St. Paul daily globe., 1895-12-24
A COMPREHENSIVE REPORT.

at their leisure and to preserve the
vast bulk of the report for future
reference and investigation.
The subject matter dealt with is sc
immense, both in its scope and in its
detail, that it would be futile to at
tempt to consider it eXhaustively in
the limits of single article. We de-
sire, as a preface to our general con
illusions, to pay high tribute to the
zeal and honesty of the members OF
this Investigating body, and to return
to them the sincere thanks of the
people whose cause they have served
The members of the committee, who
are men of large business interests
have spent weeks in familiarizing
themselves with the endless minutiat
of cur departments and their work
They have digested the whole anG
presented their conclusions. Theil
labor must make future readjustment
of our affairs easier, and their studies
form a valuable handbook to those
interested in municipal business
Therefore those who disagree with
their views will at least accord tc
them the praise that they have earned
We need touch now only upor
some of the recommendations of the
report. But we would say, in pass
ing, that by no means its least valu-
able feature is the itemized statement
of the working force, the duties and
the cost of operation of the various
city departments. These facts have
been already pres ented by the
G l o b e, which marked out the lines
of inquiry that the committee has
followed. They will be resorted to
constantly hereafter when changes
and economies are to be carried into
effect. The positive recommendations
made fall into two classes. One, in
many respects the more important of
the two, contains such suggestions
as cannot be carried out without legis-
lative enactment. The consolidation
of the city and county governments,
the abolition of various positions pro-
vided for in the charter, and the sal
aries of many offices fixed by law are
beyond the reach of the council. All
these must wait upon the action of the
legislature. But it is only fair to
remind the people of the city that
the Republican delegation which
they chose at the last election could
have carried through these reforms
had it so desired, and that they are
indebted to it for the postponement
of years that has now become a neces-
sfty.
AS to the other class of recon-
mendations, the committee finds pos
sibilities of saving everywhere. The
criticism which has to be passed upon
its conclusions is that they seem to
contemplate the minimum cost at
which city can be run, assuming
that all its departments must be re-
duced as near as possible to the
starvation basis. Even a rigid econ
ony does not require this, and the
possible effect of it is easily to be
imagined when the departments are
considered separately. Thus it is no
doubt possible to carry on the pub
lie schools for $4,000 less than the
sum now expended; but it is not pos
sible to do such work as ought to be
done, for the best interests of our
children, by the abolition of the
manual training school, the assign
ment of fifty pupils to each teacher
and the dismissal of all supervisors.
Every practical educator knows how
disastrous would be the effect of
such changes.
Again, it is possible beyond ques-
ton to get men to fill the positions
of fire chief and chief of police for
the reduced salaries suggested. But
is it possible to get men who are
needed; men of great executive abil-
ity, able to handle large forces sue
cessfully, and men of honesty un-
assailable by the temptations of
place? These are questions that
stretch beyond the dollar mark, but
are very pertinent as affecting not
only efficient but economical govern
ment, in the full meaning of the
term. 1t would seem that, while the
committee has pointed out many use
less expenditures, has shown the way
to large savings, especially in the
department of public works and in
departments where there are salaries
too large and supernumerary en-
ployes, its scheme of reductions as a
whole is guided rather by considera-
tion Of the greatest possible saving
to be effected than by the changes
which are at once practicable and
wholesome.
In stating this condition, we do not
undervalue the Importance of the
work done. Nor does this relieve
those who hava if I'm tbair ,,o,,,o,,
from the duty Of making retrench-
ment wherever it is feasible, especial
ly along the line of the consolidation
of different forces now performing
practically Identical or closely allied
duties. and Of dispensing with the