portland's Charter-The System of
Divided Responsibility and Its Results
Vaccillation and Uncertainty the Conse-
quences-Good Points in Westbrooks
Charter.
American cities during the last fifty
years has revealed many defects in the
form and character of city governments
In 1910 there were but forty-four cities
in the country. Today there are about
eight times as many According to the
last census there are 1874 with a popula-
ton of over $4,000 each, of which fifty
have more than $4,000, twenty-eight
more than 100000, seven more than 400,-
900, and three more than 100000. The
government of these large aggregations
of people and the administration of their
local affairs has come to be more diff
cult and intricate matter than when the
cities were few and small, and new ques-
tons have arisen for the decision of
which no precedents are found. Our
system of federal and state governments
has worked SO admirably as to be re-
garded as well nigh perfect. 1t is, there
fore, surprise to find that a system
based upon similar principles should
work unsatisfactory when applied to
cities. but city governments have shown
themselves incompetent in so many in
stances, there have been so much corrup-
ton, extravaganza, improvidence and
heedlessness Of the public welfare that
people are becoming aroused, and are
seeking causes and remedies.
One cause is to be found in the charac-
ter of voting population, which in every
large city contains large percentage of
illiteracy, especially among the foreign
born voters. A large part of this in
crease in city population comes from i'm
migration. In the early days of the CEN
fury immigrants sought farms. or went
in considerable numbers to the smaller
towns and villages, where by association
with people OF American birth they soon
acquired American ideas, and were
ready and easily assimilated with the
mass of the people. Today, however,
immigrants herd by thousands in the
large cities, where they associate with
only those of their own nationality, and
retain and transmit to their, children the
ideas and prejudices brought with them
from Europe. Through our rather lax
naturalization laws they soon receive the
right of suffrage. Coming from class
which in Europe has for generations been
denied all voice in the government, they
have no natural conception of the rights
and duties of citizenship, and from their
exclusiveness here they do not readily
acquire such conception. They are,
therefore, not in sympathy with the
spirit of our institutions. They are in
many instances densely illiterate, igno-
rant even of our language. AS class
they are particularly subject to the venal
influences of the demagogue and to the
seductive responsiveness of the vote
buyer. They constitute menace to free
institutions, not only state and national,
but especially municipal.
So far as this evil is concerned it may
be noted that public sentiment is now
quite generally aroused to the necessity
of further restraining and regulating i'm
migration, and we have reason to expect
that Congress will at an early date amend
our naturalization laws. Its crafty
ing to note that the State of Maine, at
least, at the recent election amended her
constitution so as to require an ednca-
tional qualification, 1t is probably only
a question of time when similar amend
ment will be adopted in other States
where that is not already the law.
1t has been suggested that there should
also be property qualification for vot-
ers in municipal matters. Since the city
government possesses the power of taxa
ton and the power of spending the
money which the taxes yield, why should
not the right to vote in city affairs be
limited to those who have property of
some sort within the city limits-to those
who have to pay the taxes which the city
government sees fit to impose? 1t was
proposed by a commission appointed in
1876 by the legislature of New York for
the purpose of devisi g plan for the
better government of cities, that there
be established in each city board of
finance to consist of from six to fifteen
members to be elected by the tax payers.
This board was to have practically ex-
elusive control of the taxation and ex-
penditures in each city, and was to exer-
else the city's borrowing powers. The
report of the New York commission
came to no practical result, although
many of the ideas and suggestions con-
tanned in it met with wide approval
AS to
The Idea of Property Qualification
for municipal voters, whether it is pro-
posed to place city affairs wholly in the
hands of the tax payers, or only partially
so as proposed by the New York COM
mission two points are to be noted.
First, the idea is impracticable. There,
is belief among the people so wide
spread as to be nearly universal that
such plan is un democratic and I'M
American. To dept such plan the
State constitutions would have to be
amended. The proposed amendments
would have to be submitted to the peo-
pie, and in no State would a majority of
voters approve pla to limit the suf-
frage in any manner or to any extent by
means of property qualification.
Second, the idea is unwise. The State
and city should be protected from igno-
rance and vice, but more protection is
needed from the power of wealth than
from the power of poverty. Voters may
be dangerous because they are litter
ate, or because they are open to bri-