San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1894-12-15
Read before the Second National
Conference on Good City Gov
eminent, at Minneapolis,
December 10, S94.


Philadelphia, not only because |
know most about that city and its
government, but also because Phil
adelphia has, in my judgement,
made most substantial contributions
to the theory and practice of better
city government in the United
States. As my remarks on this
subject may, therefore, seem some
what inconsistent with statements
imputed to me by the press reports
purporting to give the substance
of my address before this body last
spring, at New York City, take
this opportunity of calling public
attention to the fact that l did not
say, as it was reported, that the
City of Philadelphia was governed
by set of thieves and rasCals.
THE GOVERNMENT OF PHILADEI.-
PHIA BETTER THAN REPORTED.
The description gave of Ameri-
can city government, at its worst,
applied to the City Of New York
under the Tweed ring, not to the
City of Philadelphia at all; and |
said in the coursr Of my remarks
that the City of Philadelphia had,
in my opinion, made in its Bullitr
Charter one Of the most valuable
contributions to good city govern.
rnent in the United States thus far
made by an American city. 1t was
also my opinion that the present
administration of Philadelphia was
the best we ever had since the group
of villages on the banks of the
Delaware and SChuylkill became a
city in 1854 and that the present
shortcomings i'll our city govern
ment were TO be traced largely to
defects of organization as I had in
dictated in the volume on the City
Government of Philadelphia,
published by the Warton School of
Finance and Economy of the Uni
versity of Pennsylvania. In all
that pertains to efficiency of city
administration, Philadelphia will
bear favorable comparison with any
other large city in the country. It's
government is not yet, of course,
ideal, nor alas, that of any other
large American city, but it is vastly
better than it ever was before, and
it has certainly applied along some
lines the sound principles of city
government.
THE MODEL CITY CHARTER MUST
BE AMERICAN, NOT EUROPEAN.
The question of a Model City
Charter is purely relative one de-
pending on temporal and local con-
ditions. A form of government
which worked we'll a generation
ago in the United States is probably
unsuited for US now. A form of
which works well in European
eoday is probably not we'll adapted
FOX American conditions. The
Model City Charter for American
cities is the charter under which
the business which devolVes upon
the modern municipality in the
United States can most efficiently
performed. This is to be ascer-
tanned by study OfprevaIling con
ditions in this country at this
present time and not reference to
the history of our own cities in the
past or to the conditions of Europ-
can cities i'll the present. The study
Of the past then, in America or
the present in Europe, is not what
we need most, but the study of the
present in the United States In
this statement there is no intention
TO belittle the Importance of study
ing history or of examining foreign
conditions-bOth have their own
justification, both are necessary
supremacy necessary-as part of
general culture and as showing
what has been done at other times
and places, but either could throw
much light on the problem in hand,
viz: how to accomplish similar or
better results here and now.
AMERICAN CITIES AHEAD OF
EUROPEAN IN MANY RESPECTS.
While we must admit that in the
government of cities we have thus
far failed in one sense, at least, and
Europe has succeeded relatively;yet
IN another sense we are f11rher ,1nnn