Perth Amboy evening news., 1923-02-23

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Petersburg is selected as an example
of the city manager city not be-
cause the plan has worked better
here than elsewhere, nor because
it has been long in effect here, but
simply because t is more conven-
lent TO choose a particular city as
a subject, and more convenient to
choose a particular city as a SUB
ject, and more convenient to choose
Petersburg because the city mana
ger here, Louis BroWnlow, is at
present the president of the City
Managers Association.
Mr. BroWnlOW is a native of the
Ozark Hills in Missouri who began
his active life as q newspaper man
in the home of his ancestors, NASH
Vile, Tennessee, continued his train
ling in Louisville and became a
Washington correspondent. He WAS
very much Interested In munlciUal
government and while travelling in
many countries never failed to i'll
vestigate and write about local
government.
1t was as the result of some az
ticles on municipal administration
in England and Scotland that Pres
ident Wilson selected him d Com
missioner Of the District of Column
bia, in which position he served for
six years. being at the head of the
city government of Washington
during the World War. In Set-
TENDER. 1920. he resigned to take
ur the work Of city manager Of
Petersburg. In the forenoon Of one
day he was president of the Board
Of Commissioners Of the District Of
Columbia at a salary of $1,000, and
that afternoon he was City Manager
of Petersburg at a salary of $4,000,
showing that length of title and sub
stance of remuneration are not
necessarily akin.
The people of Petersburg. barring
the days Of reconstruction, had hAd
very little experience with graft
or corruption in their city gov
eminent: but the machinery of a
board Of aldermen and a common
council and a mayor vas cumber-
n and unwieldy and too oftsn
city employees were hired because
Of their political pull rather than
because of their qualifications 10 do
the work they were hired for. Dur
ing the war as prices and costs al
vanced, the council did not keen
pace, and the did not
meet the expenses. Deficits piled up
People Decide Upon Change
In 1916 the Virginia Legislature,
seeing the success of the new eXper~
linen in Stanton, passed an act en-
aiding any city to change its form of
government by a vote of the people.
Petersburg held an election and by
and OVERWHELMING majority decided
to make a change. A Committee
Of One Hundred was formed to Sc
lect nominees for the council,
which is composed of five men
elected from the city at large, the
old ward lines having been abe'-
ished Five nominees, a lawyer, a
banker, two merchants and a ma
chinist were selected and elected
without opposition. Later the ma
chinist died and the. other members
of the council chose an iron moul-
der as his successor. During the
two and a quarter years of their
service there never has been a dis
senting vote in the council, every
decision being unanimous.
Politics in the old sense OF the
term has disappeared from the city
government. The council controls
the policy of the government, pass
es the budget. levies the taxes, pass
es ordinances and directs the gov
eminent, but the counci leaves b
City Manager an absolutely free
hand in carrying out those pollcles'
Mr.. Brownlow says h 40
member of the council since he took
Office has directly or indirectly n
dorsed any person for appointment
or suggested the employment of
any person, or criticised n ap-
pointment he has made. ny.
'Brownlow knows, and the counc
knows, that at any time he doesn t
follow the councils policies he Will
be dismissed. but so long as he car
ries out their ideas he will be free.
The city employees know that they
must make good to the city
ager, and that there is no political
Influence to which they can appeal
IL anything goes wrong. AS loEs
as they deliver the goods on the Job
they know they are safe, when they
don't deliver they known they are
off the pay roll and nothing can get
them back.
II found it necessary TO make very
few changes in the personnel Of the
city government" said MIR. Brown
low. when / took charge ] simply
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