Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-11-26
COMMISSION FORM OF GOVERN
MENT GROWING IN GENERAL
FAVOR.
FEWER CITY OFFICIALS
is DRIFT OF SENTIMENT
One Hundred Fifty or More Cities of
United States Have Either Adopted
Commission System or Are Consider
ing It-confusion Regarding Filling
of Druggists Liquor Blanks.
Special to Times Republican.

Des Moines, Nov. 26.-Champions of
the commission form of government
are taking great pride in the fact that
a recent compilation of statistics shows
experiment of government by a small
BODY Of men, about $50 other cities
of the United States have either adopt
ed the plan or have taken such steps
as would indicate they desire charter
revision or charter amendment. In
every case the movement has been to-
ward fewer city officials and simpler
methods of conducting municipal bust
ness. These facts We're gathered and
presented TO the meeting of the Ma
tional Municipal League by Clinton R.
Woodruff, the secretary.
Ia nearly all these cases there is
also included reform in the matter of
making nominations and elections, SO
that there is more direct responsibility
of the voter and general freedom from
the evils OF partisanship in city affairs.
Direct primaries are included in nearly
every scheme for reform of municipal
affairs.
In a great many of these movements
for reform there is also included some
plan for the recall of negligent Of
hcials.
One of the latest and perhaps most
important of the adaptations of the
commission plan is being planned in
Spokane. A very important matter,
however. as planned there is to have
-l1.a lie Si of
$1,000 year instead of the smaller
sum paid in Des Moines.
Secretary Woodruff states that the
commission plan movement in Ameri
can cities. one vital feature of which
is a smaller number of officials elected.
has given great impetus to a general
n ovement for a shorter ballot, or in
other words, for election of fewer state
and county officials. The plan is to
have some of the elective state Of
/ ficials appointed. as are boards and
/ commissions, and to elect not so many
of them. In Iowa it is believed this
movement will take the form of having
I the clerk and reporter of the supreme
court appointed by the court or other
/ competent body and it may at any
/ time bring about a change in regard
to railroad commissioners. Taking
these names all off the official ballots
would make Iowa have about as short
a ballot as any state of the union.
Druggists here are in some doubt
about the exact status of the law as
10 filing the blanks in applications for
liquor in drug stores. In northern
Iowa some of the druggists have got
into trouble because the county auditor
had TOO much printed on the blanks
1t seems that in Des Monies, the county
auditor did not have enough printed
Some Of the druggists have adopted the
plan of having part of the blanks filled
with rubber stamp, as for instance
the name of the druggist and his phar-
macy number and some other matters
They all agree however. that it would
Il be contrary to law TO have printed or
stamped on the blanks the purpose for
which liquor is wanted. The druggists
say that the next legislature will be
asked to make the whole matter of the
blanks a little palmer.
Some of the progressive republicans
in Iowa have been analyzing the fig
ures of the election in the Sixth Illi-
nois district, and say that it would
seem of some Importance that over
5000 insurgents were discovered there
in an election for member of congress
Barnes, the Independent republican
candidate. has announced he would i'm
mediately organize to capture the dis
trict next year. The fact that prac-
tically without any campaign, and en-
tirely without a machine or organi-
cation a. vote of 5000 was secured. is
taken to indicate that if the $4,000
stay at-hone votes of the district la6
been polled, the result would have beer
in doubt