The Sentinel=record., 1914-06-21
COMMISSION FORM
 CITY GOVERNMENT
C. p. SHAW DEFINES THE BENE- FITS BEFORE THE ALUMNI OF
 UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA.
Resume of All the Experiments That Have Been Made and Testifylna to the Splendid Advantages That Have Resulted.

c. P. Shaw, before the Alumni oi the University of Virginia, outlined in a splendid article the advantages of the commission form of govern ment, now proposed for Hot Springs in a clear and concise manner that will be of advantage to those of our citizenship who wishes to be well in formed on the change anticipated for this city following favorable action in the lext legislative session. The ar ticle follows:
 When the American colonies won their independence there were within thir confines practically no cities, and only a few large towns. Even in 1790, one year after the federal consti- tuition went into effect, the population of New York was only 33,131. Nat uraly, in a country almost entirely agricultural the question of city charters received little consideration from that matchless group of states men who framed the constitution. When, in the course of years, vil- lages began to grow into towns, and towns into cities, succession of grants of power was made them by the legislatures of their respective states to enable them to carry on the government of the incorporated communities. As the cities became larger, many of them initiated the Federal pian with mayor as chief ex. ecutive, and two branches of the city council.
 This attempt to adapt to the use of towns plan which serves well enough for the federal, though less well for state government, was most unfortunate step, since it rendered the city goyernme unwieldly and subdivided responsibility until it dis appeared. It was probably the prin- cipal cause which produced what MT Bryce so justly pronounced the one disastrous failure in the United States. Many experiments have been made in varying this plan, some times by concentrating great power in the hands of the mayor, sometimes by making him practically figure head and lodging the real power else where, but usually with tendency towards multiplying official boards and offices. With every such in- crease in the complexity of organiza- ton, responsibility has been less and less fixed and failure has become more and more assured.
 The mayor and bi-cameral plan may truthfully be said 10 have broken down utterly When. in 1900, Caves ton was almost wholly destroyed, this fact was frankly acknowledged, and il order to rebuild the city all the powers of mayor and council were lodged in commission, so called from the fact that out of its five members three were appointed by the governor. While the courts within a year declared that the appointment of these commissioners by the gover- nor was unconstitutional, and it was required that all the members of this body should be elected by popular vote, the name Commission Govern meat has been retained and is now used to designate that form of city charter in which all the powers of mayor and council are vested in a small body composed usually of from three to five members, according to the size of the city elected at large with the power of appointing all their administrative subordinates.
 Being elected at large, they are supposed to represent the whole city and there being no wards, log-rolling is eliminated. Having the power to appoint and remove all their subordi- mates, the commission can be he'd ri- rectly responsible for all their acts. The success of the Galveston Plan was phenomenal and soon attracted the attention of other Texan cities. 1t was adopted by Houston in 1905, and by Dallas in 1907.
 Tn the meanwhile news of the great success of the Galveston .inno- walton in city government spread about. and in 1908, under general law, the cities of Des Moines and Ce- sar Rapids, Iowa, adopted the com mission form of charter. In this Iowa law, as a check to a possible misuse of it's great power by the com mission and to keep the commission at all times responsible to the eiecto- rate there were added to the Calves ton Plan, the initiative, referendum and recall and the merit system Of appointment. as well as an obligatory referendum on all franchises. As the plan spread into other states, Grand ! Junction, Colo, and Spokane, Wash, added the preferential system for electing the members of the commis- sion. but in neither of these cities