The San Francisco call., 1896-08-28

of Supervisors, and in all there were III
OF the acts conferring additional power!
on the board.
1.-THE result is" he said, "we have ovel
HOO pages of undigested and indigestibls
matter, under which the Board of Super
vlsors have misruled this City and will
continue to misrule it until the act is
| wiped out by new charter, They have
made it master of San Francisco. The
board should have the handling of nc
money. The Mayor has 10 power. The
solid eight or solid nine, whichever il
| should be, has passed into history.
"We can find Supervisors at the City
Hall almost any hour of the day. People
wonder how they can spend so much time
Tor $100 month. You can hardly con-
ceive detail of the City and County busi-
ness that the Board OF Supervisors does
not have its hand in. The building cf even
bay-windows and all sorts of contem ptible
things too numerous to mention it has the
power to interfere with.
''They also WELD the power and curse OF
patronage. City departments are COM
PEELED to go to the Supervisors for extra
! appropriations, and they can't get them
unless they give the willy Supervisors the
patronage. This is a temptation to in
crease appropriations, in order to provide
places for political friends. The combin-
ing of the legislative and executive func-
structive of good government"
he referred to the temper OF the sand
lot agitators and of the people of Cali
fornia in 1879, which demanded an end to
special legislation and new constitution.
'tIt is impossible for any lawyer to tell
you to-day" he said, ''what portions OF
the so-called consolidation act are in force.
If the new charter is adopted it will bring
order out of chaos. 1t institutes a system
of checks and balances under which he
corruption OF the past will be absolutely
impossible. 1t has been declared by COM
petent authority to be themodel city char
ter of this country. The new charter is q
model of simplicity. The duties of each
department are cleverly and explicitly set
forth. have not read one single criticism
of the financial system as laid down in
this new charter. The Mayor, under the
new charter will not have one tithe of the
power that the political boss has now..
1T is not the powers of the Mayor that
the politicians are afraid of. The Mayor,
under the new charter, will be found in
his office in the day time in the new City
Hall and not in the back room of a dive
reached by private door in the night
time. The Mayor will have the power to
remove officials for wrong-doing and the
charter requires him to bring legal pro-
ceedings against all parties who do not
perform their contracts and to cause
are not lived up to.
II have for thirty years." he went on,
done what could to secure the adoption
OF CIVIL service in our political system
and when l found was to take part in
framing q new charter l firmly resolved
that 1t should speak in no uncertain
sound in regard TO civil service"
The speaker then read extracts from the
civil service section of the new charter,
and continuing said: Under civil service
and the new charter you will have clean
City government. There are few good
clerks in the service of the City, but the
most of them are political heelers and
ward strikers, who spend their nights in
saloons. Those who do not have business
with the>City can have little knowledge of
these things. Under the new charter you
will have city government run on busi-
ness principles"
1.-THE public utilities of water and gas,
streetcars and electric lights should be-
long to the people. Great fortunes have
been made by private individuals and cor
porations out of these privileges. The new
charter gives the City power to own and
operate these facilities if the people at any
election decide by their votes that they
want them. The new charter embodies
the two great principles of home rule and
civil service" he said in conclusion.
Colonel H. II. Hecht was down for an
address on the Fire Department. He
broadened the scope of the subject. He
said:
Il am satisfied that at the time this
charter was framed it would have been
passed by the people. The people of San
Francisco are extremely forgetful. 1t
takes a majority of all the votes cast at
the election to carry the new charter.
For instance, if there are 10000 voters
registered 35, 600 votes at the election will
M oor rrN hn oh ortn Ind fha
new charter every department has charge
of its own funds and is responsible for
them"
The speaker showed that in st. Paul,
which he said is one OF the best governed
cities in the United States, the Mayor ap-
points the heads of all departments. and
inquired, ''How do you like that Ior an
autocrat?
'Take the Fire Department out OF poll
tics. and there is not a fireman in the City
who is not in favor of that and the new
charter. There is no better Chief and de-
partment in the country than we have to-
day. Under this plan the Chief will,
no doubt, give you the best Fire Depart
ment in the United States. The new
charter gives a pension at 60 years of
half the amount of the salary an officer
drew the year previous if he needs
it. Ii you don't pass this charter it will
probably be six or eight years before you
will get even chance TO pass one."
e. A. Bergerot said the public school
teachers of San Francisco objected to the
new charter under the i'm preston that
they would have to undergo civil service
examinations. This impression is erro-
neous, he said, as the teachers are not
required to pass such examinations.
The new charter also states that the
present police and fire departments shall
constitute the police and ire departments
of the City.
Colonel Smiley expressed the thought
that the new charter ought to require GER
tain qualifications for eligibility to ap-
pointment as member of the Board of
Public Works. Colonel Smiley objected to
giving SO much power to the Mayor.
Colonel Hecht stated: "There is a gem
tleman in this room who he's been spoken
of as candidate for Mayor, and would
not be afraid to trust him with every cent
OF my money or the peoples money"
After this energetic expression there was
prolonged applause. Colonel Hecht gave
no lntlmation as to whom he referred.
In the course of further explanation
Colonel Smiley stated that he did not see
the necessity of new charter if the pres
ent laws were enforced and the Southern
Pacific, among other people, made to toe