Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1914-11-04
NO. xIv-sC1ENTIFIC MANAGEMENT

face and solve. Men are transitory; princi-
pies. everlasting we must keep right on
thinking about better government for our
handful Of honest men are still out In the
trenches-the officials of the Blankenburg
administration - desperately holding that
tiny northwest corner of our local Belgium,
the few scattering administrative offices un-
der the Mayor
Are these men discouraged? No. What
keeps their spirits up7 Why, they are maxi
ing page of history that future Philadelphia
can always turn to with pride. 1t is really
something to have made a record-puts
spring in the heels and color in the eye;
warns the cookies of the heart from within,
and lifts the mind to the clouds beyond the
range of undeserved criticism Not to have
felt it is to have lost the meaning of life.
Here is the nucleus of a real government
for the people and of the people going on,
and we are missing the details. Why? Be
cause the Philadelphia resident for years has
been drilled to look upon the Councilman as
his closest and sole political agent Our
busy, prosp erous, Independent folk are taught
to believe that the business of government
can best be handled by middlemen-Councll-
men or Ward leaders, OLteu lue Sdllio pSAsOh'
1t works out this way:
Discover a hole in the street that hampers
the movement of goods out from your ship
ping department, you sec the Councilman;
get summons for jury duty when a rush
of new business is on, you see the Council
man; need an extra street lamp in the block
you see the Councilman or the front lawn
is flooded from broken water main, and
again you see the Councilman.
The growth of the power of the individual
Councilman and his inseparable twin, the
ward leader, has been steady and insidious.
1t explains the Gargantuan grip Of 1.-THE Or
ganization" upon the public. At first, the
Councilman, aside from his functions as
legislative arm of government, was simply
a convenient means of contact with admin
istrative government. But the possibilities
of the unsalaried job soon dawned upon po-
litical aspirants, and a Councilman became
an open medium for compromise with every
phase of government, law, order, and even
Justice.
It has followed that the average Council
man has appropriated to himself the role of
intermediary to government He actually
sets himself up as interpreter for Ian
guages he cannot speak. for with experts in
at City Hall, he has entered a thick fog.
Scientific management is beyond the grasp
OF his mental equipment.
Drop any man in Importance to the level
of a false prophet and he suffers keenly, and
thirsts for vengeance. Before the expert. the
professional Councilman stands unmasked,
pathetic relic of inefficiency, and the principal
cause of the enormous, criminal and scandal
aP h. Ito nP
beautiful city which has shamed us all He
feels concernedly the showing up he is
getting.
Enter the expert, intelligent, effective and
courageous. He is the keynote of the new
government in City Hail. He is balancing
the city's books. He is getting a dollars
worth for every dollar spent by the city.
He is writing proper safeguards into specih-
cations He is advertising for bids He is
operating the public business as a private
undertaking. He is getting more work and
longer hours out OF the minor employe, at
the same time treating him better. He an
swers every letter received from a citizen.
He sees that all work done under contract is
properly inspected.
It Is only natural that members OF Councils
should object to the expert. Employment OF
any agent by the city which curtails their
authority is resented. How these Council
men do roar against the city hiring the man
who knowsi Every possible obstacle they
can devise is placed in the path OF expert
advice for the city. They refuse to appro-
pirate the money to hire experts. They jeer
with the puffy swellinss OF the neck that
bsspeak deep anger.
Under the Blankenburg administration the
assistance for Philadelphia OF over three
score experts has been obtained over the OBJ
structions OF Councils. Many gave their
services without charge when the circum-
stances were explained. Director Morris L.
Cooke. Of the Department OF Public Works,
who knows the value OF ef1iciency through
intimate association with Frederick W. Tay-
lor, the great national authority on business
management has been master OF ceremonies
for the Mayor in getting these experts, and
the city Is under no small debt to Mr.. Cooke.
Work Is always best done by those who are
up on the shortcuts.
Prior to the advent OF Mr.. Cooke In the
Department of Public Works. the very
specifications under which the city work was
done were drawn at the direction OF the con-
tractors who did the work. Most Of the
men In the eity's employ were former em-
pIoyes Of the contractors. They were named
20 their Jobs by the contractors themselves.
and Ia return we're expected to serve their
interests ana not those OF the city. Work
wGs often inspected by men on the contrac-
tors' payrolls. As the contractors were pow
ers IN -rhs Organisation" ths city en-
ployes dared not make adverse reports on
their work
An assistant commissioner of the Bureau
OF Highways. drsWins t1soO Z year. admitted
he knew nothing q highway engineering.
others were small-fFy political leaders. 4hs
highway Inspectors were worse than ineai-