Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-09-08
SPENDING MILLIONS
London's County Council is Making
Great improvements
HAS VAST PLANS FOR THE FUTURE
A Street is Being Cut From HoI-
born to the Strand.
RUNNING BOATS AND CARS
Special Correspondence of The Evening Star.

Special Correspondence of The Evening Star.
LONDON, September 1. 1900
Those magic initials Il. c. c.
which hold London together and gov
ern it and provide it with taxes to
pay, might stand for London Can
Change although occasional disgrun-
tied taxpayer may insist that they mean
'Londons Costly Combine" The American
tourist. observing the letters on the side of
a red omnibus on the Strand, is not espe-
cially interested when told that they indi-
cate London County Council" But he
would be interested if he knew what that
remarkable body up to just now and
what sort of a peculiar organization 1t is,
anyway.
The L. c. c. is amusing itself with spend
ing sT5oOo,o00 in big improvements in the
metropolis, but the works it has in hand
have not attracted much attention because
London is the heart of a nation and always
30 interested in national affairs that mu-
nicipal matters get comparatively little no.
tice. That's ideal combination for
'boodle aldermen and yet one of the
oueerest things about the l.. c. c. Is that
Ii is practically free from the reproach or
crookeGness.
The chief American interest In this l.. c.
c. would be In the notable changes II Is
making in London, but surely little space
l.. c. c. itsef-one almost writes himself
instead of itself" for this is the only real
mayor London has. The gtlded functionary
who is known to the world at large as lord
mayor of London rules only the little
square mile Of city in the midst of the me-
tropolis, and SO far as population goes is
lord mayor of only 1,coo-5,Wo.oO OF Lon
don-scarcely more than thousandth part
of the metropolis. He has no more to do
with the rest Of 1t than any ordinary tax
payer who doesn't wear gilt and ride In
cumbrous state chariot.
A Private stock of Politics.
One of the funny features of the l.. c. c.
is that II has little separate election and
little separate set Of politics all its own.
There are 1873 councillors, who are elected
by the taxpayers. and whose term Is three
year. This election doesn't take place at
the same time as the general election, and.
although outside politics sometimes is
dragged in, whether candidate Is a liberal
or conservative. is supposed to have nothing
TO do with his election. County councillors
are either "progressives or moderates.
and the platforms on which they are elected
have to do with things municipal only.
Really, these party names would better be
"ultra-progressives' and ''progressves.
for, the council Is divided today being
moderate doesn't at all mean being OBJ
structionist, but being a progressive does
mean going ahead just as fast and as far
as may be.
It is hardly necessary to say that the pro-
gressves are In a majority. and 1t is gen
orally admitted that they will continue to
be for some time to come, for their record
has been good and their program is attract
I've. II is well understood, too. that her
majesty's present government has little
good will toward the present council and
its "sOcialistic' tendencies. Parliament has
in reality no control over the council. but 1t
Is an open secret that many of the conserv-
alive party leaders wish that it had. No
speech made by Lord Salisbury about four
years ago, in which he remarked that the
right sort of men didn't get elected to coun-
cilships. and limited that the council might
protitably be done away with altogether
although he rather hedged from this state
ment after he had read the speech in print
The Working Mayor.
The councils chairman. presiding Off
GER Is elected by the members themselves.
Lord Rosebery held this office twice and
resigned II to enter the cabinet and
afterward take the premiership. Sir John
Lubbock followed him. and the~-present
Chairman Is Lord Welby. whose interest In
the councils work would make 1t an in
Justice TO refer to him as in any sense a
fgurehead But IL Is the councils clerk
who most perfectly represents Its activity
who fights vestries. district boards and con-
tractors. and puts into actual practice the
Echemes planned out by the councils yari-
Gus committees. to say nothing of bossng
the 10000 odd men and women who form
the councils working staff-so that as far
as his actual duties are concerned 1t would
probably be no exaggeration to call him the
real working mayor of London.
This office has been held for the last six
years by c. j. Stewart, and he and Sir
Alexander Binnie are the councils highest
salaried officials. each earning $4,000 year.
Queer Business for Dukes and Earls.
1t would be good deal easier to name
not do than TO make anything like list
of those that It does. 1t doesn't control the
police and 1t doesn't control the streets
Much against It's will. it has to let the
''vestries'' and district boards do a little
work and more .'pottering;" but 1t makes
UP for this by claiming for its own funny
mass of duties, large and small. Thus,
while on one hand 1t plans the demolishing
Qf populous district on the other 1t grants
permission for cricket game in one of its
parks. 1t builds great docks simultaneous
iy with seeing 10 II that no more than one
baby under the age of five years is taken
charge of for pay in any house. 1t teaches
the honest boy any trade that he wants to
learn and shuts the dishonest one up In a
reform school. II runs the fire depa rtment
and regulates the price of cigarettes and
little cakes in the parks; 1t issues licenses
TO theaters and inspects cow sheds. builds
asylums and prosecutes dealers who sell
explosive substances without good reason.
To be an Interested" councillor a man
devotes half his time to his committee
work but TO be an earnest one keeps him
out OF bed o nights and yet like the MEM
,bers Of parliament the councillor gets not
q penny for his trouble. Dukes and earis
are among Its members. and many rich
business men, and two or three LII. DIS.
II Owns a Bus Line.
Probably few even among Londoners real
lie the extent Of the operations which its
county council is planning They know
that besides attending faithfully to the
thousand and one things that any city gov
eminent has to look after. 1t has RACED to
the ground several fearful slum districts
md put up model dwellings In their places,