The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-12-05
LOCAL GOVERNMENT.


LOCAL GOVERNMENT.
To say that there is need of better laws
regulating county and township business is
saying nothing against the officers them
selves. Better laws would be a great pro-
lection to them in performing their official
Guties.-Seymour Republican.
There is danger of making the county
government expensive and cumbersome by
creating a lot of useless offices. The present
form Of county and township government in
Indiana is about as plain and simple as any
state has, but the powers of county COM
nssioners and township trustees are con-
sidered too great, and it would seem that all
the Legislature need do just at this time IS
to reduce the limit of the powers OF these
officers.-South Bend Tribune.
There are few national questions that COM
pare in Importance with municipal questions,
but the people are just beginning to realize
the fact, if not just realizing it are just
beginning to act Efforts are being made to
make the city charter a simple, concise
statement of fundamental powers instead of
a labyrinth of conflicting legislative inten-
ton, beyond the comprehension of any one:
With the demand for better laws is coupled
a demand for better officials to administer
them. No matter how good the laws may
be, they must have good men to execute
them or they will be nulliiied-Lafayette
Call.
When the subject of local government re-
AOLtn COlleS uP II SGSLlS " Us lIldl lON uSlI4p
government could very we'll be done away
with. Townships mean little in Indiana. 1t
is a New England idea, which is out of place
IN a State, a majority of whose people are
of Southern descent. The New England
township and town meetings go together and
work very well in the land Of their origin.
But we hardly think that Perry county
would be able to survive one dose of town
meetings-that is, meetings of all the voters
OF township to discuss all public business.
Il The racket would be awful, and the dis
cusSng would be largely made up OF
'cussin'." Give us something new in the
governmental line. 1t cant be much worse
| than what we have providing ii creates no
more off1ces.-Cannelton Enquirer
| There is not much use to reform our laws
governing county and township business if
the officers set themselves down to deliber-
ately rob or allow other people to rob the
public treasury. Indifference, carelessness
| and looseness in doing public business are
as bad as willful mafeasance in office. The
conscience of public officials, if there is such
a thing, should be aroused. Until there is a
change in the ways of some public officials
there is but little hope of having economical
and efficient government. And the people
themselves are largely to blame. They
wink at, excuse and apologize for things
done by public officials which they would
strongly condemn in private citizens. This
| is the wrong way to look at things. Public
trusts should be considered sacred, and
guarded and protected with even greater
vigilance than private interests. Any one in
office that does not have this feeling is unfit
for his place.-Noblesville Ledger.
Never in the history of Michigan City has
the city had such excellent police service as
we have enjoyed since the enactment of the
metropolitan police law. Previous to that
time the police force of the city was under
the thumb of scheming, unprincipled politi-
clans, who made use of the police force and
It's service for personal and political ends.
The duties of the police were neglected and
winked at when a personal or political end
was to be served and at other times the
laws and the police were made use of with
extreme severity to prosecute and narass
peaceahle and laW-abding citizens who
dared to oppose the officials in power and in
control of the police The personality and
service of the force were simply debased as
machines in the hands of politicians in
power Since the metropolitan police law,
was passed there has been nothing of that
the best we ever had 1t is we'll organized.
| The Police Board is nonpartisan, composed
of good men of both parties, and it is free
from the dangerous control of politics, which
formerly had such debasing effect upon that
feature of city government-Michigan City
News
The so-caIled ''NIodeI Municipal Govern
ment Plan submitted to the municipal re-
form convention at Indianapolis has some
good features, but many that are really bad
and cannot in any sense be taken as re-
forms. In the main this model PLAN
would prove almost wholly inapplicable and
inadequate to the government of cities of
the second and third clASs in Indiana 1t is
too ponderous, too complicated. too expen-
sive. 1t would create offices instead of re-
ducing them. Tt would increase the men,
bers of city councils and fasten them upon
the people for six years, instead of four, as
at present, and two as formerly. IT would
| raGlrnn he n fpya
when that officer should hold as long as a
councilman. 1t would open the door to in
creased city bonded Indebtedness by schemes
for evasion of the constitutional limitation
of municipal Indebtedness. 1t would. there
fore. increase municipal taxation. especially
by a proposed policy of municipal purchase
of water works plants, electric light plants,
and other corporation plants upon
| problematic anticipation that these plants
could be operated by the municipality with
such advantage as to ultimately pay for
themselves out of their earnings. There are
other objectional features in this model
plan" but those above recited sufficient
to convince thoughtful people that it is no
better than the present plan for governing
| cities in Indiana, which is about bad as
| it can be.-New Albany Ledger
Reform in county and township affairs is
not attanable through persistent adherence
to hobbies or through insistence by those
who are in favor only of pet ideas. The
rough drafts of bills presented by members
| of the commission are not yet such as will
win popular support. A county legislature
| is not yet recognized as necessary, because
its creation is toward the danger of which
the Governor complains, and there is also
resentment Of the idea that all county af-
fairs should be under the control of GEN.
| trail board with headquarters in the capital.
/ The commission cannot help but recognize
| the weight Of these objections, and in conse-
| quence should temper its requests with
/ conservatism which will recommend its con-
| illusions. Many faithful and earnest advo-
Gates of reform believe that the end can be
accomplished by processes more simple and
| less dangerous than those suggested. These
people must be enlisted If the efforts are
| to succeed. The Courier still hopes for good
| results from the agitation, but as a first
| essential TO this ii regards ii as necessary
| that the reform commission get In closer
| touch with the sense of the people than
has been indicated by its outlined policy.
| The people cannot be convinced that new
| offices need to be created-they do not look
/ upon that as a process Of tightening bur-
| dens, real or imaginary, and the commission
| is wasting time in attempting to carry
| through a project along such lines-Lafay-
cite Courier.