Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1910-10-13
unanimous support of the business

unanimous support of the business
community
Houston has four commissioners and
"a mayor, the latter being president Ct
the so-called "city council. The city
is divided into four departments, wi-r
commissioner at the head of each,
as is the plan in Galveston. J. T..
CASTOR is MAJOR pro TEN. and head of
the fnance department; Robert FL.
Jones is at the head of the water de-
partment; w. ]. Kohlhauff heads the
fire department, and Jack Kennedy is
in charge OF the street and bridge de-
partment. The mayor has supervision
of all departments, has the veto power
and the power to remove employees in
any department. This official is given
wider latitude under the Houston
charter than is conferred ulon the ex-
ecutive in other cities conducted under
the commission plan, and for this
reason the opponents of the system
Prefer to DIT as "a one man idea" As
the plan grew In other cities thepow-
ers and responsibilities were more
evenly divided, and it is not improb-
able that Houston will make some
changes in time though the plan as a
whole has proven so thoroughly eff
Gent that the people are not disposed
to trouble themselves over details.
Party Primaries.
Party primaries are permitted under
the Houston plan, aut all candidates
must be nominated in the city at large
an in tile manner prescribed by law
in order to get their names upon the
official ballot. The expenses of such
primary election is borne by the mu-
nicipality anil not by the candidates
and the rules and regulations govern
ing the contest are prescribed by the
commissioners.
While the commissioners are elected
by the people and are responsible to
the people, all other employees of the
city are elected by the commissioners
and are responsible to this body. The
commissioners fix the compensation
of the various offices; can make suc,i
, changes as seem expedient, and can
remove subordinates for lax perform
ance of duty or for other causes. That
subOrdinates have no certain tenure
! of office is deemed a forward Ste ,,
since it keeps the employees in every
department constantly alert, just as
the clerk in a bank or other business
institution attends strictly to business
because he knows that failure to do so
may mean instant removal. Under the
old system of electing subordinates s
man might be ever so incompetent buc
the mayor was powerless because the
people had spoken and he could not
go behim1. the returns 1t is because
of this direct responsibility and the
great power conferred upon the COM
missioners that they are enabled to
get the best possible results out OF
every employe of the municipality and
make every edge cut.
The interests of the public schools
are jealousy guarded By the commits
sioners, as evidenced by tie large ana
increasing appropriations made for
school purposes from year to year, rs
we'll as by the regularity with which
new buildings are provided. Refe :
ence has been made to the fact that
thirteen new school buildings have
been erected by the commissioners. Ia
addition to this large addition to the
high school was put UP. The budget
for the present year carries $4,000
for school purposes, being larger
sum than is appropriated to any other
department OF the city
Ali of the municipal ills from which
Huston suffered under the a,dermanic
system have been cured by the com
mission plan and now all tie ener
gies of the city are turned toward It's
development In the message of the
mayer, 10 WHICH reference ultbS D6SH
made, great space is devoted to the
ship channel, witch, Houston citizens
believe, will ultimately serve to give
that city 100000 people. Congress has
authorized the expenditure OF $780,
600 to deepen the channel provided
the people subscribe like amount
and it was to the encouragement Of
this movement that the mayor devoted
most of his energies in preparing his
annual address. A special taxing dis
trict is being urged to raise this sum
and the chances are that the end viii
be accomplished. for since the adop-
ton OF the commission system the
people have learned to do things.
Tile next article will deal with the
commission plan in Dallas.
There is more catarrn in this section