The globe-independent. (Hagerstown, Md.) 1943-19??, 1948-05-27
Around Town With
The Editor

1t would seem that the Grand |
Jury has really made the City Faith
ers law conscious-perhaps what
Hagerstown needs is a Grand Jury !
in session all year around.
*&*
To my way of thinking, Mayor
Sweeney's letter addressed to the
Board of Street Commissioners, sug-
costing that they call public hear
ing regarding the alleged interior
ence with the Police Department, is
the prize joke of the year, and
smacks of plain attempt to put
over a whitewash.
Everyone knows that there is a
vast difference between giving con-
fidential evidence, under oath, be-
fore a Grand Jury, and giving evil
dence at a public hearing, and it is
perfectly obvious that nothing could
possibly come of such ridiculous
meeting.
I was highly amused at the May
or's suggestion that the members OF
the Grand Jury should be called to
the hearing, because he knows full
well that they couldn't divulge any
thing that took place before the
Jury, excepting what has already
been released in the Grand Jury's
statement.
P. S. Following a closed confer
ence between the Mayor and the
Street Board on Tuesday night, it
was announced that the public meet
ing will be held in the City Hall thus
afternoon at 200 o'lcock-that will
really be something!
*
read an editorial in the Daily
Mail last week which placed the
blame for the law enforcement con-
ditions in the City of Hagerstown
at the present time, at the door of a
previous Republican city admins
tration, the editorial claiming that
it was this Republican adminlstra-
ton that weakened the power OF
the Board of Street Commissioners
and thus prevented them from do
ing proper job ever since.
Since / wasn't in HagerstoWn
when that Republican administration
was in office, I'm not in position to
comment on the Mails statement,
but 1 am in position to state-and
state very plainly-that even it the
Republican administration did weak
en- the powers of the Board of Street
Commissioners, their action is just
peanuts compared to what the pres
ent administration has been trying
for months to do. And that is, to dc
away with the Board of Street Com
missioners entirely and vest then
powers in the Mayor and Council.
At the last session of the State
Legislature, the present administra-
ton sent bill to Annapolis, which
had it passed, would have wiped Out
all the city boards entirely. Bu'
thank goodness, Senator Mclaughlin
refused to allow such bill to become
law without first submitting it in the
form of a referendum to the voters O.
Hagerstown.
All Hagerstown needs, IS to have
the laws properly enforced .wlthou
fear or favor. But that happy stu
alton will never come about undo
the present administration, for thu
simple reason that the police fore
has too many bosses, and it's SAT-
bet that as long as the present ad
ministration is in Office, that unhapp,
situation will very definitely con
tinue.
Each of the commissioners has
title. such as Police Commissioner
Light Plant Commissioner, ETC., bu
those titles don't mean anything, a
anv of the commissioners can star
action regarding any of the depart
ments over which the board has con
troll. as was evidenced little Will
ago when that famous "Midnlgf
Ride of Paul Revere" meeting we
called.