Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1918-09-27
Circulation Every 1Oz00
evening resterday l lZ/UU
FRIDAY. SEPTEMBER ~, 1918.
Why Should They Fail

The current Bulletin of the National
Short Ballot Organization positively adj
vanccs the opinion that ''the slack and
slp-shod political management OF our
typical municipal governments has been
a serious burden upon the nation during
the first wear Of the war Uncle Sam,
II contends. "has not been able 10 turn
with any general confidence to local gov
srnmcnts or 20 delegate 70 them functions
which had 70 be deccntralized, New local
Federal organizations ACCORDINGLY nave
been laboriously created dc novo toun-
cil- Of Defense. Home Defense Leagues,
Community Labor Boards Liberty Loan
Committees. Local Draft Boards All do
inc work in which the munlclpa govern
ments of other countries would, rs
matter Of course. have figured promptly
and efficiently but here the city hall
crowd has been too often the very last
rroup of citizens in the town TO whom
the Federal government could cntrust
important or delicate responsibilities,
ana oven where tho personnel has been
satisfactory. the municipal govrrnments
ara such loose-iointed. rarshacklc or
rani7ations that swift efficiency could not
reasonably I've expected Of then,
There are about FIVE hundred clt'eS
IN towns where the Federal government
/ dong important war work, and whore
tke ma,rtcuancc &C good living conditions
and good clytc conditions ls essential Z"
gaod results put according fo tic l'ulo-
tir. th,-e good results arc not. ~ many
instances. att'inrd st East Nonc. w..
for example. it saws. the CITY allowed the
houses ~ a hundred employees ot the
Wagner Ordnance Co to te flooded with
scvaec. Thr man ~ charge Of the broken
sewage pump was = wears old and for
weeks he was unable 70 get the City
Co,1ncil to provide the necessary repairs
To keep tho workers from moving else
whore and abandoning their jobs the
War Department had to net
At Chester Pa when the new ship
wards brought great influx of new
population with extreme housing con
gestion. the force Of the Health Depart
ment was not enlarged and the municipal
governments neglect Of garbage, milk.
water. sewage and food handling became
seandalons Many scf-rospectIng work
ers. who were badN needed Al the ship
wards, would not remain in such an en-
vironment.
Municipalities, instead Of welcoming
the influx of war workers ard providing IN
broad-gauge way and promptly for
their health recreation and protection
have allowed the newcomers 10 be subject
ed TO rrofitecring. congestion, fire risk and
exploitation, failing completely to realize
how that embarrasscs the output OF war
orders
Likewise the failure OF many municipal
ities to grapple effectively with transit
congestion has embarrassed government
manufacturing A factory cannot hold a
worker who has 10 ride on the roof of a
street car, or girl who has to swing
Recreation is municipal busipess, but
government and war camp community
Investigators find that local neglect of
decent recreational activities in many
eases is q salient cause Of the unwilling
ness Of workers to remain al the war
work Similarly, the steady married
mechanics, whom every war manufactures
so ardently desires, cannot be reasonably
expected to come where their children
are crowded out of school through the
city's failure to anticipate the seating
problem.
These difficulties, as set forth BY the
Bulletin of the National Short Ballot
Organization, arc very serious. But it
is possible to obvlate them. No doubt
the city of Wilmington could Justly be
cited, In several respects, as an offender,
but conditions in this city are not as
bad as in many Other cities.
The Bulletin presents the City Man
agcr Plan Of municipal administration as a
remedy for these evils, but it is doubt
ful if, of itself, IT would be effective The
great source offiniury and mismanaec-
ment Is partisan municipal aduduistra-
tion. Under this fruitful source Of bid
government a city manager could do no
good. He also would be partisan
agency
There seems to be no open way to relief
from the evils of partisan municipal
administration except an entire abandon
ment of the noxious growth, which has
afflicted so many Of the fne municipalities
of our country When citizens look upon
municipal administration as a purely
business matter, and resolutely refuse to
vote at municipal elections as they vote
At elections involving national political
asr,ios, reform may come But not before