St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1896-01-09
THE WAY OF INFRINGEMENT.

!
vital of all the issues that could pos
sibly come before us. If the tax al
lotments are made on the basis thus
far approved, there will be practically
no saving as compared with present
expenses. And this will be found pro-
foundly unsatisfactory to the mass Of
our people and prejudicial to their in
terests. 1t is too often forgotten, when
the question of economy is raised, that
the interest Of one is the interest Of all.
We are all in the same boat together
The prosperity of st. Paul means
much, its lack of prosperity means
much, to millionaire and day laborer
alike. The profits of business, the sal
aries Of place. the wages of the work.
lngman, and the prospect of obtaining
employment all depend upon an econ
omical administration. All are pre-
JUDGED by cost of government that
is too great. All are benefited alike
by sacrifices which make for the gen
efal welfare. This is fact that is too
often obscured by the hardship which
seems to be involved in the lowering
OF some particular salary or the reduc-
tlon or a general scale of remuneration
IL Is not wonderful, however that
the net result of the methods of arriv-
ing at economy which have been fol-
lowed thus far should be little or moth
ing. That conclusion was inevitable
| ho I,a
les VINO nave had the matter under
consideration proceeded to deal with
individuals and departments, and to
make cuts of different degrees, accord
ing TO their particular views. No such
method can be successful, because the
Item which seems inordnately large
to one set of men seems only reason
able to another. There was from the
first only one method of reduction that
promised practical success. This was
d cut OF from 10 per cent upward, &C
cord1ng to the public necessity on all
expenditures, all salaries, high or low
as far as they could be reached with
out legislative sanction That would
treat all equally That would leave no
room for accusations of unfairness
That would expel all possibility of ia
Vorltlsm. Horizontal reduction may
not be the ideal thing, but it was pract
icable. In abandoning that, the gem
tlemen who have been working for re-
duced expenditure committed them
selves &c the mercy of lot of warning
claims for recognition and for Justice
that were reasonably certain in the
long run to nullify and destroy one
another
1t is unfair for the others who have
had hand in this to attempt to locate
all responsibility with the council: for.
after the retrenchment committee had
been weeks at work, and after the
conference committee had gone down
the list, the recommendations which
these gentlemen sent to the council
were TO great extent insufficient, I'M
fair and impractical BILE, and were
known to be so. Let all those who
were concerned in the work share the
dissatisfaction with what is likely to
be the outcome. The work of the re-
trenchment committee dealt largely
with reforms that can be ACCOMPLISHED
only after Legislative authorization.
Desirable as these may be and most
OF them are, they have nothing to do
with the present emergency. They are
beyond the reach of the common conn
| ell And in pOuSiSor;po
over which it does have control, the
committee made unequal suggestions.
some of which were so manifestlv
against justice and public interest as
to reflect upon others that were SEN
sible and proper. In thus discriminate
ing, where an appeal for equal scaling
down might have been effective the
retrenchment committee lost it's oppor-
tunity
The conference committee did nc
better. There was an effort, in
deed, to secure a reduction OF
10 per cent in the wages OF
all employees which was the best thing
that the committee did. To have ap-
n,
every department and every employe
within the scope of the councils ac-
ton, would have established a rule not
easily overborne. But this was moi
done. And, in order to make a show.
ing, the conference committee made an
absurd and impossible recommended
ton with regard to the schools. pro-
posing to take 60 per cent of the total
amount saved from the school fund
and that in the face of a section OF
the charter which makes it impossible
to carry such change into effect if any,
body cares to see that the law is en-
forced. We can see the regular pro-
gression, all along the line, in the old
groove; everybody endeavoring to save
himself, at the expense, finally, of the
public schools Of the city. This is moi
retrenchment, and nobody is to be
fooled into believing that it is.
The subject is not yet closed, be.