The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-07-27
FIRST CATCH Your HARE.


Either the Pioneer Press is secretly
bent upon defeating the new charter
movement, which it has so emphatical-
ly indorsed, or else its methods are
dense beyond parallel or ordinary COM
prehension. 1t keeps hammering away
upon the perfectly futile theme that
the passage of an ordinance by the
council is the proper way in which to
initiate charter reform. The G l b
has already demolished utterly the
whole foundation of the argument of
the Pioneer Press. 1t was based upon
entire ignorance of the facts of the stu
alton and would not stand a moments
investigation. But the most extraordi-
nary feature &C the position of that
paper is in disregarding the whole
some advice OF the ancient recipe, and
insisting that it's method of cooking the
hare is the only one that will make
it either palatable or eatable, while
calmly ignoring the fact that, if its
method were to be followed. the hare
could not be caught at all.
1t is probably as we'll known to the
Pioneer Press as it is to everybody
else that the city council never has
intended and does not now intend to
pass any such ordinance. 1t has had
one before it for months, and the only
action ever taken was unfaVorable. If
that ordinance had been acted upon,
or even fairly considered, the move
ment for popular petition would not
have been necessary. But, when the
proposition for a charter commission
was quietly referred to the committee
on streets, and left there to accumulate
dust until another council comes into
existence, it was time that something
should be done. Stirred at last to the
necessity of at least giving the mat
ter q hearing, when the people of st.
Paul were Fastening by thousands to
sign the charter petition, the ordinance
was dragged out, talked over and final
ly the recommendation that it pass was
defeated.
Thus the question of new charter
is not before the city council today in
any form or shape, and, if it were, the
only proof carried by the records is
that it would be negatived as soon as
it came to a vote. The membership OF
the city council being, with but a sin
gle exception in the whole number, Of
the same political party as the Pioneer
10
man as if it should address itself to
its own party and get them into line
with it first The adjura ton to the dis
trict court to take no action on the ap-
pointment of a charter commission I'M
liz requested by the city council, and
the cool assumption that such a re-
quest will be made, when the council
has already conclusively refused to
make it, and when it is known to be
50 dominated by political and place
hunting considerations that it does not
intend to make it, reduce the argu-
ment of our contemporary to shreds
and tatters.
1t should at least attempt to be con-
StSteul. IL II SyIlpdlLlZGS WITH the
combination over at the city hall, that,
having already parceled out all the
places for next spring, is in deadly
terror of being interfered with and
hates the very mention of charter re-
form, let it say so. If it is honest in
saying that we need a new charter, let
it cease its attacks upon what has now
been demonstrated to be the only
method by which that result can be
reached To talk about action in re-
spouse to an ordinance being "the bet
ter way" when that ordinance has al
ready been defeated, and is certain to
be defeated just as often as it is in
troduced, is unworthy of the Pioneer
Press, because it must reflect upon
either it's intelligence or it's honesty.
Before it repeats its petition that the
judges should act only upon an ordi-
nance of the council, let it secure the
passage of such an ordinance, or offer
the slightest evidence to prove that one
could be passed.