Devils Lake inter-ocean. (Devils Lake, N.D.) 1909-1915, 1911-03-24
All Gen
MAX ADDRE S.
s i, TELLS o COMMISSION
s8 RIM OF GoVER NMENT5 81 I'M i
is5. VI, CLASSY STYLE.

81 IfASoo =
# The Grand opera house was well
tilled q Sunday afternoon with citizens
81 Devils q: Lake who gathered to hear
Attorney General Miller deliver. al adj:
dress on the commission form of gov:
ernment. .sS$3t ,S. $.51E
8SA fter explaining the difference be-
tween the present system and the com
Il mission ia form Of government, General
Miller said that Of all the ia, cities
u the United States which had adopt
ed the commission plan, not a. single
onesOf the number had ever attempted
or Expressed a desire to return to the
Old system. sss 81. ,s .s5s5; Y
The essential difference between the
present and the commission plan OF
city government lies In the fact that
the comnissio ners are elected By the
entire city, eliminating ward council.
men and that each commissioner has,
g specific duty to perform. For in.
stance: one commissioner is made re-
sponsible for the fire and police de
patment OF the city, another is placed
at the head Of the streets and public |
while another. Is at the
head Of the, finances and revenues Of
tho city, and SO on. There are five,
commiss ioners elected, one OF whom is \
elected as president whose duty is to |
preside, the same as the chairman of
the board Of directors OF any corpora
ton. General Miller called attention
to the fact that under the commission
plan there was responsible head to
every department, whereas under the
present system there is no responsible
head, and it is; impossible to place re-
sponsib ilfty for neglect Of duty OK
cept upon the board OF aldermen as q
body. Answering<th the argument which
isi often advanced that lit is placing
too much power in the hands OF one
man to place him at the head of Ger
tain department, Gen. Miller urged
that It was necessary to give a man
power II results are to be obtained.
When d man knows that he is to be
held responsible for q certain depart
ment he does business. 4 81 "a A. 4. 315:5
Another thing which the commits
sion plan does is to largely eliminate
politics from city, affairs, and that he
claims Is "a good thing IN itself for;
too much politics in city affairs leads
.toS graft, dissension and jealousies
which handicap the growth Of a com
munity II; 81 # '4s. 5 ',:as5
In closing his remarks, General Mil
ler5 said EFF I was "a politician
would oppose the eo commission form OF
city government as hard as u possibly
could, but II / was q business man and
taxpayer, not looking for an opportu-
nifty to graft, would work as hard as
! could for the commission plan. & & 3 /. e
Following General Miller, Prof. God,
ward made a few remarks which were
listened to with great interest. The
professor called attention to the re-
sponsibility OF every voter as a citizen,
and said that public officials could not
be#expected to be any better than the
men who voted for them and elected
them: that It was unfair to criticise an
aofifcia1 whom . person had voted for
without first ascertaining what kind
of q man he was, that the man who
WIS careless and Indifferent as to
whom he voted for had no good reason.
for complaining II the man he voted
for turned out to i;be careless and In
different as to his duty. He made d
plea for the millions Of souls under
the age Of tWenty-one years who were
lin greater need Of protection than
those above that age, for they were
helpless In that they could not vote.
The professor de clared himself III fay-
Tor Of women suffrage and commended
highly some Of the pnrpo ses for which
the socialists were working S5sS 5Ss5