UC-NRLF Digitized by the Internet Arciiive in 2007 with funding from IVIicrosoft Corporation http://www.archive.org/details/expertsincitygovOOfitzrich EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT .•&\ Copyright, 1919, by D. APPLETON AND COMPANY • I •« c t»t c« ••t* ctt»«o'c'c' Printed in the United States of America PREFACE We were crowding together faster than we were learning to live together. We were urbanizing faster than we were civilizing. Hence the problem of the city, and hence the "shame of the cities." We accepted the growth of the cities and its strain on a governmental machinery devised largely for rural conditions as a matter of fate. It had to be. We tried to alleviate the conditions accompanying this growth of cities. We tried to palliate them. We tried to prevent them by stemming the tide city-wards and by a back-to- the-farm movement. But it proceeded not only with unabated, but with increased momentum. It was irre- sistible. It had to be. We felt, too, that city govern- ment was incapable of dealing with the problem growing out of the urbanization of population and that it could not be other than incompetent and ineffective — ^palliative at best. Our point of. view has changed. We have outgrown our fatalistic belief. Fate either as the agent or the explanation of the process of city-making is rejected. The challenge of the city is accepted. Society is taking a constructive view. The city is a potential agency of public welfare. Its only excuse for being is that it is actually an instrumentality of public welfare and efficient in carrying out the public purposes. It was thought for a while that our social salvation might be achieved through, improved social mechanism. This was found helpful, but produced varying results. 41G024 / PREFACE It was slowly perceived that if the city is to accomplish its social welfare purposes and be an efficient instru- \ ment of an alert twentieth century democracy, its ad- ministration must be in the hands of trained men. This book aims to give expression to this active, posi- tive and constructive view of city-making. It discusses this view from many angles. Though written by many hands, it has a definite idea underlying it and a definite plan to illustrate its potentialities. For this the editor of the volume is alone responsible. Though we are perceiving more and more the need of maintaining a balance between city and country, the city problem is becoming more and more obtrusive. Though, too, the modern city is a great achievement in human association, it is also a great agency in the manufacture of social derelicts, social subnormality, social defectiveness and social crime — and need one add, of individual dereliction, subnormality, defective- ness and crime? The strain which this social waste and these anti-social forces put upon municipal govern- ment organization has reached the breaking point. The result is incompetent government or weak government. Incompetency in government brings with it suffering, disease, crime and poverty and creates or aggravates the very conditions which it is organized to prevent or improve. It is community wide in its effect. It acts in the name of the community and presumably with its sanction. ' i A weak government brings about the same result no / matter how altruistic its intentions may be. It is in- competent government with a "muffler." Or perhaps a truer description of so-called weak government has been given by Samuel S.. McClure in a remarkably keen statement: "I do know that no people have ever lived vi" ■ PREFACE UL-th is world under a feeble government. That thin g hasjiever been tried^ out. because if the lega l govern ment organized by the pe ople is feeble then there always exists by its side an expert illegal government th at does _ the actual work of governing." Expert city goveFnrfient, "government administered by trained men, is the much needed agency to transform the city into an active, positive, and constructive instru- ment of public welfare. It will do this because it will use the best tool in all the world for its purpose. President Lowell has put the case well: "Democracy more than any other form of government needs the very best instruments which can be used. What should we say of our country if it refused to use for public work modern machinery and inventions? Democracy needs the best machinery that can be found, the best tools that can be discovered; and the best tool that the world has ever yet produced is a highly trained human brain." Though this book is tremendously interested in making democracy efficient, it is not primarily interested in effi- ciency. It is interested only in seeing that the city accom- plishes the social purposes which brought it into being and makes its continuance necessary. This is the end. This is the mistress. Efficiency is only the handmaiden. It is this view which explains the emphasis throughout the book on the importance of public opinion and on a direct rather than a vicarious citizen interest in support of government and particularly of expert government. Expert city government must entrench itself in the understanding of the citizenship. It is this view which explains Mr. Collier's paper on "Citizen Interest in Government, the Community Center," in this book. It is this view which has made the discussion of the control vii PREFACE of the expert such an important part of this book. It is this view which practically all of the contributors caught in their emphasizing purposes and subordinating machinery. It is this view which a democracy that would survive must insist upon. The book is the result of the willing and hearty cooperation of many. The editor of the volume as one of the cooperators has this opportunity to express his appreciation of the cooperation of all. Edward A. Fitzpatrick Vlll INTRODUCTION The Great War has brought home, as no other event in our national history, the inadequacy and the ineffi- ciency of our governmental machinery, national, state and municipal. It has likewise brought home to us the re- sulting wastefulness and extravagance and the question we must face and settle is, "What are we going to do to place our affairs upon a newer, more effective, more democratic basis? Can we longer afford to leave the administration of our public affairs to the hit or miss, happy-go-lucky methods that now characterize their con- duct ?" This volume is one answer. It brings out clear- ly the need for experts in city government. It suggests ways by which they can be secured. It contains many facts and opinions, but they all converge towards the same end. They are really the many facets of a single stone. This book could not have been written ten years ago. There was not sufficient material, experience or opinion to make it possible. It may have to be rewritten within the next ten years, for the movement of which it is an outgrowth is developing. Municipal work has reached a point where capable administrators are needed — nay, are demanded by the situation, and every day brings a new demand. A few years ago our cities were discuss- ing the municipal supervision of milk, food generally, and fuel. Now our cities are considering as next steps the municipal control of their distribution and no one can be sure how soon this movement will extend to other objects ix INTRODUCTION that have become or are becoming necessities of life. This movement, already in full swing before the war, has been enormously accelerated by that event, and while there may be slight recessions from time to time, it will continue a really uninterrupted development. We must recognize that we are facing a municipalized, a socialized future, and we must recognize the necessity for placing the affairs of the city upon a basis of expert administra- tion. This volume, like all the others in the National Mu- nicipal League Series, represents a growth and a develop- ment, and neither will stop with its publication. Both will be helped by it. For years the National Civil Service Reform League has been giving its attention to eliminating irrelevant issues from appointments to public office, and during its recent years to securing the selection of fit men on a basis of ascertained merit, and within still more recent years it has, in conjunction with the National Municipal League, been devoting its constructive attention to the next step of securing the selection and retention of the expert in public service. This book approaches the problems from a somewhat different viewpoint, but the end in view is the same, and appearing at a most opportune time, it is sent forth with the hope that it will be a factor in establishing American municipal govern- ment on a firm basis of democratic and community effi- ciency. CuNTON Rogers Woodruff CONTRIBUTORS EDWARD A. ROSS, Madison, Wis., professor of sociology, University of Wisconsin; advisory editor, American Journal of Sociology; author, "Changing Amer- ica," "The Old World in the New." CLINTON ROGERS WOODRUFF, secretary of the National Municipal League; editor. National Municipal Re-: view. National Municipal League Series, and "City Govern- ment by Commission." DELOS F. WILCOX, Elmhurst, New York; deputy, commissioner of water, gas and electricity under Mayor Mitchel, author of "The Study of City Government," "The American City," "The Government of Great American Cities," "Municipal Franchises." A. LAWRENCE LOWELL, Cambridge, Mass., pres- y ident of Harvard University; author of "Public Opinion and Popular Government;" a frequent contributor on the subject of administration to the National Municipal Review and other periodicals. FREDERICK P. GRUENBERG, Director, Philadelphia Bureau of Municipal Research. WILLITS POLLOCK, Milwaukee, Wis., Secretary, Mil- waukee Council of Defense. H. S. GILBERTSON, New York, formerly executive secretary, National Short Ballot Organization; author, "The County ;" Captain, U. S. A. EDWARD A. FITZPATRICK, Madison, Wis., director of the Society for the Promotion of Training for Public Service; editor. The Public Servant; Major, U. S. A. JOHN COLLIER, New York, director New York Training School for Community Center Workers; president. National Community Center Association. CONTRIBUTORS WILLIAM H. ALLEN, New York, director. Institute for Public Service; author, ''Next Steps in Higher Edu- cation," "College Surveys Handbook," "Civics and Health," "Universal Training for Citizenship and Public Service." CLYDE L. KING, Philadelphia, assistant professor, University of Pennsylvania; editor, Annals of the Ameri- can Academy of Political and Social Science; author, "The Regulation of Municipal Utilities;" "Lower Living Costs in Cities." WILLIAM C. BEYER, Philadelphia, Accountant, Phila- delphia Bureau of Municipal Research. CHARLES M. FASSETT, Spokane, Wash., commis- sioner of public utilities, Spokane. ALLEN M. RUGGLES, Wisconsin State Civil Service Commission. PARKE R. KOLBE, Akron, Ohio, president, Municipal University of Akron. HERMAN G. JAMES, Austin, Texas; associate pro- fessor in the school of government, University of Texas; author, "The Introductory Articles of the Illinois Consti- tution," "Applied City Government," "Handbook of Civic Improvement," "Municipal Functions;" secretary. League of Texas Municipalities; associate editor, National Municipal Review. •v/ CHARLES A. BEARD, New York, director, New York Training School for Public Service; author, "Digest of Short Ballot Charters," "American City Government," "American Government and Politics," "Economic Origins of Jeffersonian Democracy." MORRIS LLEWELLYN COOKE, Philadelphia; for- merly director. Department of Public Works; director, Utilities Bureau; author, "Academic Industrial Efficiency," "Snapping Cords." HAROLD S. BUTTENHEIM, New York; editor. The American City. xii CONTENTS HAPTER PAGE . I. Urbanization and its Attendant Problems. By Edward Alsworthy Ross ... I II. The Wide Scope of Municipal Improve- ment. By Clinton Rogers Woodruff . 7 III. The Inadequacy of Present City Gov- ernment. By Delos F. Wilcox . . 23 IV. The Need for Experts in City Govern- ment. By A. Lawrence Lowell . • 37 V^ V. Why Do Men Leave the Public Service? By Frederick P. Gruenberg ... 48 VI. The New View of Municipal Govern- ment. By Clinton Rogers Woodruff . 57 VII. Present Use of Experts in Municipal Administration. By Willits Pollock . 71 , VIII. Existing Agencies of Municipal Service Training. By Edward A. Fitzpatrick . 105 IX. Citizen Cooperation with Government Through the Community Center. By John Collier 151 X. Interpreting Expert Government to the Citizenship. By William H. Allen . 168 5^1. The Local Residence Requirement for Public Office. By Clyde Lyndon King 183 XII. Recent Improvements in Methods of Re- cruiting the Public Service. By Wil- liam C. Beyer 191 XIII. Making the Public Service Attractive. By William C. Beyer .... 203 XIV. Utility Problems and EIxpert City Gov- ernment. By Charles M. Fassett . . 221 xiii CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE XV. Training Teachers: Its Lessons for Training for Public Service. By Allen M. Ruggles 235 XVI. Training for the Military Service. By Edward A. Fitzpatrick .... 247 XVII. The Method of Training — Cooperative Part-Time. By Parke R. Kolbe . . 257 XVIII. The City Office as a Training Center for Public Employment. By Clyde L. King 267 f XIX. Building on to Professional Education — What Training is Needed for the Municipal Service. By Herman G. James 281 ,. XX. How Shall a Training School for Mu- nicipal Service be Organized.? By Charles A. Beard 297 XXI. Training in the Municipal Service. By Morris Llewellyn Cooke .... 302 XXII. Professional Organizations of City Of- ficials. By Harold S. Buttenheim . 323 XXIII. The Control of the Expert. By Charles A. Beard 334 Appendix 345 XIV EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT CHAPTER I URBANIZATION AND ITS ATTENDANT PROBLEMS DURING the past century it has become evident to all thoughtful men that for some time it is to be the lot of an increasing part of the higher races to live in cities. The denunciations of cities by philosophers and the idealizations of the country by poets do not ap- pear • to have had the slightest effect in lessening the cityward tide of migration. The back-to-the-land agita- tion has produced no out current from the cities that can at all balance the in current from the farms. Rural youths are quick to perceive that those who so eloquently urge them to stay on the farm gained their high place in the world only by seizing city opportunities and show not the slightest willingness to give up lecturing and writing in order to engage in agriculture. The net effect of the country-life movement is not that more boys and girls stay on the farms, but that enough of the brighter boys and girls remain there to grow up and later pro- vide the rural community with the inspiring leadership it so sorely needs. ^5^c Experts i IN city government The fekpid Urbanisation in the United States. — At the taking of the first census in the United States there were in the entire country only five cities with more than ten thousand inhabitants each and they contained alto- gether a little over 4 percent of the population. Now there cannot be fewer than seven hundred such cities, and they contain at least 40 percent of our population. During the last three census decades the proportion of the American people living in the country and in towns of less than 2,500 inhabitants shrank from 70 percent to 53 percent. In the meantime, what may be termed the *'city" element, i.e., those in cities from 25,000 to 500,000 inhabitants, from being only 11 percent of us became 18.5 percent, while those in "great" cities, i.e., cities of over half a million inhabitants, from being one-sixteenth part of us came to be one-eighth of us. Up to about twenty years ago we had always had an agricultural frontier which offered a certain check to the process of urbanization. The overflow of people from the long-settled regions split into two streams — one flow- ing to the rising cities, while the other spread into the western wilderness. The springing up every decade of some tens of thousands of new farm homes in the public domain constituted a certain counterpoise to the reach- ing tentacles of our great cities. But about the middle of the nineties, the frontier as a big determinant of our social development ceased to exist. The change is regis- tered in the slower westward movement of the center of population; in a total farm-land value three times what it was twenty years ago ; in the fact that during the last census decade half a million Americans bade good-by forever to the stars and stripes and settled in Canada where the union jack still floats over cheap public land. There is, furthermore, the striking fact that the immi- URBANIZATION AND ITS PROBLEMS 3 grants of the last twenty years are not getting their feet upon the soil as did the earHer immigrants. Thus, ac- cording to the last census, there is among us one Ameri- can white farmer for fourteen American whites, one Scandinavian farmer for eight Scandinavians here, one German farmer for eleven Germans, one Irish farmer for forty Irish; but it takes 130 Poles, Hungarians or Italians — the chief nationalities in the recent immigra- tion — to furnish one farmer. Immigration and Urbanization. — Since the begin- ning of the century not less than ten millions of im- migrants have settled permanently among us and of these the bulk have gone to swell the population of our cities. Indeed, as one traverses the gamut that leads from farms to towns, from towns to little cities, and from little cities to big cities, the proportion of American stock steadily diminishes, while the proportion of for- eign stock increases until in the great cities it constitutes nearly three- fourths. Thus in 1910, of the white people in the rural districts nearly two-thirds were of native stock, whereas in the cities of over half a million in- habitants, this stock constituted but a fourth. On the other hand, the foreign born are but 7.5 percent of the whites in the rural parts, while in the great cities this element rises to one-third. The alien influx, therefore, has precipitated us into the thick of urban problems which otherwise would hardly have troubled us before the third quarter of the twentieth century. Transportation and Urbanization. — Another cause of urbanization is the stupendous growth of commerce in consequence of the cheapening of transportation. It is a matter of demonstration that the average haul of a 4 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT shipment in our railways is every year greater. The pro- portion of a man's consumables which are brought to him from outside the hundred-mile zone, from outside the thousand-mile zone, from over-sea, and from the ends of the earth continually grows. This freer resort to long-distance exchange swells the streams of commerce and permits an ever larger number of us to dwell in commercial cities and make a living from handling, stor- ing, exchanging and forwarding a volume of goods which grows faster than the population, faster than the total social product, faster even than the volume of goods which must make a journey in order to reach their con- sumer. Industry and Urbanization. — A couple of genera- tions ago, the typical farm family produced for itself a large part of the manufactured goods it consumed. The women of the house, busy with hand card, spinning wheel and loom, worked up into clothing the fleeces of the farm flock of sheep. Rag carpets covered the floor and home made quilts and comforters the beds. The hide of the beef killed for family consumption, as well as those of a calf or two, were taken to the tannery and after six months brought home and worked up into foot gear, sometimes by the men of the family, but more often by a traveling shoemaker. In the smoke-house were curing hams and bacon, while from the ashes in the leech was drained the lye which, when boiled with refuse fat, fur- nished "soft soap" for the family. Candles were molded from the tallow of the slaughtered beef. The orchard supplied fruit, cider and vinegar. "Sweetening" came from the "sugar bush" or the patch of sorghum cane. Farm machinery did not exist and the wooden parts of the farm implements were made on the place. URBANIZATION AND ITS PROBLEMS 5 the iron parts being furnished by a cross-roads black- smith. Since this period we have seen a development of machine industry which has concentrated in towns at least four-fifths of the making industries which formerly supplied the wants of the farm family. Nor can we foresee that any rural handiwork is likely to escape the reach of the power-driven machine. The process bids fair to continue until every scrap of manufacturing will go into a factory in some town, and there will be left outside the towns only those who give their entire effort and attention to some purely extractive industry like agriculture, mining or lumbering. Urban Welfare, a Problem of Administration. — Since, then, it is the destiny of the greater part of us to live in some town or city, it behooves us to recog- nize betimes how broad is the contrast between the means of attaining rural well-being and the means of attaining urban well-being. The country is the home of individ- ualism and self-help. The farm family suits itself as to domicile, raises most of its food, controls its supply of milk and water, realizes its own ideas of cleanliness, disposes of its refuse as it pleases, chooses the moral influence that shall surround its young, and, in a word, determines what degree of risk it shall incur from fire, accident, disease and immorality. The promotion of rural welfare is, therefore, chiefly a matter of education. On the other hand, in the city diseases tend to be ex- changed. One man's carelessness or filthiness endangers other people's health. There are many essential condi- tions of health and safety over which the careful householder has little or no control. Such are the height of buildings, the cleanliness of streets, the removal 6 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT of garbage, the disposal of sewage, the quality of the water, food and milk, protection against fire, the fitness of the domicile for residence, access to nature, the oppor- tunity for out-door recreation, the moral tone of public amusements. Many of the basic conditions of industrial or family life are simply not to be had by any single- handed effort. The citizens must conquer their diffi- culties chiefly through the intelligent activities of the municipalities they create, so that the problem of urban welfare is essentially a matter of administration. The betterment of municipal administration is there- fore a matter of prime concern to a growing proportion of our people and holds an ever-greater promise of benefit to the nation and to the race. CHAPTER II THE WIDE SCOPE OF MUNICIPAL IMPROVEMENT DEMOCRACY demands publicity ; and he who solves> the problem of making plain the difficulties of municipal administration and making clear the transac- tions of the ordinary daily work of great city depart- ments will have made a contribution of great value. It is a big task, but our municipal officials in increasing numbers are devoting themselves to the problem of intel- ligent exploitation of th^ city's activities. In passing, it may be noted that the National Municipal League has a committee at work, under the chairmanship of J. Horace McFarland of Harrisburg, oii^ Constructive Municipal Publicity. Its object is not only to increase the desire and demand for adequate publicity, but to discover the principles and methods which must be fol- lowed. Constructive Municipal Publicity. — One of the most significant developments of the Blankenburg administra- tion in Philadelphia was the effectiveness with which the department of public works made known its activities and achievements. The last report of its director, Morris L. Cooke, was introduced by a pregnant para-- graph which has been used elsewhere.^ ^ See Chapter X. 8 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT In his letter transmitting this report the director said : With the increasing size of our undertakings and their growing complexity, the difficulty of visualizing the pur- poses and processes of government, federal, state and mu- nicipal, is greatly increasing. I feel very strongly that un- less you can make people understand what you are doing, the waste is prohibitive; and, on the contrary, that if the people can be made to understand your plans and the method by which you hope to accomplish them, and these plans are right, the means will be forthcoming. The last three or four years the engineers connected with this department have become a unit in their attitude towards this question. We all started in with the disposition to feel that advertising as such was almost unprofessional. We have now come around to the point where we are struggling to devise new and more comprehensive methods by which we might expose the operations of this department to the public view as completely as possible. Because only in this way do we feel that the great ends of municipal ad- ministration, with more particular reference to the engi- neering, can be accomplished. Another illustration of the same sort of eflFective pub- licity is the work of the Dayton Bureau of Municipal Research which is seeking to translate the activities of the government of that city into terms and figures which may be read and understood by h-e who runs. In the Dayton papers there have been published a series of advertisements setting forth the accomplishments of the several departments. Here is one (omitting the illustra- tions) from the issue of October 7, 1916: Public Welfare Means Community Betterment. — Tremendous results have been achieved by the Department of Public Welfare, under the direction of Dr. D. F. Garland. MUNICIPAL IMPROVEMENT 9 Despite the small recreation area and limited funds, the people of Dayton have been afforded much diversion. Recreation is a valuable social service which leads di- rectly to the general development of youth and the common good of all. Health and happiness are the aims and the outcome of this earnest and efficient community activity. Parks and playgrounds are yearly growing more desir- able and popular. Read the record and decide for yourself. Playgrounds.. — During the past summer the city main- tained seven playgrounds and, coordinating with the Play- ground and Gardens Association, supervised eleven others. Total attendance for the season — ten weeks — was 191,997, an approximate average of 170 per each week day on each playground. Analysis of cost shows that tax-payers paid less than 2 cents per child for each day of attendance. The total outlay for the Division of Recreation for the year 1916 will be $14,000. School enumeration and Division of Health figures show that there are in the city 35,000 persons under 21 years of age. The cost, therefore, of maintaining playgrounds is only 40 cents per minor for the entire year. During the season a 14 team indoor baseball league, a 10 team outdoor baseball league and an 8 team volley ball league were maintained and played scheduled games. Fourteen field events were held. These included whole- some competitions of all kinds for boys and girls. A magnificent play festival at Island Park closed the sea- son. In this there were 1,000 participants and folk games, folk dancing and drills in costume were featured. The boys and girls were taught wholesome play and clean sports by the Supervisor of Recreation, Harvey Sollenber- ger, and his 22 assistants. This recreation has meant in- vigorated bodies and education. Greater results were obtained during the past year than in 1915. Cost of playgrounds in 1914 was $10,275, in 1915 10 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT was $15,820 and in 1916 will aggregate $14,000. Attendance during the season of 1914 was 139,000, in 1915 was 150,000 and in 1916 reached 191,997. ATTENDANCE AT CITY-SUPERVISED PLAYGROUNDS DURING SEASONS OF 191 5 AND I916 Children Adults 1915 1916 1915 1916 South Edgemont 4,001 3,874 400 450 Kirkham and Fluhart . 4,101 4,819 410 16 First and Orchard 4,311 3,827 431 91 Benn Street 3,895 2,864 3^9 253 Monument Avenue 4,524 5,190 452 265 Bayard Street 3,906 4,635 391 475 St. Nicholas 2,796 3,470 280 66 Burkhardt 4,605 5,242 461 1,102 Brownell 3,235 3,255 324 50 Walters' Grove 5,350 5,189 535 118 Earl and Webster 5,94i 6,310 594 172 Island Park 6,169 8,514 617 856 McKinley Park 16,171 18,845 I>6i7 3,406 Pease Street 9,908 7,473 991 1,040 College Street 2,413 4,230 241 181 McCabe's Park 12,335 14,226 1,236 3,378 N. C. R 4,963 14,728 496 1,325 Bomberger 52,000 75,252 5,200 10,400 Total 150,624 191,943 15*065 23,644 WIDER RESULTS AT DECREASED COST 1915 Child Attendance 150,624 1915 Adult Attendance 15,065 1915 Total Attendance 165,689 1915 Total Cost $15,820 MUNICIPAL IMPROVEMENT ii 1916 Child Attendance ^9^,997 Inc 27.5% 1 916 Adult Attendance 26,702 " 77.3^<' 1916 Total Attendance 218,699 " 31.9% 1916 Total Cost $14,000 " 1.2% Parks Five years ago Dayton's park area was less than 20 acres. To-day it is approximately 175 acres, or more than eight times that available in 191 1. This great increase has been effected largely during the past three years. Five years ago there was one acre of park available for each 5,948 residents of the city. To-day there is one acre of park ground for each 875 people. Five years ago as to- day the park space included small recreational centers, beau- tified boulevards, levees and areas about public buildings. The cost of the Division of Parks in 1914 was $16,445, i" 1915 was $16,770 and in 1916 will total $16,000. Prior to 1914 approximately as much money was spent by the park department, but with no fixed plans for making its open spaces recreation centers. The physical value of Dayton's park lands and buildings to-day is $603,000, which includes necessary equipment and playground apparatus. Five years ago no valuation records were kept. At no additional cost of operation during the past five years there has been at least 90 percent advance in recrea- tional activities. Under direction of Park Superintendent William Madden citizens have enjoyed picnics, boating, bath- ing, dancing, camping, baseball, tennis, moving pictures, band concerts and other wholesome amusement and enter- tainment. But all this is not enough. Dayton needs more parks, more recreation centers and more open spaces. They are the "safety zones" of city life. Do they pay? Results can- not be measured in dollars and cents. They show only in healthier bodies and happier minds. 12 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Dayton maintains a large fire department to prevent loss of property through conflagration. Its parks and playgrounds are maintained to promote the health and happiness of the people. Provision for recreation is just as necessary a public duty as prevention of fire. Yet Dayton spends on parks and playgrounds only a frac- tion of the amount laid out to safeguard property. Are not the results of recreation work worth consider- ably more than they cost? What Taxes Equals in Service ; The Scope of Muni- cipal Service. — Still another illustration of suggestive publicity is to be found in the "Thanksgiving Number" of Citizens' Business, a weekly leaflet issued by the Philadelphia Bureau of Municipal Research, *'to promote efficient and scientific management of municipal busi- ness." Here it is : A certain family had, among others, the following yearly expenses : Telephone $48.00 Gas for cooking and laundry 50.00 Electricity for lighting and laundry 50.00 Daily street car fare, two members of the family . . 60.00 Taxes, exclusive of schools 50.00 All but the last were for obvious services, but what of taxes? What did this family get for the $50 it paid to the city? In thinking it over the father discovered that during the year he and his family had received the following munic- ipal services: 1. They had had the use of the streets and bridges — more important utilities than telephone, gas or electricity. 2. They had had the use of the parks and playgrounds where the children had been taught to swim. ' MUNICIPAL IMPROVEMENT 13 3. The children were protected from danger at street crossings and in the parks. 4. In a neighbor's house a small fire was extinguished, which, had it been allowed to grow unchecked, would have destroyed theirs and other homes. 5. The thief who had stolen some jewelry was appre- hended by the Detective Bureau and the jewelry returned. 6. A child stricken with diphtheria across the street was quarantined and the children of this family protected from contagion. 7. Ashes, garbage and sewage were all removed from the house. 8. The family did not have to purchase standard scales because they could be sure that the grocer's scales were hon- est because of city supervision. The full weight of coal delivered to them made a bigger pile than used to show in the coal bin. 9. Their food was cheaper than it would have been be- cause the city had planned and developed wharves and docks and other facilities for transportation of commodities. 10. The city pumped pure water into the home for con- siderably less than the privately owned water company was delivering water to their neighbors across the city line 11. The inspection of elevators, boilers and buildings all contributed to the safety and freedom from fear which the family enjoyed. 12. The wife had felt free to leave the house alone after dark, for the city kept the streets well lighted. 13. Several times during the year the policeman on the beat had closed up the back door and the downstairs win- dows that had been left open. 14. The family's milk and meat supply were kept free of disease because the city was on guard. 15. The family physician used the city laboratories for sputum tests for tuberculosis, blood tests for typhoid, and throat cultures for diphtheria, as the various members of the family seemed to be threatened with these diseases. 14 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT 1 6. When the new bathroom was installed, the city saw to it that the plumber did the right kind of job. 17. The head of a family got a judgment from a debtor who showed an indifference to his obligation. 18. A projected city-owned transit line had already in- creased the value of his home as real estate. When it is finished the head of the family will have an extra three- quarters of an hour with his family each day. 19. The family maid, ordinarily quite competent, became so worried that her services began to deteriorate. After her old mother, now grown helpless, had been comfortably settled at Brown Farm and her little girl had her eyes ex- amined and fitted with glasses and her teeth repaired, all at the city's expense, the maid could give a less distracted at- tention to her employer's interests. The maid's landlord was forced to improve the little house in which she lived, and she no longer brought "colds" into this home. 20. The children got tickets to visit the Zoo; the whole family spent an afternoon at the Philadelphia Museum and another at the Academy of Fine Arts; they visited the City Hall tower, and Independence Hall and there were always books in the house from the Free Library; they enjoyed the municipal band concerts which were held in their square. When this father, who had never paid his taxes very cheerfully, so the leaflet declared, thought over these mat- ters, he came to the conclusion that he and his household were getting a larger return in things vital to their well- being for the fifty dollars spent in taxes than in a similar amount spent in any other way. A single illness, a single fire, a single robbery, could easily have amounted to more than the year's levy. However, his patriotic fervor did not make him willing to pay more than is sufl5cient to provide first class service. He wanted his government, in the words of the bureau, run with real economy because in the end that means greater and better service to citizens. Nor did he feel any more in- clined to pay through unjust assessment, more than his part. ' MUNICIPAL IMPROVEMENT 15 but he was willing to pay cheerfully his share in money and in personal interest for the large returns which he received. The Welfare of Public Employees. — These illustra- tions are something more, however, than striking exam- ples of suggestive publicity. They serve to illustrate and illuminate the wide scope of municipal life and activ- ity. Still other examples may be adduced from the annual reviews of the Secretary of the National Munic- ipal League. In the January, 1916, issue of the National Municipal Review under the caption of ''American Conceptions of Municipal Government" he showed that under the Mitchel administration in New York City, which has made many new records, much im- portant work is being done for the welfare of the city employees. In the first place, a lunch-room in the municipal building has been provided for the women employees of the city. It is self-supporting, and run under the supervision of a committee of women organ- ized and selected by the women themselves. This was the first attempt, I believe, of any city to supply a con- venience that is now only supplied by great corporations. An employers' conference committee has been organ- ized. This committee is representative both of the classi- fied and unclassified service, and consists of representa- tives chosen directly by the employees and a representa- tive chosen by the heads of departments. It is hoped that a great deal will be accomplished by this conference com- mittee to bring about a better relation and understanding between the administration and its employees. Semi-monthly payment of salaries has been established in a number of the departments where the consensus shows that the majority were in favor of making the change. Those changes have been advocated by the vari- l6 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT ous civil service papers, particularly for the police and fire departments, on the plea that it will save a great many- city employees from applying to loan-sharks and loan agencies for funds to carry them through the month. Comptroller Prendergast has also established a system of having on each pay day an amount of cash ready in the paymaster's office, sufficient to pay off a large major- ity of the checks. This has been found a great con- venience by the employees who formerly had to change their checks at different stores and frequently brought men to saloons, when it invariably happened that a cer- tain expenditure had to be made in order to get the desired accommodation. The department of health has instituted a system of periodical physical examination of employees. I might proceed with the inventory, all to the end, however, of showing that the city administration cares — cares for the people who are working with it in the pub- lic behalf. Moreover, we see that the city governments throughout the country are coming to care for the people in a way that was unthought of and unheard of a genera- tion ago. It is to be found in the extension of facilities for wholesome outdoor recreation, as was set forth in the Dayton advertisemertt, of educational facilities for those whose school days are necessarily limited; for the upbuilding of the individual in health and strength and power. Public Safety and Public Welfare. — Municipalities are considering its relation to its food supply.