The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1922-05-13

show that nearly half million dol
lars were honestly and efficiently
expended in a single year to operate
it's auto machines. No wonder peo-
pie are beginning to talk about a
house cleaning in county affairs.
PRUNING MY DEPARTMENT"
Commissioner Phillips is reported
to have said at the council meeting
last Monday afternoon: III you fell
lows can run my department better
than I can I probably can run your
department better than you can"
Mr.. Phillips had voted against the
ordinance, but a moment before
passed by the council, which is in
tended to give residents of Park
Point owning automobiles or other
vehicles preference in the use of the
aerial bridge car on every alternate
trip leaving the north side of the
ship canal between the hours of
$50 and 7 o'clock in the afternoon.
Mr.. Phillips was evidently peeved
at his colleagues for enacting the
ordinance over his protest and said:
"You fellows don't care how much
hell I get"
Our sympathy goes out to Mr..
Phillips. Whenever anything goes
wrong with the aerial bridge car he
is sure to be made the goat. He
is familiar with traffic conditions
at the ship canal, and particularly
during the summer months, and he
knows now how he will be censured
then when favoritism is to. be shown
to resident automobile owners at
the expense Of others. But it is not
the grief Mr.. Phillips will be obliged
to bear that We wish to emphasize
in this editorial; it is the language
he used following the passage of
the ordinance and which we have
quoted above.
Under the charter the council is
the policy determining body of the
city. That was the idea of it's franz
ers. The five commissioners, sitting
together, were to agree upon, pub
lie works, light, water, safety, well
fare, financial and general policies.
When the commissioners had
worked out a policy for any divi-
sion of the city government it then
became the duty of the director of
that division to carry it out.
No commissioner should be su-
preme in the department of govern
ment over which he is the head. 1t
is his duty to supervise it's work
and conduct, but it is not his duty to
solely determine it's policy. That is
the function, as we have said, of
the entire commission.
Commission form of government
has not collapsed in Duluth by any
means, but it has failed to satisfy,
and the reason therefore is in the
fact that from it's outset directors
of divisions have arrogated to them
selves the policy-determining duty
OF the commission. AS result the
Objectionable log-rolling of the old
aldermanic system found it's way
into commission government, when
it was said all along that commits
sion government would do away
with such evils.
The ordinance giving Park Point
residents who own vehicles prefer
entail use of the aerial bridge car
during certain seasonal rush hours,
is a matter of public policy and not
of departmental direction. It is not
an attempt on the part of the COM
missioners to run Mr.. Phillips de-
partment, but to fix an aerial bridge
policy. 1t is up to him to carry out
that policy, unless he is prevented
from doing 50 by the courts should
the legality of the ordinance be
questioned.
BY the same token the paving of
public street with asphalt, bithu-
litic or brick is not a department
matter. Its director may recommend
a particular kind of pavement which
in his judgment would be the most
serviceable for a certain street, but
it is the duty of the council to de-
termine what the pavement shall be,
and of the director of public works
to see that it is properly laid. The
commission can not pass the buck
for an inferior kind of pavement on
any street to the director of public
works. The responsibility for that
pavement is on the whole commits
sion, according to the spirit and let
ter of the charter,
In like manner public parks, well