Show I BRANSfORD fOR DIRECT PRIMARIES Discusses the Des Moines Plan at League Meeting at Logan Today PEOPLE SHOULD HAVE INTEREST IN AFFAIRS Commission System H Held ld to toBe toBe toBe Be Move in Wrong Di Di- Special cia to The Telegram LOGAN Jan Tan 25 1 Mayor John S S. Bransford of Salt Lake city in his address address ad dress before the tho State Municipal league this afternoon pointed out some difficulties in the proper working out of ol the Des Moines foint's system of municipal government and compared that system as h he understood it with that now In n vogue in ia cities of the first class in in Uta Utah Ii Mayor Bransford maintained that thai better safeguards ards were wre thrown around the government under the present plan plait than under tinder government by commission commission- ers era One of the great improvements in III inthe inthe the plan here was tho establishment of ofa a board of estimates and apportion apportion- ment meat This acts arts as a check heck on the departments de tic- which hith are arc forced to keep within their estimate estimates A still stin further improvement would be the establishment establish ment of a II purchasing department When the tue board hoarel ot of estimates and apportionment apportionment apportionment ap ap- ap- ap he said aid has made maTle its appropriations appropriations ap ap- appropriations for the different city departments de tie- it follows folloW's that the heads of ol the Jho d departments will be c carefully watching watching watch watch- watching ing tho the expenditures of tho purchasing agent on behalf of their departments and ind in this way each will act as lS a check upon tho the other This with the tho veto yeto power of the mayor and the proper exercise of the functions of the tho board of public works a and nd the council makes a. a a system which while in may have faults is still better better bet het ter than a concentration of too much power Concerning the- the Des Moines plan itself it self the mayor said in part Progress Is Slow After more than a century of ot popular popular lar ar government we are toda today confronted with the undeniable truth that our progress progress progress ress in municipal government has not been jeen commensurate with that in other onus of f civic administration an and this in n spite of the 1 fact that the people are ff more directly affected by municipal nf i t r rule than titan by an any other This condition is so generally recognized throughout the country that it has become the subject of ot serious and deliberate discussion by bythe bythe the he the ablest minds of or our nation regardless regardless regard- regard less ess of party part affiliations The recent of ot exposures corruption In n many of our larger cities are still fresh resh in the public mind The recognition tion ion of the weakness of ot the s system stem is of ft ourse U the fiT first important fJ step f et t towards r r its ts reform o The next consecutive e e step Is of necessity the ascertainment of the tho causes that this state of affairs and In my judgment the answer to this proposition carries with it the suggestion suggestion tion ion of those reformatory measures es- es s- s in remedying vie tue existent evils Outlines Des Moines Plan Among the many proposed plans and the he one I am briefly to discuss is called the he lies Des Moines or Commission Plan of City Government This proposed ed scheme i consists of a commission of three men elected b by the people in whom shall be i vested ested the tue absolute powers of administration administration adminis- adminis ratton of all the city's affairs They shall appoint appoint- all officers of ot the municipality the the treasurer recorder auditor attorney superintendent of water works etc down to the humblest officer in the city's empo employ The They shall haVe the po ower er to pass laws grant franchises issue issue is- is sue bonds levy taxes In Jn short I perform all all til the functions of every nature at the present resent time executed b by the city elty council coun- coun cil 11 and the mayor I There are some excellent arguments submitted In favor or of ot this change hange For instance it Is pointed out that a sufficient dent salary salan could be paid as an inducement inducement induce induce- ment for tor men of ot large business Interests inter- inter eats ests t to become the peoples people's servants and thus bus to give to the public the benefits of f their experience In private affairs To this argument I can see no possible possible ble le objection for I h am firmly of the opinion opinion ion on that the men elected are not ado ado- quat compensated for the devoU devotion n of their whole time to th the office to which they hey are elected Conceding the truth of this his contention It could hardly be urged as s a substantial ground for a change in the he form of government nt so much as a weakness in the existing form that could be easily rectified Bonds Uncertain Safeguards It Is further contended that these commissioners being under heavy bonds for or the proper discharge of their duties and being directly accountable to the pEople for the administration of ot each departmEnt de- de there would no longer be any difficulty in laying the responsibility for the he of any office to the he proper party parl If the men who were honored b. b by being elected commissioners were always S 'S absolutely honest this and Undred arguments in favor of ot the tho system tern tem em would be good But we e have no nomore nomore nomore more assurance of