^ The reports of the National Municipal League's committee on * See two reports of National Municipal League's Committee on the Relation of the City to Its Food Supply, Dr. Clyde Lyn- don King, Chairman. MUNICIPAL IMPROVEMENT 17 this subject abounds with instances of what is being done along th-ese Hnes. Newton D. Baker, while Mayor of Cleveland, showed how the police were intimately related to the social problems, and how they could be utilized in the solution of sundry social problems, and in highly important preventive work. The administration of Po- lice Commissioner Woods in New York has been char- acterized, not only by increased efficiency along adminis- trative lines, but by the utilization of the police in finding employment and in saving men, women and children from dangerous and degrading surroundings, and in de- veloping the patrolmen as an effective adjunct of the army and navy in times of war. An impressive note is the proposition to utilize the police for parole and reformatory work. The time is coming when the value of a patrolman's service will be determined, not by the number of men he starts on the way to jail or prison, but by the number he keeps out of such places, and starts on a career of usefulness. Interest of the city in better housing is growing, not so rapidly as the more zealous of us would wish, but, nevertheless, it is growing. Infant life protection is an- other topic which is coming in for definite and effective work at the hands of city officials. Health exhibitions are increasing in number; and so the list might be con- tinued, all to show that a new conception of municipal Hfe is taking hold of the American people — the concep- tion of the utilization of the great powers of government to overcome the evil effects of environment and heredity and adverse conditions generally. Not through the law as such, but through the law as representing the consen- sus of public opinion. In the annual review for 1916, under the head of "Municipal Preparedness," the secretary of the National i8 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Municipal League said that it is not only along financial, governmental and political lines that the great changes and advances are to be noted. Prof. Ernst Freund, in an article on ''Tendencies of Legislative Policy and Modern Social Legislation,"^ shows how the last ten years have witnessed remarkable changes in the attitude of American courts toward social legislation. There has been an equally great change on the part of legislatures, city, state and national, and all these changes are but the reflection and outgrowth of the changes in the concep- tions and aspirations of the American people. In no other phase of municipal life has there been manifested a greater concern for the future, a stronger and more per- sistent demand for preparation. The recreation con- gress at Grand Rapids issued its program for "Com- munity Buildings and Character Buildings through Play" under the title "Preparedness for Peace." The annual report of the director of the Dayton de- partment of public welfare (Rev. D. Frank Garland) made this statement : A probation system, entirely new in the history of work- house administration, so far as we know, was established April I, 1915, under which men and women were secured work in shops or factories or houses at regular wages. These persons received no liberties, except the liberty to work for pay outside the institution between the hours of 6.30 in the morning and 5.30 at night. The money thus earned was distributed by the prisoner and his wife (if married), under the supervision of the superintendent of corrections, in the payment of debts, in the support of wife and children or dependents, in the purchase of clothing, etc. The results have been eminently satisfactory. Thirty-six men during 191 5 were thus put on probation, only three of 'International Journal of Ethics, October, 1916. MUNICIPAL IMPROVEMENT 19 whom violated our confidence, resulting in the withdrawal of the privilege. These men earned in eight months $2,025.70. Following this test, a parole is granted and the prisoner is allowed to leave the institution. The parole system, as the Philadelphia bureau of munic- ipal research points out, is the most delicate task that government has assumed thus far. Although it is fairly new, this much has been definitely established : that it can only be successfully operated where ^'politics" are rigidly and uncompromisingly excluded, and where parole and probation ofiBcers are appointed and hold their posi- tions only by reason of fitness for this new kind of work. Where favoritism is shown or where respect for officers is lacking, the system collapses like a house of cards, so far as real results are concerned. In other words, polit- ical and social preparedness must go hand in hand if we are to make genuine progress that will last. A Canadian official declares the best time to save the criminal is before he becomes one. It costs less in money, and infinitely less in some other things that are worth much more than money. Prevention is a greater word than reformation: *'The highest achievement of the state or of the Church is not a man rescued in mid-career from a life of vice and crime, but rather a child, strength- ened in will and purpose, clean in hand and in heart, fitted by training and discipline for a whole long life of service and usefulness. ... In our love for the spec- tacular we have called the former the greater service, but it is not, even though at times it appears to make a greater demand upon our faith. The problem of the criminal, when it is brought down to its final analysis, is the problem of the child. The hope of the future does not lie in the perfecting of our method for reaching the 20 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT man, but in our making the most of our opportunity of winning the boy." Social Hygiene. — It may now be said, Dr. Snow of" the American Social Hygiene Association tells us, that social hygiene is essentially a constructive movement for the promotion of all those conditions of living, environ- ment, and personal conduct which will best protect the family as an institution and secure a rational sex life for the individual of each generation. This is well shown by the forceful statement of Dr. Edward L. Keyes, Jr., descriptive of the aims and methods of such societies to- day. "The elimination of disease and prostitution can- not be attained solely by the enforced registration of venereal diseases, the raiding of disorderly houses, and the enactment of laws against procuration and solicita- tion. The real strength of the social hygiene movement of to-day lies in the cooperative activities of the great religious, social and educational organizations. They are striking the evil at its source ; not by driving the prostitute into the street and then out of it again, but by preventing our young girls from becoming prostitutes, and our young men from preying upon them. This they hope to achieve by informing the mind so as to banish prurient curiosity, by diverting the imagination to emotions joyous and clean, by exercising the body in playgrounds and dance halls that are safe, and, above all, by inspiring the soul with the highest religious and family and civic ideals. To turn lust into love, 'into the enthralling love of mate for equal mate, into civic love for freedom, home, and state, into the eternal love of God and of all things create' such is our aspiration." Eventually it is possible that social hygiene may find its place as an inclusive designation for a group of organized and affiliated move- MUNICIPAL IMPROVEMENT 21 ments which deal with community problems in which social and moral factors as distinct from sanitary factors are of primary importance, and indeed an established part of the municipal government itself, it is logically a com- panion term to public hygiene, or public health, which is its popular equivalent. City Planning. — There is another movement which calls for attention in any consideration of conceptions of American municipal government ; the movement popu- larly known as city planning, a phrase much more often used than defined. There was a time when it was prac- tically a scheme for "the city beautiful"; now it has a much richer and a much more comprehensive meaning. Its development has been in accordance with the growth of the movement to place our cities upon a more sub- stantial, a more respectable, a more useful basis. Henry R. Aldridge, the secretary of the English National Hous- ing and Town Planning Council, and a veteran in the cause of city planning, declares in his new book, "A Case for Town Planning," that "the phrase should come to clearheaded administrators as an appeal for the substitu- j tion of order in the place oTcEaoi"incity^~growth; — To^ those members of municipal committees responsible for the guardianship of the health of the population, the appeal would be that of the wisdoipi of prevention as compared with the wastefulness of cure. To those re- sponsible for the wise administration of municipal rev- enues, the appeal is strong and direct. They have wit- nessed for many years the waste of the taxpayers' money on school-house schemes, on road-widening schemes and on many other schemes which never would have been necessary at all if town-planning care and foresight had been exercised. To them the case for town-planning 22 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT on the financial side is overwhelming: they realize that the sick man is a burden to the community, while the healthy man is an asset: the one has to be carried, the other carries his own burdens and helps to carry the burdens of others." The New Conception of Municipal Life. — Here we have another phase of the new conception of municipal life : the obligation resting upon the community to de- velop' Iiealthy men, women and children — healthy physi- cally, healthy morally and healthy spiritually; and the amount of thought and time and attention given to pro- moting these ends during the past decade is one of the big, encouraging factors in American history. From this deliberately sketchy chapter, the reader will carry away an impression of the "wide scope of munic- ipal improvement," the development of interest and the complexity of modern life, and it is to be hoped, the firm and definite conviction that the government of our cities calls for the science of trained, intelligent officials. CHAPTER III THE INADEQUACY OF PRESENT CITY GOVERNMENT THIS ought to be the easiest chapter in the book to write, for, barring a few unconscionable optimists, all the leading authorities agree that American city gov- ernment is woefully inadequate. The only danger is that if we draw freely upon the literature of criticism the discussion will expand to such limits as to crowd all other chapters out of the voluipe. Merely to define inadequacy as applied to city government involves a thorough con- sideration of civic science, and to describe it as applied to existing American conditions r-equires an appeal to civic history and to a general survey of civic conditions. Therefore, we must forego the grim pleasure of defining it precisely or describing it in detail. * It is not our task carefully to evaluate municipal prog- ress. There is no reason why we should repeat the well-worn phrases of denunciation or the blind self-gratu- lations of a cheap optimism. What we must try to do, is to make a general analysis of civic purposes and civic methods in the light of the civic results which are open to the eyes of the world. Congestion of Population, the Raison d*Etre of City Government. — Broadly speaking, the raison d'etre of city government is congestion of population. Its pur- pose is to overcome or ameliorate by cooperation the dis- advantages of human life arising out of that fact, and 23 24 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT conversely, though perhaps in a lesser degree, to cultivate and make available the advantages inherent in it. I use the term "congestion" for lack of a better one. I do not mean to imply by it a social sickness attended by a fever that is likely to be fatal. Indeed, I use the term in the sense declared by the dictionary to be obsolete, as mean- ing merely aggregation or gathering together, without any implication at all as to oz/^rcrowding, unhealthfulness or abnormality. I use the term to distinguish the funda- mental fact that characterizes urban life as such. In saying that the purpose of city government is to overcome the disadvantages and to cultivate the advantages of urban life, we stop short of stating its full purpose as conceived under American conditions and in the light of American political institutions and ideals. We must add that the aim is to remove Ihe disadvantages and to make the advantages available for all. This amplifica- tion is necessary to make our definition of purpose express the spirit of democracy. Our first test, then, of the adequacy or inadequacy of present city government will be this: How far does its conscious purposes square with and fulfill this broad ideal purpose? How generally does it know what it is about and what it ought to be about? And when we sj>eak of city government having "conscious purposes" and "know- ing what it is about," we must, of course, refer to the intellectual processes of the individual men and women who make up the city government. But city government in America theoretically has a foundation so broad as to include everybody, or, at the very least, everybody endowed with the powers and privileges of an elector. Therefore, in testing the adequacy of the conscious pur- poses of city government, we have to consider not merely what mayors, city managers, aldermen, commissioners INADEQUACY OF CITY GOVERNMENT 25 and policemen are thinking about, but also what the citi- zens are thinking about. Potentially, if not actually, they are the ''power behind the throne." And so our question reduces itself to these simple terms : What does the average citizen think the city government is for? How far does he und-erstand its ideal purposes? What are the disadvantages of city life which he thinks it ought to overcome ? What are the advantages which he thinks it ought to cultivate and make available ? If we were to judge by the words that fall lightly from the lips of citizens, we should conclude that the prevalent conception of city government is either that of an ex- pensive, but unavoidable evil, or that of an instrumen- tality for the distribution of favors and jobs to those who are in a position to use it. Doubtless, many, even of those who express themselves cynically or selfishly, have a higher ideal and a better understanding of the purposes of city government than their careless words would ex- press. There are, besides, many citizens who as teachers, editorial writers, lecturers, social workers, civic reform- ers, government employees and candidates for public office, give oartial expression to a broader and more fundamental conception of city government. Public Interest vs. Private Interests. — A distinction is often made between public and private interests, but this distinction, which is the major premise* of city gov- ernment in its restrictive aspects, is often blurred over in the consciousness of the people and is seldom or never as sharply drawn as it ought to be. Civic spirit, which may be regarded as the manifestation in individuals of a recognition of the public interest, is sometimes con- fused with other things that masquerade in its habili- ments. The refinements of thought and feeling which 26 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT characterize the broadening of a narrow personal or family selfishness into civic spirit are both gradual and subtle. But they are all important. Until the citizen becomes conscious of the city as an entity greater and more important than himself, his concept of the purpose and functions of city government will be narrow and wholly inadequate. The difference is well illustrated in the politics of Cleveland where the Tom Johnson group proclaimed their purpose to make Cleveland "a city set upon a hill." Their opponents cynically referred to the Cleveland of the Johnson-Baker regime as "a city built on a bluff." This suggests the charge of "humbug" that is so often made against so-called reform administrations, because they profess to be disinterested in their official policies and acts. One of the most widespread and deep- seated causes of cynicism and indifference among the people of cities is the notion, which often has the strength of a conviction, that no matter what party is put into power and no matter what candidates are elected, the results will be much the same — extravagance, incompe- tence, a betrayal of the public interest and an exploita- tion of power for personal ends. Young men are warned not to go into politics, and election to a city office is often regarded as a stepping stone to a life of personal dissipation and a general breaking down of character. It is "beyond human power" that men should efface themselves in public service and vote and work with complete indifference to their personal interests. In general, the electors are justified in guiding their actions by a policy of enlight- ened selfishness, on the assumption that what is good for the citizens individually is good for them collec- tively. But if selfishness is to be a proper motive to control citizen action it must be surely enlightened. If INADEQUACY OF CITY GOVERNMENT 27 a person who has no taxable property votes for ex- travagance because he thinks that others will have to pay the bills; if a tax-payer, in order to keep down the tax-rate, votes against increasing official salaries to a standard in some measure commensurate with the services he expects public officials to render; if a man who has no children, for that reason votes for a niggardly policy as to public education; if a citizen with a fine home and all the sanitary conveniences that wealth can afford, votes against the exercise of public authority, and the expenditure of public money to improve sanitary conditions in the homes of the poor ; if an electorate votes to saddle the legitimate expenses of city government on another generation by an improvident bond issue, the selfishness that prompts these actions gropes in darkness, and the selves that are served by them are too small for citizenship in a city. It is right and proper that a person entering the city service either as a responsible official or as a subordinate employee should be actuated by ordi- nary motives of self-interest in seeking to make a living and an honorable career for himself. But if we concede that everybody connected with the city government is motivated by self-interest, what be- comes of the difference between what we may call the Tammany motive and the City Club motive ? I use these terms in a general sense to typify the old style politicians and the reformers, and without any particular reference to local conditions in New York. We must not insist on finding a difference where there is none, nor in prov- ing it by superficial appearances. The real difference in motives, where there is one, is the same sort of difference that divides the business world into two classes of men, both selfish in the sense that they are seeking economic gain. Men of one class seek to get ahead by superior 28 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT merit. They try to put brains and human energy into the production of commodities or the rendition of services which shall be worth more to the buyer than he pays for them. Men of another class rack their brains, such as they have, to deceive or cajole their fellow- men into giving up money to them for something that is not worth while, or to secure some unfair advantage by which others may be compelled to pay more than a fair price for goods or services. The distinction is made every day in the case of business men, working men and clerks. Some are tricky and some are honest. Some want their pay first and are indifferent as to the service they render afterwards, while others strive to render service first and then expect fair compensation for it. Some employees demand an increase of salary as the price of doing good work. Others do good work, ex- pecting that to help them get higher pay. In great cities, where social organization is extremely complex, and men's efforts are in many cases hidden from those who are affected by them, the acid test of service rendered is not easily applied, and young men entering business or professional life are tempted to set up as their standard of success ability to get other people's money away from them and keep out of jail in the process. This motive has such wide currency that in many circles it is regarded as legitimate and respectable, just as is the case with the political motive of using governmental power to distribute jobs to one's friends and followers and political influ- ence to get financial favors and s|>ecial privileges for oneself. As applied to city government, therefore, the difference between the ^Tammany motive" and the "City Club motive" is this — the former looks to getting, with- out reference to the value of the service rendered. The INADEQUACY OF CITY GOVERNMENT 29 latter looks to giving honest and intelligent service and receiving a just reward for it. There is a good deal of cant in the talk about the .public spirit manifested by men who render public ser- vice without receiving any compensation for it. Of course, every citizen ought to be able, and willing, if able, to take part in public affairs without being paid for it, but many men cannot afford even the time it takes to vote if they are compelled thereby to lose a day's wages. And so it has been suggested sometimes that every elector should receive a fee for casting his ballot. Even this extreme suggestion is not a concession to self- ishness in the narrow sense of the term, but a recogni- tion that voting is a pubic service, not a mere personal privilege, and that in performing this service a citizen is contributing to the general welfare, rather than striving to protect himself as a private individual or to further his own private interests. Every citizen ought to devote a portion of his leisure, if he has any, to the formation of intelligent public opinion with reference to the pur- poses and methods of city government. But the de- mand that men shall give their days freely to public service is not in accordance with the spirit or the neces- sities of democracy. In most cases where they are able and willing to do it, it is as a sort of penance for the un- usual advantages they have received by which they or their ancestors have been enabled to accumulate wealth, or else it is a subtle means of advertising by which they hope to enlarge their fortunes, attain social promi- nence, secure political power, or get some other of the rewards of life not generally within the reach of per- sons who have not attained a competence. Men of wealth are not to be blamed for devoting themselves to public service, but they ought not to expect extraordi- 30 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT nary rewards for doing so, and such rewards ought not be given. Otherwise, democracy is transformed into a benevolent plutocracy, and only the rich can have public spirit. In drawing a line between the "Tammany motive" and the "City Club motive," we cannot stop with the con- sideration of the attitude of voters and office holders. What shall we say of the men who sell goods to the city, who enter into contracts with it and who receive concessions from it to enable them to perform semi- public services? The city has to buy goods, public works have to be constructed either by contract or other- wise, and public utility services have to be rendered either by public or by private operation. So long as these goods and services are supplied by private indi- viduals, it is perfectly honorable for such individuals to demand reasonable compensation. But the danger of combining the possession of governmental power with opportunities for financial profit are so clearly recog- nized that many city charters absolutely prohibit any city official or employee from having any interest direct or indirect in any contract with the city or in the sale of any goods to it. This prohibition is sometimes quite embarrassing where men who in the regular course of their business furnish the city with certain supplies are thereby rendered ineligible for public office unless they discontinue the services they have been accustomed to render as merchants. It should be recognized as perfectly honorable to sell things to the city and to perform ser- vices for the city under contract, and to do so for legiti- mate profit. The trouble arises when citizens having financial dealings with the city attempt to take advantage of political influence or vx the faulty methods or inalert- ness of city officials in doing city business to foist upon INADEQUACY OF CITY GOVERNMENT 31 the city inferior goods or services, or to get exorbitant prices for them. It is not too much to say that an ade- quate public conception of the purposes of city govern- ment would visit the citizen who tried to steal from or cheat the city with the same degree of contempt that is heaped on a man who would rob his mother. It is unfortunate that the imperfect methods of doing city business sometimes make it impossible for the best class of citizens to compete for it. Contractors for public work as a class often have a very bad reputation for honesty in some particular city, but this is as much to the discredit of controlling public opinion as it is to the contractors' discredit. A city that had the right idea of the purposes of government would not be compelled to deal habitually with crooks in getting public work done. We still have to consider the all-important play of motives in the operation of public utilities. An ade- quate conception of the functions of city government would strip away the private and speculative wrappings of public utility enterprises and would take hold firmly of the central fact, namely, that the operation of public utilities is public business, and that its controlling motive must be service rather than the exploitation of urban necessities. This does not absolutely shut the door to nominal private ownership and operation, but it pre- scribes public service as the motive that must dominate the business, and unless this motive can be made domi- nant in private operation, nothing short of public owner- ship and operation will be tolerable. Perhaps in no respect is the effective popular conception of the true purposes of city government more inadequate than in relation to public utilities. The idea that services which can be rendered at a profit should be left for private exploitation, and that only necessary services incapable 32 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT of being commercialized should be undertaken by the city, is still in effect the dominant one, though there is much reason to believe that the majority of urban resi- dents hold another vi-ew, if somewhat vaguely. This phase of the problem of city government is closely re- lated to our ideas about public and private initiative, and so long as citizenship lacks the cohesive power of public servic-e, the city government will be lacking in the con- structive intelligence necessary for the performance of its great tasks. Cities are now comparatively helpless in the face of the tremendous private initiative for the exploitation of public services. The very conditions of urban life, especially in the great centers of population, have rendered private initiative in the performance of public services inadequate and increasingly obsolete. The Opportunity for Experts in the City Govern- ment. — It is unnecessary to try to describe in detail the disadvantages of urban life which it is the purpose of city government to overcome or the advantages which it is its purpose^to develop and make available to all. The disadvantages include the inadequacy of the local food and water supply, the accumulation of dangerous wastes, the restriction of space available for recreation, the enlargement and crowding together of buildings used for business and residential purposes, the mutual inter- ferences through congestion of traffic, the extreme divi- sion of labor with the resultant elimination of the educa- tional opportunitties for children in connection with home industries, the necessary separation of business from residential locations involving the problem of urban transit, the enormous increase in the value of land and the consequent increase in rents and the impossi- bility of general home ownership, the increased oppor- INADEQUACY OF CITY GOVERNMENT 33 tunities for organized crime and vice, the greater danger of the spread of epidemic diseases, the constant peril of destruction by lire through other people's carelessness, the loss of privacy in family life, and what else not? — for urban life transforms man's environment and sets him to live in a new world full of th-e perils of civiliza- tion. On the other hand, the actual and potential ad- vantages of urban life measure the difference between primitive individualism and the highest attainments of humanity. Urban life makes possible paved streets, beautiful parks, magnificent public buildings, fully equipped general and technical schools, free public libraries, gas and electric light and power, the greatest possible variety of food at all seasons of the year, the best medical and surgical treatment almost on the in- stant of needing it, museums, art galleries, theaters and concert halls, cheap and comfortable transit, public baths and fountains, an abundant supply of pure water under pressure — the list is almost endless. The city is the torch-bearer of civilization, the priestess of culture, the herald of democracy. Yet the ideal city does not yet exist. What we see and have is but the raw material, an opportunity to create the city.^ We need only see the vision to realize the inadequacy of our every-day conceptions of the purposes and functions of city gov- ernment. There can be no higher appeal to the brains, the energy and the eager soul of man than the call of the city to its service. Inadequacy of Administration. — The inadequacy of the general concepts of the purposes of city government cannot but be reflected in inadequate methods employed in municipal administration. If city government is mere job-holding, anybody will do for a job-holder. 34 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT This is the old raw idea of the cheap politicians. In a reaction against the naive deadliness of this notion, pan- icky reformers many times appeal to the idea that city government is business, not politics, and that civic salva- tion depends upon electing a good business man for mayor and giving him almost autocratic powers in the conduct of public affairs. In this they fail to see that city business is almost as complex as life itself and re- quires the sympathetic attention of minds trained to much broader ideas than those of mere executive effi- ciency and money-making. ONE man cannot make a city in two or four years' time. It takes a group of men forever to do it. And so the notion that by the magic of popular election one man can be chosen who will succeed where a hundred have failed is an outgrowth of a wholly inadequate conception of the nature and im- portance of city government. In the effort to check the depredations of politicians exercising governmental power and reduce the fatalities to a minimum, all sorts of restrictions have been devised and incorporated in constitutions, general laws and city charters, until in attempting to prevent city government from going intol- erably wrong, the people have tied it up so that it cannot go tolerably right. A charter devised to prevent the expected scoundrels in public office from utterly ruining the city, keeps the unexpected honest and capable offi- cials from doing it much good. There is no royal road to good city government, and no dependable progress towards it can be made except as sound public opinion is developed and the number of loyal persons able to participate intelligently in it is increased. The "Econom/* Shibboleth. — To many the crying need in city government seems to be economy. The INADEQUACY OF CITY GOVERNMENT 35 "tax-payers" demand a respite from the "tax-eaters." Extravagance and waste in the name of city government are certainly wicked and should be stopped, but when "economy" takes the form of reduced expenditures, it is likely to prove to be pvenny wisdom and pound foolish- ness. City government everywhere does much less than it ought to do, and economy is a misleading shibboleth. At the best it is a mere negative ideal and has no place in a municipal program except as a necessary means of extending and improving governmental service. I say this because all American cities are so far behind the requirements of their situation as to make it a safe prediction that no city spending wisely will ever spend too much. — ^ If the full performance of the functions of city gov- ernment demands the spending of more and more money, the method of getting the money to spend becomes a matter of major importanc-e. Cities are especially char- acterized by sharp contrasts of great wealth and de- grading poverty dwelling side by side. While these con- ditions exist there can be no excuse for city govern- ment stopping short in the expenditure of money to make the advantages of city life available to all. All sorts of devices for raising rev-enue are being considered in the rich cities that feel too poor to perform their func- tions. To many men it seems that the economic advan- tages of city life are reflected in the site values of .the land and that this reservoir of wealth created by the community life rather than by distinguishable individual endeavors is the source upon which cities should freely draw for the funds required in overcoming the city's eco- nomic disadvantages and in further developing its advan- tages. This idea fully carried out leads to the thought that land values in cities are inherently public values, just 36 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT as public utility services are coming to be recognized as inherently public business. Certain it is that advantages should be made to pay for disadvantages, and that the ideal city can never come into being so long as unexam- pled luxury is permitted to flaunt itself before the eyes of helpless squalor. Methods of taxation, so funda- mentally important in the development of city govern- ment, ought to be so devised as to help rather than hinder the realization of the city's aims. And certainly civic improvements should not be so financed as to pyra- mid the burden on future generations through the reck- less accumulation of debts incurred for perishable things. We hardly need touch upon the actual results obtained by present city government. Many wonderful things are being done. Many cities, beautiful in parts, are being built. The spirit of democracy is being awakened in many places, and the intelligence necessary for the successful performance of civic functions is being de- veloped. Alas, that we cannot say more! We are still far, very far from the goal, with no certainty that we shall ever reach it. The present status of city govern- ment in America is not encouraging to the careless optimism that is sure things will come out all right in the end whether we make any effort or not. The situa- tion' is not hopeless, but it is a case where success is necessary, not certain. We cannot afford to fail, but every ounce of effort of which all the citizens of all the cities are capable is needed in this wonderful enterprise. In building cities, Epimetheus-like, we have accepted from the hands of Zeus Pandoras many with their boxes full of evils. What we have needed most has most been lacking — forethought, continuity of purpose, public initiative, coordination of effort, intelligence in admin- istration and single-mindedness in public life. CHAPTER IV THE NEED FOR EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT* THE preceding chapters of this book have dealt with the rapid grawth in the number and size of cities in this country; with the wider scope of municipal gov- ernment, which has resulteTTHer^rom ; and with the consequently increasing strain upon the machinery of municipal government. One of the most insistent prob- lems for us is how this strain is to be met. We talk about the strain on the machinery, as if the organiza- tion were a material thing, liable to be pressed out of shape, or broken into fragments. This, in a sense, is true; but, after all, the organization is composed of men, and it is upon these men that the strain comes. Not only must we so organize our government as to place the men who conduct it in as favorable a position as possible for doing their duty well ; but we must also see that the men to whom we confide the task are, so far as possible, qualified by their natural gifts and their training to carry the load. It has been the habit in all ages for men to speculate about what some extraordi- nary person from a distant clime would think if he came to visit us. De Tocqueville loo Years Later. — If, for instance, Alexis de Tocqueville, who wrote about America loo * Reprinted from National Municipal Review of Jan., 1915, with some slight changes. 