The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1894-12-30
PLANkS PROPOSED
Stewart MenZies on the
New City Charter.
GENERALIZATION OF POWER.
Matter of the Legality of Free
holders in Allegiance.
STEWART MENZIES TALKS OUT.
Increased Appointing Power by
the Mayor Is Advo-
Gated.
STEWART MENZIES TALKS OUT

The freehOideTs-eiect held q preliminary
meeting Friday in the Cham Der of Com
merce. Arrangements were made to go
ahead with The work OF Preparing a city
charter.
Chairman Joseph Britton. Vice-Chair-
man George T. Marye Jr and Secretary
l. j. Truman were appointed to formulate
rules TO govern further proceedings and to
appoint committees necessary for transact
ing business properly.
II. n. Clement was instructed to
represent the freeholders before the
Superior and Supreme courts in the in
terest of the legal contest which is now
being waged to test the legality Of the
election of certain members of the board.
Robert Ashe has been retained as counsel
by Mr.. Clement.
A decision on the matter is expected
from the Supreme Court within two
weeks. In the meantime as soon as the
committees are announced tine freehoders
will continue Wi b their work.
A great amount of interest has been
manifested as to what will be the nature
of the new charter in case the couris do
not inyalidate the election of the Free
holders.
Stewart MenZies who Is a member of
the board, when seen yesterday said that
he was In favor of putting the various de-
par ments under one head and to give the
Mayor the power of appointing the diff
terent heads. Then" he remarked,
man to whom the people may attach
blame II any malfeasance in Office occurs.
As IL is now we have three or Jour Police
Commissioners pulling and hauling in
every direction. If any rascality takes
place in this department they shift the
blame from the one to the other. 1t is ut
terly impossible, as things are now shaped,
| to detect the guilty parties.
ION the other hand, if we had only one
Police Commissioners We would have a re-
! sponsible public servant. Then # any
! irregularity of any kind took place in this
department we would know right where
10 lay the blame. The Commissioner
| his actions. In adopting this plan of a
| single head to departments we are only
copying the methods pursued at Washing
| ton. Row would it look to have four Sec
retaries Of State, half-dozen Secretaries
of the Treasury, War and Navy? Why, it
would be perfectly ridiculous. Now If
| anything gets out OF order in the Navy
or State departments we know exactly
| who the responsible officer is and we 60
| directly 10 him for it's correction.
1T has been said that such change as
have outlined would centralZe power too
iDucD. CdQ Lnere De any greater ceDGrali-
Ia ion of power than there 10 at present?
The bosses have all the say now. One or
two men dictate what appointments shall
or shall not be made Ii this is not CEN
tralizstion of power / don't know what is.
This whole fight over making the de-
partments single headed has been brought
about by such men as Burns and Buckley.
| This reform would curtall their power and
patronage. For instance. If MIR. Sulro had
| the appointing power, as | wish be had,
what a sweeping out there would be at the
| City Hall. The bosses see this very
| plainly. and hence they are making the
! fight. Tammany Hall in New York Is Bit
| terly opposing the same movement. Tom
| Platt also naturally sides with Croker.
Another plank J am going TO try to
have introduced in the new city charter is
| to have the municipal elections take place
| in the off years. AT the present day par.
tisanship enters into city elections. Men
! will vote the ticket straight for fear th at
they will jeopardize their party's inter.
psts. Then the bosses raise the cry that a
| United States Senator is at stake or a
! Governor, and that every man must put in
a straight vote. In this way they hood
wink the taxpayers.
"Agaip.-1 would nave the Registrar ap.
! pointed by the Election Commissioners,
| also the inspectors, judges and clerks. The
| handed in by the bosses bnt from the lists
| of registered voters. The votes should be
| counted in the presence OF the Commits
| s0ners and at the City Hall. 1t would
take only two or three days. 1t was a
| perfect disgrace the way the votes were
| canvassed at the last election. Nearly
| Two months were consumed in the cOnnt ,,