Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1910-10-04
The Story of the Short Ballot Cities Series of Articles on the New Commission Form of
 Municipal Government
 By RICHARD s. CHILDS
The Success of the Commission Plan

fines which brought in SSOOO0 q Vp:I The commission closed the saloons anC disposed of this illegal revenue with out disturbing the tax rate Over SnOO GOO WaS spent in special improvements the first year as against an average of %.1,oOo in previous years In the frs, two years under the new system six miles of street were paved as against twelve miles in the preceding twenty five years
 Dallas. Tex.-Commission plan in eff feet l9O7. In it's first two years the commission wiped out deficiency of S-U.WW and established credit bal anre At the expiration of the first term of the commission. petition sign ed by 5. 100 voters was circulated amid much enthusiasm asking the commis sloners all to run for reelection The chamber of commerce advertises the commission government as a desira bic feature of the city to attract new in dustrieS
 Houston. Tex.-Commission plan in effect in 1905. The commission reduc- VI tiiS 's'-' ihltC lv t'cI NSIll anu oSldu iShed policy of so regulating expen ditures as to further reduce the rate 10 per cent each year, until the tax be- comes one-half what it was under the old government A floating debt of S40O,00O was paid off and in 1909 the cash on hand was $900.OOO The city has bought q waterworks and made or not assessed on property in Houston, has acquired new parks and deepened the ship channel instead of languishing in the hope of federal subsidy. The price of gas has been forced down from $1.5O to $1.15 per thousand In adver- Using herself to attract new industries. Houston states her city hall is busi- ness house; she has no wards, no ward politicians and no graft
 More remarkable than the fact that every one of these cities has bettered It's financial condition-the surest Eroof of etticiencY-is the fact that is' none or the whole sixty eight has there yet been reported single serious al legation of graft. Any instance of graft. whether proved or merely al legged. would have been seized upon triumphantly by the enemies of this type of government and magnified and exploited to the utmost, but thus far the objections have perforce been mainly theoretical
 type of these theoretical obiec t1ons has been the frequent statemen! that the commission plan is "un Amer lcan.' Yes. thank Heaven. A city government in which graft is not even suspected is decidedly un-Americap 1t looks like the splendidly admins tered cities of Europe. The sooner we "an Americanize this n-American thing the better.
 The phenomenon of the commissions plan of government which gives the most satisfaction to many people is the complete disappearance from in huence of the typical ward politician The whole field of peanut politics" seems to have disappeared. In Gal weston. for example. the nominations which are recognized as emanating from the politicians who formerly con trolled the town. get only 20 per cent of the votes In all the cities 1t is claimed that the city service has been put on a nonpartisan basis, with d great increase in efficiency. Certain it is that under the commission plan candidates have repeatedly been elect ed without the help of political ma chimes. while the voters are casting their ballots without relying upon the guidance of the machines either
 Under the typical old style city gov ernment with it's multiplicity of pet ty elective offices. elaborate political machines are necessary. The govern ment cannot go on without them They have supplied q real deficiency in our governmental plan. filling a gap between the people and their public servants which had to be filled some how. We have no right to curse the politicians. for they have been highly useful to us. Rather we should pity them. Tfe politician has one of the hardest i",s in the world In return for his service in applying the neces-
  sary cohesion to our ramshackle gov ernmen' and keeping our impractical form of democracy from collapsing al together. we have forced him to make a catch-as-catch-can living, giving him small, insecure offices in the govern ment, and bouncing him without cere- mony or justice with every change of administration. We have put him in position where he could acquire wealth Ey having an easy conscience and could earn nothing but defeat and discourtesy If he were honest. Con- sidering the power he has had to do evil without getting caught at 1t, it is astonishing that he has served us no worse.
 Goodby. old friend. You have con- tributed to our American life uniu,e type. unknown elsewhere in the world genial. picturesque. human and use ful-but the people are beginning to learn how to do without you and in days to come they will arrange their business directly with the candidates without your friendly nterliediation.