Notes on Municipal Government

• DOI: 10.1177/000271629901400315
• Published date: 01 November 1899
• Date: 01 November 1899
• Subject Matter: Articles

NOTES

ON

MUNICIPAL

GOVERNMENT

AMERICAN

CITIES.

League

of

American

Municipalities.-Third

Annual

Convention.

The

third

annual

convention

of

the

League

of

American

Municipali-

ties

was

held

at

Syracuse,

New

York,

September

19-22,

President

Samuel

L.

Black,

former

mayor

of

Columbus,

presiding.

Among

the

topics

discussed

at

this

meeting

were &dquo; The

Contract

System

of

Street

Improvements,&dquo;

Hon.

George

R.

Perry,

Grand

Rapids,

Michi-

gan ;

&dquo;Municipal

Charities,&dquo;

Homer

Folks,

New

York;

&dquo;Garbage

Collection

and

Disposal,&dquo;

Mayor

J.

J.

Williams,

Memphis,

Tennessee.

The

most

interesting

discussion,

however,

was

that

on

the

question

of

municipal

ownership.

Among

those

speaking

in

favor

of

munici-

pal

ownership

and

operation

of

municipal

monopolies

were

Mayor

H.

V.

Johnson,

of

Denver;

Mayor

F.

G.

Peirce,

of

Marshalltown,

Iowa,

and

Mayor

John

1%!vicar,

of

Des

Moines,

Iowa.

The

prin-

cipal

speakers

on

the

other

side

were

Hon.

R.

P.

Porter,

former

Superintendent

of

the

Census;

M.

J.

Francisco,

of

Rutland,

Vt.;

M.

A.

Gemunder,

of

Columbus,

Ohio,

and

Allen

Ripley

Foote.

Mayor

Johnson

said:

&dquo; What

capital

is

doing

for

itself,

the

people

of

the

city

can

do

for

themselves

in

the

ownership

of

their

public

utilities.

The

trusts

are

a

great

object

lesson

to

the

people

and

as

our

cities

study

this

lesson,

they

will

see

how

immense

savings

are

made

and

how

production

is

made

cheaper

and

cheaper.

They

will

finally

understand

that

water,

light,

transportation

and

telephone

message

service

are

great

human

necessities;

that

they

are

such

necessities

that

no

men

or

set

of

men

should

be

allowed

to

speculate

in

or

to

handle

chem

for

profit.

They

will

learn

that

they

can

produce

them

for

themselves

cheaper

and

better

than

any one

else

can

do

for

them,

and

when

they

do

learn

this,

and

they

are

learning

it

fast,

then

will

our

cities

own

and

control

and

operate

all

of

these

great

public

industries. &dquo;

Mayor

Peirce

reported

that

the

municipal

control,

ownership

and

operation

of

the

water

works

of

his

city

had

been

a

complete

success.

He

said

in

substance

that

when

the

time

comes,

as

it

surely

will,

&dquo;

when

these

monopolies

providing

for

the

needs

and

comforts

of

the

people

shall

be

administered

by

municipalities

in

the

interests

of

the

people

a

new

era

will

be

inaugurated

in

municipal

affairs.

Municipal

taxes

will

be

so

small

in

consequence

of

the

revenue

derived

from

the