The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1894-11-16
HOW HE WOULD Do 1T.
ii. L. Schmitt Tells the Social Science
Club How He Would Run City.

II. L. Schmitt Tells the Social Science
Club How He Would Run a City.
The members of the Social Science
Club who braved the inclement
weather of Wednesday night and at
tended the meeting were well repaid.
Mr.. III. L. Schmitt read an interesting
paper on the Legislative and Execu-
tive Departments of City Govern
ments," which fully covered the sub
ject. We were unable for lack of time
and space to review his paper in our
issue yesterday and can only touch
i upon few points today. He believed
in the first place that city councils
were as rule, too large and approved
of the present tendency to reduce
their size. Thought the difficulty in
getting good men to serve thereon,
was largely because most cities only
pay enough to attract to that position
men who have made failure in bust
ness, and make living on what the
city pays them or piece it out with
what they receive for their votes in
the matter of municipal legislations,
so that business men did not care to
accept such position, for it had in
far too many instances become syno-
nym for Doodle and boodleTs. He be-
| lieved that if this bait for incompe-
tency were removed the most success
full business and professional men
would be willing to serve as aldermen
free Of charge.
Municipal legislation should be
strictly confined to such matters as
are defined by the charters, and then
care should be taken that only such
| ordinances are enacted as will or can
be confined. He favored a general
charter for cities All the legislation
for the city should be enacted by the
council and none of it's powers dele
gated directly or indirectly to board
of public works or any other board.
He further believed that too much
power was given committees, or their
| ideas upon matters, too often arrived
at through methods of ''log-rolling,"
were tconcurred in by the council
without full knowledge Of the real
conditions, and that better idea of
the true situation could in most cases
be obtained from an expert, who is
wholly disinterested in the matter,
and nothing to profit from thereby.
Speaking of the executive depart
ment he said he did not believe in a
special policy mayor" The duties
Of that officer are prescribed in the
charters, and he should be held re-
sponsble for not faithfully perform
ing them. He believed in what is
called the centralized form Of munic-
| ipal government and would make the
mayor responsible for good or bad
government.
He thought that in cities of less
that 25,000 the mayor should not be
paid a salary. He favored making the
mayor the one responsible man of the
city government. He would enlarge
his duties instead of curtailing them
and build a sentiment to put the
right man in the place. He thought
that the mayor with able assistants
which he could select, could look after
the affairs of the municipality better
and cheaper than it can be done
through various hands as is now often
| the case. He would, in word, put
municipal government on business
basis. For those officers which must
be selected to look after the business
of the city and devote their entire
personal attention, he believed that
such liberal salaries should be paid
as to attract the best talent for the
positions to be filed. He favored
system of civil service whereby pro-
motions would be made by good SER
wise.
In the election of aldermen he ia
vored the election of portion of them
by wards and the balance by the city
at large.
He also thought that little stricter
naturalization la rs, which would re-
ouire longer residence in this country
before voting would prove beneficial.
Mr.. A. NJ. Rutan opened the discus
sion with short paper endorsing Mr..
Schmitt's paper in general, comment
ing upon some of the thoughts set
forth and suggesting methods by
which he thought municipal govern
ment might be improved. a general
discussion followed.
The next regular meeting will be
held on Tuesday evening Nov. goth.
III. w. Brown will read paper on
"Revenues and Expenditures, which
will cover the matter of taXes,-real,
4 Il Hoo