37 38 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT years ago, should return, what changes would he find in our civilization? He would notice that we were very much larger in numbers, but he would notice a great many other things besides. He would observe that the characteristic, which began with the pioneer on the Atlantic seaboard and gradually went westward, — that quality by which every man had to be "a jack of all trades" in every kind of occupation, — had practically disappeared. H^ would notice that no longer did any man expect to be his own farmer, his own hunter, his own carpenter, his own lawyer, and perhaps his own doctor. The pioneer man must be all those things. The people hav-e developed from that type of life. Our country has become like the Europe that he knew, inas- much as the occupations of men are far more varied and far more specialized than they were when he visited America. He came not very far from the time when cotton mills and railroads began; and at that time any successful merchant was good enough to put at the head of a factory or of a railroad. Now no one thinks of taking charg-e of a railroad or a factory unless he has had experience in those fields. These occupations are just as specialized as they are in Europe. De Tocque- Tille would make another observation if he came. He would say: "In the industries you have men with spe- cial training; men who are not only experts in the highest sense, but who have been carefully educated in schools for the purpose ; and, in fact, there is no country where there are better schools for special training than here, law schools, medical schools, schools for engi- neers; but while you are doing that in your industrial life, you are not doing it in your government. You are not using experts in the public service to the same extent as every other civilized people in the vforld. He THE NEED FOR EXPERTS 39 would go one step further. He would observe — and it is a common saying in the United States — that of all the kinds of government in this country the least successful has been the government of great cities. He would also observe that it is in those very cities that we use the expert the least; and, perhaps, being de Tocqueville, he would see some connection between those facts. The Expert in Public and Private Affairs. — What do we mean by an "expert"? I think we can define an expert simply enough. An expert is a man whoJby_hi.s_ knowledge and experience in any particular subject is_ better qualified _tp_jleal_jmth that s„^^^ than people who have not had such knowledge or experience. You will notice I am specially making the definition very- broad, and I am not confining it to those things which we commonly consider the subject of expert knowledge. We all know there are certain classes of experts which we have long respected. We do not want men ap- pointed as judges who ar-e not lawyers ; nor do we want in public hospitals men who are not physicians. Those are the two oldest professions that we know; but there are new professions constantly developing. To-day we recognize that we should not employ an inexperienced man to build a bridge. We require an engineer. We know that he must calculate the stresses and strains on every piece of steel in that bridge or the bridge will not stand. But there are many other things that only the expert can do well. To-day we never think of putting a man in charge of a railroad who has not been trained in railroad work. Take banking — take manufacturing of any kind — take anything that you please in the in- dustrial world. We put an expert in charge of it. What do we do in our cities? In most cities any man 40 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT may be superintendent of streets. Mr, Eshleman has told us that the city fathers should be as harmless as doves and as wise as serpents. We shall all agree that the history of our city governments has not been one of extreme harmlessness or wisdom; and it is the wis- dom of the serpent that I want to discuss. f"" The Democratic Fear of the Expert. — Granted that . we use experts everywhere else, why_ do we not use them in our governrnent to the extent that we might? ^ For a very simple reason. We are afraid^f them^ We \ are afraid that if the expert is put in charge, the people will lose control over him. We have always been afraid : of the expert; and it is worth while sometimes to recall ~ the fact, well known to every student of history, that democracies until this last one hundred years have always been short-lived institutions. I believe that this is because democraciesJiave never known how to usje ' those expert qualities which a r-e necessary for effi ciency.^ Dem ocracies may be hor f^^t, ^l^^v ^^y ^^ ^QiJi^,J];llLJJ2f:y_ cannot be efficient without experts; and without effi- I ciency, nothing in thisw^orld^canjendure. — I The Need for Administrative Experts. — The kind of lexpert that we need in a city is not merely the expert lawyer as a corporation counsel; it is not merely the expert physician as the health officer; not even the ex- pert engineer as the builder of roads and bridges; but also the pr pprt nd m.i nist.ratnr. It is the man who knows how a great administrative body must be handled, who ■ knows how to deal with the vast amount of business to be transacted ; for ttii^ ^annot b^ done by anybody..:^© ^appens to get the votes. It must be done by an expert. The administration of a large city is one of the most THE NEED FOR EXPERTS 41 complicated kinds of business which this country has to itianage: TT^requires a knowledge of administrative machinery. It needs a man who knows how to organize bodies of men so that their work shall run smoothly, efficiently and economically. English Experience. — How is it done in other places? I will not refer to the continent of Europe, because they are in the habit of using bureaucratic organizations. I will take England, which is just as much a democracy as our country, except that the sym- bol of the state is a crown rather than a flag. It is very interesting to go about the English boroughs, and see how they are managed. Everywhere you find a series of shams. The English government is full of shams. Nobody does quite the work he is supposed to do. For instance, the chancellor of the exchequer is not a chancellor and has nothing to do with the ex- chequer. There is a very good illustration of such a sham in the trial at Ipswich in "Pickwick." When Mr. Pickwick is brought before Judge Nupkins and asks why he was brought there, Judge Nupkins whispers to his clerk, *'Must I tell him?" "I think you had better, sir," whispers the clerk. "An information has been sworn before us," said the magistrate, "that it is apprehended you are going to fight a duel, and that the other man Tupman is your aider and abetter in it. Therefore — eh, Mr. Jinks?" "Certainly, sir." "Therefore I call upon you both to — I think that's the course, Mr. Jinks." "Certainly, sir." "To — do — what, Mr. Jinks?" said the magistrate pet- tishly. 42 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT "To find bail, sir." "Yes. Therefore I call upon you both — as I was about to say when I was interrupted by my clerk, — to find bail." That is hardly an exaggeration. It is what hap- pens every day in England. Men are constantly being guided by experts, and purporting to do the thing them- selves as Judge Nupkins did. He did not think that he really was interrupted by the clerk; he thought it was part of the clerk's business to tell him what to do. That isjone of .the_ commonest, the most essential, features of English local governments The justice of the peace is a country gentleman, and employs a clerk who knows the law. I remember a case of a justice of the peace who was in the habit of asking the clerk whether the sentence ought to be three months or six months. To softie extent that principle runs, through the whole ad- ministration of the English government. The English city is nominally governed by a borough council, com- posed partly of aldermen, and partly of councilors, the aldermen being elected for a longer term. But how is the government really carried on? Matters that are to come before the council are first considered by a com- mittee. Behind the council, behind the committee, stands the expert. The day before the committee meets, the expert goes with its chairman over the work to be done, and the chairman generally follows his advice. A good chairman is and ought to be very much influenced by the opinion of the expert permanent official. After the con- ference the chairman practically puts through the committee matters which he and the expert have agreed -upon the day before. The work is mainly done at the head of the table. I remember asking a vigorous expert what would happen if the committee insisted on doing THE NEED FOR EXPERTS 43 something that he did not approve. He said he should tell them that he could not take the responsibility for it ; that they must pass a vote ordering it and put it on record. He said they would never assume the responsi- bility in such a case. They are not Am ericans, the y are English. " ^^^~~~'~ The Mainspring of Administration. — ^Wherein lies the power of the expert? You do not see him; you know nothing about him. The expert attends the meet- ings of the committee, not, as a rule, those of the council. You do not see him because it is understood that the expert is not to speak in public except at meetings of a technical society, such as a meeting of engineers. He *. neveF appears before the public,* he never takes public xredit, or blame. The members of the council take the ! credit and blame. The experts stand behind them and j carry on the work of the city, subject to the control of ;the council. They are, as a rule, the mainspring of the ^administration and the council is the balance wheel. I remember very well in Glasgow, many years ago, one of the officials telling me that he did not think the city would suffer if the council never met again — meaning that the town was managed by the experts. I went to see two members of the borough council — one of them was a man of business in a small way, and of limited capacity. In talking to him I said something about the experts, to which he replied that they would be sorry to be in the hands of their experts. He was, although he did not know it. The other, a man who was of much larger mold, remarked that the quality of their govern- ment really depended upon the excellence of their expert officials ; and it obviously did. 44 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT The Control of the Expert. — But you must control :the ex2ert^ I am one^ of those who beli evelSat thejbggt results in every undertaki n g ran hf ^r^ng^t n hou t ^ n ]y by a com Fination of the expert and the layman . I do "nofcare wEat subject you are dealing with, if you do not jhave an expert on the one side, and a board representing the public on the other, the management is not likely to be permanently satisfactory. A railroad company, for example, must have a railroad man as president, and a board of directors which keeps him in touch with the public. That principle is applicable everywhere in in- dustrial companies, in charitable or educational institu- tions, and in public affairs. .^ Now, what are the dangers to be encountered ? In the first place how about "corru ption ? Is a body of experts liable to be corrupt? Some people fear that permanent officials might steal. Experience in popular governments does not seem to justify that fear. If you will observe the industrial companies and see where improper things are done, where money gets into people's pockets when it ought not to, I think you will find that the grosser frauds are perpetrated by the directors rather than by the experts under them; and for a very simple reason, the expert's whole career in life depends upon his reputa- tion in office. That is true, for instance, in the English t5t)roughs. I never heard of a case, I think, of an expert in an English borough who stole, and I have heard cases of members of the council who cheated the city. One of the borough clerks in England told me after he had ceased to occupy the position that during the last few years of his service he was at the head of a . body of officials in the town who were trying to prevent the council from running away with the funds. If any official is caught in corruption, his career in all possible THE NEED FOR EXPERTS 45 directions is ruined forever. But if a member of the. council is caugh t do ing something that does shut him up in jail, his life is not necessarily wrecked. Moreover^ 'fny experience is that membership in an expert profession HMsli Certain sifadymg influence based tipon the general opinion of the profession itself. It is a curious fact but yowwitt Und if^generally true. So much for corruption. How about the question of direction of policy? Can you exert in that a sufficient control of the experts? If a young man should say to you that he would like to learn to drive an automobile, but he was afraid it would run away with him, you would think he was not competent to use that kind, or any kind, of machinery. If he is afraid that he cannot control an automobile he had better walk. So, if our people cannot control experts, they are not fit for self- government on the modern scale. I believe there would be really no serious difficulty_j^n controll^ experts and keeping them in check, keeping them in touch with the people ; andT r~sEouidlike to give you one example where the use of experts has been very effective. An Example — The City Superintendent of Schools. — Twenty years ago the power of the superintendents of schools was as a rule extremely small. I remember it was said at that time that the only function of the superin- tendent of schools in Boston was to write an annual re- port. Within the last 20 years the position of superin- tendents of schools has changed very much. It has be- come a profession, in which a man is sometimes employed who is not an inhabitant of the city, who has been super- intendent of schools in some other town. The feeling against that is rapidly diminishing. The influence of the superintendent as an expert has become very much 46 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT greater. Instead of the members of the school board trying to select teachers and manage the schools directly, they employ a superintendent who has had years of experience, has expert knowledge, and then back him up ; keeping him, however, in touch with public opinion, with the result that the relation between the schools and the people is much better, much closer than it was twenty years ago. The problem of vocational education, which was then in its infancy, has now become extremely prominent. The school authorities are trying much hard-er than ever before to find out the public needs and supply them. While the experts have more authority, the service ren- dered by the schools and their attitude toward the public have very distinctly improved. The same thing is true in England. Twenty years ago the experts in education there had very little power. Since the Education Act of 1902 their power increased very much. There has certainly been no loss of control over experts in popular education. Do not understand me for one moment to suggest that the use of experts is the only thing needed in municipal government, but it is a very important thing and the one that has hitherto received the least attention, because it conflicts with a popular prejudice which is not well founded. If a democracy is capable of being the best and highest form of government, that which provides its citizens with the greatest amount of happiness, let us not forget also that it is the most difficult form of govern- ment to conduct. In other forms of government a few minds must work together; but here a vast number of minds must act in concert. Instead of educating a comparatively small number of men, you must educate all the people in public things. Democracy more than THE NEED FOR EXPERTS 47 any other form of government needs the very best instru- ments which can be used. What should we say of our country if it refused to use for pubHc work modern machinery and inventions? Democracy needs the best ^Mackmery that can be found] the best tools thai can'be discovered; and the best tool that the world has ever yet "produced is a highly trained human brain. CHAPTER V WHY DO MEN LEAVE THE PUBLIC SERVICE? ^T^O Thomas Jefiferson, democrat, is generally ascribed -*- the epigram that of public office-holders '"few die and none resign." This is hardly correct nowadays, as we find that while but few die, a great many do resign. Moreover a great number are dismissed from the public services. Some, too, of course, go out of office because their terms expire. Leaving out of consideration for the present the last group, and those who relinquish public jobs only when they die, saying "Kismet," we have left those that resign and those that are "fired." Both are largely preventable causes for separation and present the same problem — and that a serious one — of conservation. Can We Save Training in Government for Govern- ment Use? — To determine the relation of separations from the service due to resignations and dismissals to the total number of separations, an inquiry was recently addressed to a number of persons having access to authentic records. These included carefully selected civil service officials, prominent administrators and civic workers spread all over the country. A tabulation of their figures gives the following average percentages : 48 WHY DO MEN LEAVE PUBLIC SERVICE? 49 Separations from Public Service Death 7.4% Expiration of term 1.1% Dismissal 24.5% Resignation 67. % ( Of course many of those dismissed and of those that resigned are senile or otherwise unfitted for service, but even allow^ing a wide margin for error, the importance of the probable "waste element" is apparent. Since government is becoming increasingly complicated and since there is a growing recognition of the need of special training for government service, it behooves us to turn our attention to the problem of savmg such training as government service affords, for government use. For the purposes of the present brief discussion no consideration will be given to that important part of our public service — the school teachers, although very similar conditions and problems are present in their case. Nor is there space here to dwell on an elaborate program of steps necessary to ameliorate the present situation. Numerous programs are being worked out and the problems are in able hands for solution. We shall here merely attempt to interpret the facts as they are, and try to cite a few illuminating examples. The conclusion is unavoidable that large numbers of men and women are continually leaving the public service, and it requires but little inquiry to establish that such a situation is bad. The experience of private, enterprises has been that a too frequent "turnover" of personnel is costly in every way. Those responsible for large and small establishments, that have sufficient vision to understand the matter, are constantly striving to cor- rect such defects in their organizations as tend to in- so EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT crease the ^'turnover" and are endeavoring to introduce conditions that will make employment with them attrac- tive. In public service the loss of experienced workers, the costly processes of training new ones, and the general impairment of the official machinery by a high turnover is no less undesirable, and from the point of view of society is, of course, highly more important. The losses occasioned by dismissal for partisan or other unjustifiable reasons will eventually be checked by the wider extension of civil service and more genuine application of its principles. The other side of the picture — the voluntary withdrawals — presents complica- tions involving social and economic factors. Civil service reform, as at present developed, is but partially concerned with this side of the situation, and "conservationists" are fully occupied with conserving resources other than per- sonal. The Obstacles to a Career in the Public Service.^ Much has been written on the whys and wherefores of the undesirability of making public service a life career and they resolve themselves principally down to these : Uncertainty of tenure Political atmosphere Poor compensation as compared with private enterprise Poor prospects for advancement Some have added "uninteresting work" to the above, but careful observation and wide inquiry have resulted in the conviction that job for job, man for man, the public service is at least as interesting as business or industry. It has been said, too, that fame (admittedly a desideratum) is denied the public servant, but this is patently untrue for the higher positions, at least, and if WHY DO MEN LEAVE PUBLIC SERVICE? 51 the opportunities for advancement in public service were equal to those in private life, certainly the potentially famous would fare better in an official career. The uncertainty of tenure as a factor in making public service unattractive is undoubtedly doomed to eradication. So also is the "political atmosphere" by which is meant the requirement that the employee do political work — "pulling doorbells," and engaging in kindred avocations. Under it is included also that attitude of favoritism by those in power to "the faithful" in a partisan sense, often at the expense of those faithful to their real duties. It may not be amiss here to include also the still all too frequent and characteristic "tone" of some of our public offices — the loafing, the dense tobacco- smoke, the spitting, the frivolity, the gossip — that to the serious worker must be indeed a strong incentive to find more inspiring environment. ^' Every other consideration pales into insignificance, however, beside the two primary reasons for resignations from public service. These reasons — relatively poor pay, and lack of promotional opportunity — are primarily economic and they go straight to the heart of our question. Adequate Compensation for Public Service. — We were brought up on the cynicisms about job hunters, and political sinecures, and all the rest of it, so that we are habitually inclined to take the attitude that it is easy to get numerous takers for every public job that is offered. In assuming that attitude, we are prone to forget the economic phenomena that are taking place around us and that affect our question profoundly. We see on the one hand a tendency of rising — nay, soaring — living costs, of a constant and rapid advance in prices of all com- 52 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT modities and in prices of labor as well. In contradistinc- tion to this we find public salaries virtually static. This rapidly widening gap between living costs and salaries has been growing for some time, but the past year has seen an acceleration that will unquestionably bring the issue to a head very shortly. In Philadelphia, salaries in the rank and file positions have been notoriously low ; in many cases there has been no change since the 70's. The inertia and indifference of councils in this vital matter have resulted in an acute situation. Firemen and numerous other groups of underpaid municipal employees are now demanding a flat 20 percent salary increase, and there is not the slightest question that in the present labor market the better ones among the men could earn much more outside the city's employ. Other cities, the states, and the national government are confronted with the same issue in the present period of high wages, costly living and boom, but even in less "prosperous" times many of the abler, the more desir- able element among our public servants tend to go into private employment. A number of interesting and il- lustrative cases have come to the writer's notice of men in the various public services who have gone out into successful private careers. Usually better financial opportunities formed the primary motive for the change. If space and time permitted, an exhaustive account of these cases would be interesting, but the few selected will give point to the story. A Few Illustrations. — One of the most conspicuous cases, of course, of a young man who got his "start" in public service and who later utilized the training and prestige there acquired in a business career, is George B. Cortelyou, Secretary to two Presidents, our first Secre- WHY DO MEN LEAVE PUBLIC SERVICE? 53 tary of Commerce and Labor, then Postmaster General, then Secretary of the Treasury and now president of the ConsoHdated Gas Company of New York. And there is the equally well-known case of President Van- derlip of the National City Bank, whose work in the treasury department was probably the foundation of his later distinguished career in the financial world. It has become almost a tradition for secretaries of the treasury and comptrollers of the currency to become bank presidents or captains of industry when their terms expire, so a mere recital of names is unnecessary. Coming down the line from the more conspicuous places in the federal service, numerous interesting cases are observed. In the Bureau of Mines, Department of the Interior, where the training of employees seems to be unusually valuable, it is reported that employees find little difficulty in getting business or professional open- ings outside, and a number of its former employees have met with remarkable success in outside activities. So also in the Bureau of Standards, the Reclamation Ser- vice, the Census Bureau, and other government offices. In the state governments we find conspicuous instances of the same phenomenon. In Wisconsin, we are told of a railroad commissioner receiving $5,000 salary and resigning to accept a position paying twice as much, or more, with a large insurance company. Only recently, Commissioners Roemer and Erickson of the same state went into private practice as consulting engineers. In Illinois we come across a number of interesting cases; two of these are typical and show the general tendency. Mr. T. R. Agg, formerly assistant chief engineer of the state highway department, is now in business at Ames, Iowa, as a highway expert. Mr. George Graham left his position as actuary in the Illinois insurance depart- 54 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT ment and is now employed in a similar capacity by a life insurance company. Another type of position, but one exhibiting this same proclivity of competent public servants is shown in the case of Mr. George C. Signor, until recently superintendent of the state institution for the feeble- minded, at Spring City, Pa. This official's record at- tracted attention in private institutional circles, and he now is superintendent of the Hershey industrial Farm, at twice the state's salary. Numerous other illustrations, from many states, might be cited as illustrations, but it is in the cities that this problem of conservation of ability and training in the public service looms largest. Every one interested in civic work can recall numerous instances in his own experience, especially in the cases of technical men, of municipal employees going into private business or prac- tice and there utilizing the city's professional schooling. A typical case is that of Dr. C. E. Ford, who for six years held the position of health officer and commissioner of health of Cleveland, at a salary of $3,500. Early this year Dr. Ford resigned from the service of the city of Cleveland, to accept a position with a large chemical company at $7,500 per annum and expenses. While the Doctor was well equipped for his work before entering his duties as health officer, his six years' experi- ence in that capacity gave him unusual preparation for his present duties, which are the supervision of the health and welfare activities of his company. '"T'hen there is Henry Bruere who took the position of Chamberlain of New York City by appointment of Mayor Mitchel, and who resigned when half the mayor's term was up to ally himself with large commercial enter- prise. While it is true that Mr. Bruere brought to the WHY DO MEN LEAVE PUBLIC SERVICE? 55 Municipal Building more expert equipment, no doubt, . than had ever been brought there before, yet he took -^ away added prestige and invaluable experience. The Philadelphia papers a few days ago announced the resignation of Frank E. Northime, sometime assistant director of public works and one of Director Cooke's widely advertised "cracker jacks." In leaving Philadel- phia's service for the manufacturing game, Mr. Northime gave newspaper interviews in which virtually all four of the reasons given a page or two back were expressed or implied as his grounds for leaving the service of the people. The case of J. L. Jacobs of Chicago, formerly effi- ciency expert of the civil service Commission of that city, is widely known. Other cities great and small have had prominent cases like the foregoing, and any number of less conspicuous (but no less important) in- stances, such as those cited by City Manager Waite of Dayton. Mr. Waite points out that the chief book- keeper of Dayton's finance department, and one of his assistants recently resigned to become auditor and pay- master respectively of one of Dayton's large industrial corporations. So, too, in the urban counties — Los Angeles County (Calif.) recently lost the services of its chief appraiser, an expert on building valuations, who went to a private company in whose service his expert knowledge and experience are rich assets. Some Further Observations. — And so on indefi- nitely, all over the country — with this qualification: Where standards of efficiency have been high, where a reputation for skill and capacity has been built up by the particular public service, private business has eagerly sought to divert to its own use the trained employees. 56 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT but where lax methods, incompetence, corruption, have characterized the state, the city, the department, or the bureau, the individual public employee, however com- petent and experienced personally, has been handicapped by prejudice whenever he sought a job outside the pub- lic's payroll. That was the old order — ^but the old order changeth. One of the prominent characteristics of the city-man- ager plan of municipal government is the proviso that the manager hold office during good behavior. This is a new recognition of an ancient waste — ^the limited term. True, that time honored institution was often the only way of getting rid of an incompetent higher official, but often it turned out of office the man with experience and ability and checked the momentum, so to speak, of the going concern. Coupled with that ancient evil, of course, was the wholesale clearing out of the "ins" in favor of the "outs" — a survival of the country's frontier life, which, while still prevalent, is contrary to the en- lightened public sentiment of the day. The waste occasioned by expiration of terms is too well known to need more than a mention. What then is public service as a career to-day? Our discussion leads us to infer that by many of our most promising governmental employees it is merely a train- ing school for a better job in private life. Conclusion. — In our hunt for efficient public service, we are barking up the wrong tree so long as we are blind to all things but methods, important as they are. Not only must we bring trained men to the service, but we must also keep in the service those whom we have trained. VvCt CHAPTER VI THE NEW VIEW OF MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT WHEN the original Municipal Program committee of the National Municipal League was consider- ing the question of "a model charter," it had in mind the necessity for placing the affairs of the city in the hands of trained experts; but at that time it did not seem to be within the bounds of possibility that the time would come, at least within the present generation, when public sentiment would be so far developed as to justify the recommendation that the council or legislative body should be assigned the duty of selecting the chief ad- ministrator on the basis of his expertness. So it recom- mended the plan of a small council elected at large (to eliminate the unquestioned evils arising from the choice of legislators from small arbitrarily chosen districts), with a responsible mayor elected by the people. Public opinion in municipal affairs since 1900, however, has developed with great rapidity, and along eminently satis- factory lines, so that it was possible to say at the Dayton meeting of the National Municipal League in Novem- ber, 191 5, that there were then 76 communities in the country having the city — or commission — manager form, of which group Dayton was the most important and most conspicuous example. In that city the results have undoubtedly been most satisfactory, judging both from the expression of 57 58 EXPERTS iN CITY GOVERNMENT opinion on the part of citizens and of the newspapers, and by the results of the primary and municipal elections. Elsewhere the new form has won for itself a large measure of deserved praise.^ But, at the same time, we hear comments which indicate an erroneous view as to the place which the system is to play in our municipal life. Some speak as if the form itself were responsible for all the improvement that has been accomplished; some as if its introduction would, ipso facto, result in a transformation of evil conditions, i The city manager (plan is a business-like one, and represents the latest and most approved ideas in the science of municipal admin- istration; but, unless accompanied by an active, or- ganized, vigilant public sentiment, it will accomplish of itself very little more than the oJder forms. An outgrowth of the widespread, popular commission government movement, the city manager idea represents ^all that is best in the commission system with the addi- tion of a carefully chosen expert to look after the ad- ministration of the city's affairs, instead of three or five promiscuously chosen. Under it there is no longer any doubt as to who is responsible. There is no danger of inefficiency hiding itself behind a long list of elected officers no one of whom has sufficient authority or power to change conditions, no one of whom is charged with sufficient power to be really responsible. Now if any- thing goes wrong in Dayton, one knows that the respon- sibility for it lies primarily at the door of the city man- ager, and behind him at the door of the council of five. ^See article of Richard S. Childs in the National Municipal Review for July, 1915, on "How the Commission Manager Plan is Getting Along," and also his article on the same subject in the October issue, 1916, of the same publication. NEW VIEW OF MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT 59 Law Not a Substitute for Informed Public Senti- ment. — A characteristic of the older conception of American city government was to place entirely too much dependence upon law and upon the form of gov- ernment. Many still are for substituting statutes and constitutional provisions for the self-governing instinct. The newer conception involves the utilization of the most effective forms of government for the adequate expression of a sound public opinion; and the idea of a city manager has proved popular because it embodies just this thought. Naturally there was widespread comment upon the alleged failure of commission government in Nashville, Tennessee, and of its abandonment in Salem, Massa- chusetts. Nashville for many years has been regarded as a community almost hopelessly indifferent to its municipal duties and obligations, and its citizens as hopelessly com- mitted to a narrow, partisan consideration of public ques- tions. Latterly the question of prohibition has been injected into an already complicated situation intensify- ing the difficulties. A commission form of government was given to the city a few years ago at the request of the then existing administration, largely as a sop to a rising tide of discontent in the community; but recent events have shown conclusively that something more than a change of form is needed in Nashville — a change in the spirit of the people and in the personnel of the men entrusted with the conduct of affairs. So the un- pleasant notoriety which has come upon the city, includ- ing the sad tragedy of the assassination of the chief factor in arousing the community — Harry Stokes — while a surprise to many, was really no surprise to those who knew the community and knew the situation. One might 6o EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT as well charge the murder of Senator Carmack to the old system of government in Nashville as to charge the breakdown of the recent administration to the commis- sion form. The important thing to be borne in mind is, that under the new commission law the people were able quickly to detect the wrong-doing and mendacity of the administration, and were able with equal quickness to apply the remedy; and therefore the commission emerges from the Nashville experience justified, rather than condemned. No thoughtful advocate of commission government has ever maintained that its mere existence would prevent corruption or maladministration; they have contended always, that it must go hand in hand with an aroused and intelligent public sentiment. Nashville has been awakened — whether temporarily or permanently, re- mains yet to be seen. Being awakened, it has been easier for the people to remedy the adverse conditions under its present simple, direct, responsible system, than under the preceding one of futile checks and balances. Responsibility for results in the public service should be placed on the individual electors and upon the offi- cials they choose. Not long since, party organizations generally dictated and controlled the selection of nomi- nees for every office, large and small, and all that the electors were called upon to do, was to choose between the nominees of the rival parties. The successful party bore the brunt of the responsibilities. Now that party designations have been so generally eliminated from municipal elections (as they are in nearly every commis- sion governed city, and in all the city manager cities), party responsibility has been almost entirely destroyed and the electors themselves have had to assume the burden of their own conduct.