Los Angeles herald., 1909-01-29


men have no right to ignore. 1t is all very
well to regret afterwards. In this case it
will prove better to regret beforehand.
Such are the larger causes that have inn
PEELED the league to undertake the recall. |
Now as to the method of it's procedure.
Use of the Recall
About a month ago the executive COM
mittee of the league, being in possession of
facts given above, took poll among it's
members on the issue Of whether Mr.. Har-
per deserved to be recalled. and found a
practically unanimous sentiment in the af-
firmative. This committee and the member
ship of the entire league have been accus-
toned to look upon the recall extreme
measure, not to be lightly hastily in
voked. 1t has stood upon our citys organic
law six years, and during that time has
been used only once, and then not with the
sanction of the league. An attempt was
made other time (without the leagues
approvaD but the necessary names were not
obtained
On one occasion and only one, the league
threatened recall, and that when the
council voted to give away the river bed
franchise. Recognizing the force of thet
threat the council reversed its action and
million dollars worth of property was saved
to the city. The stories published from
time to time in a morning newspaper which
is opposed to the recall that petitions are
in circulation against this or that official
are mostly inventions framed up to discredit
the recall.
The league recognizes that to make the
recall effective and also to prevent its mis-
use some responsible civic institution should
take it in hand, if it is to be used, or
publicly refuse to take it up, eif the fault is
not sufficient to Justify its employment
Thus the duty seemed to rest with us if ii
existed at all.
For weeks the executive committee asked
the question of business men, taxpayers
and citizens generally, do you believe that
Mayor Harper should be recalled, should
we endure him to the end of his term 2"
The answers were surprisingly unanimous
and emphatic: Recall him, not only on his
own account, but example to those
who come after in that and other Offices
While the committee hesitated, it was
waited upon by delegation from the Demo-
cratic league, an organization of several hum
dred Democrats, which had been active during
the recent campaign in driving out from places
of party control certain prominent disreput-
ables in that organization. The delegations
read some resolutions which had been passed, |
calling for the recall of Mayor Harper, and
they assured the executive committee that the
feeling in Mr.. Harper's party so
strong and general against him that the
recall could not possibly be construed as al
partisan measure.
Not Packed Meeting
Still the committee hesitated to act solely |
on its own initiative in so important mat |
ter, and it was decided to call a meeting of |
the members to discuss the issue AS there |
are numbers of good citizens who are not |
members of the organization, additions were |
made TO the list to the number of $50, TAX |
ing only taxpayers and men who had lived |
long enough in the community to be generally |
acquainted. No effort whatever was made in |
advance of the meeting to find out how any |
of these stood, nor did the committee know
how most of the league members regarded |
the matter.
Admission by card. and the cards were
non-transferable For that reason the meet |
ing denOmnated as packed by the |
mayor and his friends. 1t is certainly true |
that it was not a public meeting open to any |
al Tho oIar- 0f %I,ot
executive committee may not have unlimited |
wisdom, but they know enough not to give |
the political machine a chance to pack the |
meeting-and that seems to be deeply resented |
in some quarters.
Thus, before gathering of 216 citizens. the
question Of whether Mr.. Harpers admins |
tration had been bad enough to merit the re- |
call was discussed.
1t was not a trial with the presentation Of |
formal evidence. This is not for the |
courts, but an issue for popular judgment. |
The law provides ample means for removing |
a man from office who has committed a |
crime although it practically never ''works'') |
but when it comes to removing incompetent |
and unfit off1ceholder the recall election be- |
comes the trial and the people are the jury.
When the question was put to the meet |
ing on a motion instructing the league to |
undertake the recall. 203 voted aye, five voted |
no, and five asked that their votes should not |
be counted. Three had left the meeting, and !
one OF these subsequently asked to be counted |
as no. This makes the vote 2O3 to 6, which is |
a ratio of "a to l.
Question of Expense
Will the recall be a great expense to the |
city-as argued by its opponents? 1t will cost |
the city treasury about $90O0 AS the annual |
expenditures of the city-incuding bond work
are about So, 000, 000 and as the mayor is the |
general manager of the whole business, that |
sum is bagatelle to pay for getting rid of
him If he is a mistake. 1t is though a |
man building a $4,000 house should spend SO |
in changing from poor architect to a capable !
one And who knows how far the value of this |
may extend into the future? And is it fair |
to charge this expenditure to the people who |
are striving to protect the city's reputation |
and credit, or to those who recklessly |
destroying it?
The league has not undertaken the recall
Of the citys chief executive hastily or reck-
lessly, but after long consideration and long |
endurance of evils and with profound regret |
1t is Mr.. Harper's sorry fortune that he has 1
allowed himself from the very first to be |
surrounded. by a circle of interested people |
who hatter and misead him. In this circle |
are gamblers and the keepers of gambling |
houses, men of no reputation, keepers of dis |
reputable saloons and lodging houses, cheap |
politicians. He has many excellent men |
among his commissions and among his friends |
but he does not seem to heed their advice
We are urged to feel sympathy for him in |
his mistakes, but we find ourselves considering |
rather the big city full of people who are |
the victims of these mistakes We have svn- |
pathy for the taxpayers whose money NAV /
be squandered by incompetents foisted upon |
them to pay political debts, and for the Young |
people whom wide open town tempts to |
ruin.
Harper, but we have great deal of feel |
ing in favor of a good city government with
some capable and high-minded man at its |
head
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