The record-union., 1898-01-05
Better Ability Needed.

i
Eds. Record Union: Another year
| has dawned, and with it comes again
| the turning over Of the proverbial new
| leaf. Perhaps there Is nothing in the
way of political reformation Of more
| pressing necessity than the selection
| of men to fill our legislative bodies. We
are progressing fairly well on the road
| to civic perfection. The practice of
| making foul the sidewalks of towns
| and cities and the floors of public
buildings, by casting personal secretions
upon them, is receiving attention in
| different parts of the country The
very fact that the subject is being
discussed in the public journals, is ed
ucating in itself. Reckless bicycle rid
| ing upon the sidewalks is quite gener-
ally prohibited, and dogs are barred
from public buildings and parks in the
| more advanced places, and also from
the better class of restaurants and din
| ing-rooms- We are making fair prog
ress in the management of our penal
| and reformatory institutions. so that
| in the language of Brudder Gardner, we
may say, the world do move" But
| there is d little of the old-time meth
DDS still hanging about our public
! schools. The teacher, in many cases,
| is expected TO reduce refractory boys by
| the application of the rattan This
seems to be a barbarous practice. 1t
| is to be hoped that it is not of fire.
Quent occurrence, for such an exhibition
| before a school cannot be classed as
| anything but brutal. A teacher ought
not to be compelled to resort to cor
| poral punishment in order to control an
| unruly boy. There ought to be some
| other means provided to relieve a
teacher from such an onerous duty.
There is probably no civiIizer like a
wholesome legal statute and here is
where the ability of our legislators tell
for good or evil. The Sacramento Rec
ord Union' has heretofore alluded to
the incapacity of many of those who
are inti usted with the duty of making
| laws. This is true-not only of many
men who are sent TO our State Legisla-
ture, but also Of many of our County
| Supervisors, who have come to be re-
gardad as ordinary juries before which
skilled attorneys present their spe
cious arguments, so that they are
swayed, first to one side and then to
the other, now in favor of Brutus, and
now of Antony
1t seems that we cannot trust the
good sense and business acumen of
our Boards Of Supervisors in the most
simple matter Of passing a police or
dinance for the better protection of life
and property without making the Su-
pervisorS' rooms the scene of forensic
debate. Where is the necessity of all
this legal lore? Are there not legal
constitutional advisers Of the boards,
who are willing at all times to enlight-
en- them upon the law points of any
proposition? But 1t is a lamentable fact
that many men are elected to serve
upon Boards of Supervisors and in our
State Legislature who are incapable of
analyZing composition or even read
ing it understandingly. So we
have come to lose confidence in the
ability of the kind of men usually sent
to our county legislative bodies as we'll
as to our State Legislatures, to the ex-
tent that it becomes necessary to en-
ploy legal talent to explain the most
simple English composition or to have
it receive that due consideration which
we naturally expect from those who,
by their official function, ought to be
men of strong, common sense and much
acquired ability, SO that the specious
arguments of attorneys and the pc
culiar notions of political or other
bosses would be out Of place in their
counsels.
When a legislator State or municipal,
is satisfied that it is the general pub
lie sentiment, expressed by petition or
otherwise, that certain act he passed,
and there is no constitutional prohibi
ton, then there is a plain duty present
ed 70 him, which no conscientious and
intelligent legislator will attempt to
shirk But as long as the majority of
those who are placed in care of public
interests and empowered to pass laws
and ordinances desired by the people,
or to consign them to the waste basket,
as tn air whims, prejudices or the lead
ers of their political faction may die
tate, so long will the Supervisors apart
ments be the occasional scene of for
ensic debate.
A member Of a Board of Supervisors
is, in sense, a legislator, and his ac-
quirai ability ought to be such as to
give him confidence In himself, so that
he would not often times be thrown
upon the mercies of the Auditor or the
n.
in a situation to constitute a sixth Su-
pervisor, and If it suit him and his pur-
poses to use his influence by occasional
suggestions. he may often defeat what
otherwise might be the verdict of the
board But when board is composed
of men who are comparatively masters
of their own language, who can read
and analyze composition so as to un-
derstand precisely what it means, and
who are fairly skillful in the science
Of numbers, the clerk would not dare
venture outside of his proper sphere,
but would confine himself as solely and
strictly to keeping a record of the pro-
ceedings of the board as he does when
sitting as clerk for the Superior Court.
OF course the suggestion of a clerk of a
Board of Supervisors may at times be
pertinent and good, but he Is not elect
ed for that purpose, otherwise the
board might as well be dispensed with.
so far as their business at the court
house is concerned. and give their at
tention to the public roads.
A little learning is dangerous. The
uncultivated person carries a certain
amount of conceit which impels him to
act as II he were there to carry out his
own peculiar notions without reference
to any others. He cannot understand
the principle of local government.
He docs not know that when local senti-
ment demands the passage of an ordi-
nance to make it effective, that 1t is
then his duty to lay aside his notions
and pass the bill. but is more apt to
set himself up as an umpire and thus
dafaaf the public will Tharaeora oi.,a