The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1896-09-05
SPOKE FOR THE
NEW CHARTER
A Vast Assemblage Last
Night in MetropOli-
tan Hall.
STRONG VIEWS GIVEN.
Prominent Speakers Discuss the
Merits of the Proposed
Instrument.
SOME RESOLUTIONS ADOPTED.
All Kinds of Evil Results Attributed
TO the Regimes Under the Con-
solidation Act.
SOME RESOLUTIONS ADOPTED.

II numbers and enthusiasm at mass
meeting means success, that desideratum
crowned the efforts of the Citizens Char
ter Association, for the assembage at
Metropolitan Hall last night gathered
under its auspices was both ample in
numbers and overhowing with expressions
IN favor of the new charter.
President Phelan, after a few preIimin-
airy remarks on the object of the mass
meeting, introduced Horace Davis, who
spoke of the loose manner in which the
municipal government was administered
under the present order of things. He
laid particular stress on the lack of re-
sponsibility on the part of the City Of
flcials and the extravaganza that charac-
terized the handling of the public funds.
Under the present SYSTEM" he said,
There is no res possibility on the part of
the Mayor, the be ad OF the govern ment.
Zone great reason for extravaganza" he
continued, sis the spoils system. The
City Hall is stuffed with clerks falling
over one another, and yet your work is
badly done. These men are drawn from
the Sums and putin their positions by the
bosses. This we propose to remedy by the
new charter.
"Our City government is without sys-
tenn. 1t is a conglomoration of things
that have been collected for the past forty
y
and nobody, not even q lawyer, can tell
what this instrument means. Your
officers are appointed by whom2 Some
are appointed by the Board of Supervisors
and some by the Governor. Why should
the Governor have the right to appoint
men to expend your taxes?
Under the new system we propose to
have board OF public works, which will
see that street and sewer work is properly
done. We propose to establish civil
service which will entitle men to Office,
not for services rendered to boss but for
their efficiency"
He described how candidates are vir-
tuRlly nominated at the primaries, and
declared that the primaries were simply
half holidays for the ward-heelers of both
parties, who went together to both prl-
maries and voted for their own party's
candidates and then for the candidates OF
the other party. ''And the men thus
elected as delegates to the municipal con-
venion," he said, nominated the men
who were voted for by the people.'
Irving Nj. Scott confined his remarks to
the department of public works 1.-THE
first principle that governed this com nit
Tee of the freeholders," he said, twas that
we should have educated and intelligent
men to fill the places on this board-men
who thoroughly understood their duties
and who would give their entire time to
their work"
He reviewed the duties of the board as
printed in the synopsis of the new char
ter, being gratuitousiy distributed bv the
Merchants Association, and inveighed
against the fraudulent and defective man
ner in which the sewer system of San
Francisco had been constructed. He de-
clared that an examination made by the
Sewer Commission specially appointed in
1880, showed that the contractors who had
laid the sewers in every section of the
City had connived with the inspectors
and that there had been inexcusable
neglect on the part of the officials in the
matter.
When he referred to the provision in
the new charter that the board OF public
works shall take charge of and complete
the new City Hall some one in the gallery
shouted;
sit is DONE"
Eyes, it is DONE" came the quick re-
ioinder from the speaker, land there is
not fouler place under the SUM-"
This rhyming sally brought down the
house.
Taking his cue from this incident Mr..
Scott continued:
I'VE are paying $4,000 a year to keep
this place dirty. Under the proposed new
system we would be able to keep it clean
for half the money"
Referring to the matter of boulevards.
he declared it was an outrage the way
streetcar tracks have been permitted 10
spoil most of the streets of the City, so
that 1t was almost impossible to reach
Golden Gate Park with comfort by driv-
ing. He denounced the old method of
granting franchises to stree tear companies
and related how other large cities granted
them only for limited time, and de-
rived a revenue from the corporations
which utilized them sufficient to lift al
most the entire burden of taxation from
their residents. a reform on these lines,
he said, was contemplated by the trainers
of the new charter, and for this reason, he
asserted, it was opposed by the corporate
powers, who have in the past and still
continue to manipulate Boards of Super
visors in their interests Under the new
charter such manipulation, he explained,
would be impossible, as every franchise
would have to pass through the hands of
the board of pubic works.
In conclusion he eulogiZed the State of
California and then painted picture of
the degraded condition into which San
Francisco had been placed under its pres
ent system OF government. HIS mai ex-
hortation was:
"WilI you not lift your city out of the
slough of despair and make 1t the capital
of the western world2"
Secretary Freud announced the follow
ing list of vice-presidents;
Thomas Addison, Henry c. Ahpel. George W.
Alexander, d. Z. Allison. L. b. Ames, Jerome A.
Anderson, George +. Andres, Colonel A Andrews,
Bs 1 Petcy Beamish, b. A, Becker r H.
Pensys G. ). Benedict, p. A. Berserot Thomas ].
ReTein. Nathan BIDS, y &. BiBelOW, d. IL oiacks
Maurice Block Henry Byth. George T. Bohen,
a. {. Boldeman, T. Booth, Antoine Borei Al Bou-
vier Colin NJ. Boyd, Fred Brandt, Joseph Britton,
b BroemmeI, Thomas Brown, George H. Bucking-
ham Charles S. Bundschu, NJ Bunker, Martin j.
Burke George w. Burnett, John NJ. Burnett. ID. i.
BUSH +. H BUSHNELL George j.. Bntler
M l. Calm, J. Caegariss w. J. CaIltnghamI 81 Il.
Carleton, =. w. Germany, Charles Carpey, R. A.
G'arothers Walter N. Castle, +. s Chadbourne,
Alfred Chaigneau Frederick c. Chandler. Quincy
A C,bace Henry n. Clement Thomas M. Cluf, n.
p Cole e. J. Coleman. James 5. Conwell, George
D. Cooper, James CoDghian, Hugh Craig Joseph
L. Crftteuden, II. S. Gro ker, William ii. Crccker,
William NJ. Cubery, Robert A. Culbreth, BENJAMIN
ANDREW M. Davis, Jacob u Davis, W. e. Dean,
]. g. Deming, Colonel K. A. Denlcke, Lawrence
Devsny, w. II. Dimond. r. w; Dohrman, u DON
Duffield, p. +. Dundon, Is. i. Dunham
j. @. Eagleson, Wendell Easton, l. Il. Ebert J.
w Evans, Wallace Everson.
D. L. Farnswor.h. Judge Robert Ferral, Charles
A. Fisher, w. K. Fisher Henry F. Fortman, M
T. Frank, Joseph Fredercks, s. II. Friedlander,
7. 6. FriecIander, Henry Frohman. NJ Frederick
j. ID. Fry, ]. +. Fugaz W, p. Fuller.
X. Gaudin, J. l.. Geary Jr., William +. Gibson, j.