The Topeka state journal., 1903-04-16
Business Men Protest Against
Partisan Police Force.
Efficiency and Not Politics What
Is Wanted.
DONOVAN SHOULD STAY
Has Proved Himself a Most
Competent Officer.
What Some Of the People Say
About 1t.

Mayor Bergundthal's determination to
have bipartisan police force meets
with the hearty approval of the mer-
chants of Topeka. Petty partisan poll
ties as a general proposition has but
little interest for the average business
man but without exception the men
engaged in business on Kansas avenue
want to have some assurance that their
police protection will be at least as eff
cient as it has been in the past. OF the
men on the Avenue who We're interview
ed on the subject this morning not one
thinks that the question of politics
ought to rule when the personnel of the
police department is being made up.
As to retaining Tim Donovan as
policeman there is almost the same
unanimity of feeling. Because Donovan
is a thoroughly good police officer his
removal from the department would be
a loss at time when the department
wants more than anything else to gain
in able men. This too on the advent of
the crowd to be here at the time of the
presidents visit. The men interviewed
this morning are at least representative
and their opinions are as follows:
P. L Bonebrake. who for several years
was chairman of the board of police
commissioners under the old metropoli-
tan system, said:
When I was a member of the board
we found the non-partisan basis thor
oughly. practica BILE and maintained it SO
for years. We had eighteen men, of
whom remember four were Democrats
and one a Populist- There We're four
colored men on the force also, so that
all sides were pretty well represented.
am certain that if Mr. Bergundthal
wants to have a police force maintain
ed on a merit basis he win not find It
a all impractica bic. Tim Donovan was
a good policeman and Jake Owen. a
Democrat, was one Of the most reliable
men we had. He believed in high IL
cense but when told to do thing he
went and did it like soldier
A. w. Knowles said. 7 am in favor
of having the merit system observed
entirely in the police department. It Is
the safest way pzc74l5 s.4ilze to see Tim
Donovan kept on the force"
". A. L. Thempson ssThe police de-
partment is a farce when it is torn to
pieces after every election. 1t ought to
be kept just as far away from politics
a S can be. I would like very much to
see Donovan kept on the police force.
he has made a thoroushly good police
man and I doubt if his place could be
filed by as capable man. If we are
going to have a merit system in that
department we certainly don't want to
begin by turning out all the valuable
men there
D. ]. Greenwald: by all means let
US have a merit system force if it is
possible The people of the town care
more about having a police department
that can be relied upon to keep the
peace than it does about whether there
are more Republicans than Democrats
employed. 1 think Tim Donovan has
shown his ability as a policeman and
ought to stay on the force.
W. I. Miller: The police force ought
to be kept out of politics just as much
as the waterworks or the electric light
plant should. BY all means it should
be placed on some sort of a merit sys-
tenn and kept there 1t would be a mis-
take to turn Donovan out"
H A. Auerbach: THE police depart
ment ought to be on a business basis in
order to be efficient. and the politics
ought to be left out Mayor Bergund-
thai can make no mistake by running
it on that plan. As for Donovan he
ought to be kept. Those are my senti-
ments'
NJ. c. Holman: 1T would be the
greatest kind of a mistake to remove
Donovan. We need all such good de-
tectiVes
Jonathan Thomas: 'I believe In civil
service in municipal affairs and where
a man has had large experience and
made a good record he ought to be re-
tained. He sets good example and
j encoIlra geS the performance of dI1tv.'s