^'' The old idea of party NEW VIEW OF MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT 6i government in city affairs and of checks and balances is yielding to the modern conception of the direct, indi- vidual responsibility of the elector. / Galveston, properly regarded as the home of the mod- ern commission idea, suffered another disaster in 191 5, and its commission again showed its trustworthiness. In the words of an editorial writer: Disasters come to cities, as they have come to Galveston, through natural causes, and to Nashville because of incom- petence as a result, not of governmental forms, but of cit- izenship neglect. Often it takes a disaster of magnitude to arouse the people to the action which will save them. That is what happened at Galveston; and they made the business of the city their business, and they brought to the public service the best available men. These latter did everything that was expected of them, as men always do under the spur of a great popular interest. As a consequence, the city was restored, and prospered, as any city always will when so of- ficered. It has not needed disaster, however, to bring home to other cities the need for a change; so to-day we have 512 cities operating under the commission form and others having a city manager or having provided for one. There has been no falling off, except in the case of Salem, which, recently having the opportu- nity to adopt a new form of government, chose to try another change, rather than patiently work out its salvation because its people still place their dependence upon the law rather than upon their own shoulders. No doubt Salem will be cited by those to whom the wish is father to the thought, as evidence of a break-down of commission government. It is simply an evidence, however, of the desire of the people to substitute law for the self-governing instinct. 62 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT An interesting development of the city manager move- ment has been the increased demand for experts in municipal administration, and the accompanying demand for the adequate education of those experts ; and gradu- ally, there is emerging the idea of a profession of city administration. Judging from the developments of the past fifteen years, one would seem to be justified in prophesying the early establishment of this new pro- fession upon a strong, firm basis of public opinion and public demand. ^ significant fact in this connection has been the ap- pointment by the National Municipal League of a com- mittee, with President Lowell of Harvard as its chair- man, to consider ways and means of establishing city managership on a professional basis. Of the making of laws there seems to be no end. Elihu Root, in an address before the New York Con- stitutional Convention, stated that during a period of ten years there had been enacted, by the various law- making bodies of the country, upwards of 62,014 laws. One result of this has been to place dependence on law, rather than upon individual action. Another is, it makes us a nation of lawbreakers : possibly uncon- sciously so, but none the less disastrously in the long run. A nation depending on laws has but a sorry sup- port. We cannot expect good and efficient government to follow from the mere passage of laws ; and those who are interested in the redemption of American cities and their establishment on a high standard of honesty, in- tegrity, and efficiency, must work to found them on public spirit and public institutions. Reform, in the minds of many, lies in the enactment of their fads into law and imposing them upon the whole community. The wise leader, however, seeks first to arouse the people to a NEW VIEW OF MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT 63 sense of the importance of municipal government as a factor in their lives and the lives of the community and of their personal responsibility for it; then to provide proper tools for its expression. This desire to substitute law for public sentiment and individual responsibility, has been particularly notice- able in the matter of the civil service laws. Often those interested in eliminating political and religious consider- ations from appointment to office, and of making of the public service a real instrument of public good and efficiency, have felt that the whole problem was solved when satisfactory laws were enacted. We have only to look around us on any side to see that the best laws, in the hands of designing men, may be made to thwart every public sentiment which gave them birth, unless that public sentiment is eternally vigilant, informed and insistent. Civil service reformers must be on their guard constantly to see that the demand for honest and effi- cient government shows no sign of lessening. I have always felt a very strong sympathy with theA^ thought of the late Carl Schurz, who declared that he 1 would rather have the laws made by Lucifer and exe- \ cuted by Gabriel, than made by Gabriel and executed by 1 Lucifer. In other words, the first object of all organi- zations like the National Municipal League and the National Civil Service Reform League must be to create sound, solid, substantial sentiment in favor of efficient, democratic government, and then help guide that sentiment, when created, along sound lines. For years the attention of Americans has been directed to the efficiency of German cities, and we have marveled at the wonderful achievements of administra- tion there; but to date the lesson has not been a per- suasive one, because the situations in Germany and 64 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT this country are so different. There, efficient govern- ment is given rather as a gift from an overlord, than as the outworking of the desires and aspirations of the people themselves. The problem before us, in this country, is to attain efficiency through the direct action of the whole electorate, and that electorate one that is being placed on an ever broader foundation of suffrage. Publicity. — As part and parcel of the development of the democratic conception of municipal government,, the people must be educated. In a recent letter, a well- known citizen of Dayton said that as a result of the activities of the bui:eau of municipal research, and of the cooperation accorded them by the progressive citizens of Dayton, the city hall and its doings had been trans- ferred from the back pages of the newspapers to the front ones. This is a pregnant statement, and shows what is essentially needed everywhere in American cities. One of the significant developments of the Blanken- berg administration in Philadelphia was the effectiveness with which the department of public works has made known its activities and achievements, and to which I have referred in Chapter II. Democracy demands publicity; and he who solves the problem of making plain the difficulties of municipal administration and making clear the transactions of the ordinary daily work of great city departments, will have made a contribution of untold value. Community Cooperation — the Means. — As a part of this developing conception, we find the idea of coopera- tion is getting a stronger hold upon the people. The newly organized women's city club of Cincinnati has NEW VIEW OF MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT 65 declared its purpose to be: "To bring together women interested in promoting the welfare of the city; to co- ordinate and render more effective the organized social and civic activities in which they are engaged ; to extend the knowledge of public affairs; to aid in improving civic conditions; and to assist in arousing an increased sense of social responsibility for the safeguarding of the home, the maintenance of good government, and the ennobling of that larger home of all — ^the city." This idea of cooperation is gaining a foothold not only among the citizens, but among the officials as I have more than once pointed out, and to-day important work in the realm of municipal government is being accom- plished by the city managers' association, state leagues of officials, like the mayors' conference of New York, and the leagues of cities in California, Iowa, Pennsyl- vania and Wisconsin, to mention only a few of a very considerable number of such bodies. These organizations believe in consultation. John Mitchel said on one occasion: *T believe it is better to talk for a week than to strike for a year." Consulta- tion is an essential to effective work and to real advance. When we find the officials of a community coming to- gether for consultation and advice; and the citizens get- ting together for the same purpose ; and then the citizens and officials coming together for joint conference, then a new element of great promise has been introduced. The old conception of municipal reform was that every non-office holder was the enemy of every office holder. So-called reform meetings were characterized by the vituperation of those who were in office; the slogan of campaigns was, "Turn the rascals out!" — the rascals always being those in office who were opposed to us. This cry is seldom heard now. The newer idea repre- ^ EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT sented by the bureau of municipal research is to take information of wrong-doing directly to those responsible and who are in a position to improve them, with the hope that the remedy will be applied quickly and directly, and with the minimum of publicity.^ If those responsi- ble are unwilling to accept such cooperation, then the bright sunlight of publicity must be turned on the situa- tion, in order that it may be cleansed and purified. The remarkable success attending the work of the bureaus of municipal research of the various communities of this country, has been due largely to the prosecution of this policy. Remarks on Publicity and Public Sentiment. — ^The 1 new conception involves the belief that "My fellow-citi- j zen is my neighbor" ; that we must think qommunallyj' Alexander Hamilton said: "Let us think contineritally." Now, we have come to do that io a marked degree ; but we must also think communally. We must think of the community interests and the community life; and these various organizations, these various efforts at cooperation, these various conferences to which I have referred, all tend to make the people think communally and to pro- mote a sound community life. In my annual reviews I have often spoken of the vital relation existing between the business organiza- tions and the welfare of the community. No small part of the success of the city manager form in Dayton has been due to the initiative and unstinted cooperation of the business organizations known as the Greater Dayton Association; but we need something more than business •In its earlier stages the municipal research movement was predicated on the idea of the fullest and widest publicity as iht basis of citizen cooperation. — Editor. NEW VIEW OF MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT 67 organizations; we need community organizations, in which men come together not as business men, not as laboring men, not as clergymen, not as lawyers, but as citizens of the community ; nor must the women be left out; and those organizations to-day which are dealing most successfully with ciric problems are those which are emphasizing this phase. Business must have a hu- man basis; the community must have a human basis; humanity is the biggest idea which we can possibly grasp, and it is at the basis of the greatest conception of municipal life. Merely Political Phenomena, Subordinate. — There was a time when the annual reviews dealt with the ebb and flow of the political campaigns. They formed a chronicle of successes in one list of cities and of reverses in another. To-day less attention is given to the politi- cal campaigns, because they are only incidentally inter- esting, really but little more than surface indications. The National Municipal League is interested in con- structive policies; it is interested in the big movements; it is interested in developing an adequate conception of municipal life and municipal responsibility. The cam- paigns of recent years have been interesting, in some cases most dramatic ; but the important thing that stands out from all of them is the growth of the movement for the elimination of party designations and, in most places, of party considerations in municipal elections; even though there may be serious recessions in some places. The overwhelming defeat of the proposed New York constitution in 191 5 would seem to point a lesson. That instrument was a most interesting document; along cer- tain lines it represented a very great advance; but its 6S EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT framers made the mistake of introducing too many re- forms at one time in a given instrument, without ade- quate preparedness. In other words, a constitution must embody the public sentiment of the community at the time of its adoption. "Nor can one hope to substitute a philosopher's stone of a constitution," to use the words of the late Governor Russell, "for the self-govern- ing instinct of the community." Many believe in the initiative and the referendum because they represent an every-day way of incorporating in the fundamental law the agreements of the community upon a given issue. Civic Education. — This consideration naturally brings us to civic education; and here we are in a field where developments have been many, interesting and encouraging. "Civics for young Americans" and "Civics for new Americans" are among the slogans of the new movement. There was a time when the people did think continentally first, and nearly always ; now they are think- ing continentally, and locally as well; and they are be- ginning to see that it is the simple duty that prepared for the larger one. If one cannot lay claim to good habits in small matters, how can one expect them in larger things? And so we find such movements as that originated by the National Municipal League, now car- ried on by the Bureau of Education at Washington, meeting with popular acceptance. The "Americanization work," as it is happily called, of the national immigration committee, is another phase of the same movement. In City Planning. — So far I have dealt mainly with conceptions dealing with governmental reform, public sentiment and education. There is another movement, however, which calls for attention in any consideration NEW VIEW OF MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT 69 of conceptions of American municipal government; and that is, the movement popularly known as city planning, a phrase much more often used than defined. There was a time when it was practically a scheme for the city beautiful; but now it has a much richer and a much more comprehensive meaning. Its development has been in accordance with the growth of the movement to place our cities upon a more substantial, a more respectable, a more useful basis. Henry R. Aldridge, the secretary of the English National Housing and Town Planning Council, and a veteran in the cause of city planning, de- clares in his new book, "A Case for Town Planning," that "the phrase should come to clear-headed adminis- trators as an appeal for the substitution of order in the place of chaos in city growth. To those members of municipal committees responsible for the guardianship of the health of the population, the appeal would be that of the wisdom of prevention as compared with the wastefulness of cure. To those responsible for the wise administration of municipal revenues, the appeal is strong and direct. They have witnessed for many years the waste of the taxpayers' money on school-house schemes, on road-widening schemes and on many other schemes which never would have been necessary at all if town-planning care and foresight had been exercised. To them the case for town-planning on the financial side is overwhelming; they realize that the sick man is a burden to the community, while the healthy man is an asset ; the one has to be carried, the other carries his own burdens and helps to carry the burdens of others." Here we have another phase of the new conception of municipal life: that is, the obligation resting upon the community to develop healthy men, women and children' — healthy physically, healthy morally and healthy spir- yo EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT itually; and the amount of thought and time and atten- tion given to promoting these ends during the past decade is one of the big, encouraging factors in American his- tory. Moreover, these are technical questions calling for the careful attention of trained experts. The changing and developing conceptions of American municipal govern- ment are all tending in the same direction, toward the more complete introduction and utilization of expert service in the administration of our affairs. CHAPTER VII PRESENT USE OF EXPERTS IN MUNICIPAL ADMINISTRATION I. The Expert Problem ENGLISH cities hire experts; German cities train them, but in America our Mayors and Councils have experts thrust upon them. "Democracy suspects the expert and cherishes the behef that its ideal of equality in some way guarantees that as one man is equal to another before the law, he is also his equal in other re- spects." ^ "Expertness," like, invention, is one of those tardy children of necessity whose need is felt often too late to accomplish the fullest possible measure of good. American cities have until recently used certain classes of experts to prevent absolute social and economic calamities. They have not as yet advanced to the stage of utilizing these or other specialists to secure positive gains. The problem of the expert falls into three essential divisions so far as American cities are concerned: First — Securing a body of expert public servants. Second — Organizing administrative systems so as to get the most from the experts. Third — Controlling experts properly. * Chicago Tribune editorial. 71 :i2 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT The first problem is that of making of our municipal government a soil capable of attracting to it and re- taining there, a body of specialists in administration. This means a general acceptance of the principles under- lying specialization in industry by all of our people. It means that municipal work must compete with private employment in remuneration and attractiveness. The second problem is related to the first, but brings forward an additional query. It demands the solution of the question as to whether the expert is to be a "dry-nurse" to some amateur administrator or is to take his rightful place as a responsible head of a department. Controlling the expert without hampering his work is the third major question. Is the expert to be an office boy of the legislative branch, or is he to be a confidential adviser? Will he occupy the extremely independent position of some of our judicial officers, or can a non- political, liberal and continuous citizen control be exer- cised over him and his department? These are impor- tant questions. American cities must work out an or- ganization which will provide intelligent, controlled, ex- pert administration. This means a sane, middle-of-the- road course as opposed to the two extremes of bureaucracy and amateur administration of city depart- ments. It is the purpose of this chapter to consider the various types of municipal specialists which have been developed in American cities, the position which each class has assumed in municipal administration, and particularly to outline the effect that each of the various major de- velopments in municipal organization in America has had upon expert service. In addition to the discussion of American developments, the contributions of the two PRESENT USE OF EXPERTS 73 typical European systems to "expert city government" are considered. Classifying Municipal Specialists. — American cities have developed a body of expert servants who may be classed under three groups on the basis of their previous training : 1. The specialists and administrative heads whose basic training comes from the older professions of medicine, law and pedagogy. 2. The group of technical specialists whose basic training is in engineering and the applied sciences. 3. The newest group of "administrative experts" includ- ing men trained in finance, accounting, and administration. The first of these groups has long been recognized and employed as a matter of necessity. The second group has come into prominence with the wide extension of municipal public works. The specialists in administra- tive science, however, are still in comparative infancy considered as a profession. They represent those posi- tions that in our cities have been commonly filled by politicians and political appointees. Latterly many of these men, especially due to the development of the city manager movement, have been recruited from the ranks of the engineering profession and also from the older professional ranks. II. The Contribution of Mayor and Council Governments The "mayor and council" type of government may be fairly taken as the typical American system of municipal 74 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT government. Easily the great majority of our cities are operated under one or other of the variations of this plan and with due apologies to Montesquieu, it represents the democratic passion for checks and balances — a weak government — at its best. We have had in America two distinct variations of this form in so far as administra- tive organization is concerned. In one of these, the mayor has had complete power to appoint and remove his main department heads, and in the other he has ex- ercised this power subject to the approval of the council. Of these two plans, the former has proven considerably more effective in bringing high class administrators into city government and in aiding towards centralized ad- ministration. Contributions of Progressive Mayors. — American cities have been fortunate in securing from time to time some very excellent citizens to serve as mayor. Business and professional men of strong and magnetic tempera- ment have been induced to run for the office and have set their stamp on the administration of their cities with results which have extended considerably beyond the expiration of their terms. The system, however, is an individualistic one and has, of course, the advantages and disadvantages of any volunteer plan. Really big elective executives have always attracted high class men into the administrative departments. One of the greatest contributions made by Charles Evans Hughes as Governor of New York, was the fact that he appointed many men of superior ability to administra- tive posts and interested them in the public service. Theodore Roosevelt, while in the presidential chair, had proportionately an even greater magnetic effect in at- tracting strong men into administrative posts. PRESENT USE OF EXPERTS 75 Typical fltviERicflfN" Mayor ^nd Council PLAN OF Municipal ORSAniz^riot^. I ELECTORATJ^ WofiWS d. Commissions. RElVlflRKS«'|j=n Bodies with flppRoPWATiNs powkh*. Couimciu ma* Rw- '*==*' flNCIflU CONTROL OVCK /^LL 0THEf?.5 CiuiL 3efn/ice. check ow fiPh^tNTi^enT hno fl'fwioMSL. The experiences of American city governments have been exactly parallel. Our stronger mayors have at- tracted men of superior ability into office. The case of Tom L. Johnson of Cleveland is noteworthy. Mayor 76 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Mitchers four year term produced splendid results in the encouragement of expert service in New York City. The Blankenberg administration in Philadelphia brought in Morris L. Cooke, as director of the department of public works. Mayor Hunt's regime in Cincinnati is another case in point. It is needless to cite further instances, for in practically every city of any consequence in the United States some strong mayor or a number of mayors have brought into the public service administra- tive officers and some few specialized experts of unusual ability. Permanent Expert Service Lacking. — In spite of what has been said as to individual contributors, how- ever, it must be confessed that the service which the "mayor and council" form of government has performed in giving American cities standards of expert service and in developing a permanent body of municipal administra- tors has not been very great. The gains we have made have been by bringing, temporarily, able men into ad- ministration. These men, with very few exceptions, could not be called municipal experts. They were not specialists in the various branches of municipal govern- ment although in course of time they had so modified and enlarged their previous experience by actual service as to become experts. But when they had reached this stage, the usual occurrence was for these men to be displaced by reason of changes in the political complex- ion of the government and retired into private life — their training wasted so far as city government is con- cerned. In examining the records, extending over a decade, of approximately seventy administrators in three cities, it was noted that over forty either under compulsion or PRESENT USE OF EXPERTS ^J-J to avoid discharge, left the city service and for no reason excepting the one expressed in that typical American con- tribution to real-politik: "to the victor belongs the spoils." If we could plot a curve showing the ups and downs in the efficiency of administration of certain depart- ments which have existed over a period of years, we should be able to distinguish prominent "peaks" which have resulted from the administration of these really able department heads. A recent survey of the street cleaning situation in New York City by an outside spe- cialist tells us that since Colonel Waring's time. New York City's methods have made practically no advance until the administration of the present commissioner of street cleaning.^ Certain bright spots we find here and there to relieve a rather dark picture of the constant discharge of ex- pert men, trained largely at the expense of the city itself, but these are few. There are first, the permanent "in- dispensable" men, who have the work of some depart- ment "under their hats." Second, there is a limited number of men whose merits have become so generally recognized that it would be politically inexpedient to remove or displace them. Third, there is a large num- ber of minor officers, generally protected by civil service, who hold over from one administration to another but who could hardly be classed as experts. Latterly, with salary and service standardization, higher grade men have come under civil service classifications. The "indispensable" man is of course a calamity in any organization. Nevertheless, these constitute prac- tically the only permanent "administrative expert" class of officials which this form of government has allowed 'Report on New York Street Qeaning Methods, Richard T. Fox, p. 5. 78 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT permanent tenure. In the case of the professional man, better results have been secured. Corporation counsels have been uniformly members of the bar and some few of them, after becoming specialists in municipal law through their practical experience, have been retained from year to year. Medical men who have served as commissioners of health and in the rank and file of the health departments, have fared rather better. The director of health of Rochester, New York, for instance, is an officer of twenty years' experience in his position.^ In recent years political changes have failed to dis- turb many of the trained engineering specialists and some of these have become fairly permanent officers. Philadelphia rejoiced in the fact that even with the pronounced change in political control following the passing of the Blankenberg administration, the head of the bureau of surveys was retained as the director of the department of wharves, docks and ferries, and the head of the bureaus of water and of highways, were not disturbed in their positions, and a very competent engi- neer was advanced to succeed Director Cooke of the department of public works. On the other hand, we find Boston ridding herself of trained men in the department of public works purely for political causes and Chicago, under an indescribable mayor, rooting out the administrative heads trained by previous administrations.* Interference in Administrative Detail. — The "mayor and council" type of government has shown some very hopeful signs in regard to the policy of controlling its ' Report N. Y. Bureau of Municipal Research on Government of Rochester, N. Y., p. 261. * National Municipal Review, March, 1917. PRESENT USE OF EXPERTS 79 experts, principally by refraining from attempting to control them at all. There seems to be a genuine feeling that the legislative body and even the mayor should inter- fere as little as possible with the detail of administration. It is doubtful, however, whether this feeling is so much due to any conviction on the part of municipal councils as to the theory of the thing, as it is to the fact that they have not had the information to exercise intelligent control. A survey by the Milwaukee reference library showed that in one year's business transacted by the Milwaukee common council, only 18 percent of the questions dis- cussed were legislative in character and probably less than 18 percent of the total time of the Council members was given to legislative matters.^ The remaining 82 per- cent were clearly administrative matters. One of the ablest members of this council stated publicly that the worst disagreements in the council were not over matters of policy involving the expenditure of millions of dollars, but over petty details of administration involving insig- nificant sums. American experience under the "mayor and council" form of city government seems to show us that the independent elective executive has undoubtedly suc- ceeded in bringing a considerable number of able admin- istrative heads into municipal administration. These men have had some degree of administrative freedom while in office, especially under a strong mayor, but there has been also a general counteracting tendency on the part of city councils to interfere with administrative matters. The "mayor and council" type of organization has not, with the exception of some few professional and technical positions, contributed much to permanent •Survey by Milwaukee Municipal Reference Library — 1915. 8o EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT expertness in government. This has been due princi- pally to four causes : First — Uncertainty of tenure and dismissal for political reasons and not for inefficiency. Second — Lower salaries than can be obtained for similar employment from private corporations. Third — Charter limitations and local prejudices which have prevented a trained official in one city transferring to another. Fourth — Because there is no real place for the permanent expert administrator under this type of administration. III. The Independent Boards and Commissions When cities grow tired of the maloperation of some important department by politicians or when new and important activities are to be launched, they have been wont to turn in despair and entrust the management to a so-called independent board, generally non-salaried. They may be elective or appointive, but above all things they have a certain continuity of existence since the members are generally appointed or elected for overlap- ping terms of six or eight years. The independent boards are composed of citizens ap- pointed by the mayor with or without the approval of the city council. In some cases members of the council have been included in their membership.^ Sometimes appointments are made to them by the governor of the state, as in Massachusetts. In other cases, as in Chicago, appointments are made by the judges of the circuit courts. ' Library and Museum Boards of Milwaukee each include three aldermen. PRESENT USE OF EXPERTS 8i The essential characteristics of all of these non-salaried organizations are practically the same: First — They are in charge of one municipal function or group of closely related functions. Second — They are organized to serve as an advisory board of directors, the members giving only part time to the work. Third — They are generally given by law, certain revenues which are beyond the control of the council. Relation to Permanent Service. — The contribution of independent boards to expert municipal administra- tion seems to be a distinct one. They have furnished that one absolutely necessary basis of efficient administra- tion — continuity. Their administrations taken on the whole, have been singularly free from the considerations of party politics. When we add to this the fact that they have undoubtedly commanded, on the average, a higher type of personnel than have city councils, it is not at all strange that these organizations have been able to furnish a favoring soil for the growth of expertness in administration and the development of a body of trained public servants. A survey of the types of city functions which have been placed under the control of administrative boards show that they include practically all of the recognized standard municipal activities. Generally speaking, the e ducati on and public welfare functions have been man- aged by administrative boards rather more frequently than any other city business. The administrative boards have also controlled very frequently the furnishing of especially important publi c servic es such as the opera- tion of public utilities and the carrying out of extensive projects of public works. It has been a common practice among many of the 82 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Western and Middle Western cities to place the organi- zation and construction of large projects under a citizen board appointed generally by the mayor and existing until completion of the project. This plan was adopted when the Milwaukee water supply system was con- structed and its organization perfected. The same plan was employed in building the sewerage disposal systems both in Baltimore and in Milwaukee. In many cities the health officer is responsible, not directly to the common council, but to a citizen board. Opinion is not entirely unanimous as to the success of this type of organization, but the feeling is that as long as the proportion of medical men upon the board is not too large, the plan is excellent and offers a distinct ad- vantage to a progressive commissioner of health in secur- ing better legislation and more liberal appropriations for the efficient prosecution of public health activities. Expertness in Education. — The largest body of municipal experts (approximately 750,000) which ex- ists in America to-day is included in the teaching pro- fession. This is the only function of our government which has been practically free from partisan politics. Well defined standards of excellence have been devel- oped. The various grades in the service have been very largely standardized and it is the usual rather than the unusual practice for the individuals in this service to change from one city to another and for cities to seek trained superintendents and educators, wherever they may be found. Consider the case of filling the vacancy in the superin- tendency of schools in Cleveland, Ohio, by the board of education. In this instance, we are told that no less than seventy-one men were suggested for the position of PRESENT USE OF EXPERTS 83 superintendent of schools. By a process of elimination the list was reduced first to eleven and finally to five, from among whom the final selection was made. Not one of the five were from the city of Cleveland and not one of them were residents of Ohio. All were men of recognized ability and training.