Evening star., 1895-05-31
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
The District Form Considered al
Cleveland.
PAPERS READ TO MUNICIPAL LEAGUE
Dr.. Billings Speaks From the
Physicians Point Of View.
MATTERS OF IMPORTANCE

CLEVELAND, Ohio. May 31.-The morn
ing session of the national municipal league
today was marked by somewhat small at
tendance, the reason being no doubt the
warm weather. The first paper of the
morning that of Charles Richardson,
the first vice president of the league. His
subject was Municipal Government by Ma
tional Parties"
He was followed by Francisco l. 7. NIL
liken, who spoke on the municipal condition
Messrs. E. o. Graves of Seattle, Wash,
and Thomas N. Strong of Portland, Ore,
made addresses on the same subject in
connection with their respective cities.
DIR. John S. Billings Paper.
Dr. John S. Billings read a paper on
Good City Government from the Stand
point of the Physician and Sanitafian."
From the point of view of the physician"
began DR.. Billings, ''the best city govern
ment is that which best preserves the
health of the people, best cares for the sick
and injured who require municipal aid, and
gives most opportunities for the increase
and diffusion of medical knowledge; and
which, at the same time, interferes least
with the freed om cf individuals in general
to use their time, their knowledge and their
property in their own way and for their
own benefit. The sanitarian also considers
that the best city government is that
which preserves the health of the people,
| but with the proviso that it be done at
reasona BILE cost.
| considered" the doctor continued. ARE
vital statistics, water supply, sewage dis
posal, garbage iisposal, streets and parks,
drainage, prevention of the spread of dis
ease provisions for cleanliness, suppression
of nuisances, supervision of the food sup
ply, regulation of the liquor traffic, care of
the sick and disposal of the dead. Each of
these" he said. require expert knowledge
to obtain the best results. and the experts
should be selected by the civil service
method, excluding political considerations"
Discussing the means of securing per-
feet health system, Dr. Billings said: mo
system will prove satisfactory which pre-
| vents the chiefs of the health and engineer
ing departments from presenting their
plans and estimates directly to the mayor
and no system of contracts for street clean
ing and the removal of refuse will. in the
long run, secure work properly done at
reasonable rates. All such contracts must
be what are known as gambling contracts
The city should own its own plant and en-
ploy its own men for all this kind Of work
which should be under the direction of the
engineering department"
DR.. Billings outlined the methods by
which the various desiderata mentioned by
him should be provided for by city gov
ernment and, proceeding, said: II believe
the statement that the present evils of a
city life are temporary and remediable,
and that science is competent to answer
the problems connected with this. But
science is a matter of fact, of quantities. of
measurements-it must have data to work
wfth-and the first thing needed for most
of our cities is to obtain these data. 1 am
much inclined to believe that the wisest
thing a city could do would be to have
their health and engineering departments
inspected by committee composed of an
expert statistician, a skilled sanitarian and
an experienced municipal engineer from
elsewhere for the purpose, who should take
from one to six months to do their work.
and then report the results. with their
Ia Thn cit
know what of these parts of the municipal
machinery are in good order and what are
not Each city presents its own peculiar
problems, but in many cases these prob
lens can be better solved by experts called
from other cities than by those likely to be
selected from the citizens of the place
ITSELF
Municipal Condition of Warrington.
Mr.. Siddons began by. outlining the mu-
Eicipal control of the District of Columbia
by the District Commissioners, appointed
by the President and under the authority
OF Congress, saying: Undoubtedly the
present government Of the capital is the
source of constant and increasing dissat-
isfaction and suspicion. Dependent as we
are on Congress. its utter failure as a
municipal legislative body threatens the
future of the District And yet it should
lature charged with the parliamentary af-
fairs Of nation of 65OOOOO of people
and formulating currency and tariff poll
cies today finds difficulty in coming to the
consideration tomorrow Of whether 1t will
grant an appropriation to lay a sewer or
pass an ordinance concerning the DISPOSE
ton OF garbage in a community of less
than 100000 persons. This was never con-
templated by the Constitution makers and
certainly Congress is not adapted to the
performance of such legislative duties.
AS has been said," the speaker contin-
ued. the Commissioners have complete
control of the appointments, dismissals
&c, of all subordinates but in the exercise
OF; that control they have allowed them
selves to be fettered by Congressional Of
nee brokers', who now make it sine qua
non of appropriations and legislation for
the District that they shall have the Of
noes, and they generally get Them
with the exception of scandal that
grew out of the purchase by the munici-
pal government of certain school sites few
years ago. and which involved more error
Of judgment than anything else, it is re-
freshing to be able to state that with all
their faflings and Weaknesses due as has
Deen said, far more to the system than to
the men who act and speak for It, the Dis
trict Commissioners have not been corrunt
men, We have had weak men, but they
have been honest"
Referring to the reform movement in
Washington. Mr. Siddons spoke of the
civil Service Reform Associat ton and The
Civic Center" which is designed to serve
as centra! agency to coordinate, har-
monize and help all associations, societies
and agencies. public and private, which are
working in the city for the pub
lie good. 1t is an agency, he said,
the want Of which has long been
felt by many of the leading workers in a
field of public good, to bring into proper
relations and due cooperation and har-
mony the efforts of hundreds of associa-
tions, societies, unions. circles and clubs.
in Which thousands of the best citizens old
and young, are at work to promote the
peace, purity health. intelligence. progress
and Christian well-being of this beau
tiful capital of the nation"
distinguished men and women make I'D
Its membership" he continued. 1T has
no favors to esk, no axes to grind, and ff
each Of its committees will but do their
duty, it ought to bear fruit. 1t seems to
me a hopeless undertaking to attempt to
stem the swelling tide of democratic ideas
and methods of government. 1t may be
that popular government is now being put
to its severest test in the municipalities of