The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1909-06-26
THE HusINEss ASPECT.


Still another great advantage Of the
commission plan is that 1t makes pos
sible the transaction of the city's
a business in 5usinesslike way. I'm
der the present system important mat
tiers brought before the city council
sometimes drag for months before
action on them can be secured. At
least one month must elapse before
anything can be done, no matter how
urgent the need Of prompt action, I'M
less special meeting OF the council
is held at large public expense. Let
q matter of Importance arise In
which prompt action is necessary for
the general good. A resolution is in
troduced in the city council and re-
ferred to a committee. This COM
mittee does not report cannot report
until the next regular meeting of
the council month later. In the
meantime, in many cases. the public
interests have suffered. The fault is
not with the council or its committees,
but with the system under which the
city is governed. No capable and In
telligent business man would defer
action on an important matter know
ing that he would suffer loss by SO do
ing. But tie hands of the city are
tied under like conditions because the
men who transact its business meet
only once month.
Under the commission plan the men
who transact the city's business are
on duty every day. BY the terms of
the law the mayor and councilmen
must hold regular meetings once q
month. But special meetings may be
held as often as needed without addi-
tional expense In cities which have
the plan in operation 1t is found that
the council Is in session practically all
the time. Indeed, 1t is not an unusual
thing to hold two meetings in single
day. one in the morning and one In
the afternoon. Under this arrange
ment 1t is possible to take care o.
it presents itself. There is no dilly
dallying and no losses by reason o
delay. Action is taken on any matte
that comes up just as soon as 1t cal
be thoroughly investigated and dis
posed of intelligently. In his address
In the Grand opera house in this cit
Commissioner Sherman Of Ceda
Rapids stated that it Is not an unusua
thing for citizen to appear when tn
Cedar Rapids commission is in Sc.
sion and have action taken on ma
ter submitted by him before he leave
the council chamber, and that 1t is
rare occurrence when 1t require
more than two or three days to secul
final action.
For a period of something like
year following the adoption of Il
commission plan by Cedar Rapids NJ
w. R. Ashford was private secreta.
to Mayor Carmody OF that city.
this capacity he enjoyed exception
opportunities for studying the pre-
teal workings of the commission ;
rangement in all its details.
Ashford is now editing the Clint
Herald and is analyzing the comm
sion law and telling how it works
practice In series of well-writt
and informing articles. In Thursda
paper he discussed the salaries pt
the mayor and councilmen under
commission plan and made 1t al
clear that money expended for t
purpose was invested to good adva
age. In the same article he contra
ed the two systems OF transacting C
business and showed the marked
periority of the commission plan. I
entire article is of interest locally
this time:
without word of criticism of
acts of single official of the eli
without stating that there have be
irregular practices here; without ey
intimating that the officials, eitl
present or those of the past, have be
under obligations to ward heelers a
ward bosses, we have been treati
the present form of municipal COVE