Show THE WON NON COMMITTEE the news has not the faintest hope of either satisfying or silencing the ward politicians who are inveigh ing against the nonpartisan non partisan committee and heaping all sorts of accusations upon it including tyranny czar like methods star chamber sittings dark lantern procedure etc the committee has threatened to abolish the occupation of the ward politician and that individual is consequently in no mood to accept any explanations or arguments nor to be satisfied with anything short of the annihilation of the committee but there are thousands of voters in the city who axe are honest and conscientious ious and who desire to support that policy which will yield the best results in municipal affairs who axe are in danger of being misled by the representations of the and heelers and a few words of explanation and a few statements of tact fact addressed to them will if listened to in candor help them to a realization of the situation the accusers of the committee say it to Is guilty of gross assumption has adopted un american methods has attacked the liberties of the people by preventing a popular expression in primaries regarding nominations is assuming the role of dictator etc now the facts are simply these the manner in which city affairs has long been conducted had created a sentiment of profound disgust in the mands of thousands of citizens especially ally leading business men and taxpayers pi it was natural that one bustness business ness man should express this sentiment to others who in turn heartily endorsed it thus was created an atmosphere mo sphere that inevitably produced spontaneous action it was plain that wa if a reformation was to be effected an organized movement must precede it and an informal meeting of prominent i business men was held to consider what to do in the emergency these gentlemen knew perfectly we well 11 what a storm among the politicians their action would raise they foresaw the accusations that would be upon them and the abuse they would be obliged to endure but in the commodiousness of their own integrity and realizing the inestimable benefits would result to the city as a whole they decided to proceed with their work other meetings were held old and a plan of campaign was matured why did not the committee give the people a chance to be heard by pro viding for primaries and conventions because the committee represented no party having local committees to arrange for and conduct such assemblages it had no party machinery at its command and therefore could put none in operation furthermore its chief labor was to destroy party machinery so far as municipal elections are concerned and had it gone to work and created some of its own it would have been open to the charge of stultification primaries and conventions vent ions are the very means by which corruption is accomplished and by abolishing them the committee gained its first great victory over the heelers heeler s and the latter are howling because the opportunity to make the swaps and bargains through which rascals attain power is not to be afforded them in the shape of primaries and conventions in deciding not to provide for primaries and conventions the committee have displayed admirable shrewdness and foresight as well as consistency and have baffled the plotters in advance when the voters of the city come to appreciate this point at its full value they will enthusiastically support the committee and its policy again the committee is not a political body its work is not political its aims and ambitions are not political li It it is a body of business men its work is pure business it seeks to accomplish none but business results it is therefore more than justified in abjuring ordinary political methods and precedents it is morally bound to do so one of the first things the members of the committee did was to pledge their honor as gentlemen that 11 their acts and all the nominations they might favor should be strictly in harmony with the nonpartisan non partisan and business spirit in which their work was begun and it is the unanimous testimony of every member concerning every other member that th this laj pledge has been faithfully kept throughout all their theirl i work and deliberations no man has been before the committee seeking office for himself or friend and beyond doubt such an applicant would be promptly turned down neither has any member of the committee shown a taint of nepotism while they have unalterably resolved not to accept office themselves the committee are and claim to b be e nothing more or less than citizens who are personally and patriotically interested in the welfare of the city and who are engaged in maturing a purely business proposition to submit to the shareholders in the municipal corporation po ration the taxpayers that proposition will take the form of a municipal ticket and the committee has a perfect right in every sense to submit it to the people of the city |