^ Fire and Police Boards. — Milwaukee displays a somewhat peculiar variation of the independent board organization known as the fire and police commission. The powers and duties of this board are greater than those of a mere civil service department. It cannot fix salaries nor can it create positions or appropriate money. It does, however, have the power to appoint the heads of the Fire and Police Departments and to confirm all minor appointments and dismissals. This sort of organi- zation together with a pension system has created a permanent group of public safety departments which are practically removed from political influence and control, making them a distinct service rather than a mere group of departments and jobs. The esprit de corps of these departments has for years been excellent and should continue so indefinitely. Political control of the public safety departments temporarily produced in some cities some very excellent results. The administration of Commissioner Woods is one of the "peaks" in New York's police history. The same experience holds true of a dozen other cities. But these "peaks" are inevitably preceded and succeeded by corresponding "valleys," and the effect of this fluctua- tion has been decidedly inimical to the development of permanent expert service, because the department head 'Bulletin of Cleveland Foundation, Jan. 12, 1917. 84 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT enters and leaves, with political changes — ^the "politics" of administration overshadows its machinery. Relations between Boards and Administrators. — The relations existing between the citizen boards and their responsible administrative department heads may- fall into any one of three distinct classes: First — The board acts as the administrative head of the department passing on practically every administrative de- tail. Second — The board acts in an advisory and controlling capacity turning the operation of the department over to their administrator. Third — The board assumes the function of a civil service commission and keeps in comparatively slight touch with the problems and operation of the department. The first plan represents simply detailed control of administration by non-experts. It results in advisory boards auditing "ten cent" bills of which they know little, debating gravely on whether or not to buy a new chair for an employee and inspecting the bricks for a new building. It means more administration by ama- teurs or at the best by semi-professionals. It means in- efficiency. The second plan represents the healthy type of organi- zation wherein the citizens on the board select a man of ability whom they can trust, and then interfere with his administration only on matters of general policy. The attached resolution passed by the Cleveland board of education to guide its relation to the new superintendent is important as expressing a correct relationship between citizen controlling board and its chief administration agent: PRESENT USE OF EXPERTS 85 "RESOLVED, That it is the sense of this meeting that educational policies should not be imposed upon the new superintendent by the board of education, but that he should be looked to to inaugurate such educational policies by and with the approval of the board as he deems advisable; and to maintain them without interference by the board, unless and until the lack of wisdom of any such policy be shown by experience: subject always however to financial exigen-* cies which may face the board." ^ The civil service type of boards appears to be an unde- sirable extreme. Boards like the Milwaukee Fire and Police Commission which act merely as a Trial Board in the case of a preferment of charges against a department head do not furnish the much-to-be-desired citizen co- operation which is essential to efficient administration. Considering a period of years we must conclude that the independent boards whose membership is non-salaried and overlapping, have been one of the biggest single influences in developing expert service in municipal ad- ministration. This has been due to three causes: First — The overlapping method of appointment has made the administrative policies of these boards continuing. Second — The lack of remuneration has kept out the party politician. Third — The absence of the politician has brought into city service able business and professional men as advisors in ad- ministration. This situation has produced a far more intelligent and liberal policy than was possible under council control. A legislative body must represent a fair cross-section of the electorate and it is extremely hard to convince a man 'Letter — President of Cleveland Board of Education, March, 1917. ^6 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT who has never earned over $ioo per month that it is economy to pay $10,000 a year for a high grade admin- istrative head. This parsimonious policy shows up clearly when we compare the salaries received by administrative officials of a large western city. The highest salary received by any administrative officer in charge of any of the departments under the common council and mayor is $5,000. This is paid to the commissioner of public works who in the case of this city has many of the functions of a city manager. In contrast the sewerage commis- sion, which is outside of the control of the council, pays its chief engineer $12,000, while the board of education, also independent of council control, pays its superinten- dent $7,500 and its business manager $6,000. None of these positions surpasses that of commissioner of public works in administrative responsibility and importance. A fair degree of liberality, continuity of policy and freedom from petty local considerations makes a very fair basis for expert service and for good administration. This, it must be conceded, the administrative boards have contributed to American municipal administration. IV. The Commission and Commission-Manager Movements The commission form of government is the American vest-pocket edition of the English plan of council govern- ment. Its chief difference is that it substitutes a small council for a large one and single individuals for large committees as controlling agencies. While for a time its adoption is bound to carry with it a certain wave of public civic consciousness which has and will result in improved administration, there seems to be small reason PRESENT USE OF EXPERTS 87 to look to the commission form of government for any- great contribution to expert service. A similar pessimistic view ^ must be taken of the commission-manager form as distinguished from the commission-manager idea. The commission-manager form of government simply means council government with a lot of good advice attached to it to the eifect that the aldermen must not bother the city manager. When we unify our administrative machine with our means for registering public opinion on matters of policy in one central body, with our background of practical poli- tics, we are inviting political changes in the administra- tion more than ever before. The city-manager idea, however, goes far beyond the machinery which is constructed to put it into effect. The city-manager idea is a frank recognition of the fact that municipal administration is properly the business of experts and that not only shall professional and tech- nical positions be filled by specially trained men, but that trained administrators must take the place of the old political heads. Further than this, the city-manager idea- recognizes that this administrative head must be largely free to handle the detail of his office without interference, and that the duty of the legislative branch is to prescribe what to do, not how to do it. City manager government has grown with such rapid- ity that there has been grave concern in the minds of • Mr. Pollock's discussion of the function and service of boards in American city government is a welcome contribution. He has had favorable experience with these boards and is inclined here to understate the advantages of the city manager scheme of gov- ernment in order that the "board" plan, which he favors, is pre- sented in the most favorable light. Compare, however, in this connection Mr. Woodruff's comments in Chapter VI and the footnote on page 89. — Editor. 88 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT students of administration as to whether or not the lack of a trained personnel upon which to draw would not tend to discredit the idea. Much of this danger has been counterbalanced by the fact that many cities which adopted the plan were previously about ready for the hands of the receiver and in consequence their standards of operation and service were so low that even a com- paratively inexperienced though energetic man was able to make an excellent showing. As may be supposed, the city managers who were selected came largely from other fields. There were in fact, and are, but few trained administrative heads to be had. The dnly group available were in the tech- nical field limited largely to the engineering profession which had invaded the field of municipal administration simultaneously with the growing importance of municipal public works. Of thirty-eight city managers whose rec- ords and qualifications were readily obtainable, fifteen were primarily engineers, generally with some training in city engineering offices. Four more were engineers of such training and experience that they could easily be classed as trained administrators. Seven men could be classed as skilled in the administrative sciences. The remaining twelve were largely local men who had secured what training they possessed either in political offices or in lines which apparently did not relate to their duties. The present group of city managers appear to be in point of ability a very fair lot. A certain few of them could be classed with the big administrative specialists handling private business. The older types of munic- ipal government in many of our progressive cities, how- ever, can show many individuals of equal ability. The very encouraging thing is that city managers getting their experience in small cities have been able to move into PRESENT USE OF EXPERTS 89 the larger ones. In a large majority of cases, they have been selected without regard to locality. The movement is new, however — we cannot even sur- vey the results of say ten years' experience in cities of any size. Thus far, the city managers have been less subject to legislative interference than they have had any reason to expect. We have had very few discharged city managers looking for positions. This is truly re- markable when it is considered that it is a hard thing to make efficient administration a popular subject and that it is not apt to win as many votes as a more indiffer- ent policy which interests vitally certain individuals in the support of the administration. The best explanation of the matter thus far is, that it has required lean years and a civic awakening to furnish the dynamic force which discards the old system and puts in the commission- manager and that same awakening carries with it for a time a high type of man who becomes city commissioner. Time alone will tell whether or not an electorate can be kept stirred up to keep in office an efficient administra- tion and at the sarne time pay attention to other problems of more general interest.^** ^Mr. Pollock in his discussion of the city manager form as distinguished from the city manager idea has judged it largely from the point of view of the administrative board system, to which he is strongly attached. It is an evident fact that the administrative board system is an embodiment of the city man- ager idea in individual departments or services. There is as the principal characteristic of this idea a controlling lay body, and an expert manager fully vested with power over the adminis- tration by the agent of the policy-declaring board. It perhaps should also be remarked that usually the administrative board is two removes from the public instead of one. The expert under the administration board system is responsible to a board who is responsible to an elective official who is responsible to 90 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT V. The Experience of Foreign Municipalities The expert in varying degrees is a permanent institu- tion in practically all European systems of municipal the public. The city manager is responsible to a board who is responsible directly to the public. It may be said in favor of the present embodiment of the city manager idea as against the administrative board system, that the possibiHties of a correlated municipal policy and a cooperative administrative machinery is more likely under the unified and centralized organization of the city manager plan than under the decentralized administration board system. It is not here maintained, let it be noted, that centralization as such is always desirable. The rapid extension of the city manager plan as the basis of municipal organization makes it important that its relation to expert city government be clearly understood and sympathetically ' regarded. It has been a tremendously helpful agency. The increase of city manager government in advance of any trained city managers is a helpful experience to meet any in- sidious kind of argument against innovation. It is very ear- nestly recited that certain steps must not be taken until the specifically trained men are available to carry them on. An apparently common sense and plausible argument! But on that theory would we ever get anything started? And the only vital test to locate the ability needed to carry out new programs is the test of experience — "Can he carry the load?" Educational institutions will not train men on a contingency, and in this field these institutions generally do not even begin to train them after the plan has been adopted in cities within years after its introduction. The few institutions that are pre- sumably training city managers have merely regrouped existing courses without very much, if any, adaptation of the courses to the new specific function they are all expected to serve. r 'the city manager plan of city government has had a more /stimulating effect in recruiting a profession of municipal ex- /perts than any other single force operating. And it is especially significant that it is developing that particular type of expert that government will more and more need, the administrative PRESENT USE OF EXPERTS 91 administration. The old countries commonly do not run amuck in municipal party politics nor do local prejudices expert— the expert in managing as distinct from the specialized technical expert. We had heretofore been developing the latter type of expert, though rather slowly— the city engineer, the city attorney, the municipal accountant, and the like. The city manager form of city government has developed these administrative experts because of certain very highly favorable conditions which may be here briefly summarized. The determination of public policy is in the hands of a repre- sentative popularly-elected group of citizens. They are not presumably expert, but they have common sense and they are representative of the citizen body. Final authority rests in them as does control of the experts. The administration, as distinct from the legislation, is under the direction of a chief expert, the city manager. The primary duty of the adminis- tration under the direction of the city manager is to carry out efficiently, and as economically as is consistent with efficiency, the policies laid down by the representative council. It is this admixture of layman and expert that President Lowell regards as so essential as an antidote, or rather a preventive, to a self- sufficient bureaucracy. Moreover, these general conditions have developed certain eminently sound practices, stimulating to a profession of mu- nicipal experts. Cities look beyond their own confines for their public servants. The parochial spirit of limiting appointments to public office to geographical or political boundaries is being rapidly broken down in city government. The local residence requirement for public office is, in city-manager cities, practi- cally completely broken down. Supplementary to this is the further practice of large cities looking to smaller cities for promising men. Niagara Falls, New York, called its city-manager from Cadillac, Michigan; Grand Rapids, Michigan, called its city manager from Jackson, Michigan, which originally called him from a position under the city manager of Dayton. This practice usually means to the city manager not only more prominent positions and larger opportunity, but substan- tial increases in salary. This is, indeed, a leavening influence. 92 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT prevent them from employing "alien" administrators. In some cases, as in England, public opinion and tradition serve to keep the specialist or technical man free from political inroads. The continental countries, particularly France and Germany, supplement this v^rith a very thor^ ough check by the central governments on appointments and other administrative acts. But, apart from increase of salary to managers, the city man- ager plan has stimulated a higher scale of salaries in municipal government. City managers are usually appointed for no definite term, but serve during "good behavior." With a healthy public senti- ment, this is as it should be. Though this statement may make the practice appear to put the manager in a precarious position, it, as a matter of fact, is the sure basis for developing reasonably permanent tenure of office — that is, during the period the man- ager is giving efficient service. Because of the comparative simplicity of city manager form of government, it is possible to concentrate a pitiless publicity upon what is happening in city manager government. This fact will make it increasingly necessary for councils to look to man- agers for service only, and managers will remain in their posi- tions as long as they are giving service — public service. This fact is also a basis for a constructive publicity policy in city manager cities. And if this is done, we have a sure basis for intelligent citizen interest in government. r""The city manager form of city government is perhaps the j most influential agency in breaking down governmental admin- I istration by a succession of amateurs and helping to substitute / for it administration by trained men. Note particularly in this f sense that the administration is to be conducted by trained men I and not the government! A democratic government must not, i of course, be in the hands of experts. Experts are always subordinate, serving the public with devotion and skill in order to promote the public welfare. Mr. Pollock, somewhere in his chapter, refers somewhat impatiently to experts serving as "wet nurses." Why not? And why should that not be exactly the position of experts? — Editor. PRESENT USE OF EXPERTS 93 The contribution of this system is a recognized body of trained men capable of handling the various functions of city government, and enabled to progress from one city to another. Hampering civil service restrictions are unknown, but practically every municipal expert starts with some sort of technical training and then serves a long apprenticeship until he becomes a full-fledged burgomeister, baurat, schulrat, syndicus, town clerk, manager of tram-ways, or whatever the post may be. Positions of Administrators in European Systems. — There are two distinct conceptions of the function of the municipal administrative expert to be noted among Euro- pean countries: First — The British plan, which makes the expert the imme- diate servant of the legislative branch and acting at their will. Second — The Continental or, more particularly, German plan, which sharply defines and separates the functions of legislation and administration; organizing the experts into an administrative council which balances the legislative council. Charts "A" and "B" show the variations in organiza- tion between the two plans quite clearly. British Council Government. — Chart "A" is the typical British organization. Here the city council composed of aldermen and councilmen is practically supreme in running municipal affairs. British councils are fairly large and handle most of their work through the committee system. Each of these standing commit- tees is practically in charge of a department of the city government and the expert department head is under its orders. Final action in all matters lies with the council. 94 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Outline of OReANizATiot^ BRm5H t/lUNiaPAL ^DWt\Nl5TR^TlON ELECTORATE DtPf»PJMeNT Depwrtment Pef»irrn\enT I PlFRflRTMEurr iDfWffTMeAn" PFFflf?rMewT f DlBtCT CONTPOL^F y^PPOlNTHENT.. ^^^""^ i MCHCtRSHIPON C&MMITTCE Ch^rt "^; for the committee has not the freedom of an administra- tive board. It must not be supposed, however, that the department PRESENT USE OF EXPERTS 95 Outline of ORe^wz^rion German Municipal flDMiNisTRflxioii Stat^dapv Prussian Iype electorate] I CO U FN C 1 L I y^^^^ PtrnfrrmiHT DemmMENT I DEPAimiENT I Defmi?tment [PfPwgTMEWT} {PcPHWTMrwT |Pp»wmHci>n:j fDlRlCT rtPPOlNTMCNT* COKTKOI. /IDYISORY COKTROL. Chart "Br head is a mere errand boy. He must, however, be a man of considerable diplomacy and human qualities to get the support of the committee in bringing about the con- 96 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT summation of administrative policies he desires. The Town Clerk is of course responsible directly to the coun- cil and is practically the center around which the detail work must revolve. There is moreover a special com- mittee composed of the chairmen of the various depart- mental committees which, in a way, is a device for securing administrative unity. The essential of the British plan, however, is that the expert shall be the servant and adviser of the council. His position is relatively inconspicuous and no formal organization exists to allow the permanent administrators to meet and advance plans of general importance for submission to the Council. There is no recognized administration as opposed to the legislature. German Consolidation of Administration. — The German system. Chart "B", is very similar in respect to its basic organization to the English plan. Each major operating department has a "deputation" which meets with the department head and supervises his work in a manner similar to that of the English council committee. These deputations, however, are composed of citizen members as well as councilmen and do not have complete power to operate the department but can only recom- mend, not to the council, but to the administrative body, the magistrat. This is one essential difference in the plan for using the experts. The German magistrat is primarily an administrative council of experts diluted with certain councilmen and unpaid citizen members to avoid its becoming too "ex- pert" and unsympathetic an organization. This body, for instance, prepares the budget and submits it to the council, which can only decrease items. It has the widest freedom in handling the affairs of administration and PRESENT USE OF EXPERTS 97 provides one important element which the English plan leaves out, namely, that of centralized expert control over departmental operation. The German Burgomeister also has far greater oppor- tunity of becoming a prominent public figure than has the Town Clerk of the British city. He is expected rather than allowed to promulgate public policies and to strive for their adoption and does not ascribe the credit to some politician. The "lex Addickes" ^^ is a monument to a famous burgomeister of Frankfort. This law would bear the name of some legislator in any of the Anglo-Saxon countries rather than that of its true "parent." It is not hard to strike a balance and say that one or the other of the two systems results in the higher degree of expert service. The best informed English students decry their system of using the expert as a subordinate. While German Socialists complain of Prussian suppression and of governmental discrimina- tion against Socialist administrators, we find little complaint against giving prominence to "the man who knows." This quotation by an English student of administration as to English use of experts applies so closely to American conditions that it is worth repeating : — "While German municipalities can teach us little or nothing worth learning in regard to the electoral basis of local government or the constitution of the town councils,- their institutions of the professional and salaried mayor and aldermen represent the highest and most efficient development of municipal organization reached in any country." "Most Englishmen at heart prefer the worst of "City Planning Law applying to suburban development 98 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT amateurs to the best of experts, and would rather be wrong with the one than right with the other. They will not persist in that preference, and will long cling to the honest belief that the country's greatness is based upon it." " The results of the English system of "suppressing" the expert seem to be as follows : First — A comparatively lower type of men go into the service than the continental cities can command. Second — Progression of trained men from small to larger cities is less easy. The influence of legislators on the appointment and removal of subordinates is another drawback. In Amer- ica we well know that this system coupled with our Jack- sonian background has worked out so as to hinder considerably the retention of a trained force. England and Canada err perhaps by going to the other extreme, and public opinion, abetted by tradition, works for permanency in office. British students, however, state that the tendency of this sentiment for permanency is to fill administrative offices with superannuated employees and to overman departments, since too much unsuper- vised continuity seems to militate against vigorous administration. For instance, a municipal auditor's office with ten or twelve men under American conditions, might have fifteen or sixteen in a corresponding Canadian or British city. The attitude is perhaps that of the old, conservative business rather than that of modern manage- ment. "Dawson, W. H., "Municipal Government and Life in Ger- PRESENT USE OF EXPERTS 99 VI. Results of American Experience American cities have unquestionably used certain types of experts in the past. This use and the permanency with which the incumbents hold office is un- doubtedly increasing. Matching the progress already made in private business, specialists in the various func- tions of city government are being trained. The move- ment for standardization of employment which has been added to the civil service program in recent years is a potent influence for definite standards and qualifications for various municipal services. Trained men from the older professions of law, medicine and pedagogy have been employed even under American elective administrative organizations. They have not, however, been permanent save in cases of special merit and because of the influence of independent boards and civil service restrictions. Technical specialists from the engineering groups have followed the professional men into the service of city governments. The permanent city engineer is not at all uncommon in many towns and the same is true of men in charge of municipal public utiHties. The engineering experts have further been made available by the fact that most public works are done by contract and it has been possible to build up in private service a body of men who can be drafted into the municipal service. Public service corporations have also hired engineers requiring training similar to that of city engineers. This has given members of the profession an opportunity to enter allied fields without being dependent on the cities for their entire livelihood.^^ " Cf. Chapter XXIV, Professional Ethics of Public Service, 100 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Political Interference in Expert Matters. — Of the three types of experts which have come into the service of American municipalities, the older professions seem in general to have had the least interference from the legislative and advisory branches of the government in the actual work of administration. The city attorney's word and opinion have been literally "law." Health officers also have generally been able to get the ordinances and grants of powers necessary to advance effectively public health activities. The engineers have fared almost as well so far as legislative interference is concerned. The work of the technical men casts about it a glow of mystery which the average alderman is bound to respect from considerations of sheer ignorance. Even the technician, however, has his troubles. But recently the engineer in charge of a municipal street lighting system after a month's study decided upon a certain type of tower wagon for making renewals in the various light standards. He took the matter up with the council and it was referred to a committee. Funds had already been appropriated, there was no question but that a tower wagon was needed to operate the system, but the consent of the council was necessary to allow the purchase without buying on formal contract from the lowest bidder. It took just six weeks before the city fathers were finally convinced that the engineer knew what he was talking about. It is, however, the "administrative experts" who have to fight continuously to maintain their departments on a "war footing." Every American, particularly if he be an alderman, imagines himself eminently capable of pass- ing judgment on any of the many problems of business organization and administration. As a result, he must PRESENT USE ' OF 'lEXtERTS lOI be shown — clearly and in detkil-^the why and wherefore of each entire system. Administrative science is still so much in its infancy that an accountant remains in the eyes of the politicians and the bulk of their constituents a mere bookkeeper ; the purchasing agent, a clerk. VII. Proper Use of Administrators Mobilizing the Experts through Staff Organization. — To get the fullest service out of municipal experts, mobilization is necessary. It is extremely rare that the head of one department is not able to contribute from time to time valuable suggestions as to the operation of others as well as to the operation of staff functions. o^MfTAfs/zr o/- /tuecMses. Mobilization Must Be Effected through Staff Or- ganization. — A recent experiment in directing central contracting for supplies in the city of Milwaukee has shown the value of a central administrative organization. This organization, known as the central purchasing com- I02 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT mittee,« Ws ah Wtra-legaT functional organization repre- senting the various independent divisions which comprise over half the city government together with the principal heads of city departments.^* The members, excepting the mayor who acted as chairman, were the actual and more or less permanent administrative heads of the big de- partments. Each one brought a distinct contribution to the organization. The new Cleveland "federal" charter aims at a similar result in its "mayor's cabinet" feature. An organ- ization of this type, however, is apt to be more like the president's cabinet than a body of actual administrative experts since the heads are dependent on an elective mayor and have no status as permanent department heads. Controlling Municipal Experts. — Both the English and the continental systems provide for some functional control over the expert head of a department. They do not trust to a single mayor to supervise the widely diversified functions under his control; neither do they leave the matter to a small council or commission to "spread" itself over the entire field of municipal problems. They do provide a distinct committee, board, or com- mission to meet with and check up the expert in charge of each function and to give him a point of contact with the council and with the citizens. Thus there is an ad- visory organization for Public Works, Welfare, Safety, Education and the others. Each important function has its controlling commission. Municipal England makes this body a council commit- tee the membership of which is largely permanent. Each committee in effect specializes on one function and its " Made a part of the city government by legislation in 1917 (Chap. 412, Laws of 1917). PRESENT USE OF EXPERTS 103 recommendations generally made on the experts' advice are usually accepted by the council. In Germany a deputation or commission composed of council members and certain citizens is the "controller" of the expert. Citizen members serve for long terms and often become very helpful not so much in advising the expert as in interpreting and furthering his policies. The deputation development is perhaps the one basic reason for the effectiveness of expert administration in German cities. The American cousin of the invaluable German deputa- tion or British departmental committee is the much condemned citizen or citizen-alderman board or commis- sion. Independent boards have deserved their condemna- tion for many sins, but their sins are not those connected intimately with the hiring of expert service. It seems very strange that so essential a feature as the control of each major department and its expert head by some citizen commission or council committee should be absent from practically all of the American "ideal" schemes. Our one slogan has been to "put all our eggs in one basket and watch the basket." We have left out of account the fact that there is a distinct value in the cooperation of our citizens in and with the government. We also forget that municipal business is so diversified that it is a full time job to comprehend what is being done and to judge of it. Future Developments. — There is already developed in the United States a strong sentiment for centralized city government. We can also trace a healthy desire for expertness in administration and for the separation of administrative from legislative affairs. In one respect. I04 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT however, our program needs amplifying. We need a better developed plan for keeping in touch with our experts to interpret their work to our public and to aid them in carrying out their programs. CHAPTER VIII EXISTING AGENCIES OF MUNICIPAL SERVICE TRAINING I. Theoretical Instruction CONSIDERING the importance of the city in our national economy, whether viewed from the political, economic, or in the widest sense, social viewpoint, the amount of attention it receives in our educational institu- tions is comparatively insignificant. When we note the rapid urbanization of our population in its historical and its contemporary aspects, this neglect of so important a study amazes us. The movement has been developing long enough so that adequate adjustments could be made. Perhaps this is merely saying in other words that our universities are conservative. This might have been ex- pected. But not now. Universities are public institutions, however they may be endowed, and have a social mis- sion. To help cities in the many problems that have accompanied the increasing urbanization of our popula- tion is an obvious social duty, and should be a welcome opportunity for service. To what extent the educational agencies are accepting this opportunity is the subject of this chapter. The character of the assistance the universities may render is threefold. The members of the faculty may 105 io6 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT render expert assistance to the cities through a municipal reference library, through an advisory service, through the conduct of surveys or in cooperation therewith, and by personal cooperation in the administration of govern- ment. There are two other ways, which are important from the viewpoint of this book, that universities can assist cities in attaining popular government. They are train- ing administrators for public service and training citizens to an appreciation of expert service. The success of expert city government is dependent on both of these things — and both of these things must be carried along together. The character of the instruction in our educational institutions, elementary schools, high schools, colleges and universities, is of tremendous importance because the appreciations and points of view of the body of our citizenship are determined to a considerable degree by this instruction. It is for that reason that it is necessary, in the words of Helmholtz, that what you would have in your nation you must first put into your schools. In our present educational system the influence of the university is very great. Its graduates write the text books for all schools. It trains the superintendents of schools and the teachers of secondary schools and it will train more and more in the future the teachers of the elementary schools. It exercises a peculiar sway over the imagination of those in the lower schools who do not come under its influence. It is for all these reasons that the discussion of instruc- tion in municipal government is in this connection con- fined to the colleges. The points made are applicable fairly generally to the lower schools. Another reason for this discussion of instruction in EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 107 government is that it forms the foundation studies for the training of experts. In its content and in its method it is going to determine the attitude 01 the future public servant toward his technical duties. The Amount of Instruction in Municipal Govern- ment in Colleges and Universities. — The first question that naturally suggests itself is: What is the actual amount of instruction in political science, and particularly in municipal government that is offered ? The preliminary report of the Committee of Seven of the American Po- litical Science Association on "Instruction in Political Science in Colleges and Universities"^ prints a table that is rather startling. Of 458 colleges and universities in this country from whom data was received only 91 give separate courses in naunicipal government. And the number of hours of instruction that these 91 institutions give is 5,938, or the equivalent of 66 hours a year for each institution, or in still other words, one course a year for two hours a week! Remembering that this is an average, how much work can those who fall below the average give? Most institutions rely on the incidental treatment of municipal government in their general courses in American government. The comparative emphasis on municipal government may be seen in the complete table which is printed below. *The preliminary report was printed in the proceedings of the American Political Science Association, Volume X, pp. 249-270. Another report was printed in the American Political Science Review for May, 1915, pp. 355 ff. The complete report of the Committee has been published under the title "The Teaching of Government," Macmillan, 1916, The volume covers the teach- ing of government in the secondary schools and in the colleges and universities and contains in the appendix a report on the teaching of civics in the elementary and secondary schools. io8 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Table No. I The various subjects included in political science taught in 458 American colleges and universities with the number of institutions teaching each subject and the total number of hours of instruction given.