department that manages the money affairs of the city. There is always a treasurer, and sometimes other financial officers, in this department. We have heard before of the health department, usually managed by a board (see page 56); the fire department (page 68) and the police department (page 72), both of which are sometimes united under the supervision of a board of safety; the street department (page 1) and the building department, which are also sometimes combined under a board of public works. The street-cleaning department (page 59) is often separate from the street department, which looks after the construction and repairing of the streets. The department of education is under the management of a board of school commissioners (page 122). These are only a few of the administrative branches found in our various cities, and each one of these is subdivided into several divisions or bureaus. Under them is a large number of subordinate officers and employees.

tive powers

The boards and chiefs at the head of the departments are sometimes elected by the people, and sometimes appointed either by the council, or the mayor, or, Mingling of occasionally, by the governor of the state. Po- legislative lice commissioners are sometimes appointed by and executhe governor. The appointment of officers is an executive duty, and when it is done by the council, it gives that body executive duties as well as legislative. Indeed, the executive departments, such as those of streets and buildings, are often, especially in smaller cities, managed entirely by committees of the council. There is thus not a sharp division in cities between the legislative and the executive branches of government, such as we find in state and national governments. Not only does the council exercise executive powers. but some of the administrative

boards have legislative powers. Thus, the board of estimates (page 201) exercises the important legislative power of apportioning taxes and expenditures. The school board often has legislative powers of some importance.

In America there has always been a fear of giving any one man too much power. This has led to the elec

Concentration of

powers in the mayor

tion by popular vote, and for short terms, of most of the city officers, in the belief that by so doing the people could keep their hands directly on the administration of the city's business. In the complexity of the affairs of a city, and with the numerous officers necessary to manage them, it is impossible for the people to hold every officer responsible to themselves. When anything goes wrong, it has been found almost impossible to fix the responsibility on any one. In handling the vast sums of money necessary in city government, and in the granting of franchises and the letting of contracts, there is abundant opportunity for things to go wrong. Therefore the tendency has been growing in our best governed cities to give the mayor full power to appoint his subordinates, as well as to remove them, at least in the case of the more responsible positions, and then to hold him responsible for the acts of his appointees.

Political

City government has suffered greatly from the spoils, system (page 184). When a new mayor is elected, he usually appoints new boards and heads of parties and departments, and these, in turn, too frequently city govern- remove subordinates in their departments ment to make way for personal or political friends. One of the chief causes for this is the part that the national political parties take in city elections. National political questions have no place in city elections. Cities have local self-government in order to manage their local

business, such as paving streets, granting franchises, protecting property and health. These are purely business matters that demand business ability and honesty on the part of those who manage them, and have no relation to the great national issues that divide the parties against each other. The national parties retain their hold on city affairs partly to prevent party spirit and interest from flagging in the period between national elections, and partly to have at their disposal the vast number of city offices as rewards for faithful party workers in the community. The result of this is that not only the responsible positions at the head of administrative departments, but minor positions, such as those of policemen and of clerks in the city offices, are too often filled with men who have some claim on the party in power, but very little on the confidence of the people.

Progress is now being made, however, in the direction of removing cities from partisan control. One means of doing this is by holding city elections at a different Civil service time from state and national elections, in the hope reform of avoiding confusion between local and national questions. More important than this is the introduction of the merit system in the appointment of city officials and employees (see page 184). Good city government cannot be expected until those who carry it on hold their positions solely on the ground of efficiency and faithfulness to the trust reposed in them.

FOR INVESTIGATION

1. What causes have led to the rapid growth of American cities? 2. Investigate your city charter with respect to the following points: By whom was it drafted? Did the people of the city have any voice in determining what the charter should contain? Has it ever been changed, and if so, how? Is it a special charter for your city alone, or is it a general charter, like that of other cities of the same size?

3. Investigate your city council with respect to the following points: