The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-12-30
GETTING NEW LIGHT.

apolis in the legislature to impose their
scheme for local government upon ev-
cry other city in the state, 1t Is
strange and wonderful thing that there
is strong movement on foot in that
city to frame new charter Public
| spirited gentlemen have been stirring
| in that city, in view of recent disclo-
sures, to get up charter better suited
to the times and less open to the abuses
common to municipalities. At present
they are pretty much at sea as to what
they ought to do, They realize the in
trinity Of their municipal scheme. 1t
has fathered one of the worst scandals
of the time, and cost the city an
| immense amount of money. 1t is going
to be the parent of prodigaity and
! rascality as long as it exists The neces-
sity for chnge is apparent. But the
only possibility of change lies in ac-
| cepting the home rule amendment
which passed the legislature at the in
stance of the st. Paul delegation, to
open to the cities Of the state a way out
of choosing between their present de-
fective charters and the evil system of
Minneapolis known as the Howard
/! charter act
1t is very funny to see the comments
Of the Minneapolis Journal on the home
| rule provision. That newspaper would
rather suffer anything, publicly or pri-
Vately, than to get relief from an act
! of legislature that originated with
st. Paul senator. So it describes the
Sheehan bill as a very unsatisfactory
and faulty affair" The criticisms that
1t makes are worse than puerile The
principal one Of these is that the home
rule law does not provide real home
rue, because the legislature must first
prescribe the general limits within
! which charter may be framed If the
journal knows any way by which this
power could be taken away from the
legislature, it ought to trot it out We
nave never heard of any proposition in
any city to set up a city government as
superior to that of the state within
ture must retain its power to set limits
| beyond which the city government can
not go, just as the federal constitution
denies certain powers and privileges to
the states. We have never heard that
the states of the Union have no real
power over their own affairs, because
the general limits within which thew
act are prescribed by the federal con-
stitution
In the same line, the Journal objects
becuse 1.-The amendment allows the leg
lslature to step in at any time and
adopt general charter laws for cities of
certain classificati0ns Of population,
and wipe out whatever charters any
city may have adopted on their own &C
count under the earlier provisions Of
the bill" It is probably entirely wrong
in this assumption. at was necessary
in order to get the home rule amend
ment through the legislature, to make
this very concession to the Minneapolis
members. Their hearts were set upon
the Howard charter act, to extend the
Minneapolis system to all cities in the
state. They insisted that nothing
should impair this power Of the legis-
lature to pass an act universally appli-
cable, and it was granted because it
could not well be denied. To oppose
! 1t involves the same absurd suDnosi-
! ton to which we have just referred
that you can set up an imperium in i'm
! perio and forever tie the hands of the
! state government as to local govern
ments subject to its own jurisdiction.
1t is certainly not possible. without
changing the constitution, and as GER
talnly not desirable to relieve any citv
| forever from supervisory authority Of
the state. This provision that the state
may pass general laws does not. how
ever, contemplate that these shouId
take the place of a charter adopted
under home rule, and to a paper less
careless and prejudiced than the Jour
nal it would be evident that this could
not be done.
The home rule amendment is not
merely law, but, by popular vote. a
part of the constitution of the state Of
Minnesota. Any city that adopts a.
charter under it is acting. not under
statute, but under constitutional pro-
vision. 1t is, therefore, plain that
when the Journal laments that Mime
apOlis might adopt home rule charter
only to come down to the capitoJ TO
tint it wiped out later on by 'the ST.
Paul lobby" it is barking al the moon
That any legislature can override the
constitution Of the state and legislate
out Of existence something which rests
upon part of the constitution framed
and adopted especially for that DUR
pose is a new view of legislative DOW
ers which we commend to a more care
full study of the constitutional lawyers
of the Journal.
The interesting fact about the whole
thing is that the city of MINNEAPOLIS
itself has finally been brought by di-
sastrous experience, to view the system
of government by council in it's true
light. 1t is the parent and bulwark
of all kinds Of abuses in local govern
ment. 1t is the friend Of rapacity and
the shield Of corruption. Those who
have made their own fight against it
have justified themselves. No more.
probably, shall we have to defend the
other cities Of the state from an at