^ Subject United States constitutional history English constitutional history Total 1 . Constitutional Law 2. American government National, state and local National National, state, local and municipal State and local State,|local and municipal Municipal government 3. General political science 4. Comparative government English government 5. International law 6. Diplomacy 7. Jurisprudence 8. Roman law 9. Party government 10. Political theories 11. Colonial government 12. Commercial law 13. Legislative methods and procedure. . . 14. Seminar Total Hours 14,076 12,298 Institu- tions 160 144 26,374 4,446 10,809 2,786 1,488 2,520 504 5,938 8,646 10,089 2,334 8,191 3,840 3,291 1.158 2,030 3,120 1,218 2,488 1,590 786 63 168 39 20 40 9 91 141 138 34 151 49 55 17 42 43 22 42 23 37 It must be borne in mind, too, that this list of courses includes courses offered and not necessarily given. And it must also be remembered that these courses are not very frequently required courses and that a student may "Proceedings of the American Political Science Association, Vol. X, p. 250. EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 109 pass through the college or university without taking them. Instruction in Government in Professional Schools. — There is one finding of the Committee that deserves special attention by educational authorities and profes- sional men in this country. The Committee has put the case so aptly and conclusively that its words may be quoted in full : "Colleges of mines, agricultural colleges, and schools of technology form a group under which the courses offered must be scientific and practical. These schools are primarily designed to prepare for one of the profes- sions or vocations and there seems to be neither time nor occasion to give attention to such an impractical matter as government. If one may judge from the utter neglect of the study of political affairs in many such schools it seems that there is at present no recognition of the fact that the incipient miner, farmer or engineer may some day be called upon to take an interest in the affairs of his country. Nor does there seem to be any thought that it might be worth while, for but a small portion of time, to learn of the responsibilities and duties of social beings as well as of ways and means to earn a livelihood. That the miner, the farmer and the engineer should receive training along the line of their duties and responsibilities as social beings and citizens seems scarcely less imperative than that they should be trained as efficient producers. There is ample evidence that the efficient producer without a social conscience has worked much havoc and injury. If society is to be protected and its best interests conserved, the scientific, industrial and so-called practical schools must find both time and opportunity to give instruction in economics. no EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT sociology and political science. Both economics and sociology have slowly made their way into many of the technical and vocational schools. A few technical schools and agricultural colleges have introduced the important elementary courses in government, and there is no indica- tion that the standard of work in technology has suffered particularly because the curriculum has been enriched by courses in political and social affairs. It remains to be seen whether society as organized in its legislatures, courts and administrative agencies will become a matter of sufficient significance to be given some consideration in all of the technical schools and may be deemed worthy of more attention by that group of institutions which depend almost entirely upon the state for existence." ^ This failure of professional schools to give work in the political and the other social sciences is significant both from the standpoint of citizenship, and of training for public service. Our immediate concern is with the latter. With the expanding scope of governmental activity, increasing numbers of technical and other pro- fessional men are called into the public service. While they may be able to perform the technical service re- quired of them, they fail to see its larger import and its social potentialities. The service becomes mechanical. They become cogs in a vast administrative machine that keeps things going in the usual way — and that is all. The public servant in the future must see the vital significance of government in modern business, in in- dustry, in society. He must see himself as helping to give direction to this great force. He must be in part, at least, sociologist. Government must be more adaptable to human needs and it is his job to help make it so — 'Proceedings of the American Political Science Association, pp. 253-254. EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING in that IS, just the opposite of bureaucratic. The universities with their abstract social sciences are not giving the young men the social vision of government. In the professional schools as shown above they are even omit- ting to give them any knowledge of government. The Neglect of Administration in College Courses. — When these courses of study are examined with reference to the content there are discovered certain fundamental defects. From the standpoint of this book the major one seems to be that too great emphasis is placed on the structure of government as distinct from its function, or in other words, that organization is the main interest almost to the exclusion of administration. This is natural. This is the line of least resistance. One may remain in the college library and find practically all he needs to know about organization, but what should be included in Professor Hart's fortunate term, "actual government," requires field study and observation in the city hall, in the municipal building, in the local courts, in the local shops where health and other laws are enforced or violated. It was for this reason, we think, that the Committee of Seven made its most vital recom- mendation : "That an effort be made to redistribute the emphasis in courses ia government so as to give less attention proportionately to governmental structure and legislation and to devote more time and emphasis to administrative methods and law enforcement.'* The question has been seriously raised: Is not this emphasis on the law enforcing agencies and on the actual substance and process of government moving in the direction of glorifying petty details and neglecting, if not forgetting, the principles and foundations on which government may endure and prosper ? Dear old immut- 112 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT able and eternal principles of government! As if the framework and organization of government were peculiarly the incarnation of these principles, and as if this framework had any significance except as it functions in the actual situation in that big, buzzing, blooming con- fusion we call contemporary life. In training for the public service the emphasis on administration and law enforcement is vital. The Preference for Abstract Principles of Govern- ment. — In another connection in the preliminary re- port these college professors have well characterized the tendencies and the spirit of higher instruction which keeps it snugly in the field of governmental organization rather than governmental administration. The Commit- tee says : "The function of college instruction in politics is to train for citizenship as well as to train for the professions. In performing this function colleges too frequently confine attention almost exclusively to the theories of the origin of the state and the nature of law and sovereignty, in fact, to a consideration of abstract notions and principles which find scant place in the actual operation of governmental affairs." Again, "Students of politics, like those of other fields, have been inclined to philosophize and work out abstract principles rather than to search laboriously the records and activities of society in its myriad and complex operations." The Method of Instruction Is Too Academic— The method of instruction reflects in an overwhelming degree the dominance of the academic tradition. The appeal is to the library, to the book, to the report rather than to the thing itself. The objection was seriously made in a national association of college professors to a EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 113 proposal that academic credit be given for field train- ing in economics that it was not academic. The question was then put in another form: Suppose, for example, that Professor Ordinarius was a member of a state industrial commission and university students were assigned to him, would you give credit for work done in connection with actual problems done there under Pro- fessor Ordinarius' direction? The negative answer was given. One wonders what the peculiar virtue or sanctity of the university atmosphere consists of. The lecture method is still used to a considerable! degree, despite the fact that every pedagogical considera- tion condemns it as a general method of instruction. The seminar method is perverted. Instead of being a con- ference method developing critical discussion, it degener- ates into a student droning away for an hour or two a paper it has taken him months to prepare, followed by a few hasty questions by the other students before the bell rings. The requirements that students should have had an adequate experience to build upon and to serve as a basis of interpretation of the printed symbols is neglected in practically all our higher education. The demand that theoretical instruction should run alongside of practice and interpret it and give it wider meaning is almost totally neglected. Additional Suggestions Regarding College Instruc- tion in Government. — The academic tradition with its accompanying formal discipline is still dominant in our educational institutions, but shows signs of disintegrat- ing. Before any serious effort is made to train men for the municipal service the universities must be convinced that their function is wider than teaching the students 114 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT who come to them. There needs to be a correlative change on the part of the public, too : — namely, an appre- ciation of expert service and welcoming of it in the solution of social problems. What is needed in improving the theoretical instruction in government and in social work generally has been suggested by the Committee of Seven. One would have to be excessively optimistic to believe that these sugges- tions, which are quoted below, represent the general opinions of professors of political science. Unfortunately they do not. But on the other hand, no one acquainted with the situation will deny that the suggestions made in this Committee report should be adopted if colleges really wish to give their students a workable understanding of government so that they may better perform their duties as citizens or give them the groundwork for professional training for public service. The additional suggestions are: 1. That departments establish research bureaus and aim to keep in touch with government in actual operation in townships, cities, counties, state and nation, and that stu- dents be trained to study definite problems. 2. That more frequent use be made of newspapers and periodicals for illustrations of the dynamics of government. 3. That text books be prepared which give more empha- sis to functions and statistics and deal more fully with state and local government. Good outlines should also be pre- pared with suggestions for gathering and using concrete ma- terial, and for doing observational and practical work. 4. That laboratory work and the assignment of practical problems for student reports should be more largely used by all instructors in political science. 5. That college teaching gives too much emphasis to functions of government before giving adequate knowledge of framework. EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 115 6. That much time is wasted in giving highly attenuated theoretical and speculative courses.* II. The Trend toward Effective Theoretical Instruction * But despite the dominance of the academic tradition there is a strong counter-movement. It finds expression in the establishment of bureaus of municipal research and reference, of university extension departments, of bureaus of city tests, of calling in public administrators to talk to college students, of fellowships to deal with practical problems, and in the character of doctors' dis- sertations. These may be illustrated briefly. The first step is taken when the home city ,or the local city is made the subject of study. The study of the near-at-hand and this desire for contact with actual government and actual conditions take various forms. Its simplest form is to have men who are holding public offices and doing things for the public welfare tell of their experience. For example, the University of Cali- fornia gives a course : 114. Problems of the State. Associate Professor Reed. A series of fourteen lectures by men actually engaged in their solution, i hour, first half-year. Tu. 4. Another form that this desire for contact with actual conditions takes is student inspection tours. This is evidently followed in a course in the University of Minnesota. 12b. Economic Conditions in American Cities, Mr. Les- cohier. Three credits (3 hours per week) ; second semes- * Proceedings of the American Political Science Association, pp. 255 ff. ^ See Report of the Committee on Practical Training for Pub- lic Service, American Political Science Association, 1913. Ii6 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT ter. Open to juniors, seniors, and graduate students who have completed Course 12a. The causes of economic de- pendence in American cities; the standard of living; and the constructive agencies for economic betterment. Lec- tures, assigned readings, and visits of inspection in the Twin Cities. The course on labor problems preliminary to the course on "Economic Conditions in American Cities" is a little higher form of the desire to give students actual contact with conditions. It requires investigation of local con- ditions. A course in New York University is described as follows: III. Economic Readjustment. A study of several prob- lems, social as well as economic, growing out of the neces- sity for continual readjustment to changing economic con- ditions. Special study will be made of the forces deter- mining the standard of living, the efficiency of labor, eu- genics, the control of monopoly and the survival of com- petition. The seminar method of individual research will be followed, New York City being regarded as an eco- nomic laboratory. 2 hours. Tuesday, 4-6. Professor Powell. Another way of securing the contact with actual government and actual conditions is to have a student begin his study of a subject in a course and have him supplement it later. A more practicable method of doing this with reference to local conditions is the requirement that a study of these conditions be made during the summer vacation, as required at the University of Chi- cago, College of Commerce and Administration. A further step in connection with individual courses is to give it over in whole or in part to an investigation of actual conditions. In the catalogue of the University EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 117 of California there is announced a course in municipal administration : 208. Municipal Administration, Associate Professor Reed. Investigation of actual problems of municipal ad- ministration. Hours and credit to be arranged. i In some cases this work is done in Go6peration\ with outside agencies doing work in the field. Such a course is given at the University of Minnesota. 32. Seminar in Labor Problems. Six credits (3 hours per week) ; both semesters. Open to seniors and graduate students who have completed courses 12a or 13 and 12b. No credit is given unless both semesters are completed. Original investigation and research, conducted in co- operation with the various agencies interested in promoting investigation of labor problems, afford training for practical work in the field of the labor problem. In the University of Wisconsin specific arrangements are made as in course 142b. 142b. Research in Public Utilities. In cooperation with the Wisconsin railroad commission. Provision is made for the personal study of special "utility" and transportation problems. Each student shall prepare an essay which may be journalistic in character or may meet the requirements of a senior thesis. For seniors and graduates. Throughout the year ; hours to be arranged, two credits. Mr. Hess. Mr. Gruhl. The final step is from investigating the thing to actually doing it. The only field where this is done at the present time, so far as could be discovered, is that of legislative drafting. Here actual measures are drawn. Course 33 at the University of Nebraska is such a course. Ii8 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Practical Legislation: Nebraska Problems — Introductory- study of Nebraska's historical development, social, political, constitutional. Present problems in Nebraska law-making and administration. Subject-matter and methods of legis- lation. Drafting and criticism of legislative bills and in- formation briefs in cooperation with Nebraska Legislative Reference Department. Practice work at state house dur- ing legislative session, January to April of odd numbered years. 2 hours' attendance. 2 hours' credit. First semes- ter. Given in 1914-15. Credited in the College of Law. Universities are beginning to -perceive that doctors' dis- sertations may be made means of giving men contact with actual conditions and of interesting them in public ad- ministration. Graduate students have occasionally been given positions in the public service because of their dissertations. As furnishing the necessary groundwork for specific training for the public service or for stimulating men to undertake public service as a career, fellowships may be effectively used. A type of fellowship likely to secure these results is the research fellowship for study of problems of urban growth at the University of California. Mr. F. M. Smith of Oakland, California, has established a research fellowship for investigation of certain problems incident to the growth of cities in the San Francisco Bay region. . Attention is directed especially to questions relat- ing to the development of parks, playgrounds, and other community interests demanding particular consideration of space available for growth.® 'The Committee on Instruction in Municipal Government of the National Municipal League has during the past sixteen years made six surveys of the status of instruction in municipal gov- ernment in American universities. The latest of these is pub- lished in the October, 1916, number of the National Municipal EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 119 III. The Need for a Training School for Municipal Service President LrOwell in his book on "Public Opinion and Popular Government" has clearly pointed out the need for training men specifically for municipal administration. His words are : We no longer believe in America to-day that a man who has shown himself fairly clever at something else, is thereby qualified to manage a railroad, a factory, or a bank. Are we better justified in assuming that an election by popular vote, or an appointment by a chief magistrate, confers, with- out apprenticeship, an immediate capacity to construct the Review, p. 565, and readers of this chapter ought to consult that report. A brief statement by the National Municipal League on this subject is given in a footnote with reference to the places where the surveys of the Committee may be found. The extraor- dinary comparative advance made in instruction in municipal government, both as to quantity and quality, can perhaps best be seen from these surveys. The latest report, signed by Professor Munro as Chairman, makes four points which emphasize the content of this chapter: (i) That there is a steady increase in quantity of instruction in municipal government, (2) that there is an improvement in methods of instruction by the use of a great deal of concrete material, not available heretofore, by a subordination of the lecture method to methods that call into play the self -activity of pupils, (3) the use of the research and reference bureau as an agency of instruction providing oppor- tunity for practical instruction, and (4) the endeavor by college professors to bring students into contact with the actual machin- ery of government. As an appendix to this report there is a statistical statement from one hundred and forty-one colleges and universities in the country showing the number of courses, amount of time given to these courses, and the number of under- graduates and graduates taking these courses (i) that are wholly devoted to municipal government, and (2) that are partly devoted to municipal government. 120 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT roads and bridges, direct the education, manage the finances, purify the water supply, or dispose of the sewage of a large city; and this when it is almost certain that the person selected will not remain in office long enough to learn thor- oughly a business of which he knows little or nothing at the outset? In industrial enterprise, in business concerns, the use of experts of all kinds is, indeed, constantly in- creasing. They have revolutionized some industries, and are indispensable in many more. Nor do we merely seek for men who have gained experience in practice. In one profession after another we have learned to train them carefully in the theory of their work, taking them young and educating them for it as a distinct career. Sixty years ago, for example, there was scarcely a school of applied science in the country, but now they are everywhere, and they can hardly turn out students fast enough to supply the demand. They are ever adding new departments, while our universities are creating new specialized schools, and thus adding to the number of professions. We are training men to-day for all services but that of the public. However, the universities of the country, including Harvard, are making at the present time practically no effort to avail themselves of the glorious opportunity pointed out by President Lowell. This need of American life is certainly one of the greatest opportunities for a university which aims to serve society. The facts of contemporary life indicate clearly this social obligation of the university. Yet nothing is done. The training of men for ordinary commercial service will never adequately serve to train men for public service. A different point of view must be given, a different emphasis, a different content in public service training, even where superficially a public servant would be required to do exactly the same thing as an employee in business. Taking a number of courses that have here- EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 121 tofore been given in various departments, classifying them under the heading, "Courses in Municipal Adminis- tration," and giving a specialized degree for these courses is not an adequate way of training men for public service. It may be foundation work but unless the superstructure is built it is useless. The real solution of the problem has been worked out at the University of Cincinnati under Dean Schneider's direction. There from the moment the student enters the university until through the end of his five year course he is brought continually in contact with realities. He acquires a real, not a vicarious experience. This forms the basis of the class-room theory and discussion. The class-room theory interprets the experience, gives it wider meaning and helps to make it more actively edu- cative. There is the proper relation between theory and practice; theory grows out of practice and is tested by practice. The coordination of theory and practice is not an accident at Cincinnati. It is specifically aimed at and machinery is organized to secure it. Apart from the provisions in the course of study the most important factor in effecting this coordination of theory and practice is a professor of coordination. He does not teach. He visits the shops and the class-rooms. He helps students as opportunity affords to see in the shop the relation of points they missed in the class-room. He is continually suggesting changes in courses of study, new problems, and new ways of doing conventional things. He is an active educational agency, educating the college professors as well as the boys. The great failure of the universities in connection with training men for public service is the failure anywhere to provide organized coordinated theoretical and practical training for public service. Nowhere in the United States ii22 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT I I is there a training school for public service in connection ■with a university. Everywhere there is need for the trained public servant. The universities have well established law schools, medical schools, engineering schools and agricultural colleges. They have established separate schools for the training of business men, rank- ing in dignity with the others. But the medical schools do not provide the training for the public health work. The engineering schools do not provide the training for public works administration. The law schools do not even recognize that they may do anything in training judges. The only field of public service in which there is fairly adequate provision for training is in the field of educational administration. It is a rather striking fact, too, that the two schools that are in the van of the movement are connected with privately endowed institu- tions — Teachers College, Columbia University, and the School of Education at the University of Chicago. Even here practically no attention is given to the field of ^university teaching and administration. The best that can be said at the present time is that there is a consciousness of the problem of training men for public service, and some effort is being expended in trying to solve it. Presidents Roosevelt and Taft issued executive orders putting the consular and diplomatic service on a merit basis. The universities responded by establishing courses. It probably will be granted that the response is more significant as a sign of the uni- versity's willingness to help, than of a practical value of the courses proposed. Yale and Columbia cooperate in the outlining of courses in preparation for the foreign service but few students respond. Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology cooperate and organize a school for health officers. Both steps are EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 123 applauded. Chicago is striving valiantly to work out the problem. Texas is attempting its solution in the municipal field. But to find anywhere training for public service on a level with the training for the pro- fessions or for private business is not possible. IV. Training for the Municipal Service In the universities there have been several noteworthy efforts to provide practical training for the municipal service. There is at least a recognition that such training is desirable. The first steps have been taken. In the field of public education this need has long been rec- ognized and definite provision has been made. The public service in general seems likely to go through the same phase that the training of teachers went through. First we practically permitted anybody to teach who had a friend on the school board; then we required some minimum educational qualifications; then we introduced an examination system. Finally private and later mu- nicipal institutions made the training of teachers a specific function of one of their departments. Model schools were later added where teachers could observe the things they were later required to do. This was perhaps just a weakness of human nature to call most of the things that were observed in these schools model lessons. At any rate there was a recognition of the necessity of bringing the student in contact with the thing that he was to do. Later the model school was supplemented or replaced by a practice school and finally, as in the New York Training School for Teachers, the whole city system of schools was regarded as a proper field for practice work in teaching under adequate supervision and adequate reporting. In training men for public administration we 124 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT have just taken falteringly the first few steps. Even in these we are not certain on our feet. Some Steps Taken by Universities. — The College of Commerce and Administration of the University of Chicago is definitely arranging its courses with reference to specific occupations and notably among these the public service. The work of the college is grouped into three divisions: (i) Trade and industry division to meet the needs of persons intending to take up business pursuits or to enter the consular service. Preparation for commer- cial teaching is included in this division. (2) The chari- table and philanthropic division to meet the needs of persons intending to take up settlement work, social re- search, the work of charitable, child welfare and similar agencies; and (3) the public service division. With reference to all three fields the catalogue says: The academic spirit (using this expression in the objec- tionable sense) is guarded against by introducing a consid- erable amount of contact with actual conditions, and at least one vacation period is to be spent in actual service. The work of the public service division is best described in the words of the catalogue : The courses in this division are arranged with reference to the needs of those who wish to train themselves for posi- tions in the governmental agencies which have to do with the investigation, regulation, or control of the various eco- nomic and social activities of the day. For convenience in arranging the curriculum, social work in industry, although not necessarily of a public character, is included under this division. The following are some of the specific vocations prepared for by the curricula in the Public Service Division : Factory inspectors; staff members in bureaus of labor, in EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 125 tax commissions, in public utility commissions, in census bureaus; investigators for special inquiries under federal, state, municipal, or private authority; welfare workers and employment experts in industrial establishments; statisti- cians; workers in municipal efficiency bureaus, etc. For most of the positions in this field, at least one year of graduate work is essential. The University of Texas is making what it calls a "start in the right direction." It has reorganized its courses with reference to training men for public service. Six groups of courses have been organized to correspond with the six main divisions of municipal administration. There are courses leading to the B. A. and M. A. degrees with special study of public safety and welfare. This group looks toward the training of men for such positions as commissioner of public safety and welfare. The second group aims to provide special study of public finance and looks toward the training of men for such positions as commissioner of finance, auditor and comp- troller. The third group emphasizes public education and aims to prepare men for such positions as commissioner of education or superintendent of city schools. The fourth group specializes in public law and is intended for those who wish to become city attorneys. The fifth group specializes in municipal engineering and looks toward the training of men for such positions as city engineers or city managers. The sixth and final group spends a major part of its time in public health and is intended for those who wish to become health officers. The University of Michigan has also announced a course in municipal administration. The object of the course, according to the catalogue, is to "train in admini- stration." It is intended to develop capacity for the direction of municipal work rather than technical fitness 126 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT for the actual performance of any portion of it. To take the single field of accounting for illustration, the subject is not to produce an expert accountant, but to train in the clear comprehension of the purpose and methods of mu- nicipal accounting, and in the knowledge necessary for the consideration of technical accounting problems. A man would thus be equipped to direct the energies of an accounting force to the production of results most conducive to the public interest. The general aim is to promote expertness in employing the technical means to the public end in every field of municipal activity." The course in municipal administration consists of a number of individual courses from various depart- ments, including civil engineering, electrical engineering, hygiene, landscape design, law, mathematics, mechanical engineering, political economy, political science and sociology. The minimum period of instruction entails one year of work in the graduate school and three months of field work under the direction of the Committee. A second graduate year will be necessary unless a number of prescribed courses have been taken as undergraduate studies. Unfortunately the announcement does not con- tain any specific statement regarding the character of this field work and the amount or extent of the super- vision. Field work that is unsupervised loses a great deal of its educational value. There has been organized in the School of Applied Sciences at Western Reserve University a Division of Municipal Administration and Public Service under the direction of Professor Augustus R. Hatton. The pur- pose of this Division is to train men for administrative work in the public service and for secretarial work in civic agencies. The course as now planned covers a period of two years and is practically on a graduate EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 127 basis, though "persons of liberal education and practical experience, who are at least twenty years of age, will be admitted to particular courses in which they have spe- cial interest, without reference to the attainment of a degree. It is required that they present evidence of exceptional ability to pursue the course of study which they select and that they give satisfactory reasons for their selection." In this school the academic courses have been readjusted and adapted to the new needs of the course. The arrangements for field work are rather striking. A student will be able to secure as much as three-fifths of his training in practical work. Field work is defi- nitely required of all candidates for a degree and is closely supervised by members of the faculty who have had practical experience in positions of responsibility in municipal administration. Arrangements have been made with the departments of government of the City of Cleveland, the County Cuyahoga, and the State of Ohio, the Cleveland Chamber of Commerce, the Civic League of Cleveland, the City Club and other civic agencies. This guarantees the practical character of the field training. Of course the students will do the things that these agencies of government and of citizens are required to do. The short course as a means of giving men in the public service opportunity to keep up in the advances in their work is not utilized by the universities except in very rare cases. "Columbia University for several years past has been giving," says an unofficial report of the Philadelphia Department of Public Works, "two short courses of lectures during the winter months espe- cially designed for those employees of townships and municipalities engaged in highway work. One of these courses occurred between Christmas and New Year's 128 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT and the other in the latter part of January. We ar- ranged that some of the more promising of our highway inspectors should attend them." Why not in other fields ? Why not all universities? In New York City the Col- lege of the City of New York, New York University and the city administration have cooperatively arranged to give courses for men in the public service generally similar to those now offered to teachers. More re- cently this work is being done solely under the auspices of the College of the City of New York. The Univer- sity of Pennsylvania has taken a forward step in giving the Director of the Department of Public Works of the city of Philadelphia an opportunity to give scholarships to employees of the* department who show possibility of growth. