Show FIRE AND POLICE BILL the bill now before the legislature with reference to board of fire and police commissioners in cities of and more inhabitants and to place the police prison and fire departments of eald cities upon B nonpartisan non partisan basis is 18 a measure which the NEWS bellev believes as to be salutary an t deserving of passage and approval it has bae many friends both tn and out of the legislature but la Is pretty sure to excite lively opposition though this will not be sufficiently strong we hope to defeat or imperil it in any essential part particular lular in order that this opposition may be weakened however and many lukewarm friends friend of the measure be rallied to its active support it seems to us me that two or three slight amendments in the text ot of the printed bil ought to be made one of these Is ie to the that the requisites for membership ber of the proposed board be not only residence and the qualification of voting toting but also the property tax pay ing qualification and sufficient age experience and reputation to warrant the confidence of the community then as to the maximum salary lor for the clerk of the board six hundred dollars per year which practically means that that shall be the regular iss alary lary consistency and a due regard for the condition of the public finances would woula seem eem to suggest that the be figure la in too high for such services as the clerk at present or in the near future will be required to render reader four hundred bundred dollars per ye year ought to be the outside limit again the law would be made more popular if it provided aided vided that applicants before the board for positions in the departments under its control contro in addition to the other qualifications demanded should be legal voters and property tax payers in their respective cities As between an applicant who contributes nothing laber by his bis influence at the ballot box or by his bis taxes to atle welfare and support of his city and an n applicant who does both these things we do not hesitate ate to say the law would should favor the latter another section that would be improved by amendment Is esthe the one providing for the abi suspension or removal of the chiefs of we the fire are and police departments by the board the proposed law properly increases the authority efthemis ef theis in suspending or removing their subordinate the board power in dealing with the treads of these departments should alto ahro be extended at least to the extent that a majority and not the wh Is ie board shall determine whether charges are i sustained and what the whether suspension or removal shall abali be this would leave the law quite as noo non partisan as it now DOW I 1 ie but would render one ode fourth easier the punish ment of a chief against whom charges bad been preferred and were believed by three out of four members of the board to be sustained we also think there should be an additional section authorizing the city councils to fix the maximum number of employee emp loyes in the two iwo departments department there may be other amend ments that would improve the measure but these few we feel sure will do so and they are suggested in a spirit of the warmest frida frici dehil for the measure as a whole meanwhile those of the business community who favor the law and desire its passage ought to make their wishes known and their influence felt the legislature will do what the people want we believe but the ought to 0 be given to understand what this IK ie and truth compels the assertion that up 4 to the present time the opponents of the law have bave shown much more zeal and activity than its friends |