The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1911-01-05
COMMISSION FORM OF GOVERNMENT.


that will solve all municipal prob
lens with phrase of form. With
out public vigilance and live public
spirit any form of government will
fail. With the vigilant public spirit
any form of government will bring
good results.
The difference is that the old sys-
TEN is largely made up of obstacles
to public spirit and issues that con-
fuse public vigilance, and the new
system offers every facility for the
expression of both. Furthermore
and that is the real meat of tit
substitutes business methods for po-
litical methods, fosters efficiency and
weeds out inefficiency, and after put
ting the government under central
lied, responsible head, gives the
peOp1o every 1aC4lIIy LUZ hSSp4AS ~
responsive to their will.
In general, the way it is working
out is described by John J. Hamilton
in his informing book "The Dethrone-
ment of the City Boss.'' Later the
Herald will describe what has been
done and what is being done in spe-
cifc instances. For the present it
will be worth while to quote what
Mr.. Hamilton says after careful
and unbiased survey of the field:
SIN most of the cities that have
adopted the commission system,
there has been less than two years of
experience of it's operation; and there
is no established unit of comparison
by which to tabulate results. Every
city has it's own story of deficits
wiped out, floating debts taken up,
bonds retired, business methods in
troduced, long-standing nuisances
abated, laws enforced, books better
kept, streets kept cleaner, public
works more honestly constructed,
public buildings. erected, additional
parks and Fairgrounds acquired,
economies enforced or taxes reduced
one, all or many. All report a re-
vival of public spirit and improve
ment in business resulting from civic
conditions. To name a few ex-
amples:
saSan Diego boasts of it's immedi'
ately reformed water department.
800 new consumers added, better
service to the old ones, a net saving
of $640 per month in the operating
expenses, illegal special rates with
drawn, meter boxes that formerly
cost the city ninety cents now pur
chased for thirty; like reforms il
the police and sewer department.
and, in the department of finance, I
check kept on all expenditures.
"Leavenworth, driven to adop
the new system by the enforced
closing of it's saloons and the, loss O
an illegal revenue of $4,000 yeal
therefrom, elects as it's commission
ers a hardware merchant, a soal
manufacturer, a lumber merchant
a furniture manufacturer and 1
transfer and storage factor, who
with $4,000 less revenue, finds i
possible to pay off $4,000 in bond
and announce their ability further t.
reduce the running expenses. of tn
city by $4,000 a year.
"Cedar Rapids employs civic i'm
provement expert and turns al
island in the Cedar river from al
eye-sore into beauty spot and 1
fitting home for municipal build
ings, whereas the old regime faile'
utterly to abate the nuisance.
"Houston wipes out a floating
debt of 100000 in three years, in
vests $7O1,OOO in permanent i'm
provements and for the first time il
it's history inaugurates sinking
fund
'sThere is no variation in tn
character of the reports-every
where it is leak stopped, system
taking the place of chaos, eficienc,
substituted for poor service, prompt
ness for hopeless procrastination
lower for higher tax levies or bette
values received for the public out
lays.
"But back of all these causes TO
congratulation and rising above al
other consideration, the student O
the new charter discovers that which
explains the wonderful vigor and vi