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has taken a step in connection with its engineering work that may properly be taken in all professional education, and par- ticularly for men who are to go into public service. The Institute has given a course in engineering admin- istration. Because of its significance, the catalogue de- scription may be quoted from rather fully: The Course in Engineering Administration provides a training for men who expect to enter positions concerned with the management or administration of manufacturing, construction, and transportation enterprises which demand a knowledge of scientific and engineering principles. It combines with instruction in general engineering, studies in the methods, economics, and law of business. The course includes (i) the instruction common to all courses, in litera- ture, language, and history, and in chemistry, physics, and mathematics; (2) a choice of engineering studies classified under three options: Civil Engineering, Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Chemical Engineering; and (3) a EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 129 selected group of subjects in business and economics. While the amount of time assigned to engineering subjects is less than that prescribed in the other courses of the Institute, the fundamental subjects have been retained which will en- able graduates to fill many of the positions open to engi- neers. Approximately one-fourth of the total time of the cur- riculum is given to business subjects which are primarily chosen so as to train students to analyze commercial and industrial problems. In this group special emphasis is placed upon accounting, business law, the industrial organization of society, and business management. The course in ac- counting is designed to be of service to administrative offi- cers in the analysis of accounts and financial reports, rather than to make bookkeepers, auditors, or accountants in a technical sense. Cost accounting includes methods of de- termining costs of material, processes, labor, and machines; distribution of indirect costs and overhead expenses; cost data to secure economy; and inventories. Business law treats of contracts, agency, negotiable instruments, sales, and patents. The two extended subjects of Industrial Or- ganization and Business Management deal with the financial operations of corporations and the conduct of business from the standpoint of the individual employer. They include a treatment of the organization of the executive force, de- partmental functions, factory efficiency, standardization of goods, stock keeping, routing of orders, management of labor, efficiency methods, marketing of goods, publicity and advertising, credit department, insurance and business eth- ics. Among other subjects included in the group of busi- ness studies are Banking, Statistics, Report Writing, Trans- portation, and Securities and Investments. Physicians, lawyers, accountants, teachers and econo- mists need to have superimposed upon their technical training, practical and theoretical work in administra- tion, just as do engineers. Whether for public or pri- 130 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT vate service such additional training opens up a wide field of service. Training Health Officers. — Serious efforts are now being made, too, to provide experts in the field of pub- lic health administration. The first recognition came in the organization of the field of sanitary engineering. The catalogue of Union College says: The executive development of sanitary biology during re- cent years and the establishment on a firm, scientific basis of the germ-theory of disease has laid a secure foundation for the important specialty of sanitary engineering. Already the practical application of the principles in many lines of public utility, as well as in medicine and surgery, has resulted in a very marked decrease in the annual death rate. The most fruitful line of application of this recent and useful knowl- edge lies in the intelligent design, construction, and opera- tion of municipal public works and of systems of water sup- ply, sewerage, and drainage, heating and ventilation of pri- vate residences, schools, hotels, hospitals, and other public institutions and buildings. But there has developed a need for a wider prepara- tion than the work in sanitary engineering has ordi- narily required. This need has been answered in such an institution as the school for health officers con- ducted by Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where the courses of study cover a wide range, including medical, biological, hygienic and engineering sciences, together with practical health ad- ministration. The school aims to prepare young men to occupy ad- ministrative and executive positions, such as health officers, or members of boards of health, or secretaries, agents or inspectors of health organizations. The ordi- EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 131 nary methods of academic study will be pursued, supple- mented by practical training. Though in the description of courses there is very little mention of field study, there is recognition of the opportunities. The catalogue says : The opportunities for the practical study of the arts of public sanitation offered to students of the school for health officers are exceptional. The city of Boston is an impor- tant port of entry for foreign and domestic shipping and for immigration, with thirty or more municipalities in its im- mediate vicinity, while the state of Massachusetts is a com- munity which has long been recognized as standing in the forefront of American commonwealths in all aspects of the practice of public health. To the advantage of location are furthermore added all the resources of Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The courses in this school are grouped under nine headings which follow : I. Preventive medicine II. Personal hygiene III. Public health administration IV. Sanitary biology and sanitary chemistry V. Special pathology VI. Communicable diseases VII. Sanitary engineering VIII. Demography IX. Medical and other sciences Johns Hopkins University is now organizing an in- stitute of hygiene and public health on a very compre- hensive scale. The work is going forward under the supervision of Dr. William H. Welch who will be the permanent director. The university status of the school is very significant. In the article in The Survey an- nouncing the school it is said: "The new institute of 132 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT hygiene will be an essential part of the university co- ordinate with the medical school, for it is recognized that the profession of the sanitarian and worker in pre- ventive medicine is not identical with that of the prac- titioner of medicine. It requires a specialized training/* The institute will be financed by the International Health Commission, a subsidiary of the Rockefeller Foundation. Not so significant a step, but noteworthy, is the estab- lishment of the degree of Doctor of Public Health (Dr. P.H.) at several universities. The general require- ments for the degree are usually similar to those for the Ph.D. Candidacy for the degree is open to holders of the degree of M.D. from recognized medical schools. Candidates for the degree must spend at least two years, subsequent to their graduation from medical school, in the study of sciences relating to hygiene and public health. However, in these courses the administrative aspect, as distinct from the scientific, is not sufficiently emphasized. Sometimes it is almost entirely neglected. Training Social Workers. — Modern municipal gov- ernment is becoming largely social in character and is assuming a good deal of charity and correctional work that was formerly done by private individuals and pri- vate or quasi-public societies. It is in this field of social economy that large advances have been made in the de- velopment of field training for public service. Schools for social workers or departments in social economy have been established in universities and sometimes as separate institutions. The New York School of Philanthropy is affiliated with Columbia University. Its courses, with certain re- strictions, are open to graduate students of Columbia University and may be credited as a minor subject for EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 133 candidates for higher degrees. The St. Louis School of Social Economy is affiliated with Washington Univer- sity. Credits earned in the School of Economy will be accepted by Washington University toward a bacca- laureate or an advanced degree according to the char- acter of the course. The acceptance by any other institution of credits earned in the School of Economy is a matter for decision in each case. There is established, too, in connection with Simmons College, a school for social workers. The Chicago School of Civics and Philanthropy is not affiliated with any university, but has an advisory council of professors from eight of the state universities of the middle west. Field work is fundamental in this school. Its description of its field work is selected for quotation : Training for social work cannot be given merely by lec- tures or the study of books or even by observation; one can learn how to do only by doing under expert supervision. This practice work is as important a part of the curriculum as the lecture courses and as high a standard must be main- tained for regular and intelligent work. It is becoming constantly more evident that social work should no more be undertaken without preliminary training in the field than medical practice without clinical experi- ence. This practice work is as important a part of the cur- riculum as the lecture courses, and as high a standard for regular and intelligent work must be maintained. Students are required to give fifteen hours a week to field work throughout the regular school year. Assignments are made at the beginning of each term and weekly reports of the work of each student are sent to the registrar of the school by the superintendent of the office to which the stu- dent is assigned. The aim is to make this practical work a genuine social apprenticeship, and all superintendents un- der whom students work are in reality members of the 134 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT teaching staff of the school. For the purpose of training no form of social work is so fundamental as the family work of the United Charities, in part because the methods of tech- nic of treatment have been so thoroughly worked out, and in part because it provides so many points of contact with a large variety of cooperating organizations that stu- dents are given as early as possible in the school year an actual knowledge of the entire social field. All students who are candidates for the certificate of the school are re- quired, for the first three months, to spend three hours a day, five days of the week, in one of the district offices of the United Charities. At the end of that time students are given a choice of work; those who prefer go into one of the child-caring agencies, the Legal Aid Society, the Voca- tional Supervision Department of the Board of Education, the Immigrant's Protective League, the probation depart- ment of the juvenile court, the social service department of one of the large city hospitals, the Infant Welfare Society, or some other specialized social or civic agency, as ap- prentices. The New York Training School for Community Center Workers. — A very significant step was taken in New York City recently in the organization of the New York Training School for Community Center Workers under the direction of John Collier. The be- ginning of the school is thus told in the official announce- ment: The demand for trained community leaders, far in excess of the supply, and the demand on the part of community center workers for a means of interchanging experience, led to the establishment, in February, 191 5, of a seminar course on community center problems. This seminar, which was regarded as an experiment, clearly showed the need for a permanent training school. From this beginning has EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 135 grown the New York Training School for Community Cen- ter Workers. New York City, with its varied conditions and composite population, is a logical center for the Training School. The local conditions of almost any community are reproduced somewhere within Greater New York, and no city presents equal opportunities for supplementary work in the academic field. The school is founded, it is said, "to discover men and women possessed of social insight and of the capacity for leadership, and to equip them to carry forward the new community movement." The method is thus outlined: "To this end there is of- fered a year of carefully supervised field work; a tutorial system insuring continuous individual attention to each stu- dent; a series of intimate conferences designed to cover exhaustively the special problems which arise in community centers; and a seminar course which will focalize on the community center problem the light from wider interests and from the theoretical sciences — from psychology, economic history and economics, and sociology. Particularly significant in the w^ork of the school is the emphasis to be placed on field training. The method of the school "will be radically clinical in all its depart- ments, and the practice work done by students will be the basis of all the work of the school. Practice work of not less than fifteen hours per week will be required. Only those students prepared to meet the requirements in this direction will be regularly enrolled. "This practice work will be closely controlled by the Supervisor of Training, and will consist of investigations, the general administration of community centers, the leadership of special activities and the supervision of new pieces of experimental work." 136 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT There are in New York at present seven developed com- munity centers, mantaining activities of greater variety and operated on a largely self-supporting basis under the super- vision of experienced professional w^orkers. The field work of students will be done in these centers and broadly in the school neighborhoods, and in two projected centers which will be operated by the Training School itself through the agency of its staff and students. Thorough experience in playground work and in the ad- ministration of play streets will be part of the practice course. The (N. Y.) Training School for Public Service.— The most significant effort in training men for municipal service is the Training School for Public Service con- ducted by the New York Bureau of Municipal Research. In the spring of 191 1, under the initiative of Mrs. E. H. Harriman, a fund of $200,000 was pledged for a five year test of training men for public service via field ex- perience in rendering public service. This led to the founding in November, 191 1, of the Training School for Public ' Service. Its aims are : To train men for the study and administration of public business; to qualify men to meet the growing need for students and admin- istrators competent (a) to test and (b) to improve methods and results of municipal service; to publish facts which may be incorporated in text-books and lec- tures in teaching the relation to the public service of (a) political science, government and sociology; (b) accountancy; (c) engineering; (d) law; (e) public hygiene; (f) school administration; (g) journalism; (h) medicine, etc., to furnish wherever practicable a con- necting link between schools and colleges and municipal or other public departments for practical field work; to secure open discussion of public business which will EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 137 emphasize the need for training on the part of officials and employees alike. The remarkable thing about this school is that it is the first organized effort, through an institution devoted solely to public service training, to supplement theoretical instruction with practical experience. In commenting on this peculiar provision for field work of this training school. Professor Charles A. Beard, now Supervisor of Instruction of the school, in a report to the Committee on Practical Training for Public Service of the Amer- ican Political Science Association, said: The field work is, of course, particularly stressed, and it is in this work that the men receive their practical contact with the city officials and with the concrete stuff of city life and government. With reference to this work the follow- ing points should be noted: a — Each man coming into the School is assigned a short study in the field to test his ability to get at facts and to meet men of practical affairs. On the basis of this first test, the student is assigned new and more difficult work, or if he is found wanting is requested to withdraw. Every student is required to take a certain amount of work in budget-mak- ing, the essentials of inspection, audit, unit cost, supervision of work, and reporting. b — After the first assignments, additional field work is given. This may consist of a number of short assignments in rapid succession or the student may be given a large undertaking in New York or some neighboring city. Each man is assigned on the basis of his previous achievements and thus a sound progressive educational method is followed. c — Each student is under the general and personal su- pervision of the director of field work, and in ad- 138 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT dition is assigned to one of the leading men in the Bureau who happens to have the most intimate knowledge of the field work to be undertaken. Thus general and expert direction is given to each student, and it is correct to say that each student has more personal and immediate supervision than the average graduate student in a university. d — Complete records are kept of every student, his as- signments, his reports and his results. e — Opportunities are afforded to develop the student's capacity for original investigations, not only in books but also with actual conditions of city life. The student is always brought into contact with men of large experience and important positions and in the development of his personality this con- tact with the world is exceedingly valuable. f — The organization of the results of the field work is carefully scrutinized, with reference to success in getting at the salient matters and to effectiveness of presentation. By way of conclusion, I should say, that the Training School fulfills every requirement of a university. It aims to develop just those qualities which universities seek to develop: capacity for expert original investigations, per- sonality, ability to report the results of investigations with skill and effectiveness. Furthermore, the methods of the Training School comply with the most rigid academic stand- ards as to expert supervision, attendance and reports. To these requirements the Training School adds what the uni- versity cannot add — the practical contact with the world of affairs which fits the student for immediate entrance into public or private service of a high order. In my opinion, one year spent at the Training School is equivalent in discipline and academic training to a year spent in any university with whose graduate work I am ac- quainted, and if I had the power to do so, I would grant to EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 139 a student taking one year's work at the Training School a year's credit toward the degree of Ph.D. in Columbia Uni- versity. The applications to the Training School reveal a rather striking and general demand among all types of persons and all manner of occupations to enter the public ser- vice and to be prepared for it by field training. In the first two years of the School eight hundred and forty applications and inquiries ^ had been received and ninety- two persons had been accepted, but some of these were later dropped. The facts regarding the ninety-two persons accepted are given in the second annual report of the Training School as follows : Among the 92 persons thus far accepted for training have been civil, electrical, sanitary and consulting engineers; physicians, health officers, college professors, school super- intendents, principals, high school teachers — accountants, statisticians — lawyers, army officers, editor^, social workers, manufacturers, secretaries, traffic managers; a former judge, a city food inspector, a former state assemblyman and a state budget commissioner. Representatives of 47 cities in 21 states have been admitted to the Training School. Of 92 accepted, 82 had previous college training. In order to facilitate the changing of vocations of men desiring to enter the public service, many of the suc- cessful applicants for admission to the School were al- lowed a stipend. This was simply, as Dr. Allen often described it, a "bridge" during the period of preparation. No specific time or period of training had been deter- mined on in advance. This was presumably determined by the education and experience of the student and his ^This combination of inquiries and applications is unfortunate because it does not show definitely the number of applications. I40 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT educability. While it was generally understood that the student was to remain two years, it was more proba- ble that he would actually remain one year and even that he would be drafted into service before then. The one thing that the formal educational institutions need to learn in connection with the proposed field work is well demonstrated in the work of the Training School, that is, the need for the continuous supervision of the men. It is done through personal supervision, individual and group conference, by records and through the fact that the work is work that must be done and has to fit into a particular situation. Institute for Public Service. — The Institute for Pub- lic Service organized in November, 191 5, under the direction of Dr. William H. Allen, aims to give training for public service via rendering public service. It pro- vided training last year for a number of students, though it is not clear from its annual report how many students or for what period they were trained. Dr. Allen is aim- ing to carry on the Institute for Public Service along the general lines laid down by him for the Training School for Public Service conducted by the New York Bureau of Municipal Research. He indicates his dis- satisfaction with that school by his statement in the annual report that one of the reasons for establishing headquarters in New York City is : "New York City was without any agency that was using current municipal work as the starting point and course for training men and women for public service." The principal purpose of the Institute, to which all the other purposes are subordinate, is: "To conduct at New York City and at affiliated centers that may hereafter be formed, and in localities oifering opportunities for train- EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 141 ing through study of local problems, a training school for public service through assignments of practical field work that needs to be done." Affiliations have been established, according to the first annual report of the Institute, with five bureaus of municipal research, a municipal efficiency department, one state civic organiza- tion, two city managers and two city superintendents of schools; and the heads of these institutions and de- partments are supervising members of the Institute for Public Service. To what extent these affiliations are merely decorative is not clear from the report of the Institute — surely they have not been extensively used. But this plan of establishing training centers offering such a variety of experience in public and quasi-public service is excellent and ought to be imitated by colleges and universities undertaking practical training for public service. V. The Municipal University The Wider Conception of the University The historic antagonism between town and gown is to be a thing of the past. Instead of suspicion, contempt and strife, there is developing a genuine cooperation. The college is to be no longer a thing apart or with- drawn from the vast concourse of mankind. It is to be no longer an ''imperium in imperio" It is to be no longer self-sufficient, superior, esoteric, aristocratic. It is to be democratic, community conscious, tending more and more to find its inspiration in present-day life and its opportunity for service in present-day needs. There has been developed recently an amazing and vivifying conception of the relation of the college to 142 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT the community. Much has been said in the middle west about the state-wide campus of the state universities. This means practically that the university through lec- tures, through correspondence courses, through the en- couragement of debating and public discussion, through all the devices of the extension movement has been carry- ing its message to Garcia. Garcia here means the people of the state, "the butcher, the baker, the candlestick- maker," located not only within its wall or in the univer- sity town but in the uttermost parts of the state. As a force in the diffusion of knowledge, the extension move- ment ought to be, and will be, a permanent force in our university education and social life. It perhaps ought to be more critical of the knowledge it distributes, and it ought to bring it into more direct relation to the indi- vidual life and the social welfare. But there has developed recently a more fruitful con- ception of the relation of the college to the community. The whole organized life of man becomes the educational institution. The university is the intelligence center, utilizing all for the better education of youth and man- hood. In this conception every office, every factory, every public utility, public service itself, is an educational opportunity for the university to utilize in training young men and women for service. The university is only a part — a fraction — a relation. The whole is Life in all its complexity and confusion. The university has sig- nificance only as it serves its function in giving higher meaning and purpose to the whole contemporary life. Its research into the past is ultimately to enable us to understand the present — and to face the future. Through its failure to adapt itself currently to the "new occasions" of modern times the university remains fractional, a part. It does not satisfy its whole duty. EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 143 This widening conception of the university finds its most recent and its most helpful expression in the move- ment for municipal universities, though this brings with it a vexing problem of taxation. The first Conference on Universities and Public Service centered for the first time national interest on the probluem. President Kolbe of the University of Akron, at the conclusion of the meeting on the municipal university, offered the follow- ing resolution : Whereas, the mayor in his opening address welcomed the cooperation of the universities in the City of New York, with the government of the City of New York; and Whereas, judging by the discussions at this conference there seem to be unlimited opportunities for public service by universities; and Whereas, this seems best attained by a method of train- ing men for the public service by doing things that need to be done in the community; and Whereas, this result and this method have been conclu- sively demonstrated in the University of Wisconsin, the University of Cincinnati, and other higher educational in- stitutions in all parts of the country; and Whereas, there is a movement for municipal universities especially in Ohio; and Whereas, New York is a particularly rich opportunity to effect cooperation between government and the higher in- stitutions of learning; and Whereas, New York spends over a million dollars an- nually for its municipal colleges; Therefore, be it resolved by this Conference on Univer- sities and Public Service that the municipal colleges of New York be requested to plan an adequate demonstration over a period of years of the community service of a munici- pally supported institution in governmental administration and in promoting the general social welfare; and 144 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the board of trustees of the municipal colleges. At a meeting of several of the persons attending the Conference, President Kolbe suggested that some way- ought to be provided of giving the movement cohesion. Without going into the details of subsequent develop- ments, it may be said that under the leadership of Presi- dent Dabney of Cincinnati, President Kolbe of Akron, Commissioner Claxton of the United States Bureau of Education, and others, an association was formed to promote the purposes underlying the municipal university. But it took wider scope. All universities or colleges situated in large cities were urged to cooperate. To the credit of many privately endowed institutions it may be said that they welcomed this opportunity to help the movement. Notable among the institutions were Johns Hopkins University, Northwestern University, Reed College, New York University, James Milliken Univer- sity and Washington University (St. Louis). The pri- vately endowed universities are more and more recog- nizing their public character and the impossibility of a private institution of higher learning. This recogni- tion of obligations that stares at you ev-ery day from your immediate environment is perhaps the most signifi- cant new force for expert municipal government that has been developed. A similar movement under the title of the "civic uni- versity" movement has been under way in Great Britain. Institutions have been established at Manchester, Read- ing, Liverpool, Birmingham, Leeds, Sheffield and Bristol. But the danger to this movement, which some observers have noted, is the tendency to imitate Oxford and Cam- bridge. Instead of taking advantage of the distinctive EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 145 opportunities, they choose the less glorious career of being a lesser Oxford or Cambridge. The establishment of the University at Frankfurt, Germany, by the municipality is significant of the trend in Germany. The Movement in the United States. — What was probably the first municipal university in this country was founded "in 1837 by a decree of the City Council (of Louisville), and the tract of land comprising the town block between Eighth and Ninth Streets, extending south from Chestnut, was granted to the corporation chartered by an act of the Legislature of Kentucky 'for the estab- lishment of a university for the promotion of every branch of science, literature, and the liberal arts/ A special subsidy of $5o,ckx) was also allowed for the construction of suitable buildings." The University of Louisville, until recently, has been made up mostly of inferior professional schools and has recently added a college of arts. Another early attempt to found a municipally-sup- ported university was at Charleston, South Carolina. A movement for a college there was begun in 1770. After a more or less precarious existence, "in 1837 the college was reorganized. Upon the joint application of the trustees and the City Council, the legislature of the state agreed that the property, rights, and interests of the College be rendered and transferred to the City Coun- cil, and the City Council on their part agreed to accept the trust and to provide the means to maintain the insti- tution. The terms and conditions were set forth and carried into effect by an act of the General Assembly. In furtherance of this agreement the City Council made 146 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT regularly liberal appropriations for the current expenses of the College, and Hon. Richard Yeadon introduced into Council a bill which provided for an annual appro- priation of one thousand dollars for ninety-nine years to be invested as a permanent fund for its support. The bill becapie an ordinance in May, 1839. Then for the first time, the College was placed upon a permanent foundation." Neither of these institutions has been a significant fac- tor in the municipal university movement. The only significance of these institutions is the fact that munici- palities have supported them in part at least from out of municipal taxes. The College of the City of New York was definitely begun under municipal auspices as the Free Academy and later by legislative act (1854, 1866) was given full collegiate functions "and privileges so far as pertain-ed to conferring upon its graduates the usual collegiate degrees and diplomas in the Arts and Sciences. In the year 1866, on the recommendation of the Board of Education, the Legislature of the State changed the name to that of 'The College of the City of New York,' and conferred on the institution the powers and privileges of a college, pursuant to the Revised Statutes of the State, rendering it subject to the provisions of the said statutes relative to colleges and to visitation of the Regents of the Univer- sity, in like manner with other colleges of the State, and making the members of the Board of Education, ex officio, the Trustees of the College." Subsequently it was given by legislative act a separate board ot trustees to be appointed by the mayor of the city. Under the presidency of Sidney E. Mezes, formerly president of the University of Texas, the College of the EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 147 City of New York is expected to take a very prominent part in the civic movement of the time, particularly in training men for municipal service. There is in New York also a municipal college for women called Hunter College. The very progressive University of Pittsburgh is sup- ported in part by municipal, state and private funds. It is alert to the opportunities of its environment. Leadership of the municipally supported univ-ersities is generally conceded at the present time to the Univer- sity of Cincinnati. The beginning of the University of Cincinnati may be dated from the will of Charles McMicken in 1858, though it was not established until 1871 under a legislative act of 1870. The institution had for a long time inadequate funds until "at length the city undertook to support the University in part by public taxation, the tax for this purpose being limited at first to three-tenths of one mill. In 1906 the General Assembly of Ohio authorized the levying of an increased municipal tax for the University — five-tenths of a mill, instead of three-tenths as heretofore." In 1 91 3 the trustees of Buchtel College offered to give to the city of Akron "the entire plant and endowment of the college as the nucleus of a municipal university," and the city council in accepting the gift promised to support adequately the new university. The University of Akron promises very well for the future under the energetic and intelligent leadership of President Kolbe. A similar movement occurred in Toledo and resulted in the establishment of the municipal university of Toledo (1914). The spirit of the university is exhibited clearly in the following announcement: 148 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Use Your University Toledo University belongs to the people of Toledo. All of its colleges, and all of the departments in each college, exist to serve you. They v^rork through a special depart- ment called the Bureau of Public Service. This Bureau is prepared to render any service, and to undertake any in- vestigation that would be of interest or value to the citizens of this city. You are invited and urged to use it. Its Relation to Expert City Government. — The municipal university has a peculiarly intimate relation to the municipality. It is located in the municipality; it is supported by public taxation ; its students are the "sons and daughters of the city." It is usually a matter of local pride. Communities are becoming increasingly interested in their local government. In the last decade more progress has been made in making municipal government a decis- ive factor in promoting the public welfare than any other governmental unit. The conditions that produced the "shame of the cities" are gone. Indianapolis warns us — not entirely. Bryce's criticism is no longer perti- nent. Communities are now looking for informed leader- ship, for facts about municipal progress everywhere, for non-partisan, non-political evaluation of existing govern- mental machinery, for carefully thought out plans of municipal betterment and for a trained personnel. This demand has led to the organization of bureaus of munic- ipal research, to the national training school for public service, to the survey movement, to the national publi- cations on municipal government, to the municipal reference library movement, to efficiency departments in city government, to the transformation of the aims of EXISTING AGENCIES OF TRAINING 149 chambers of commerce, and to civic organizations with- out end. The recent interest in the municipal university move- ment is largely an expression of the same demand for a better municipal government. The municipal univer- sity that regards its mission as merely the instruction of the youth who come to it will miss its opportunity — and will probably be without funds. The live municipal universities have read the times aright. Cincinnati and Akron have established bureaus of city tests for all municipal departments. Cincinnati has a municipal reference library. Toledo has a public service bureau in the service of the people of Toledo. The College of the City of New York cooperates with the department of education of the city in the continued training of teachers in service. The department of engineering of the University of Akron made and published an investi- gation of street pavements even before it was completely organized. It was baptized in service. The University of Akron has a department of civic cooperation and has already made cooperative arrangements with the Akron Bureau of Municipal Research for the practical training of its students of municipal government in actual govern- mental problem.