Norwich bulletin., 1910-03-24
Suggestions for New City Charter
Made by Hibberd R. Norman Mems Club of Park Con- gregational Church Following Reference Two Sue cessful Forms of Municipal Government.

Before the Mems club at Park Con- gregat1ona1 church on Wednesday evening Hibberd R. Norman, assistant clerk of the superior court, read an interesting paper on city governments, making reference to the plan adopted at Galveston and that in vogue at Newport and Newburyport, as well as that at Des Moines. He was heard of members and friends, and follow in g discussion of the subject refresh ments were served in the banquet room.
 MT. Norman's paper was as follows;
 MT. James Bryce, writing in 1898. used phrase which has been very widely quoted since: There is no ne- nyr1g that the government of cities IS the one conspicuous failure of the United States He endorsed the fol- lowing statement of causes assigned by the New York commissioners of 1876, headed by William M. Evarts:
 I. Incompetence and unfaithful gov- erning boards and officials.
 2. The introduction of state and na- tional politics into municipal affairs.
 3. The assumption by the state leg islature of the direct control of local affairs.
 The practical operation of these three causes is about as follows:
 The state machine passes such laws as will gain and hold it's control of the offices and the men in the offices. The men in the offices do likewise. A candidate gains office by a lavish ex- penditure of money or promises, or both. He comes into office very much as Caesar did, and has to make good. Thus we are governed by an organism which has roots extending into many places. Some of those places we should not care to frequent Some Of the men in some Of the offices are of more use to the machine than they are to the people. The people, if left to themselves, would never elect many a dog catcher who proudly holds high office. Such is the power of evil asso- citations that it is now no particular honor to hold public office.
 This may seem a. harsh statement but it is not made with any local ap- plication. New York and San Fran cisco and almost every city of 100000 or more will come into mind as prov ing the truth of it.
 Galveston Plan.
 With all this mass of misery and crime there is some balm of Gilead- The city government of Galveston in 1900 was just about "all i'm One sixth of her population was destroyed; one-third of her property destroyed: wooden pavements which foated clean out to seal; lights blown down; city buildings wrecked The credit of the city was about the same as that of a railroad whose bonds sell at 50.
 The city had been governed by the same clements most other cities have rum and vice had put their men in- to office to graft under the old theory: There is that that scattereth, yet in- creaseth-" Galveston was a wide open town in Texas.
 Under the old system of mayor and Counclln1en there was q hodge podge assortment of men in the offices chosen by the powers that were to run a gov ernment for them and not for the peo- pie.
 A saloon keeper, a bar tend CT, drayman, journeyman printer, two wharf laborers a. negro politician, a retail grocer. a curb stone real estate broker and political agent for a paper railroad ran the gov ernment. When a collector defauIted