Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1921-11-01
MAYOR MOORE HITS BACK AT
INTERESTS OPPOSING HIM
He Points Out the Way by Which the
City Can Be Freed Of the incubus
OF Selfish Contractor and
Banking Combines

Banking Combines
MAYOR MOORE'S startling interview
AVA printed in this newspaper Yesterday
ought to set tho voters to asking them.
selves: Where is the seat of authority in
this city? Is il in the City Hall or is it in
the private offices of group of political
profteers in alliance with group of would
be monopolistc bankers?
The Mayor has been seeking to solve the
transit problem in tho interests Of the people,
! to revise the gas lease in Il way that will
protect the rights of the city and the con
sumers, and to make busnessikc arrange
ments for taking the work Of cleaning the
! streets and collecting rubbish and garbage
| from the hands of the private contractors.
lie has found himself hampcred at every
step Of the way. The Job Combine in City
Council. formed in tho first place TO protect
the patronage srlbbcrs and the street clean
ing contractors. extended its activities to
other matters as soon as the Mayor began
TO insist that the rights Of tho people were
OF greater Importance than the protection Of
the gas and traction Interests
1t is we'll known that Mr.. Stotcsbury.
representing the Morgan interests in this
city, urged the Mayor to sign the Hall gas
ordinance. It is notorious that Phiadel-
phia and New York capitalists have large
sums invested in the underlying traction
companies and have bocn pulling the wires
to prevent anything which would reduce the
immense profits earned by those companies
under leases, the terms OF which cannot be
defended on any sound principle Of public
or private policg.
That there is an aiiancc between the job
Combine and the Morgan St6tcShury inter
cSts is morally certain. Mr.. StotcSbury'g
demand on the Mayor that he sign the Hall
ordinance and his inSistcuCc that Controller
Hadey be nominated for 4 full term arc
circumstant!al evidence of his active partic!-
patton in the efforts to protect the financial
political System" as Mr.. Moore called II.
The Mayor declined to sign the Hall ordi-
nance. But the Ware machine yielded to the
Stotcsbury demand and nominated IIadlcy.
The JOB Combine ma jority in Council has
started out to punish the Mayor for his re-
fusal to ''go along" with the selfish interests.
1t has held up tho proposed S19, ,mO, 900
loan and il defended its course By deliberate
misrepresentation OF the available financial
resources. n misrepresentation participated
IN By the Stotesbury Morgan controlled
HadIcy. who insists that he is merely an
expert accountant end "iS not in politics."
The Mayors suggestion of q way out Of
the existing deadlock between tn" executive
and Legislative branches Of the City Govern
ment is bound 10 be considered with i'll
creasing seriousness as the months go by.
Under the present charter the Council
Iag 81 ,ivy
the Mayor plans to do. If it cannot prevent
him from carrying out his plans it can make
it difficult for him to do 50.
1t has within q few days intcrfcrcd With
the program for street cleaning by ordering
the Director Of Public WORKS to lease the
old Ware stables and refusing him authority
to lease or build stables that would bc con.
vnn!ently located for the economical conduct
of his work.
1t has denied him authority TO build Il
rubbish reduction plant where it is needed
and it is constantly interfering in matters
which |hould Dc entirely within executive
control.
The remedy. suggests tie Mayor. lies in
abolishng the Council and in setting up a
commission to be both legislature aud oXrru-
tive. Under such a nian it woud be i'm
possible for anybody TO hold up the necessary
work of the city. The commission would
decide what should be done and it would
provide the money for it,
At present the Mayor and his heads Of
department decide what is TO be done and the
Council, controlled by the Job Combine.
blocks I'll" plans. And it blocks them, not
becau>" they arr faulty. but because they