Los Angeles herald., 1909-01-25


TO be inaugurated.
why should anybody question the
wisdom and the Righteousness of the
recall? What objections in principle
can there be found to it? l have no,
heard anybody point out, and in the
course of the debate five years ago
or whenever it was we acted upon it
l never saw pointed out a single OBJ
lection that was entitled to one min
ute's serious consideration.
THE whole matter is embraced in
single thought or a single PROPOSE
ton: Has the master a right to call
upon his servant to give an accounting
of his stewardship? The universal law
OF all countries and of all systems Of
jurisprudence answers that question
In one way only, namely, that the mas
ter has right to call for an account
ing by his servant
The honest servant never objects to
this. In fact it is a delight for him to
meet his employer face to face and
make an exhibit of what he is doing.
of his receipts and Of his expenditures.
1t is only the dishonest servant who
skulks and shirks and complains if he
is asked to render his account. But,
you say, that only has respect to the
private relations of men. Well. 1 deny
that.
When you wanted to find out
whether your servant had done well or
evil, and especially if you are to re-
move him from his trust, there has
been different method, to which
shall in a moment refer. But it isI
universally conceded that municipal
corporation like the city of Los Angeles
is business corporation just as much
so as an oil company or any other
organization for business purposes.
But then it is a great deal more than
that. But the fact it is a business
organization characterizes the rights
and relations Of those who engage in
carrying it on.
Impeachment No Remedy
'Now to say that you have to apply
the old method to a municipal corpor-
ation- mean the method of impeach-
ment-is simply to say that you have
no remedy, for I will appeal to you,
old and young, coming as you do from
the four quarters of earth, did you
ever know municipal officer to be
impeached and turned out of office in
your life, any of you?"
A man in the audience said, yes"
well, you know of one?" asked
Judge McNutt. "Where?"
Nebraska" was the answer. 1.-THE
governor"
ooh, well. 1 am not talking about
J
Mutt. II am talking about municipal
officers
What is the difference?" asked a
member of the City club.
'fWell, 1 have been trying to explain
the difference" said the speaker, "and
by the time I get through most of the !
people here will realize what the diff
ference is
mo man, say within the sound of
my voice ever heard of municipal
officer being impeached. 1t has hap
pened sometimes that Judiciary AMI
state officials have been impeached. I
do not know of, any instance of that
sort myself, but it has sometimes. hap
pened, no doubt. I have read about it,
but the impeachment Of a municipal
officer is absolutely without precedent
so far. Once in a long time municipal
officers commit such gross and fragrant
crimes that they send them to the
penitentiary and thereby vacate the
office by reason of the judgment, the
conviction and that only happens once
in a very great while. l believe it hap
pened in the case of Schnitz at San
Francisco. He was convicted and his
office declared vacant by reason OF
his conviction. But you see that is re-
versed, and if I am not mistaken if
his term of office had not in the mean
time lapsed he had no doubt of being
fee.
Is a Bad Condition
Now that is a bad condition of
things. There ought never to be a sit !
uation of that sort in municipal or any
other kind of government. l read
somewhere don't know just where it
was now; some of my brethren who
are more recent in their classics than
] am may recall it--of an instance,
+ 0f ,i,aI,t
sprang the whole doctrine and prac-
tice of impeachment, back in an ancient
city-a city which was called ancient
by Plutarch. We account Plutarch as
being fairly ancient. But he spoke Of
the city in question as an ancient city, !
where, when an officer misbehaved so
badly that he had to be attended to
there was a company of men, take it,
something like the elder statesmen of
Japan. 1t consisted of a body, a sort
of semi-Organic body of the citizenship
of the municipality, who had been Of
ficials and had given a good account
of themselves or by reason of venerable
age were qualified for membership of
this body.
'They tried delinquent officials If
the accused official was found guilty
of malfeasance or misfeasance to such
a degree that it was thought that form
of punishment was none too drastic for
him they drilled holes in his ears so
that he Should be known forever there
after as not in the running-as being
rendered incapable of holding any
future trust or office.
mo doubt that was the forerunner
of the practice of impeachment, which
is a less drastic method than cutting
or Sitting the ears would be.
''They were all ineffective, or at least
modern Impeachment has proved inef-
fective, for it is never put into effect
But about this plan, the recall, they
say that Los Angeles is the pioneer in
it. that it has been the first munich
pality that has ever adopted any such
plan. Well, 1 am very proud of that
| really did not know it was So. Gap
plause.
Cause for Pride
81 think it is something to be proud
OF that this city over here, right under
the sunset, is the first one to adopt a
practical and practicable. And not only
that, but 1t is the fairest that human
ingenuity can conceive. Can you con-
ceive of anything fairer than that, If it
is believed a man has been guilty of vio-
lating his official duties to such a de-
gree that he is unfit to continue in
office, he shall have a retrial before
his constituency, and that he cannot
be put to reelection or retirement
without at least twenty-five out Of ev-
cry hundred men who voted at the
election at which he was elected call
ing upon the city council to have an
election?
Nov, in the very first movement