Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1917-01-20
COUNCIL manager
PLAN Is EXPLAINED
PROF. A. r. HATTON ADDRESSES
MEN OF CITY AT MARSHALL.
TOWN CLUB.
CITES CITIES IN OHIO
AS EXAMPLES OF PLAN
Declares Newer System Both Logical
and Businessiike, and Serves All
Glasses to Better Advantage Than
Any Present Method Of Municipal
Government.

| Declaring the council manager plar
To be the most efficient in municipal
| government al the present time, and
outlining the workings of the plan in
his home state of Ohio, Prof. A. r.
! HaItcn, of the department of govern
ment and politics in Western Reserve
University, Cleveland, addressed a
| small gathering of business and labor
| ing men at the MarShalltown Club Fri
| day night.
| Secretary Sidney Johnson. of the
Marshalltuwn Club, who, with others,
| heard Mr. HaIton, at Grinnell Thurs
! day night, prevailed upon the Cleve-
land man to make his arrangements in
| going to Kansas City so that he could
stop here between trains and talk to
! local men about the council manager
plan. The meeting was not held under
the auspices Of the club. but was in
/ formal Dinner was served before the
talk. and l.. c. Abbott. who presided
at the meeting, introduced the speaker.
Thinks Plan Logical.
Professor Hattun thinks that the
council plan is not only losi-
cal but extremely businesslike. the
council is the board OF directors OF the
city, and employs manager TO ad-
minister the affairs of the municlpa!-
ity. as any board Of directors OF an!
corporation would employ manager
for its business. The manager system,
Hatton declared, had proved the most
efficient Of any present-day method IN
the many cities where Il had been
given trial.
Many Ohio cities are using the man
ager plan, and Dayton is the largest
city in the country 10 have adopted the
plan. II pays its manager $4,000 per
year. and Hatton declared ne was
worth the money and. in fact. had
turned down a $4,000 job with rail-
road because the management OF
cit. appealed to his :dealistic tenn
permanent.
Likens to School Board.
One of the most forceful ulustra-
tons the speaker used in his argument
for the plan was the likening OF it TO
the management of the public schooi
system in this country, which ne oe-
clared TO be far more efficient than
any municipal government aslde from
the manager plan.
Taking up the evolution OF city gov
eminent. and showing how IT had
grown 10 be improved under the com
mission plan. Mr.. Hatton referred 10
the danger that beset all plans "nere
poIiiics entered into the election OF the
council and the same politics was IN
iected into the appointment by the
counci1 of heads of departments.
You must eliminate politics as tar
as possible in order to get an efficient
rity government" Hatton declared,
and then went on TO compare the man
ager plan with the school system
Mr.. Hatton took as an illustration
the suppOsition that a city elected ps
Dopular vote the superintendent OF its
schools. He. in turn, made his ap-
po!ntment of principals OF ward puiio-
ings favoring those who had heiped
him in his election, and who would De
Of help to him in reelection. regard
less Of their ability and training. IL
was easy to imagine the situation thaI
would soon develop 10 destroy the en-
cheney OF the schools. AS the system
now works the public elects a schooi
board. which serves without pay. ana
the hoard secures as head OF the
schools the best trained man 1t can
find for the money the board feels it
can afford to pay. The result is effi-
cheney. Just so efficient will city
government become, Hatton declared
when a council employed city man
ager who had wide business ex-
perence, and who was trained IN ao-
ministrative affairs.
At the close OF his talk Mr.. Hatton
answered questions Of those in his
audience. Incidentally, in connection
with one of these questions. he re-
marked that a. city manager meant
more to the poorer classes in a city,
who were utterly dependent upon the
CITY for pure water. pure milk, ana
good sanitary conditions. than he did
to the wealthy. who could keep their
own cows, have their own dlstllleo
water. or go into the country ii liv-
ing conditions in the city became det-
rimental to health.