The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1917-01-22
BETTER CITY GOVERNMENT

From one end of the United States
to the other, the signs of municipal
unrest are now more numerous and
more pronounced than ever before,
notwithstanding that great strides in
municipal reform have been made in
recent years. IL would be q mistake
to assume that the unrest IS confined
to communities that have failed to
adopt one or more OF the remedial sys.
TENS of civic administration which
the times have brought forth. 1t will
be found in communities that have
/ travelled farthest along the road OF
experimentation and innovation, for
the very good reason that, while recog-
nizing and cheerfully acknowledging
the progress made, such communities
have keener vision than those that
have made no move at all for ad-
vancement.
As great storm gave rise to the
commission plan of government in the
United States, so a great flood occa.
stoned the adoption of the city-mana-
ger system. Galveston, Tex, was the
first municipality TO experiment with
the one; Dayton O., the first to take
up with the other, and each, by keep
ing close to its system, and making
its operation as simple as possible, has
carried the innovation on to practical
success, The first commission-govern.
ed city in the United States, properly
so-called, was, of course, Washington,
ID. c. 1t become so under an act of
congress made effective June II, 1878,
but the capital of the Nation may not
to be considered as a self-governing
municipality. and is not, therefore,
given the precedence of Galveston, or
indeed included in the list of commits
sion-governed cities at all. Yet, in
a way it serves as probably the best
model of modern municipality which
the country has to offer, in that it is
free from the inenbus of local poll
tics. Cities in general, however. may
not look to a national Legislature for
government; they must meet and
solve for themselves many problems
with which Washington has no direct
concern; the quality of their respec-
tive local governments, as well as the
needs, are often dependent on citi-
zonship that is largely in a crude
state.
In 1900. there was but one commits
siongoyerned city in the United
States; in 1913, there was but one city
in the United States under the man.
ager form Of administration; in 1917,
a page and half, printed in the small
type of reference book. Is required
to accommodate simply the names Of
the cities Of the country under com.
mission or manager form, or under
both. Communities in more than
thirty states of the Union have either
partly or wholly abandoned the mayor
al, alternate. and ward systems i'm
the list in fifteen years. Many com
munities OF first importance. like Bos.
ton, that have adopted a modified
commission system, continuing the
mayorality but substituting small
council for a large board of aldermen.
and wiping out political ward lines.
are not classified as commission.goy.
erned cities. although they might we'll
De, since recognized commission.goy.
erned cities differ widely from each
other in the manner Of applying the
system to their individual needs.
While not contentei, by the open.
minded and unprejudiced, that the
commission or manager form, or the
commission and manager form com.
bmed, Is meeting expectations. there
can We no question as to their i'm.
provement over the system OF mayor
and aldermen Taking the new meth
ods OF municipal government at their
best. however, 1t is not difficult TO
see that, in their desire for utilitarian
administration the cities adopting
them have often gone to extremes.
They have. in other words. considered
the material aspects of communal
government only. they have overlook.
ed the sentimental; they have neg.
lcgted a most important factor in town
and city life known as civic pride.
Several of them are now endeavorinc
TO correct this defeat They realize
that there must be something more in
a community than mere material cX.
preston; that, after all, municipal ad.
minIstration is not to be measured
altogether by the rules laid down
for the conduct of business; that there
is sentiment in government, and that
the official known as a mayor, IL ne
perform his duties as the. First Citi
zen OF community should, is some
thing more than the manager OF a
public financial and commercial cor
poration that, in fact he Is social