Arizona republican., 1910-01-21


 finances. While the efficiency of public off cials depends largely on their hon. esty good servants of the people can be made better and bad servants often reformed if the means placed at their hands are modern and plain unmixed with cumbersome. tardy and inadequate forms of municipal government
 If railroads find it profitable to lessen grades and shorten distances to gain seconds, why should PhoniS longer continue to pull it's trains over mountains instead of through tun- neIs; why should it longer handle us public affairs under q charter framed for a past generation; why should it longer do by kindergarten rules what it can better do by university methods? Is there any logic in Phoenix any longer working it's prob ! lems by arithmetic when they are much easier solved in algebra? Students who follow closely the trend of civic affairs have recently | learned that cities of progress are shedding their moth eaten charters as fast as possible and replacing them ! government. No city has yet made the change that has not saved itseli thousands of dollars, raised the standard of its public officials and ! increased the efficiency of its em- 1 ployeS.
 Such cities as Des MOines. Calves l ton, Berkeley. Wichita, Houston, san l Diego. Haverhill. Fl Paso, and more l than sixty others have blaZed the 1 commission trail for Phoenix, smooth ! ing the rough places. bridging the chasms and solving the many prob lems that were certain to arise when the new theory was first put into practice. City government by com i mission is no longer an experiment but has reached that point in its rapid development where it has taken | its proper place among our estab- 1 lished institutions.
 In the Des Moines plan is found the composite of all the plans so far adopted Many have all its excellent features, others have taken only part but none has more of the principles ! that insure rule by the majority than are to be found in the Des Moines charter and the ordinances passed since its adoption.
 Briefly, the Iowa statute under which Des Moines has become one of the best governed cities in the land is as follows:
 Any city over 25,00e population. on petition of 20 per cent. of the quail fled voters, can call an election, and by majority vote can adopt the com mission plan. The only officers elected are the mayor and four al dermen, all elected from the city large and servings for two years. Nominations are made only by peti- ton. twenty-five electors being re- qrired to get candidates on the pri- mary ballot The two receiving the highest vote for mayor and the eight highest for aldermen are declared the nominees at the general election. Ball. lots are printed without party desig- nation, all candidates running inde- pendently Election frauds are se- yerely punished. The citys business is handled by the five departments oi } public affairs, accounts and finances public safety, streets and public i'm proyements and parks and pubic property. The mayor is the head Of the department of public affairs and one alderman is assigned to each of , the four other departments.
 The city council fixes salaries, ere ates and abolishes offices. and ap- ? points and removes employees. That l body appoints all the employees such : as are now elected in most cities ) Salaries for mayoE range from $o,50C
 in cities of from 25.000 to 40,00( [ population. to $3.500 in cities ovel - 60.00O. Salaries of aldermen range P from s1.800 to s3.e00.
 { Franchises and renewals are grant 2 ed only by popular vote. No city
 official can be directly or indirectly . interested in any contract, franchise ! or public work. Three civil service 9 commissioners are appointed to holt { examinations twice annually to de l. termine the qualifications of appli : cants for positions. Employees ma, ? be removed, but charges must b' , filed and the right Of appeal to tn . city council granted if taken within 1 five days.
 No candidate is permitted to prom
 ise patronage for votes, and the coun ] ciI must publish monthly reports O , its receipts and disbursements. Twen
 ty-five per cent. of the voters cal
 ask for the recall of any elected
 official. The person sought to h
 recalled has the privilege of being
 candidate at the recall election, whicl
 must occur within four days afte
 filing of the petition.
 Twenty-Five per cent. of the voter
 can ask for the passage or repeal O
 any ordinance, and the question mus
 be submitted at an election. No ordi
 nance, except of an emergency ma
 ture, takes effect for ten days afte
 passage In that time 25 per cen
 of the electors can ask for it's re
 peal. and if this is not done it mus
 be submitted to q vote. Many pro
 visions are to insure the employmer
 of only competent men, that tt
 people shall always have a free eS
 pression of their opinion, and thf
 official responsibility for every a'
 can be promptly fixed. Des Moint
 is saving thousands of dollars month
 ly under the new plan.
 An examination of other charter
 would be but to repeat what can
 said for Des Moines. In each
 them the non-partisan primary al
 elections, the initiative. referendu
 of