The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-10-09
4 FEW WORDS WITH THE NEW
MAYOR.


The present charter of this city is one
of the best if not the best city charter
in the country. Two or three other cities
may have good charters. but none has a
better. it is the result of a nOnpartisan
municipal reform movement which cul-
minated ten years ago in the drafting of
the charter by a committee of citizens en-
bracing members of both parties, some of
whom had made a special study of munic-
ipal reform. Its passage by the Legislature
was pressed i'm the same spirit. Its object
was To do away as far possible with the
evils of the old form of councilmanic gov
eminent in which nobody was responsible
for anything. and the administration of the
city government consisted principally OF
personal jobbery and political dirty work.
The charter aimed To do away with these
and kindred evils and to place the city gov
eminent on a much higher moral and dis
tincty business basis. To this end it
vested all legislative power in the Coun-
Gil, and all executive power and RESPONSE
bility in the mayor, who was also made
primarily responsible for the acts of the
executive boards appointed by him: The
charter endeavored as far as possible to
eliminate the spells system from the city
government and to substitute civil-service
reform. In giving the mayor power to ap-
point the members of the various boards,
not more than two of whom should be of
the same political party, it assumed that
he would appoint representative men of
both parties, on the ground of fitness alone
and without reference to their personal
fealty or political services TO him individ
uaIly. The police and fire departments
were 10 be entirely removed from politics,
the members were to be retained or pro-
NOTED on merit alone, and no person was
to be appointed or removed for political
reasons. Nothing could be more repug-
nant To the letter and spirit of the char
ter than making the police and fire forces
part of political machine assessing
them for campaign purposes. In short.
the charter contempIates that the city gov
eminent should be administered on strictly
business principles with reference solely
to the public interests and without any
regard 10 party politics except in as far
as they may be affected by good govern
ment. From charter point of view the
idea of mayor constituting himself u
political boss or trying to build up a po-
litical machine through the agency of the
city government is simply abominable.
These facts have an application both to
the past and to the future. In the first
place, they serve to show how utterly the
spirit of the charter has been ignored and
how openly some of its important provi-
siOns have been violated during the Tag
CART administrations. In as far as the
charter aimed at promoting municipal re-
form, substituting the merit system for the
spells system and placing the city govern
ment on a strictly business basis, irrespec-
tive of party politics, 1t has been practically
nullified. In the second place, these facts
show what the public has a right to ex-
pect of the next administration. To con-
form to .he letter and spirit of the charter
and make the city government even re-
motely like what it should be and what
the trainers of the charter intended to make
il. the next administration should be as
unlike those of Mayor Taggart as possible
As a consequence OF his administrations the
charter is hOneycombed with violations
and overgrOwn with abuses. 1t needs to be
dug out of the ruins. repaired. set up again
and put in the hands of persons who will
administer ii as it should be administered
The new mayor will fail in his duty 10 the
public and will furnish just cause for his
condemnation and population by the peo-
pie If he fails to comply with the popular
expectation of a new and better order of
things. The rule of his conduct should be
the charter, the whole charter and moth
ing but the charter. II he attempts to build
up political machine. establish personal
government or revive any of the abuses of
the old councilmanic regime. he is gone.
The people demand reform in the spirit of
the charter. and they will not accept any
thing else.