Evening star., 1948-12-05
By John V. Horner

| Cndftef government IOQdy eIlIeTS
its first full week of operation in
Montgomery County as hot a polit-
ical issue as ever.
About the only point on which
there is universal agreement is that
the law establishing the council
manager system became effective
! last Thursday.
I How or by whom the law will be
administered is the subject of wide
dispute
The divergent views are respon-
sible for the first major legal hur-
die, which the charter proponents
must take on Thursday. Court ar
guments will be heard then in Rock
vile on the question whether a
special election shall be held Janu-
airy 6 for a new seven member
County Council.
But even before that, the law
may conceivably get a different
test by the old Board of County
Commissioners. Sitting for the first
time as an interim council, the
board will have the opportunity
Tuesday to place its own interpre-
tation on its rights under charter.
To Hold Annual Meeting.
What, if anything. is done remains
to be seen. The fact that the COM
missioners have fought governmental
change heightens interest in their
forthcoming session.
On Tuesday. also, the Montgon-
cry County Charter Committee will
hold its annual meeting in the In
dian Spring Country, Club, Silver
Spring. The principal business will
be to ratify the slate of seven citi-
zens proposed as Charter candidates
in the special election.
With opinions of the candidates
varying even among the member
snip, the annual meeting may not be
all peace and harmony.
Meanwhile, voters throughout the
county are gripped in discussion
OF the Charter nominations ap<
nounced Friday.
May Run At-Large.
An independent council canoioate'
Mrs. Alma T. Opal of Takoma Park,
disclosed yesterday fnat sne may
run for one of the TWO seats az
large instead Of for Council District
No, S, as originally planned. She
said she expected to pull the op-
nos;tion vote" to the Charter slate
huf withheld further comment until
tne Charter Committee meeting.
The committees board OF direct
ors is backing this ticket: P. G.
Lyon of Brinklow, Democrat, Dis
trict /; Augustus r. Selby, German
town, Republican, District 2; Thom-
as c. Kelley, Darnestown, Republi-
can, No. 3; Mrs. Dorothy s. Him
stead, Chevy Chase, Democrat, No.
4; J. Douglas Bradshaw, Takoma
Park, Republican. No. S; Frederic
P. Lee, Bethesda, and DR.. Lewis
Merriam, Kensington, both Demo-
Gratis, for seats at-large
Some Montgomery residents ex-
pressed the belief that this ticket
is anti-organiZation Democratic and
an, Organization Republican as
well.
Both parties have announced that
they will not enter tickets against
the Charter slate, but persistent re-
ports circulated yesterday that "op-
position" tickets would appear, per-
haps without party designation.
Committee Criticized.
The Charter Committee has been
criticized for recommending only
seven persons for the seven seats.
The nominating group said yester-
day that the list of possibilities in
cluded many good citizens of "ex-
ceptional ability" but that 1t sub
mitted only the number of names
it had been directed to bring in.
Various persons may wish to
nominate by petition the names of
additional citizens who are not on
the Charter Committee slate and it
seems only proper that the Charter
Committee should facilitate such
opportunity" report said.
Mrs. Stella H. Werner of Bethes-
da, a charter organization leader,
also has urged other qualified per-