The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1896-01-10
WHISKY AND WATEE
The Charter Commission Has
Temperate Session.
TO MAKE CoUNcILMeN HOMES
Proposals That All Their Responsible
fty shall Be Thrown on the Shout
ders OF the Voters.

sideration OF the subject OF water tn
was observed 10 be truly American. A
Englishman always takes his whisky an
water together. the American takes IL
whisky first. and sometimes never troublt
about the water Compared 10 the prev
Gus day. when the temperance people an
the saloon element'-to use a pet tern
Of the reforners-met face 20 face the pro
ceedings OF yesterday were sober and de&
libsrate. and. so far as results go, were o
a par with those Of any preceding dav Jus
as the body was adjourning for the daJ
Bausman called attention to the very slow
progress that was being made and urgetH
that the amendment introduced by th&
committee on revision for the redistrictinsI
OF the wards should be passed instead Of
being postponed or referred back fer fur
Their consideration. as Crane and Tremper
suggested at viii only take minute
Bausman pleaded, land the committee viii
accept any amendment that is proposed 4
Upon this Tremper amended the amend
ment by making ii read there shall nevelu
be more than one ward to each 1000 OF pom
uiation," instead Of '10.00." and IL then
passed, as follows:
THE city council shall have power in the
year 1887. and In every fourth year there
after. to redistrict the wards, and also toE
create additional wards out Of existing
wards. There shall never be more than
one ward to each 1859 Of population as
shown by any official census last preceding
bat not less al any time than nine wards
The wards shall be made as nearly equaiI
in population and as geographically COM [
pact as possible, nor shall any ordinanceI
redistricting the wards or creating new
wards out of old take effect within sixtvy
days preceding any election held withinJ
the city for municipal. county. district orr
state Offices"
The Boiler Inspector.
The bin for the appointment Of boiler in-|
spector came up again. and on its being read
Tremper asked if the bill as proposed did
not make the city liable for an explosion
which was due TO inefficient inspection
President Andrews said that ii would not
Stein drew attention to the fact that the
boiler Inspector would license the engineers.
end therefore have power to place good mem
In charge OF boilers. But he thought tina
at some future time they might have to
eliminate the civil service portion OF the
bill Bausman thought the bill as It stoodV
was in a crude state. and moved that IL bel
referred 70 a special committee, and this
was carried.
Crane introduced bill doing away with
the fire commissioners altogether, and
placing the department in the hands OF a
chief who shall receive his appointment
from the mayor. The bill was read the first
time.
The Dear People.
Then came the discussion OF the day on
the ACCESSIBILITY Of making IT mandatory
upon the city council 10 submit 10 n popu-
lar vote every expenditure in regard 10 the
water and lighting systems of the city.
and the debate was studded with the words
people and "the dear people"-the latter
more In sarcasm than as term OF endear-
ment-as thickly as plums in Christmas
pudding. Tremper brought II on by moving
to reconsider the De Wolfe bill. and word
by word the BILL so far as It referred 10
these special elections for voting on such
propositions. was carefully gone over
Bausman did not see that IL was neces-
sary TO pass a law that the council should
submit such questions 10 the people when
IL had already been given authority to act
on its own responsibility in such matters.
President Andrews said that OF course the
council had the power. but looking at the
Indebtedness hanging over the city at pres
ent. II might be advisable 10 put such a
question as TO further Indebtedness TO the
people for decision. Bausman pointed out
that the city Indebtedness could not be in
creased. II having reached its legal limits,
so that neither the council nor the people
could increase f. Winsor argued that there
was the danger Of the present companies
unloading on the council at an exorbitant
price, and he gave other good reasons why
the people should have all propositions Of
such character submitted TO them.
President Andrews argued In n similar
vein. and De Wolfe asked If the council had
not all these powers already without the
amendment. The powers TO purchase gas
and water works were exercised by every
municipality. and now that the question Of
purchasing a water plant had been referred
10 the city and decided 10 again refer the
question 10 the people and give them the
expense OF an election seemed absurd.
An amendment was made that the sub
mission should take place at a general IN
stead OF a special election. TO save the ex-
pense. and there were no end Of other
amendments proposed. Joslin held that
such matters should he left TO the council
and that the council should be held respon-
sihle. He did not make any set speech him
self hut the dry, matter-of-fact questions
that he thrust In edgeways into the sug-
gestions OF other speakers were always 10
the point and had 20 be answered.
The Question OF Monopolies.
Bausman was strongly against the
amendment and made a powerful argu-
ment. The proposition he said. sim
ply shifts the responsibility from the
council and puts II nowhere. The council
might not dare to purchase plant from
a corporation. DESTROYS 10 unload, for half
a million dollars. and yet they would sub
NIT il TO the people. The agent comes
along and the councilman says, L cannot
conscientiously vote for IL because il IS
not worth $50 CO., Well says the agent.
we don't ask you to vote Tor It We only
ask you to submit IL 10 the people
II you hope" continued Bausman. "to
prevent frauds in the requirement Of
complicated concerns and property by
submitting everything 10 the people, you
are making a mistake. Suppose the cleo
trio light plant a $4,000 IS 10 be voted
on. People Will say II is not worth the
money. Others will say We must down
the monopoly. There will be great adver-
tisements, the press will DO biased or
subsidized, the corporations agents, a
trained set Of men, with subtle arguments
and loads OF money, will come Ia and dis
turb your election. and each side in IL will
cry fraud on the other after II is over.
/ am opposed 10 submitting 10 the people
that which has long been recognized as
within the power Of your local Iegisia-
ture."
Wlnsor made an equally able speech on
the other side OF the question. instancing
the ''unholy transactions OF the city coun-
ell IN their last hour OF power" and con-
Guiding. Il don't care what your council
T.. whether honest or wishy-washy. it viii
do no harm for them 10 exercise their
Judgment and submit the result 10 the
people"
BaususSn--But they won't exercise their
Judgment II you shift the responsibility
from them 20 the people.
Winsor said that was only one side OF
the proposition: he held that the cor
rupters might reach the few. but they
could not reach the many. In answer 70
BauSman that the Ballard proposition
was first submitted 20 the people he said
YES. and the people went into court for
redress for the unholy acts OF their coun-
Gil, and they got redress lie wished Sc