, 1892-12-05
TIDE FLAT TALK.
Mayor O'Brien's Scheme is Clearly
Illegal.

what the state Constitution Says
About the Matter Something
for the Taxpayers 30 Read.
The Coming Election.
Editor Tribune:
A par agraph in the Morning Olympian
charges me with the intention of resigning
a seat in the council should be elected
and that this proceeding is part Of a
"scheme" "
l have no towering ambition to be a
councilman and personally would prefer to
not be. But nomination made unani-
nous by a nOn-partisan meeting in the
Third ward-a meeting that had more than
twice as many members as both the repub-
lican and democratic caucuses combined
is a call to duty that good citizen should
not ignore. AS to the scheme" involved
at that meeting, Mr.. Mottman favored the
nomination of another man for the posi-
ton. Should be elected, l will sremain,
life and death being spared, member of
the council to the end of the term.
What is the political situauon2 The
platform of the republican convention
pledges its candidates to the creation of a
commission for the purpose Of leading
the city out of the financial wilderness
and promises nothing else. The commits
sioners, of course, will work for an indeh-
mite periodsunder per diem.
1t has been only two years since the city
government was reOrganized. During that
time the two administrations that have
brought about the unfortunate condition
fl,af 1lu
by republican mayors and one of them by
the convention that demands the commits
sion.
The republican convention was fairly
well composed of monied men. If it is
inimical to the city's interest for the few
citizens, against whom contests are filed, to
purchase the mud fiat lots from the state,
should not loyalty to the city prompt our
capitalists to organize a protective associ-
alton of some kind and eheckmate these
private spectators
But it is proposed to secure legislation
by which the city will be exempt from pay
ing the 100000. This, ifattempted, will be
another act in the comedy. Waving dis
cussion of the constitutional right of the
legislature to grant special legislation of
this kind, is it at all probable that any
considerable number of Legislators would
favor donating 500 900 worth of the states
property ? Hardly.
Oub again ONCn II bllG AOEloAdbuI6 uO-
mates these lands to the city and the pro-
posed manufactures are all bona tide en-
terprises, how will the city, in the magni-
tude of its benevolence, remove the OBJ
struction, that stands like guardian SEN
tinel, IN sectioR 7, article 8, of the state
constitution 1t reads:
mo county, city, town, or other munic-
ipal corporation shall hereafter give any
money or property or loan its money or
credit to, or in aid of any individual, as
sOciation, company or corporation. except
for the necessary support of the poor and
inhrm, or become directly or indirectly the
owner of any stock in or bonds of any
association, company or corporation"
But what will the city do with this prop
erty if the mayors scheme succeeds2 1t is
proposed at some time, in some way un-
der some circumstances, to donate it to
somebody; to bestOW it on manufacturing
institutions and form a "tin bucket bri-
gade." This sounds pretty but is it not q
mixture of lingo and absurdity, rather
than good horse sense? l would not ques-
tion.the motives of Mayor O'Brien. l am
satisfied in my own mind that he is con-
scientious and unselhsh. But his propo-
sition lacks judgement. Adopt it and
speculate on the result A few years hence
the present city fathers Will be out of
office. Term by term, their successors will
have come and gone. Those tide flats still
remain the property of the city, increasing
in value but producing no income from
taxation. Is it not within the genius of
designing men to organize fake factories
and by subterfuge after subterfuge get pos
session of this valuable propertyP
The best that can be said of the demo-
Gratis is that they have borrowed the
peoples party platform and nominated
national bankers for candidates.
In opposition to both is the non-partisan
ticket and the platform speaks for itself.
f4orr kl,o,ro lr- kro. =
the campaign so-called mud fiat issue.
Certain citizens have sought to purchase
tide lands under the laws of the state The
republican candidate tor mayor proposes
to have the city contest the rights of these
citizens and to purchase the property.
The proposed purchases will cost the city,
approximately, $1C0000, to be paid to the
state, one-tenth each year for ten years, in
terest at per cent. The people pay this.
Throughout the city are hundreds of in
dustrial citizens, struggling between high
taxes and scarcity of work to build and
maintain homes among us. Under what
principle of municipal law would the city
exercise the tyranny of its taxing power,
plant its iron heel of authority on the
homes of these people and extort from
them contributions to this $1C0,C002 The
proposition shows mis-conception of the
province of city government, and invites
litigation between the city and its citizens
III Wnlcn Jne ClGy Will prODaDly pc de-
feated and have the costs to pay.
Is it not probable that this provision was
engrafted in our organic law to prevent the
taxpayers from being oppressed by such
lingo schemes as the one under discussion
The situation in city affairs calls for the
exercise of unusual business judgment and
a proper conception of the objects, powers
and duties of municipal government. Its
purposes are of a purely business character
and its elections should have no connec-
tion with state or federal politics. Its Of
fcers, limited to the fewest possible in
number, should be chosen on account of
their business ability and personal integ-
rity, and absolutely Independent of politi-
cal parties, political factions and political
committees. A city goYernmentfounded on
principles other than these is apt to chase
after financial will-'O-the-wisps and sooner
or later be cursed with excessive taxation,
tarnished regulations and official rotten
ness. j. q. RATHBUN.
December 5, 1892
Good Looks.
Good looks are more than skin deep, de-
pending upon healthy condition of all the
vital OrOans If the liver be Inactive Won