The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1901-04-19

men showed how poorly and unsatis-
factorily this paper arrangement would
work when put into actual practice,
taking human nature as it is and not
as it ought to be.
Some of the members of the charter
commission have given expression at
several meetings to the idea that the
principal thing expected of the COM
mission was to abolish the board of
public works. Where they got this
idea is a mystery. 1t is true that some
years ago there was an agitation
against the board, but this has long
since practically died out. 1t was a
habit of person who thought that he
had been assessed too much for a pub
lie improvement to blame the board
for it and advocate that it be abolish
ed. If complaint of this kind is raised
against board composed of men who
have had long experience in the work
of assessing benefits and damages,
what is to be expected when the peo-
pie have just grounds of complaint
against the work done by men who
have had no experience in making as
sessments and who do not have the
responsibility that a more permanent
Office carries with it?
Judge Severance was the first to see
that the commission had made a mis-
take in abolishing the board of public
works and he took a lead in the dis
cussion last night. He said that the
board is composed at present of pre-
sident or water commissioner, who
also does the clerical work, the city
engineer and the city assessor These
three men are peculiarly fitted to make
fair assessments. Not as well fitted
men could be expected if they were to
be appointed by the . municipal judge
each time an assessment was to be
made. He considered that the board
of public works, with some modifca-
ton perhaps, is vastly better than the
proposed plan. Judge Severance said
when he had loo ked over the provi-
sions of the charter prescribing the
duties of the board of public works
He thought that the plan proposed
would be wholly unsatisfactory, and
he did not see how it would save much
money. If the assessor was dropped
from the board, a saving of $3.50 year
would be affected.
W. NJ. Farr said that the commits
sion had started in with the idea that
it must abolish the board or give it d
new name. No plan was more econo-
mical than the board. There is just so
much work to be done, no matter who
does it. Assessments had sometimes
been higher than the estimates, and
this had caused criticism of the board
1t had been thought best to have
special commissions make the assess
ments, because they would have moth
ing to do with recommending the i'm
provements or making estimates of the
cost. He thought that the charter
commission would not be making
much progress if it were to go back on
what it had done.
Prof. Koehler thought that special
commissions would be more unbiased
than the board of public works, for
the reason that they would have had
nothing else to do with the work.
Judge Severance said that he had
talked with many people of the city
and with the editors of the local daily
papers and all had favored retaining
the board of public works.
W. E. Young said that it was time
that the charter commission had ar
rived at conclusion. He was willing
to change as many times as was
necessary, even at the expense of being
called vacillating. Since the first six
months that the present charter has
been in force one man has done all of
the assessing. When the contract for
an improvement is awarded it is
known what the cost will be, and
there is just so much assessed There
is objection in the city to making the
engineer the whole thing. The engi-
neer is usually the most unpopular
man in the city, and this is one of
the reasons why the board of public
works has been unpopular. He favored
making one man responsible. In
other cities of the size of Mankato the
engineer is theoretically the servant
of some board. This was the right
theory. Mr.. Young said that he was
willing to have the board of public
works composed of one or two mem
bers, and would have the engineer the
servant of the council. The charter
commission was not appointed to
make popular charter but a good
one. He would rather make a good
charter and have it fail than poor
charter and have it--carry. He thought
that men experienced in MAKING as