The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-02-23


Vacancies Will Soon BE Made on
the School Board.
The question as to the selection of a
| county assessor to succeed Robert H
Seng Is still In the air. The law says
that the auditor and the chairman of
the board of county commissioners
shall on March 10 or as soon the e.
after as practicable" select a qualified
elector and freebooter for the position.
The county auditor this time is W. r.
Johnson, and the chairman of the
board of county commissioners is May
Or kiefer. If it was left to the mayor
to name the assessor. there is no doubt
but what William l.. Ames, of the
Second ward, the mayors old partner,
would be the man.
1t is barely possible that Ames will
be the lucky man. and that County
Auditor Johnson will agree with the
mayor on the appointment Ames is
Well thought of by the mayor, having
been more or less mixed up with the
chief executive in building and loan
associations and other enterprises. The
business men, however, and more es-
pecially the Jobbers' union, are op-
posed to the selection of Ames, and
pressure will or has been brought to
office. Just what weight this action
VIII have remains to be seen, but it is
claimed that 1t is quite knock" 10
the aspirations of Mr.. Ames.
With the understanding that Arnes
has no cinch for the position, County
Commissioner Hardick has commenced
a campaign for the office. Hardisk
would be acceptable to the business
interests of the city and also to the
mayor, If it should turn out that
Ames could not land the plum. County
Auditor Johnson, it is understood,
would not oppose Hardick for the Of
flee.
The first stumbling block in the
way of Hardick's selection is the law
which was passed in 1897 by the leg
1slatdre making it unlawful for any
councilman or county commissioner to
| accept any other city or county office
during the term for which they were
elected.
To remedy this and give Hardick
chance, a bill repeating the law has
! been introduced in the house by Mr..
Krayenbuhl, the Republican represen-
tative from the Seventh ward. The
measure was referred to the house
committee on general legislatio and
has not as yet been reported out. 1t
may take several weeks to get the
legislature, but this will not necessarily
shut Hardick out, as the law says the
| assessor shall be selected March 10, or
as soon thereafter as practicable.
This gives the friends of Hardick, as
well as the gentleman himself, hope,
that, in. case Ames should not be
agreed upon by the mayor and county
auditor, he would secure it, even if
Seng should have to hold over for a
week or so in order to secure the pas
sage of the repeal law.
Friends of Hardck claim the law
is unjust and should be repealed,
whether the county commissioner from
the Seventh ward gets the assessorship
Or not. 1t is pointed out that the law
makes it unlawful only for council
men and county commissioners to hold
other city and county POSITIONS and
says nothing about state offices such
as Aid. Donahower recently stepped
into in the attorney generals office.
In addition to half a vote in the
naming of the assessor Mayor Kiefer
within the next twenty days will have
the appointment all by himself of two
members of the board of public works
to succeed Philip c. Justus and John
Copeland, and two members of the
board of education to succeed L. L.
May and Henry G. McNair.
1t is pretty we'll understood that
neither Copeland nor Justus will be re-
appointed. Copeland was a pronounce
ed Doran man up to the time the pri-
maries were held, and this has not been
forgotten by the mayor. 1t was e&-
pected that former Aid. Lindahl would
secure the place to be vacated by Cope
land, but the mayor says there is one
Scandinavian now on the board, and
it would be against his policy of dis
tributing offices among the several ma
tionalities to name Lindahl while San
dell holds down a commissionership.
Henry Neff. of the First ward, is
prominently mentioned for the vacancy
caused by the expiration of Copelands
term. and as he is a German-American
his friends claim he stands a good show
of being appointed.
1t is possible that Mr.. Neff would, on
the ground of nationality and residence,
get the appointment, but the mayor is
in duty bound to give mic" Pottgieser
good job and the appointment of the
former senator will make the German
American quota on the board full up.
The appointment of Pottgieser, which
is assured, will leave JuStus out, as I'M
der the law not more than one of the
commissioners can come from the same
ward.
AS to who will succeed Copeland is
a guess. Should W. L. Ames not be
elected assessor the mayor will name
him for the board of public works, and
in case the farmer from the Second
ward is named assessor then the sue
cessor to Copeland will be chosen from
the Sixth ward at least that Is the
present calculation
1t is understood that H c. McNair
will succeed himself as "a member of
the board Of education, but that L.. L.
May will not be reappointed. There
are something like thirty applications
for appointment to the board of edu-
cation, and as yet the mayor has given
no indication as to- his choice except
to state in an off-hand way that Mr.
McNair was very able member of
the board. This has been taken by the
friends of Mr. McNair to imply that
he will be reappointed
AS a result Of the mass meeting in
dorsement of Former Alderman Lindahl
for appointment on the board of public
works the friends of John Copeland and
Henry Neff, the other first ward candi-
dates. will hold meeting tonight in