The sun., 1900-11-27
JOINT COMMITTEE
GOING OVER NEW
CITY CHART
Special Meeting Of Board
Trade Will be Called
TO Consider 1t.
TWO CITY ELECTION BILLS
One Proposes to Abolish Primary
Elections and Puts no Re-
striction on the Number
of Candidates for
One Office.

The joint committee Of the Boar'
Trade aud City Council to draft !
city charter held Il meeting las; ~
at the Board of Trades room
Equitable Building to make
animation Of the charter befC
handed over to the printer. al
of the charter was gone over Ii;
and the examination will proba
completed ut Il meeting Of the co.
tee to be held today.
! Those present last night were William
| p Bancroft chairman: Patrick Neary,
| A. S. Reed, jerome Bell and John s.
| Rossell Of the Board Of Trade; Hamilton
Stewart, Of City Council and j. Harvey
Whiteman, attorney for the committee.
The work of the committee last night
consisted principally of going over the
charter thoroughly and making it as
perfect as possible. Several slight
changes were made in the amendments
which had previously been made in the
charter at different meetings of the com
mittee. Mr.. Rossell was on motion
asked to prepare copy for the printer
under the supervision of Mr.. Bancroft.
Mr.. Rossell will begin his work at once
but it will probably be several weeks
before it is completed.
The charter will not be brought before
the Board of Trade at its next meeting
as previously announced as it will not
be in shape by that time. The draft will
however be submitted to the Board of
Trade before the next Legislature meets
and special meeting of the Board will
probably be called for that purpose. If
approved by the Board of Trade it will
be sent to the General Assembly and
that body asked to pass it.
The charter committee has also pre-
pared two special and separate bills to
provide for holding city elections.
AT the conclusion of the meeting last
night Mr.. Whiteman read copy of one
of the bills for holding city elections and
the one which the General Assembly will
probably be asked to act on. The idea
of the bill is to have our present system
made to agree with the new city charter.
The bill provides that instead of hold
ing primary elections. any man wishing
to become candidate can have his
name placed on the ballot by getting
certain number of qualified voters to sign
a petition and by presenting the petition
to the election board on or before May
20. The mayor is required to get so
signers to his petition and the number
other city officials are required to get
will be decided on later. The bill puts
no restriction on the number of candi-
dates for one office and any man can be-
come a candidate by getting the re-
quired number of signers to his petition.
The ballot provided in the bill also
differs much from the one now being
used. Instead of having the names of
the different political parties at the head
of the ballot the bill provides that the
names OF the offices to be filled be placed
at the top of the ballot. The names of
all the candidates for one office would
be placed on the ballot under the name
of the office for which the candidate is
running. The bill provides for no dis
tinction on the ballots whereby it would
be shown to what political organization
a candidate belongs.
The other bill prepared for city cleo
tions is very similar to the one now
existing in this city. One of the two
bills will probably also be brought before
the Board of Trade for approval.