The San Francisco call., 1901-11-06
THE RIGHT SUPERVISORS.

IL citizens of San Francisco who desire good
"A government and who believe that fidelity in
L \ office should be itly recognized by the people
can congratulate one another this morning upon the
election Of Supervisors A majority of the present
board has been reelected These men have most OF
them been tried in Office and have been found faith
ful and efficient They have worthiy merted the
honor OF reelection, which has been accorded them
by their fellow citizens
For many year past in the history of San Fran
cisco no party has ever thought of renonnating men
who have been tried in the Board of Supervisors.
Neither would have happened that the voters would
have reelected any former board for long time past
In fact each succeeding board, until the present one
took Office seems to have been little worse than its
predecessor. Year after year there were stories of
the solid nine" and scandals of their jobbery and
corruption. With few notable and honored excep-
tons the career of a Supervisor was limited to one
term of Office, during which time he made as much
as he could for his pocket and then retired to
the obscurty from which he had been brought by the
bosses who gave him the nomination. The excep-
tons that class of on the board served only to
deepen the disgrace of the majority, and were pow
erless TO redeem them.
With the accession of the present board to office
change came that branch of the city government
They did not satisfy everybody nor was it possible
for them do So but they did satisfy the CITY at large
Not single scandal has arisen during their term of
Office They have never been charged with iobbery
nor suspected of it. Intelligent and far-minded men
OF all parties have perceived that on every issue that
arose the majority of the board has been desrous of
doing what is best for the community as whole re-
gardess OF parties of special interests They have
rot been subservent to corporations nor have they
been unfair to them In word they have sought al
ways to dc right
To have defeated men of such tried and proven fit
ness for the office of Supervisor would have been in
the nature OF public calamity. 1t would have been
taken to mean that the people OF San Francisco are
indifferent to the honesty OF the members of the nu-
ncipal legislature. 1t would have been construed in
some quarters as an indirect approval of the solid
nine system" of conducting the work OF the board
and the political manpulators OF corporation obberv
would have been quick to take advantage of if.
With the election of the men who were chosen
yesterday the people have assured the continuance Of
good government so far as il. depends upon the Sr
pervisors The schemes OF the corporations 70 oct
control Of the board have been bafHed and if will
not be IN their power to impose extoronate rates
upon the city or upon the people for water or for
gas The same honest conservatism that has reduced
the rates OF those necessary articles in the past will
continue to control the board and shape its nol;c
1t is not worth while now to point out over again
the evil that would have resulted from the election ~
majority of the candidates for Supervisors named
by the corporations, those named by the class aqi
tators. 1t is enough to know that the danger was
appreciated by the voters and those candidates have
been defeated For the present all is well and GOOD
The right Supervisors have in the main been chosen
Il is time for congratulations