Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1913-03-28
A Business Method


the best plan of city government ev
er tried in the United States, says
the Tacoma Ledger. 1t is not a big
city, the population being about 10000
yet it is a growing manufacturing
center and has good deal of en-
cheering and street improvement
work under way. So we'll satisfied
is Sumter that it wishes the world
to know what it is doing in a govern
mental way, and to that end it has
distributed a bulletin explaining the
plan and telling about the character
of the mayor and two councilmen,
and the city manager chosen by
them to take full charge of admin
istration.
1t is called the "city manager" or
controlled-executive plan. The city
manager does not possess absolute
authority. He is subject to the con-
troll of the mayor and two council
men composing the city council. They
can remove the city manager at any
time they choose, and employ anoth-
er. The Sumpter plan comes near
est of any in this country to the
method of private corporation. The
mayor and councilmen stand in the
relation of directors of a private cor
poration elected by the stockholders
Tie directors employ superintend-
ent or general manager and author
lie him to carry on the work. The
city manager is controlled" by the
council of Sumter as the general
manager Of corporation is controlled
by the directors.
The mayor of Sumter receives
$500 year and the two councilmen
5000 a year each. The bulletin does
not tell what the city manager re-
ceives. After the plan was adopted
and a council was elected Sumpter
advertised for city manager. He
did not have to be resident of
Sumpter. The desire was to find the
best man for the place. Malcolm l..
Worthington, aged 80, railroad en-
gineer of Maryland, was chosen. In
addition to railroad construction work
he had served as inspector for the
Maryland state road commission. The
bulletin says the city managers work
has been to a large extent concen-
trated up to this time in public i'm
provements and there is noted "sav-
ing of man-hours" and "promptness
of street work."
The fact that the mayor and city
councilmen were not required to give
up their private business served to
bring out IAN unusually high type
of candidates, including some of the
most progressive business men who
had not previously felt able to enter
public life" The mayor is lawyer
OF the two councilmen, one is tim.
Der dealer. also engaged in mule
sales business and the other is presi.
dent of a Sumter bank.
The Sumter plan gives unified
government. The councils control
operates through the city manager on
all departments. No member of the
council has any direct administrative
authority. The bulletin does not in.
dictate whether the council often in.
terrupts or specifically instructs the
city manager.
A report on the plan after it has
been in operation a year or two
should afford more ground for con-
clusion as to it's effiinacy. The sys'
tenn of German cities is in a gener.
al way the same. 1t is their prac.
tice to employ a mayor or "magis'
trate" who has a reputation as an
expert. He does not need to be a
resident Of the city. So impressed
was an agent of Dallas, Tex, sent
to Europe to study city government.
that he returned warmly praising the
German system and recommending a
modified form of it for Dallas.