Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1922-05-29
HINKLE LEAVES COLUMBUS.

found the COmmlSslon-managef
form of government bad for their
business in Columbus have made
good. They started out to get" the
city manager, and they have gotten
him. H. Gordon Hinkle, who came
to Columbus last January to take
over the job of giving the city of
Columbus the novelty of a business
government, picked up himself and
family Friday and shook the dust of
Columbus from his feet. Blackjack
ed in the dark and threatened with
death unless he left, and the mayors
home blown up because he had failed
to "fire" the city manager, hinkle
decided he had plenty and de-
parted.
1t is unfortunate that in leaving
he failed to hand his resignation to
the commission in the reg Ilar way
and that he took occasion to charge
rhe commission with failure to sup
port him by permitting him to make
a "house cleaning" which the com
mission has denied. That is rather
beside the point. We believe
we would have been no slower than
Hinkle in giving up the job had we
been in his shoes. He had personal
proof of the determination of the
lawless element to make good their
threats against him, and the better
people of the town apparently were
unable to exercise any real control.
Some few citizens of Americas
who have declared themselves against
the commission-manager form of
government for this city, as has been
proposed and as many of the best
business men here contend is sorely
needed, have seized upon the Column
bus situation to ridicule the efforts
OF the proponents of the change here
and are pointing to it as an example
of the folly of such a change. The
fact is, the Columbus situation is
rather unusual. But is may be said
with equal truth that if Americas is
inhabited with as many crooks and
gratters, professional iob-holding
politicians and political hangers-on in
proportion as Columbus, a similar
situation here would not he unlike
ly, should the change become effec-
tive by anything short of an over
"nelmlng majority of popular vote.
Municipal vice, corruption and inef-
flclency die hard everywhere, and Co.
lumbus is going through az expert
ence that several municipalities have
gone through when they undertook
to clean up and install an honest gov
ernmet.
Intelligent people will not he
greatly influenced by the COMPARE
sons with Columbus spread about bv
the opponents of a change here. We
all know Americas is not crook
ridden, graft-infested city and its adj
locates of the change here admit the
! present and recent administrations
! have been honest and intelligent
But they do assert, we believe with
Just cause, that the city has not been
as efficiently governed as is possibIe
because the present form of govern
ment will hardly permit of efficiency
Ii 1t did, the city of Americas TODAY
under the administration of honest
ana conscientious men, would hardly
nave a floating debt of S146 600 in
addition to its bonded indebtedness
All that the advocates of the chance
ask Is that the men who govern tho
city be given the chance to mako
good and to liquidate the citv's dab+e
fefhaps the new commission of Co.
lumbus was unfortunate in pick;po
a man for the first city MANAGER
from all accounts Manager Hinkle
was highly competent and honor
able man-just the man, from tho
standpoint of ability and trainiro
that city like Columbus needed
But ne was a Northern man. and #
requires considerable time for man
from the North to really learn 70
kno" the Southern people. Reared
diI erently, he must change many If
his habits and customs if he wo,Id
not offend unconsciously. He can.
not at first understand MANY tbinos
demanded of him in the soptb
hlngs that to him seem unimnorta
out which nevertheless are regardad
as important by Southern naonlo
hlhkle ruffled many people; he made
enemies because he was not acc,o
TONED to common Southern coIr
tesles. He took off his gloves and
started IN without ceremony to han
aie me situation as he found and 90
ms Judgment dictated it demanded
! ana all people looked alike to him