New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1906-08-09
COSTLY CITY GOVERNMENT.

The Census Bureaus bulletin on the cost of
municipal government in the United States
which has Just been issued, shows New York
and Boston in the forefront for what some
may call enterprise and others extravaganza.
Statistics OF 151 cities are tabulated. Curl
Ously enough Newton, Mass. happens TO have
the largest per capita debt. amounting to 1925,
but that is Of no special significance. small
town, especially if it is suburban residence
Of many rich men. may easily have and afford
10 have Improvements which seem all out of
proportion 20 its population. New York and
Boston are respectively second and third in the
list. and generally it is found that the per cap
ita Indebtedness increases with the size Of the
city.
The general rule of business is that as it's
volume Increases its cost per unit of work done
decreases. The conspicuous exception is the
telephone, the switchbOards for which grow in
cost faster than they increase in size. \ city
lis good deal like a telephone system. To n
certain extent the cost per capita for pavement
and public buildings should decrease with
density OF population. block containing eight
fathOuSes is easy to pave as one containing
two private residences with gardens and the
work would cost less per resident. On the other
hand, the wear on pavements is vastly increased
with increased population. So is the expense Of
street cleaning, of snow removal (where there
is little traffic the snow can be left) of polcing
and OF developing facilities for passenger traffic
and commerce. The enormous ocean trade
which comes here for the whole country forces
vast expenditure for piers. The Overcrowded
streets compel the construction of subways In
New York and Boston. which, of course cost
vastly more in proportion to the traffic than
corresponding improvements in smaller cities.
Work OF all kinds has TO be done IN a more
expensive way. The wear is greater the cost
of material, Labor and land taken for public
use is greater. Moreover. the public health and
comfort require a large city TO regulate and
inspect a great many things which can be left
alone in small cities. There is need To in
spect tenement houses or even condemn them
where they do moi exist; no need to go a hun
dred miles for water when a few springs near
at hand viii supply a small city; need TO
build small parks and Fairgrounds where green
fields are close at hand
Undoubtedly there is an enormous waste in
city administration and need of retrenchment
probably New York gets no more than half OF
the labor which it pays for and unnecessarily
high prices are paid for public works partly
owing 10 corruption, chiefly owing 20 stupidity
and failure OF foresight In co-Ordinatin effort
/ Iii spite OF all this. however. New York and
! Boston would be derelict In their duty 20 their
people il they did not spend more in proDor-
/ don 10 population than smaller cities Their
! record is not necessarily had pre-eminence +"
| 1t may be good preeminence. pre-eminence
in the work OF humanity and civilization Bos-
ton stands first on the list for per capita tax
| levy with q record Of $40 10, while New York's
per capita tax is only SOP. That may mean that
New York is borrowing more than Boston or is
doing less for its people Still. New York is not
backward ia spending In 1904 its expenditures
had increased in two years so per cent. while
its population increased only per cent. Chi