The daily morning journal and courier., 1907-10-26
CHARTER TINRERING.


 held November fifth, the voters will be asked to approve number of char ter amendments of more or less sweeping character. It is of course manifest that comparatively few of the residents of that city were ever aware of the contemplated changes. They never are in any city under the Con necticut practice of charter making. Now that Bridgeport is about to adopt or reject the proposed amendments the newspapers are doing the best they can to educate the people in what they would have known all about from the first had it been given to them to do their own governing.
 It was necessary for the city to ap- peal to the legislature for the right to condemn certain property which is owned by the New Haven Railroad company. Whatever form of uniform city charter the State of Connecticut ultimately adopts it will always he necessary for cities to appeal to the legislature for rights of this character. But in addition to this additional DOW CT the proposed charter offers changes in the political organization of the city which should never in the world have been discussed before the General As sembly. For exansilc it is proposed to reduce the number of charity commits sioners from six to four. The charter provides that hereafter the board of assessors shall serve four instead of two years. The organization of the park commission will be radically changed. It is proposed that the mem bers of the board of appraisal shall receive less money while the clerk shall receive more. The pay of the reg istrars of voters is to be materially in- creased. The pay of the city clerk Is to be fixed and increased. The city is to be given increased powers over the public service corporations in the mat ter of the use of the streets. There is a provision covering the purchase of school supplies The health board and the fire department are to be subject ed to important changes. The d recter nP r,t,hlto will years instead of four and will receive his appointment from the mayor, who will also appoint a superintendent of streets. A city engineer win bs among the new official possessions of the city of Bridgeport if the proposed amend ments are accepted.
 We are not in a position to judge whether any one of these changes Is unjustif1ed or not. Presumably the city of Bridgeport needs these improve ments but whether 1t needs them or not, with the single exception of the right to condemn certain railroad property they should have originated with the legislative department of the city and thus been brought directly to the notice of the citizens, The General Assembly of the State of Connecticut is not fit body to pass upon changes of such strictly local character, The per- sons most likely to know what the city of Bridgeport needs in the way of the reorganization of its local government are those who live under 1t and sup. port it by taxation. We speak of this particular instance because 1t involves ] more sweeping change than cities are usually asked to make at one time and because on that account the mistaken policy of Connecticut in taking unto it. self the exclusive right to run the cities is more clearly emphasized. It is llko- ly that the people of Bridgeport vii accept the charter on account of tho provision which makes them tho mas ters of their own streets but there should be on that account no cessation in the general movement for home rule for every Connecticut city. Govern ment from Hartford has run it's course from the point of view of good govern ment