The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-03-16
HEFoRE THE ELECTION.

The approach of the city election cam
paigu has been productive of many Of
the circumstances which are usually In
cident to such occasions. None of these
is more marked than the disposition of
our city officials to assume very decisive
attitudes In several subjects In which
large measure of liberation, if not indif
ference. has prevailed among them In the
past
Tor instance. the city railway company
Is now the subject Of much concern to
Mayor Kiefer. as is also the gas and
electric lighting company. The mayor.
indeed seems to have concluded that
the batting of the gas company and the
street car concern is, in the estimation of
the people a very commendable thing in
itself
OF course, the G 10 e is not disposed
to take any part in the prevailing strug-
gle among ambitious local Republicans.
It has absolutely no preference among
the several candidates for the mayoralty
nomination of that party. Mr.. schiff-
mann and Mr. Reeves and Mr. Smith
are all very estimable citizens in their
way, and are not one particle more
or less acceptable to the G II o 9 than Is
Mayor Kiefer. The nomination Of any
one Of these gentlemen would be just as
acceptable to 1t as the nomination Of
any other of them. And so it is not at
all with view to placing Mayor Kiefer
at any disadvantage in his contest for a
reconciliation that 1t calls attention to
his extraordinary declarations and con-
duct OF late with reference to the two
interests We have mentioned
The mayor may be very earnest in his
avowed determination to make the Twin
City street car concern discharge all the
duties that are imposed on it by law in
Guiding that of keeping a certain space
Of the streets clean, but his sincerity is
not quite apparent. His conduct toward
that corporation in the past makes
st plain that it has very little to fear
from Mayor Kiefer. On the subject of
the Cedar street loop alone he showed
lowed that concern to go on and lay It's
tracks on Cedar street without any
warrant of law whatever. He never in
terfered with the tracks themselves or
with The work being done on them and
confined himself TO sending a message on
the subject to the council. No one out
side the employees of the corporation
knows whether there is as yet even the
slightest warrant for the existence of
those tracks on Cedar street even at
this time. and everybody knows that
there was none whatever for laying
them when they were laid. If the mayor
has been animated by the same spirit to-
ward this corporation, which represents
very important section of the appara-
tus Of the local Republican machine In
the past that he processes to be ami
mated by now, he has made but very
little Use Of his opportunities.
And SO with the lighting and heating
corncern. The mayors attitude in that
respect at this time Is utterly unworthy
of The high official position which he oc-
cupies The establishment of a local
heating and lighting plant at the city's
expense may be very desirable thing In
It's way but the fact that that and other
such undertakings have waited until the
eve Of the Republican city convention
for aggressive act or speech is a cir
cumstance which must. we fear, be given
ali the importance which it merits in
reaching conclusion as to the WORTH
ness of the attitude taken by such Of
ficiais as the mayor and the city comp
trolIer.