The San Francisco call., 1898-05-05
WEAK POINTS
 IN THE CHARTER
The New Lord Mayors Funda- mental Law Laid Bare
 by Those Opposed.
Continental League Leads the w a! to Defeat the Lopsided
 Document

There was a large meeting or rep resentative citizens in Saratoga Hall last night. The object of so many per sons being present was to hear the req sons given by the speakers why the pro- posed Lord Mayors" new charter should not be adopted.
 pr. J. H. Stallard, on being introduced by Chairman Worth of the league to give his reasons why this proposed law shoulu be retired to the archives or the ueluilcl' said in brief:
 Its obscure and conflicting provisions will give rise to innumerable disputes, to De setI!eu only by the courts. The brevity and simplicity of charter is the truest test of us nome Fuie power: .., o-ua..,+o- tives, the Board of Supervisors. and suTrounds them with checks, balances and ironclad re- strictions which imply corruption ana h1s onS uiS- The creation of free and honest goVerI1nte,nL, |, capable of promptly and successluily Tat ugaa,,ts of the city S growth, is thus prevented.
 It does not provide for government aea "nlOn can be trusted spend the public moneys with wisdom and economy. The imposition or the dollar limit affords no protection againse corruption, extravaganza and waste; partcu- Iarly when the limit can be set aside under conditions which may be created by the govern ment itself
 The power to tax and to appropriate Is given to the Board of Supervisors, while the power to appoint, to fix salaries and control ex- penditures is taken from them and given to appointed ''bosses"-the Auditor, Assessor, Tax ;a Attorney, City Attorney. Recorder, Sheriff. Coroner. and to the Mayor and his appointees- whereby power is divided and responsibility is lost The curse of patronage by individuals and cliques Is confirmed and extended ln every department of administration
 The Lord Mayor and his appointees, over whom he has discretionary power to remove. will conduct the elections and will be put Tn parks and public buildings, and will control eighty-three per cent of the entire expendi- lures of the city government. Of this more than S2, GOO, GOO is patronage with certainty or increase in the Board of Works
 Avo1ay fNnn that similar distribution of power is sub, versve of sound economy, political purity and
 He concluded:
 Fellow citizens. let me implore you to pro- ceeG s1oWS B not H yo9 vote yoU U' understand M you will vote against it. It does not provide nomical government, It does not expect to provide an incompatible Board of Supervisors; bosses The Assessor, Tax Collector and County Clerk will still enjoy enormous patron. age with which i9 t9 maintsin the f5 army c,fT or Hall.
 James E. Field, B. I. Solomon, A. E. Friedlander and oscar Lewis followed in adoption of the charter Dorsen, Nichols. a member of the league, offered reSo- lution pledging opposition to the charter on the following grounds:
 It would confer on the Mayor greater power than Is yielded by any other executive officer In the United States power wholly inconsist- with the spirit, 1T not the actual letter or the constitution of our country; he would, with the concurrence Of the Board of Supervisors, have the power to annul the people es verdict expressed at the ballot box by the removal of any all of the elected officers of the city government, and he alone would have the ap- pointing of their successors; his authority in the matter of the removal of appointed officers would be absolute; he could invade any de- partment of the city government at will and remove any appointee therein, and the person removed would be without redress. The Board of Election Commissioners, the Registrar and more than 5000 city employees would be either directly indirectly dependent the Mayor for the positions they occupied power which If placed in the hands of a designing bilious Mayor, would enable him to defy pub lie opinion, and to continue himself in office indefinitely. He would be the autocrat of our municipality
 It would impose on our people the monarch ical and impractical scheme of government known as civil service. A scheme intended to perpetuate in position horde oS city employees, a so-called reform. which would an offce-holding oligarchy. A reform which would exempt from it's operation all high salaried and responsible employees. while rigor- ously enforced against those of small salaries and little or no responsibility
 It would deny to the employer of laborers for the city the common privilege of selecting them according to merit. but would compel him to accept them in the order of their application, thus providing means of favoritism whereby the 'uncles, the cousins and aunts of those In authority would be pro- vided for at the public expense, to the exclu- sion of the more deserving laborer.
 1t would enlarge and perpetuate at public expense system of civil pensions whereby the high-salaried officers are carefully pro- vided for, while those in more humble posi- tions are totally ignored.
 It would force upon the people the Populistic hobby known the initiative and referen- dum.' thereby keeping our citizens in con- stant ferment over elections by petition. And finally, instead of the promised retrenchment and economy, find that it would largely in- crease the burdens of the taxpayer.
 Therefore we believe it better to bear those ills we have than fly to others we know not of