The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1909-10-01
Longley Made a Superintendent.

ldlOTlly VI IHc PcoPic WISH H.
The important fact is that so few
of all the voters of the city could be
aroused to interest in question that
really means more to the people of
Mankato than a presidential election.
Yet fifty per cent more persons voted
last year than on the new charter the
other day. 1t was defeated by failure
to receive four -sevenths of the whole
vote, though there was small ma
jority for it. The friends of good
government propose to try it again.
| We trust that they will make a
campaign of education strong enough
to bring out the whole vote and plain
enough to put the question on its
merits There should be no such di-
vision between the better" and Clover"
part of any city as this vote in Man
kato shows. They have the same in
terest in good government, whether
the special detail under consideration
| be pure water or well regulated
| liquor traffic.
| After all the commission form is
only means to the end of good
government. Perhaps it was too mar
rowly advocated as well as too mar
rowly opposed.
Missed a Double Opportunity.
st. Paul Pioneer Press: The voters
of AIankato permitted double OPP
portunity to escape them when they
failed to adopt the commission plan
of government which was submitted
to them on Monday. They lost the
prestige and advertising that will go
to the first city in the state to aban-
don the ward system of political rep
resentation and adopt business meth
DDS in the handling of a city's busi-
ness. They also are depriving them
selves, temporarily at least, of the
advantages of up-to-date municipal
management.
The campaign in Mankato was the
! first that has been waged in Mime
sofa on behalf of the commission PLAN
The people had heard of it but in
connection with distant cities and they
had paid little attention. In spite
of the fact that it was brand new to
them the voters of Mankato gave
! majority of l56 for the plan and fell
short only twenty eight of having the
! four sevenths required for the adop-
ton of city charter.
Lack of knowledge.
| The defeat of the proposed charter
: in Mankato was due to lack of knowl-
! edge on the part of the people. Many
had not read it, did not know what
+, it contained and were deceived by the
politicians interested in defeating the
measure. The opponents of the meas
ure aroused suspicion in the minds OF
those who had no opinions OF their
own. The saloon element was told
that the charter was a move in the
interests of prohibition. Local eondi-
lions and prejudices were used to line
ZIP the unthinking with the result that
narrow margin.
The merits of the commission plan
of city government were not denied
iby those who secured its defeat. They
did not undertake to defend the pres
| ent wasteful system of ward repre-
sentation with it's attendant patronage
and spoils. They had no argument
to offer against the commission plan.
The very weakness of their case emf
phasized the strength of the commits
/, sion plan cause. Those who would
hang onto the old political methods
originated by our forefathers had
nothing to offer except that the pro-
posed change is un-Amercan. They
could not tell just why, but they did
not have to, as they told it only to
those who took their word for what
they said.
/ There Was Misrepresentation.
i It may be said that, with the ex-
ception of few politicians who would
have been legislated out of office
practically all in Mankato who voted
: against the charter did so because of
misrepresentation. They had been i'm
posed upon by those who had axes
, to grind. Practically every man in
! Mankato who realized what the pro-