The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1897-05-07
GOOD GOVERNMENT CLUB
INTERESTING PAPER READ AT LAST
NIGHTS MEETING BY q. u. FOX.

Haven" Was the Topic-Features of the
New Charter and Its Improvements Over
the Old-Dr. smyth's Hopes-F Financial
Condition of the City to be Investigated.
The last meeting of the Good Gov
ernment club until next fall was held
last evening in Center church chapel.
DR.. Smyth presided, and in the course
Of his opening remarks said:
when the new charter becomes oper-
ative and Mayor Farnsworth has in
creased responsibility, we hope that the
unpleasantness in which his present
advisors have involved his administra-
ton, will lead him to choose different
cousellors, so that he may serve the
public, and let the machine 60"
The chief feature Of the evening was
a paper read by George L, Fox, rector
of Hopkins Grammar school, on The
Existing Municipal Condition in New
Haven" The paper was prepared to be
read at the convention Of municipal
leagues in Louisville KY, last evening.
tits printed in substance below.
After the reading of the paper ques-
tions of municipal Importance were
discussed, among them being the pres
ent financial conditions and the diff
Guilty of getting at the bonded indebt-
edness of the city.
On motion of Mr. Fox, a committee
was appointed to look into the financial
condition of the city, see just what it
is and report in the fall, The commit
tee appointed consisted of Mr. Fox,
Professor Irving Fisher and Walter
Allen. The operations of the new char
ter will be watched with interest by the
club, and several meetings will be held
next fall to look into its workings. Mr..
Fox's paper was, in substance, as fol-
lows:
The complex character of the present To-
cal government is phenomenon more com
mon in Connecticut, where the town is the
unit of local government, than elsewhere i'll
the United States.
More than forty years ago the difficulties
of the system were realized, and some ef'
fort was made to secure unity OF admins
| tration. All attempts thus far have proved
fruitless, although, with the growth of the
| city i'll population, the need of consolida-
tion has grown the more pressing. One CON
change, because the constitution of Connect
| cut imposes upon the selectmen of the
town the duty of admitting new voters to
the right of suffrage. This bis dlilcalty can
and successful opposition has come from
| the property owners living on the outskirts
| of the town, within the limits of the town,
but outside the jurisdiction Of the city.
| They have paid only town taxes on their
| property, while incidentally they have en-
| joyed many of the advantages of city gov
| ernment
| Municipal government in New Haven has
suffered, and still suffers, from that blight
| Of municipal government in other cities,
viz, interference by the State legislature.
As New York city has been governed from
| Albany so New Haven has often been gov
erned from Hartford. The wishes of a ma
jority of its voters have had little weight In
the legislative halls, and home rule has
been an irridescent dream. The peculiarly
antiquated constitution Of Connecticut,
with its rotten borough system of repre-
| sentation in the State legislature, has
served to intensity this evil, Connecticut
| Is now manufacturing state, with grow
| ing cities, and declining country towns. Yet
the system of representation in the lower
! branch of the legislature, that allows only
two representatives to each town, was
framed in 1918, for a rural commonwealth,
with no cities of any size. This system has
never been changed. Accordingly, New Ha-
ven, with one hundred thousand inhabit-
ants, has the same representation as little
country town with six hundred. The result
| has been that, while the state has voted for
four democratic candidates for the Presi-
dency, In the last twenty years, the legis
| lature has been strongly republican. Until
| recently New Haven has had very largS
| democratic majority, but all changes In its
| charter have been usually dictated by a
| few republican leaders in the city
| Two years ago duly authorized commits
sion, composed Of excellent representatives
| of both parties, framed and admirable char
| ter, and asked the legislature to enact 1t
| into law. Though they were supported In
this request by the best citizens of New
Haven, the legislative committee promptly
gave them leave to withdraw They asked
| for bread, and were given a stone To the
surprise of everyone the legislature passed
an amendment to the charter, taking from
the, aldermen the appointment Of fire and
! police commissioners, and providing that
two out Of the six should be elected annu.
ally by the voters. At this election. though
| two are to be chosen, only one can be voted
is decided, not Mt the polls, but In the party
caucus. When a successful wire.puller has
| got the nomination, he has practically Sc.
cured his election This method is quite an
anomaly IN the history Of municipal govern
ment, and It is an open question whether 1t
is constitutional. It Is .popularly ascrlbed
| to the Inventive genius of some of the re-
publican leaders, and its brief life will be
new charter To this interference and dom
| nance of our legislature over city affairs
may be ascribed two of the worst faults Of
| the present charter. viz, the weakness of
the mayors power, and the bipartisan ar
| rangement in forming the main executive
| boards.
The new charter granted In 1881 provided
that these executive boards should he COM
posed of SIX members, three from each par-
| ty, and that is the system now In force.
The history Of this vicious system of BIZ
partisan boards, system peculiar to Amer
| lean municipal government. has been in
| New Haven much the same MS in other
| cities. viz, one of unsatisfactory admins
tration and of practical failure OF the rec
| ord of the fire department it may be said
that it has been quite satisfactory because.
for many years. It had mn efficient chief
who would not allow politics to taint. nor
| the chronicle of the police board and of the
the board of public works is the familiar
! story of faction fights. prolonged deadlock.
| struggle for petty patronage. and division
| on national party lines. all Of which have
| tended 10 demoralize discipline and to fos-
| ter inSidious corruption. One board has
| carried on it's pay-rolls inefficient laborers
| who would have found it hard to obtain
| employment from private individuals. while
| the other board has been trying for two
years. without success, to elect new chief
of police. The personnel of the hoard Of
police commissioners, it should fairly he
| said. has lately been much improved The
| manufacturers of mineral waters and fem
| perance drinks who formerly used their Of
| fetal position to protect their respective
| customers among snloon-Eeepers have heen
| in part sunplanted by citizens much better
| fitted for the position This change is due
| to the persistent and strenuous efforts Of
| municipal reforTners
II, g, HOO IN Go