New-York tribune., 1907-12-12
ygr yru DEuAND F0R EFFICIENCY.

Navor Fitzgerald beaten Tor na'lhs
-, tho city of Boston old-taShlohed
+,f,I inefficient government. IN WHICH mVie
cara WAS taken of the interests oI loii'i0"i
fa,orites than of III interest OF Ihe cil
fzens Ii was a good deal the saihe SUI "
administration aS President AheaTu mas "
nisbed in this borough. 1t was not par -
,,icious for the Finance Commission "i''h i0
cantly oyerhauled boston 5 AFFAIRS, dlo h't n
tl,at FITZGERALD or his machine had dppeu "l'
I,,,s, hands INFO the Boston treasury IL was
rbe kind of government that lalhlh''hA '"Ne'
nride in furnishing 10 this city. TOR the i t~-
GERALD ring in its character and lis pefSo"ilei -
1a,.,- 1ouch like the TammanY ring Inc grant
in il MAS AS honest as the day is long III con-
formed fairly well To the best standards al our
professional municipal politician. VINO Ieeis 'lll
h. has gone through a long, upward eNoiu'i""
from The. wicketlnpsS Of Tweed 10 the goodness
of Ahearn and Fitzg raid.
Il WIS costly 10 l,e sure for 1t il getting 10
lac a well established principle that nothing Is
moro exransive than this honesty" which the
politicians have been cultivatinE all these years
with such sedulity Honesty is after all. the best
having pocy for politicians. and your oidiash-
joned knave who could not restrain bis direct
voraciors onset upon Il city treasury was a
short-sighted person compared TO the modern
caSuists that are trained up by Iam1naii!
and by the Boston ring and by the FblIanei-
t,hia machine. Boston was thronSeH Win
Honest Johns" and Honest .IimS and Honest
Pats" and still the cit debt mounted 10y leaps
and hounds The people took to reckoning II
up in Boston, and they found that III Twelve
wears while the population had increased --i2
ner cent and taxable property had gone up y
per cent the city debt had jumped l66 per cent
OF course the Fitzgerald machine had not A.
,,omrlishpd all Of that. II had not had The
time 10 do So but considering its limited olpor-
,unities il had done all that could reasonably
he expected 10 keep things moving III th3t di-
re,tion and ready IT, do more II II had
had further authorization from the voters Ana
This WAS all accomplished by methods whose
honesty was beyond question We can imagine
lis defenders the stump ID the recent c'In
naign dilating upon The fact that the Finance
Commissions investigation ended in n" one s
Indictment ''All of these millions spent. theE
doubtless said and not penny stolen
The only flaw in that claim title to con-
tjnuapcp in office was that the people OF Boston
had grown tired of this demonstration OF the
costliness of mere political honesty The per
cGpita debt had Increased in twelve years from
ST. Is 10 S1S:} 4:;. Taxes had risen greatly. Ns
is bappening in many other large cities. the eA-
nensiveness of the city government in its effect
on the cost of living was driving the very de
sirsble middle class into the suburbs and there
were already hints that industries. TOO, were
more and more betakinS themselves TO smaller
and less costly places In the words of the
Finance Commission:
No community thrive under the load of a
debt which is riling up four times fast as its
wealth and seven and a half times a. fast as
its population
The defeat of Fitzgerald j. good omen. for
hitherto in most American cities TO overthrow
l. +Ia,. rTn1r 1r1y-
ring here in the character Of its members, their
relation to the rest of the population and their
numerical strength. it has been necessary to
nrove fragrant corruption degraded alliance
with vice and crime-in other words, TO stir the
public emotions with a political senSati0n-but
Fitzgerald was beaten by simple demonstra-
tion in bookkeeping The increase OF the debt
four times as fast as the city wealth and seven
and onebalf times fast as the citys popula-
ton grew was enough 10 convince the voters
/ that a change was needed Then, too. the break
M i'm the Boston Democratic machine shown by
the considerable vote polled by the Independence
League candidate is similar TO the breakup in
the Tammany machine in this city. Through
some change either in the character Of the new
made immigrant citizens who form large q
proportion OF the municipal voters. or through
the decrease Of patronage by the extension of
. Civil Service reform principles. the old city
rings Of New York and Boston seem not to have
the absolute power that once they had The
continued existence of considerable third party
Indicates an independence in n class of citizens
where formerly II was not found. Ii is fact
to be taken into consideration by those who
despair OF our ring ruled cities. Even though
, the Independence League in itself commands
little respect, and both in its management and
It's principles is weak thing for those to lean
upon who hope for city regeneration, being as
ready 10 make a deal with the ring against il.
its very existence shows the weakened authority
/ Of the boss with an element Of the population
/ with whom il has hitherto been unquestioned.