The Saint Paul globe., 1904-06-12
LEGISLATIVE CANDIDATES

The entire business community Of
st. Paul was deeply interested but
few months ago in the choice Of city
officials. 1t was thought, and rightly
thought, Of sufficient importance to
warrant a more or less complete or
ganization among business men and a
harmonious cooperation by them to
secure good government They helped
select candidates for both parties, they
passed upon the merits of aspiring
statesmen, they put the knife into in
competents and grafters who were try
Ing to break into the council, they
gave their time and their money and
their counsel right literally, all in the
interest Of securing honest and COM
petent and experienced men. 1t was
work well done and the results justi-
fled. Every citizen of ST. Paul Is abso-
luteIy confident today that its inter
ests will be well taken care of for two
years to come, because Of the quality
Of the men selected. We say this In
no party spirit, because admirable work
was done on both sides, and Repub-
licans and Democrats in the business
section united to compel their respec-
tive parties to nominate only worthy
men for office.
Now it is a fact that. important
as this work was. and proud and
satisfied as we are with the re-
suits, it was yet inconsiderable as
compared with the importance of
securing a strong, honest and ener-
getic representation in the state Iegis-
lature this fall. Our taxation is only
partly determined by the municipal
administration. To very large de-
gree 1t is dependent upon state action.
The reforms we may wish to put in
operation. the changes that we may
wish to make in the interests of econ
omy are very apt to require the sane
ton Of the Legislature before anything
can be done. BY way Of Illustration
on the positive side, everybody knows
that the city and county governments
should be consolidated. To have one
set OF officers for the city Of St Paul
and another for the county of Ramsey.
involving, as We have seen, the utter
scandal Of our wild-eyed board Of
county commissioners, is a. financial
and political outrage. Nobody except
office holders and seekers wants 1t. Yet
this double headed and costly system
remains because we have never had a
legislative delegation that would force
consolidation through.
Negatively, the same argument ap-
plies. With every session of the Iegis-
lature some wretched cheap member
from Ramsey county loads up with
Doodle bills. He attempts to blackmail
business interests. he proposes meas
ures threatening disaster to the city.
and in general plays the holdup game
through the session The threat of
hurtful changes and the refusal to work
for beneficial changes on the part of
our legislative delegation costs this
city more every year than the most
lavish municipal administration it ever
knew cost during it's official life.
The same labor that business men
took to secure good municipal admins
tration must be repeated They ought
to begin at once. Candidates for the
legislature are active. They are get
ting pledged support. They are making
it difficult for rivals to enter the field.
Are they such as command the con-
fidence Of our business men? Are
these ready to have the legislative dele
cation named in back rooms and by
ways, and to find themselves helpless
~when they approach the state capitol
during the legislative session? We can
save more money and confer more
benefits or st. Paul by picking out and
sending to the legislature set Of men
like those that now constitute our
present city assembly-and we say this
with reference solely to the character
Of the men and not to their party rela-
tions than we could do by all the
charter changes or executive acts ac-
ccnnplished by our legal authorities in
five years. Let our business men take
this to heart and get into the game.
VIII they create and compel strong.