honesty in them than thann in n the average officer e elected under the present method The rhe fact that they are arender und under r heavy bonds is not In iii itself sufficient suf- suf nor Is it enough to know that they hey come from the higher walks walles in life fe If f Bribery Were Tried Contracts involving enormous sums or of f money would frequently hinge e on the assent or dissent of one member and I consider this one of the chief chiEt reasons for tor or the failure of the plan It il is much easier casler to reach one Individual by bv bribery without any chance of proving his his guilt than han where a bod body ot of men are in control Ill Iii In this connection we should not take aKe the idea Mea of bribery awa always s 's meaning A money consideration Men are frequently fre- fre swerved from the strict path of duty luty by improper influences influencE'S in which the Idea dea of gain or financial reward plays little Ittle or no part The rhe temptation of power pow- pow er r position n and political advancement are 10 allurements equally equall as potent in influencing in- in men to subordinate public welfare welfare wel- wel fare are to selfish considerations as the lie lust for tor WhIle the public servant senant n w who permits himself to be swayed by such uch influences Is morally as guilty of ot a Breach of public trust yet et he Is not liable for tor or prosecution for his acts No Check Is Provided I There Is no check chec no appeal under ho the mont ment n pr proposed and this plan lt brings h of s municipal us ni to P recognition e govern or of f the fundamental principles upon which our government was wall founded Our forefathers were beset with these same arguments in opposition to a government government of f the people Hamilton and his coadjutors coad- coad jitters of that time decried the theorY of popular government and predicted its ul- ul failure They contended that a government strongly centralized with the supreme power vested in iii one man that Is s to say sayan an unlimited monarchy would monarchy would best serve servo the people This plan is simIlar simar sim- sim Ilar ar in this respect It robs the people of ot a truly trill form torm h bv by electing men not b by rl right ht of lineage as they did but jut he because cause of ot their higher standing in inthe inthe the business world and clothing them with un unchecked power Experience has taught that the best administered government is that in which there are three throe ordinate co-ordinate branches separate and Independent the Independent the executive legislative e and amid judicial ComIne Combine Com Com- bine Ine these departments and the possibilities ties for wrong wron doing and incompetency cannot be estimated Succeeds in Des Moines But it is contended that this plan plane has las been beems e tried In the city whose name It bears with remarkable r 1 success e My Sly ic icily i-c- i p ply ily to this would be that some of ot the bEst jest governed d people have been ruled by byone byone byone one man who lra practically held absolute and untrammeled power in centuries gone by jy and yet et I do donot not believe ve man many of or ofus ofus orus us would Woud advocate reverting to those da days s 's when the subjects had no voice in inthe inthe the lie affairs of government Such a pot pot- icy cy would mean retrogression rather than han advancement So long as men are human susceptible to o human infirmities and failings so long longwill longwill longwill will they be he subject to error and tempts tempts- tion ion The tendency therefore in seeking a remedy for the tIme ills that affect the body politic should be not a centralization of power into fewer hands but a wider dis- dis of ot power among the people who are the units of the municipality Advocates Direct Primary If It the people coull be taught laughL to lo take lake akca a 3 more active interest in their ell city affairs affairs af af- af- af fairs and conscientiously to exercise the ri right ight ht of suffrage Instead of permitting p politicians to dictate nominations and amid elections the first great problem would be e solved The primary method of nations I consider It a means mean to the accomplishment ac ae- ac- ac of this end and in fact any plan that would tend to bring the public servants and the administration generally closer to the tho people Is to m my mind a far better expedient for fot the im- im of municipal administration than han the commission plan Any ny departure from a I well es- es by custom and usage should be jo carefully weighed before belore its adoption The scheme suggested be said bald to possess the merit of novelty but Is es essentially es a reversion to the theory that representative government is a failure and amid to this contention I cannot accede Need For Reform It It would woul be he th the maddest folly to defend defend de tie- fend the modErn modem municipal rule as ad ad- ministered I have not done so flO nor 1101 do I Intend Intend to But lint I tb do clo maintain that all alt the he reasons adverted to as a basis for tor a change are applicable to the commission with even greater force than to the exIs ex- ex Is o one Let r. r t to us therefore calmly dispassionately dispassion dispassion- at y and sincerely seek to ascertain Use the defects and with a patriotic spirit prompted by a tt common purpose adjust them hem rather than Indulge In Illusory hopes lopes from flom a system entirely forlI foreign 1 In practice to those well defined principles that constitute the corner orner stone of our government o |