East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1906-01-04
COUNCIL CHOSE
BERT c. WILSON
Continued from page ~

molds and shapes the policy by which
we are governed.
But 1t is necessary to adopt a set
tied, well defined policy, for uncer-
tainty creates distrust and dstrust
breeds dissatisfaction and dissatisfac-
tion is usually followed by a whole
train of evils. A poor policy is as
much better than no policy as certain
ty Is better than uncertainty.
"a municipality like the city of Pen
dleton, is but a combination of indi-
viduals, united under a common form
of government for mutual benefit and
protection. This body polite, like the
individuals who compose it, must ad-
vance or 1t is bound to retrograde. 1t
has it's own system of laws, which
must be in harmony with the greater
and more general laws of the state
and nation, and by these rules of law,
within the boundaries of the city in a
large measure the acts and conduct of
the citizen, are regulated in dealing
with his fellow citizens.
Hence such laws should be wise and
wholesome; they should conserve the
public interest, promote the public
prosperity and tend to establish upon
sound moral and financial basis the
municipal government They should
be given wide publicity, so that each
individual may know their terms and
conditions and thus be enabled to con-
form to their spirit and intent And
they shrould be so administered that
vice. crime and immortality in our
midst may be reduced to a minimum,
and at the same time the cause of
education and enlightenment promot-
ed not simply by the building of
schools for the education of the mi
nors. but by the opening of Libraries
for the masses, for this is the most
economical way known to modern
civilization of making good citizens.
IF bad laws exist upon the statute
looks, if laws that have outlived the
exigencies that called them into being,
they should be repealed, for nothing
so tends to teach the citizens a con-
tempt for authority and to bring into
disrepute the great body of the law
as the attempt to enforce bad law,
or one that has lost its meaning or
usefulness. However if a law exists
that is valid that does not encroach
upon the natural or constitutional
rights of the individual, a violation of
it should be punished.
1--WE have each recorded a solemn
and sacred oath to obey the charter
and the laws of the city of Pendleton,
| and the oath means We should enforce
in as humane and enlightened a man
ner, these laws, as we have an under
standing of how they should be ad-
ministered. And the friendship We
may feel for any interest or any indi-
vidual should not be allowed to divert
US from that purpose. for duty is
above friendship, and having accepted
this exalted trust at the hands of the
people, our conscience should dictate
obedience to that oath.
''If any man has claim upon our
friendship let him come to us in our
capacity as private citizen, and we
will undertake to discharge, to the
fullest manner, our obligations, but
he must not ask or expect us to dis
charge our private obligation at the
public expense, therefore, no man
should be appointed to office by US
because he has our personal friend
ship, unless We consider him as we'll
qualified as some other applicant, and
he should not be retained when he be-
comes derelct in the discharge of the
duties of his office, or cease to labor
for the public good.
Crafts should not be tolerated. and
no grafters employed, and any servant
or employe of the city detected in ac-
cepting hribes or showing favoritism
should be promptly removed and fear
lessly prosecuted.
"No man should be so high as to be
beyond the reach of the law and none
so low as to be beneath its notice.
The mayor, himself, proposes to rem
der obedience to the law the same as
any other citizen, and suffer the same
penalties for its violations.
"A man should be appointed to the
office of marshal, bold and fearless
enough to enforce the law and carry
out the policy of the administration. a
man who will be no respecter of per-
duty's sake.
yet we should not undertake a re-
formation of mankind-the task is too
great-nor should we pursue any rad
ical or revolutionary measures-we
should treat human nature as we find
it-weak, infirm and prone to error
by a wise and humane system of
rules and regulations, deal with the
evils and crimes men are guilty of,
and in undertaking the restriction and
suppression of evils we should not
look too much to our material well
fare nor should the spirit of COM
merclalism be encouraged at the ex-
pense of public morals.
"Our policy should not be money
first and other things afterwards. We
can not afford to sacrifice the moral
welfare of the men and women Of
the rising generation to an insane
greed for gold, nor the intellect and
genius of free people to CONNER
cialism. nor should we neglect neces-
sary public improvements because
there is not sufficient ready money In
the city treasury to foot the bills. The
rising generation is reaping the har-
vest of our labors and should ulti-
mately assist in liqudating the ex-
pense of these improvements.
Saloons.
"Under our state law the sale of
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