The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-09-11
ATLANTA LINING UP FOR CHARTER VOTE Forces Organize for Com ing Election OBJECT TO THE MAYOR Opponents Claim the Present Mayor Would Be Legislated Into Office.
 Further It Would Wipe
 Out Board Rule
OBJECT TO THE MAYOR

Atlanta. September 10.-(Special9-Two NO clements of Atlanta's citizenship are now engaged in lining up strongly on either side of the new commission charter upon
 wlich the city will take vote on Sep tember 27.
 Both factions. those for and those against the new charter. have formed or ganizations and opened headquarters. It
 looks as if it were going to be about the
 warmest political fight Atlanta has seen
 in many a day.
 All of the Atlanta papers are for the new charter, and the opponents of the measure, lacking an organ, have arranged to publish a daily paper to be known as
 '.The Peoples Defender,' upon the theory that opposition to the proposed new char ter is in the public interest. B. H. Black burn, former secretary to Gov. Joseph M. Brown, will be editor and Bernard Sut- ter associate.
 In the meantime the three other papers Niu dig hard for the new charter and do everything in their power to put it through. While it Is generally believed the new document will be adopted, there is going to be a hard. close fight. Some of the friends of the measure even be- lieye it would be dangerous 10 have it go to vote right now, and look for success through education and hard cam paign work.
 Some of the objections which are being offered to the new document are interest ing, One of these is that it retains the present Mayor, Courtland s. Winn, in of flee for the term for which he was elect cd, and at an increased salary. While ttere is no special dissatisfaction with Mayor Winn, opponents of the charter claim that 1t should not have legisated any man into office. but should have pro- vided for an entire new deal. Mayor Vim now receives s3oo0 but should the new charter be adopted, he would be con- tinued as mayor for another year, the time for which he was elected, at a sal ary of ssooo but would be required 10 give his whole time to the city. All of the other commissioners would have to be elected anew.
 Another objection made by opponents of the charter is that the farmers of the new document started in to wipe out board rule. It was claimed that the par ticular bright feature of the document was it's elimination of the boards with tteir political hangers-on and red tape methods. And it is true that the new charter cuts out all of the boards but one-the board of education. There was a reason for this-that the school system should be under careful supervision of ura Onnonantz pf charter make the charge, however, that this board was left at the demand of President John H. Slaton of the senate. President Slaton's brother, they point out, is the superintendent of public schools, and they are asking why should not the health of the city. which is as important as the schools. if not more so, also be placed under board of competent phy- sicians and health experts.
 These are two of the weapons with which the opponents of the commission charter are fighting it. And yet the en- tire lineup bears every indication of a fight by the politicians and their friends az ainst the people who feel that the time has come for a change in Atlanta's form of government. in order to get 1t to a substantial business basis. If a person now goes to a city department with any p1 position it takes sometimes weeks or luCHlIS lO get du dHSWtT. u IS Dcl1cNcu with commission government such mat ters would be attended to promptly and with every due regard for the city's in- terests.
 As an instance of the political fight that Is being made against the new charter, an interestingly worded document has been posted at police Headquarters, where the police commission is known to be opposed to the charter. The document says:
 "The men are hereby notified not to discuss commission. government either in the office or upon the streets. They arc not to take any stock 4n the same, and it would be best not to discuss it even among themselves"
 Here is direct instance of a political fight against the charter where mem- bers of the police force are practically with dismissal or some other pur ishment if they go against the wishes Of the heads of the department.
 It is going to get pretty warm before the finish of 1t. but fortunately 1t will all be over within less than three weeks