New Britain herald., 1930-03-18
M'D0NOUGH GIVES NATIONALITY NEEDS
Says Candidate Must Be Inde- pendent, Able, Experienced

The qualification of a mayor should include independence, ex- ecutive ability, and experience, ac- 'cordins to P. F. McDonough, him. self a candidate for that office, in an address to the Lions club at the weekly luncheon at the Burritt ho- tel today.
 Mir. McDonough' address follow ed a brief period of entertainment during which there were several solos in observance of St. Patrick's Day, by Mrs. Mary T. Crean, and the recitation of poems and jokes by James c. Higgins of Boston, Irish humorist
 Attorney McDonough spoke brief lv, stating that he preferred not to discuss the issues of the campaign inasmuch as the Lions club is not political organization. He will be fol- lowed at future dates by addresses by George A. Quigley and Donald Bartlett also candidates for the same office.
 Independence Most Important
 In his address he said:
 ' "I have decided rather than to discuss the issues of the campaign to speak to you on what I consider gen. eral qualifications which a mayor of a cosmopolitan city, such as ours, should possess in order that he may render the most complete degree of service to the community. And l be- lieve that the first and most impor- tant qualification is Independence. And by independence I mean it in tho full acceptance of the term. A man should be so independent in the office that he should be in a po- sition to seek aid, counsel, and ad- vice without in any manner in curing the obligation of any per son, faction or interest
 "A mayor should have, needless to say, executive ability because in conduct of the office of mayor of city he will be called upon many times to make decisions of vast i'm portancc which decisions may for generations affect prosperity and happiness of the people of the city. He should be able to analyze, listen to the facts, get all the facts advise on them. and then be in a position to draw a logical conclusion from all the assembled facts in a given case.
 Experience Necessary
 Experience. It is hardly neces- sary 10 state that a mayor in order ;,, of; should be a man of experience. And again I use the term experience in its broadcst sense. He should be experienced in the affairs of govern- ment and the affairs of the city, and should have such a general and broad knowledge of all matters per taining to the interests and welfare of the city and it's citizens that he will be able 10 coordinate those qualities of independence and exec rtive ability which 1 have referred to above.
 He should know this city and it's people. This l believe to be of the utmost importance because in a city like New Britain so cosmopolitan in
 
 interests, so many different nation alities, with it's peoples gathered from all parts of the earth, as- sembled within the confines of a city geographically small, he should be in the position to know it's peo ples and it's interests and how the people in the various interests touch one to another and fit into the whole scheme of our civic life. He should know their desires and their inspirations and their heart beats if he is to qualify as a proper and suit able mayor for a city like New Britain These, in brief, are the qualifications which a man should possess but there are others which no doubt will be touched upon as tho campaign progresses. But my purpose here today was to refrain