^ For training men for municipal service it is to these municipally-supported universities that we must look. They are accepting, perhaps without full implication of their action, a few of the opportunities for immediate service that are now confronting them. They are edu- ' Other information on municipal universities may be found in Dean Patterson's article on "Municipal Universities of the United States" in the National Municipal Review for October, 1916, and in Professor Holliday's article on "The Municipal University" in the American City for November, 1916. 150 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT eating the public to look to them more and more for expert service. They are on the road which looks to the widest service to their respective communities. There will be no turning back, but the "bunk" must be taken out of the pretensions, advertising, and claims that are made on behalf of some of the municipal universities. CHAPTER IX CITIZEN COOPERATION WITH GOVERNMENT THROUGH THE COMMUNITY CENTER* THE community center movement is fifteen years old, ten years old, or five years old, according to the historian who gives the record. It is a nation-wide movement and is growing at an impressive rate, but it is *This is one of the most important and fundamental prob- lems of expert city government. Citizen cooperation with gov- ernment makes it a success. Citizen indifference will make it permanently impossible — at best a seesaw. The municipal re- search movement has operated from the beginning under the alias of citizen cooperation with government. Its first bulle- tins were called "Efficient Citizenship." The bureau was called by its leaders "an agency of citizen inquiry," and "citizen" was almost invariably the adjective used to describe the activities of municipal researchers. The municipal research movement is, in fact, a movement for the cooperation of unoMcial experts or near-experts with official experts or near-experts via the medium of an agency supported for the most part by a few wealthy citizens. The community center movement, which Mr. Collier describes, is in truth a citizen movement. It aims to provide citizen cooperation with government via actual organiza- tions of citizens, recognizing well-defined groups in the com- munity and supported largely or wholly by the citizens them- selves. As far as possible the meetings of these community groups are held in the public schoolhouse. To be successful, this citizen movement requires a decentralization of the govern- 151 152 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT highly unstandardized. Before discussing the move- ment in general and its relation to the administrative effectiveness of government, it will be profitable to de- scribe a specific community center which embodies many of the driving principles of the movement. Most com- munity centers are less complicated than the one here chosen as an example, but the present illustration will have been outgrown in more than one city of America before this chapter is published. I. The New Community Center An example chosen from New York — the Wingate Community Center at School 40, in the Gramercy Dis- trict — will serve the purpose both of illustration and argument. Each of the activities mentioned was insti- tuted after a careful weighing of values by the Board of Education and the municipal government. None of them exist merely for the sake of local benefits which they may insure, but each is designed to prove out the technic of an activity which, in the belief of the New York City officials and leaders of the community move- ment, is destined to become more or less universal. mental operation even though there may be — perhaps should be — centralized staff agencies. The new community center as conceived and organized by Mr. Collier is a radically different form of community organi- zation and a tremendously more powerful agency of community improvement than the older form of "social center" in the schoolhouse. It is based on a radically different philosophy and sociology — a sounder one. And it is for this reason that a detailed description of a community center of the new type is given in Mr. Collier's chapter. — Editor. CITIZEN COOPERATION 153 The Wingate Public School is a large semi-modern building occupied by a day elementary school. The school work ends at three o'clock. The day of the com- munity dwelling around the school ends at approximately midnight. This particular neighborhood is the most highly institu- tionalized of any New York neighborhoods. What uplift and institutionalism have not done for the 200,000 people of the Gramercy area will be suggested in all that follows. In and around School 40 the community center has been built or is building. The following activities, de- veloped within a twelvemonth, are its more significant embodiments. The General Community Organization. — There is a general community organization, meeting in the school building every night from eight o'clock till eleven. The activities range from motion pictures and dancing at the one extreme, to forums and study clubs at the other. The Outside Branch of .the Mutual Welfare League, which took origin in Sing Sing Prison, is one of the groups composing this community organization. The Librarians' Union is another, and a Polish national group, meeting on Sundays. The organization is a group of groups, and the groups contain young and old people, men and women. Sundry activities are maintained — such activities as dancing and forum work — with the specific object of making the school building attractive to the unconnected individual, as a first step toward em- bracing him within a significant group activity. The par- liamentary organization of this center is not yet com- pleted because the mores — the customary procedure and standards of value of the center — are still indefinite. Function must determine structure; the dominant inter- 154 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT ests must determine, and not too soon, the parliamentary or statutory organization. Special Enterprises. — Around this general com- munity organization the following special enterprises are constellated. First is the Community Night School, which has already been duplicated in other parts of New York. A night school of the traditional order, teaching English and citizenship to foreigners, has been made over into a self-operating night school club. It employs the teach- ers of the Board of Education and other teachers as well, and builds its teaching of English and civics around vari- ous activities and interests. There are a half million non-English-speaking foreigners in New York, of whom only about thirty thousand have heretofore frequented the night schools annually. Are there interests which the immigrant would be glad to pursue and through which he would learn English incidentally, the formal instruc- tion being merely supplementary ? Answering this ques- tion, the Community Night School is applying the point of view of John Dewey. Interest creates action, which creates more interest; action brings knowledge; knowl- edge is embodied in habitual activities ; the school merges with its surrounding neighborhood. The Community Night School operates the year round and pays all its own costs through club dues during those months when tax money is not available. Second among the related organizations is the Com- munity Labor Center. The Labor Center, called Unity Center, was instituted by Local 25 of the Ladies' Waist and Dress Makers' Union of New York, in cooperation with the Training School for Community Workers. It is frequented by about 3,cxx) union members each week and CITIZEN COOPERATION 155 is self-supporting. They come direct from the factories and have their dinner in the building; they go into class- rooms and hold their shop meetings under conditions of unlimited freedom; they then disperse into the audi- torium, gymnasium and social areas of the school; or, according to their preference, remain in the class-rooms for study courses of varied nature. These study courses have included the following series of lectures and semi- nars, initiated, controlled, and paid for by the unions, during the spring of 1917: Industrial Democracy (alter- nate discussions in Yiddish and English) ; Labor Prob- lems; What is lyiterature? (Discussions in Yiddish); History of the Labor Movement (discussions in Eng- lish) ; English Literature ; courses in English for for- eigners ; courses in social dancing and gymnastics. Unity Center is the first organic connection between the rank and file of unionized labor under their own leaders, and the school community center. It is being watched closely by many unions and is likely, before the end of 191 7, to have been duplicated in not less than six of the large New York public schools and in the schools of other cities. Third among the related activities is the Social Clinic for Unadjusted Children. This clinic, whose work reaches down to the beginnings of the elementary school, has to do with truant, delinquent and dependent chil- dren and their families and the conditions which pro- duce their misfortune; with the vocationally unadjusted child, and the child whose incipient unadjustment, mental, physical, or social, becomes apparent to friends or teach- ers. Such children exist to the number of a hundred thousand or more in New York City, and are in many ways the touchstone of the whole social need of the community. 156 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT The community which becomes intelligently conscious of the existence of maladjustment among its children and families, becomes through that very act conscious of its needs and opportunities as a community. Unadjust- ment may represent sub-normality, abnormality, or supra- normality; in the ranks of unadjusted people are the feeble-minded and most of the geniuses, while a large part of the maladjustment of individuals does not begin as a thing innate, but is rather a matter of social cir- cumstance, although in due time it becomes a psychic condition as well. The Social Clinic for Unadjusted Children is housed in a tenement near the school building, and constitutes, along with the Community Clearing House, an annex to the community center of the Wingate School. The Com- munity Clearing House must be described because it represents a definite structural advance in the process of uniting community centers with scientific government. The Community Clearing House is a semi-official in- stitution. It was established by the Committee on Un- adjusted Children, whose researches led also to the estab- lishment of the Social Clinic above described. The Community Clearing House serves an area of 40 blocks and 40,000 inhabitants, of whom 83 percent are immi- grants or children of immigrants. The following public departments cooperate with each other, with private agencies, and with the lay people, through the Clearing House: Hospitals, Licenses, Parole Commission, Health, Children's Court, Special Sessions, General Sessions and Magistrates' Courts, Charities, Public Employment, Cor- rections, Child Welfare, Tenement, Police, and various divisions of the Department of Education. This cooper- ation is based on cases and is expedited through a staff of workers at the Clearing House, through a highly-de- CITIZEN COOPERATION 157 veloped system of records and a functional directory of all the services, public or private, which any human need requires. Some paragraphs from the hand-book of the Clearing House may be quoted here, as they relate directly to the subject of this chapter: Principles of the Community Clearing House "The development of the Clearing House is being guided by the following considerations: "i. Public services have undergone centralization and specialization, which are necessary measures toward efficiency. But this development has not been accompanied by a development of local cen- ters, making it possible for the citizens at large to understand the administrative workings of gov- ernment or to cooperate in the task of govern- ment. "The human being, whose consciousness is a unit, is operated on by a multitude of compulsions and services, public and private. "The present need is to focalize these minis- trations in such a way that the personality of the individual who is being guided or helped can be enlisted. There is a gulf between the plain man and the expert services of his own government, which diminishes the immediate results of expert work and threatens the permanency of scientific gov- ernment. "The Community Clearing House is a device through which it is hoped to bridge this gulf, with the result of making democracy real and com- pleting the efficiency of government and of or- ganized social service. "2. New York awaits a reconstruction of local com- munity life. 158 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT "Such reconstruction will be possible only when continuous and intelligent citizenship be- comes possible. "This citizenship can be realized only through an organized cooperation between lay citizens and experts. "The Community Clearing House, therefore, aims at a restoration of local community life; it has been instituted to make possible the devel- opment of the community center movement into something important and vital to all the people. "3. The people must in the last analysis do their so- cial services for themselves. The intimate group must do them for and with the individual. So- cial service is the process of adjusting everybody to the ever-changing community environment. In this process, the conscious and intelligent self- adjustment of the individual, the small group and the neighborhood is the decisive factor. "It is important that the people have an intelli- gent sympathy toward their own government. But it is more important that they be hospitable and understanding toward those services, public and private, which exist because of widespread human needs and which must be willingly em- ployed by the people if the human need is to be met. Ignorance, resistance, and hostility must be transformed into sympathy and understand- ing. The individual and his immediate group must be led to initiate their own improvement. "The Community Clearing House aims to cre- ate this new state of mind among the people and to bring together the resources which exist for the people and which should exist of and by the people; which shouU be taken into the hearts of the people and ma^e a part of the every-day striving of the people. CITIZEN COOPERATION 159 *'It is still a true thing that self-help is the best help. All help in matters of education and morals is only a preliminary to self-help. "The Community Clearing House is, therefore, a carefully thought-out instrument for self- help." Above is sketched the community center of the East Gramercy district of New York, A Cooperative Synthetic Agency Binding Govern- ment and People Together. — Some outstanding points may be mentioned about this center. In the first place its activity looks both ways — ^toward the expert and toward the layman. It is a synthesis of expert and lay initiative and of expert and lay interest. In the second place it represents not a few people, whether lay or expert, but masses of people. The inter- ests are such that almost every mental stratum in the community is penetrated; there are incentives and there is a visible need for the talent scattered among all social classes and all kinds of groups. In the third place, this center, while incorporating recreation, actually binds up together more than two- thirds of all the services which are being carried out by New York City and County within its area. Contacts are not merely occasional and are not just in the nature of exhortations by orators representing municipal de- partments, addressed to forum audiences. The paid civil servants — tenement inspectors, health officials of various divisions, truant officers, patrolmen — are in organized contact with the center not merely as human beings but as experts representing the major public services of New York. Finally and of great importance — the center is not a i6o EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT hodge-podge of individuals, but a constellation of groups which operate under their own leadership, which carry forward their own primary interests while functioning more broadly in the community life. The intimate group is always the standardizing agency so far as character, habits and points of view are concerned; the intimate group has been the missing link in our theory and prac- tice of Jeffersonian democracy, though this criticism does not hold good of Tammany Hall. A Continuation School for Training for Public Ser- vice. — Such a community center is a training school for citizenship in general and for expert civic service in particular. It is a continuation school for the existing civil servants operating through it. It is a laboratory where prospective civic specialists are actually being trained day by day. For (incidentally) this center is the practice ground of the Training School for Com- munity Workers in New York. The profounder value of such a community center does not lie in its education of present or future governmental experts. It lies in the creation of an intelligent affection among people at large, directed toward the significant policies and espe- cially the complicated administrative service of govern- ment. The Cost of the Community Center. — Before put- ting behind us this illustrative case it should be stated that the cost of operating this many-sided enterprise is at the present writing (May, 191 7) divided as follows: New York City grants the building and janitorial ser- vices free of cost. One executive secretary, who re- ceives $1,800 a year, is employed by a promoting com- mittee, and all further expenses other than the salaries CITIZEN COOPERATION i6i of night school teachers for about two-thirds of the year, are borne by the actual participants in the community enterprise. The overhead services of the Community Clearing House and Social Clinic, necessary until new standards and habits are worked out, cost about $10,000 a year; this expenditure is necessitated by the fact that the Community Clearing House has been compelled to re-survey the public and private social services of New York, to create a wholly new directory of resources, and to perform other services which need never be duplicated as successive local clearing houses are established. 11. The Community Center and Expert City Government All the work which has been above described, or work of like significance, is to be found, in whole or in part, in the following cities at least : Philadelphia, Buffalo, Akron, Chicago, Dallas, The Locust Point district of Baltimore ; and in varying measures in a score of the New York community centers and in the health centers of the Borough of Queens in New York and the original ex- perimental health district in Manhattan Borough. In other words, a widespread and determined public move- ment is giving rise in various parts of America to a new type of institution which is destined to aid in creating a new citizenship and a new university of public service. Fitting Citizenship for its Larger Tasks through the Local Environment. — Three considerations may be stated as explaining the community center movement. They are all relevant to the question of training for public service. First is the pathetic need of Americans to get nearer I i 162 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT to the sources of power, governmental and industrial. We insist on believing that we do control our own desti- nies. We know that great destinies are being shaped for good or ill. We want to get together and do some- thing about it and we naturally get together with the people we know and in places accessible to our homes. The forum and community center are outcomes. / The second consideration is not formulated in many I minds, but is implicit in thousands of minds. It re- ceives the fullest statement in Sumner's thesis on Folk- ways, as again in J. G. Frazer's simple and profound essay on The Scope of Social Anthropology. It is equally a component in the modern philosophic impulse which is called radical empiricism, pragmatism, and humanism, especially as stated by William James and above all by John Dewey. The concept is as follows. Knowledge and truth are adaptations through which the individual makes himself into an effective functional being, always with reference to a particular environment. The objective truth, and still more the emotional and ethical truth, which are wrought through the process of adaptation to one environment, are not necessarily true any measure whatever of some other environment, pplied to the question of citizenship or of intelligent democracy or of the new world morality, this principle — this psychological axiom — would be stated in terms like the following. The ways of thinking and feeling, the intuitions of what is good, true, and worth-while, which the individual becomes capable of in his domestic, inti- mate, and local environment, will fit him for the larger political world only if the two worlds are alike. They must not only be alike in some remote philosophic sense, but they must feel alike. Men — the men whom we em- pirically know — are automatic beings in the main and in CITIZEN COOPERATION 163 the long run. Their emotions, sentiments, and ideals are growths, or, to' restate the modern doctrine, they are adaptations to particular environments. If the political complex in which plain men are called on to function is radically different from the domestic complexes in which they have learned to function, they will function not only wildly, but, from the standpoint of the political world, perversely and wickedly. This is the condition that holds throughout America to-day and it explains the gulf lying between the point of view of the man on the street and the point of view of that expert of government who has inherited the slowly gathered tradition of professional method and profes- sional ideals which, under civil service and under the mere continuity of our governmental activity, are being built up. Occasionally some intense and prolonged shock pene- trates down through the whole mass of a nation, and the rank and file experience a collective emotion and col- lective will which accords with the dominant national need. We have seen this event take place in Europe in the past two years and are witnessing the beginning of an identical process in America to-day. These in- tense and prolonged shocks cannot, however, be relied on for the maintenance of social consciousness over any long period of time. They are too expensive. Bridging the Chasm between Expert and Popular States of Mind. — What, then, is the community center in relation to the above principle? The community center first cultivates the leisure interests of the people. Through discussion, through drama, through other col- lective expressions, it does gradually modify the bent of feeling, the state of anticipation of its constituency. i64 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT This important step is a preliminary to the application of the aroused interests to the performance of tasks. What are these tasks to be? If they can be made ex- citing and important, and if they can represent the mean- ing and purposes of government or of "society," we shall at last have bridged the chasm between popular states of mind and expert states of mind, between the folkways and the needs of purposeful society. By Correlation with Governmental Administration. — It is plain that an occasional voting contest does not provide the environment to which plain men can adapt in the process of acquiring social truth. This process must, go on day by day. It must be primarily related to the administrative services of government, and not pri- marily to the political struggles of government. It is enough to take the following departments, in order that we may see the richness of government in continuous human interest and continuous opportunity for using lay service : education, health, corrections, the administration of public recreation, city planning. We have still the whole field of police activity, if these interests are not enough. All that is said here subtracts nothing from the importance of the "lining up" of public opinion on the broader political issues which divide classes. But so long as the common man has his public experience only in campaigns and in the pursuit of far-away programs, he does not adapt himself to the realities of government's work and usually he becomes merely a bundle of resist- ance to the programs of other groups than his own and to the quiet constructive work of the permanent public servants who are doing most of the things government will ever do. This second consideration explains why the com- CITIZEN COOPERATION 165 munity center, beginning in some instances as a recreation place and in other instances as a forum, passes on (if it survives at all) into a serious and ser- viceable relation with particular departments of the activity of government. This transition goes ahead unconsciously, although it is being pushed by some lead- ers of the movement, w^hile there are others who fear that the new impulse will be flooded under by too many work-a-day interests. By Transfer of Emphasis from Things to Men. — The third consideration making for community centers is more obvious and more fundamental than either of the two which have been stated. It relates to the changed direction of public attention, which is shifting from things to men. For a century and a half the best powers of our western world have been concentrated on the production and distribution of wealth through the methods of power machinery, specialization and large unit organization. These are the right methods where we are making things out of raw material or distributing finished products. It is the right method because mate- rials do not cooperate with our work of shaping them; neither do they resist ; they have no memories, no antici- pations, and no self -activity. So we have forged out an intricate and correct technic ; and in our development of government, we have naively imitated the efficiency of the industry which deals with things. Government also deals with things, and in this measure it is proceeding on right lines when it duplicates the methods of modern material business. But the important work of government has to do with men rather than things. Government is shaping and re-shaping human material, and we have executed the amazing feat ■v^ i66 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT of not realizing that human material, unlike non-human material, must cooperate in its own shaping. Nothing is efficiently done with men which fails to enlist their personalities. The complicated human services of gov- ernment, modeled on factory efficiency, cannot, in the nature of things, enlist the personalities of the human beings on whom these services are operating. Bureaucracy or Decentralization. — This is a new angle on the centralization question. Our government .has multiplied its undertakings through the recognition of one after another patent human need. It has de- vised services to meet this need. Then it has bureau- cratized and centralized the services. Each human being experiences many needs* but each experiences most of all his own personality, his continuity of memory and hope, his emotional dispositions toward this and that. In most American cities to-day we can find the following special services of government, operated from remote bureaus, touching occasionally on a typical individual or family: compulsory attendance, infant nursing, conta- gious disease service, housing inspection, sundry enter- prises of formal education. In most American cities we find that these services, while each one of them is more or less efficient from the standpoint of central and bureau- cratic organization, are uncorrelated so far as the case in question is concerned, and are unintelligible so far as the individual in question is concerned. Our problem, therefore, is to devise some method by which science, which means specialization, can be brought to bear in cooperation with the individual who is being molded. This means that it must be brought to bear- in cooperation with the small group of which he is a member and within the neighborhood where he works or CITIZEN COOPERATION 167 dwells. It means that there must be a new kind of team work between specialists. We are driven forcibly toward the conception of local administrative units, but these will still not get a human response unless the people as members of groups are brought into contact with the services. So the efficiency motive, which produced centraliza- tion, is now beginning to drive toward a decentralization which need not involve any loss of the values of cen- tralization. It is only a matter of intelligent discrimina- tion based on experience which has yet to be gained, to decide which services ought to be locally administered and which centrally administered, which services ought to be left to the expert who will come when called and which services ought to be left to the more general- ized public servant who, like the family doctor, can take care of that multitude of obvious things which do not require a consulting expert or the heavy machinery of a diagnostic laboratory or hospital or institution for their treatment. A Rapprochement. — As government is being driven out toward the local community, so, from the standpoint of the laity, the people are being driven toward govern- ment, and many community centers are to-day rich with examples of the workability of the new method. What all these considerations mean in training for public service, can only be left to the thinking reader. They would require many chapters for explicit state- ment. All that is here said would be banal if it were merely a spinning of theory. It is significant, however obscurely it may have been said, because it is a statement of the experiences of community centers in New York and elsewhere during the last five years. CHAPTER X INTERPRETING EXPERT GOVERNMENT TO THE CITIZENSHIP Making Citizens Understand via Official Publicity TWO years after Greater New York took its first decisive step toward "government by experts" there was sporadic complaint from people who had not yet comprehended that it is no kindness to the public or to public employees to continue unnecessary persons on a city's payroll. "To hell with reform," was one of the milder exple- tives which crept into newspaper letters pro bono publico and even into editorials. Instead of resenting such ex- pressions and heaping contumely upon the applicants, one of the chief advocates of government for results rather than for parties issued a pamphlet of concrete explana- tions and called it To Hell with Reform, or Municipal Reform through Revision of Business Methods. The keynote of this explanation was the following valedic- tory : Only a Beginning It takes months and years to give up old habits and to acquire new habits. There are still superfluous officeholders; the great major- ity of citizens still have a fatalistic belief that government must be less competent and less honesty than private busi- ness. i68 INTERPRETING EXPERT GOVERNMENT 169 Just as surely as night follows day, these business reforms will be wiped out like sand drawings on New York City's beaches, unless the small percentage who now comprehend these business changes persist in their support until those who understand them will outnumber those who do not un- derstand them. The forecast proved prophetic not only for municipaf reforms but for the civic agency which expressed itself that way in 191 1. Three years later when expert gov- ernment was reelected on pledges to complete the task of putting New York City on a business basis, this same agency, the Bureau of Municipal Research, had three paralytic strokes: (i) It decided to stop keeping the public informed about government deficiencies, break- downs, weaknesses, — has been publicly silent regard- ing such grave menaces as the New York Central Grab / but privately favorable; (2) It discontinued its school j service and its publicity for non-expert taxpayers; (3) Forgetting that in its teaching days it had issued a pamphlet with so startling a title as To Hell with Re- form, it publicly renounced what it called the sensation- alism of such earlier titles as Civicity, Like Charity, Be- gins at Home; No Matter Who's Elected, etc. Current Information or Misunderstanding, Mistrust,' Reaction. — Recent events in Greater New York show, as does the experience in every other city, that where the public is not currently helped to understand, not only will and must the public misunderstand and mistrust even government by e"xperts, but those very experts themselves almost inevitably acquire contempt for the public's ability and right to understand expert govern- ment. Thus advance steps are jeopardized and resent- 170 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT ment engendered in proportion to the proved ability of experts to be of help if they want to be. For where is the public which would not rather have bad government by blunderbusses than bad government by experts ? To illustrate: New York City has for ten years been trying to find a way "to end Death Avenue" and to remove the New York Central's tracks on the West Side of Manhattan from view and sound. When the latest plans for improving the West Side were first announced to the public in 1916 they were found to be misquoted and misillustrated. A photograph which claimed to show how Riverside Park would look after the improve- ment was completed, attractively but extensively lied for it represented new parking to the Hudson River's edge, whereas the agreement itself called for parking only where the present park was to be dug up and despoiled. The words of the agreement were correspondingly muti- lated: to the water's edge was added and enough was substituted for $300,000, i.e., not enough! It was later stated by the comptroller that this publicity was written by "some one outside the city government." Several lessons as to expert government's publicity crop out from the surface of this single illustration : I — The expertness of publicity sometimes lies in the fact that it lies. 2 — Expert publicity that lies or evades is inexpert so far as it pretends to represent the public. 3 — Expert sponsoring of publicity may cover up inexpert- ness or anti-government origin of publicity. 4_No official publicity is expert in the public's esteem which fails to help the public understand. 5 — Expert government publicity when incomplete, mis- leading or false can be far more mischievous than publicity INTERPRETING EXPERT GOVERNMENT 171 by inexpert government simply because the former per se carries more weight. Credit and Debit Publicity. — It would be unfair to New York City's government by experts to read from the foregoing illustration anything not specifically con- tained in it. Equally striking illustrations of truly and nobly expert publicity are furnished by New York City's expert governors. If only the credit side of the ledger is looked at it is doubtful if anywhere else in the world can a municipal government be found which has in so many different ways at so many different times more frankly or more expertly tried to throw the spotlight of frank analysis and reiterated publicity upon community needs and government acts: Education through follow-up. Education through cartoons. Education through traveling exhibits. Education through central budget exhibits. Education through noon and afternoon and dinner and after-dinner speeches. Education through special stories for newspapers and weekly news releases, and weekly printed bulletins. Education through illustrated annual reports and through accounts of stewardship as by Mayor Mitchel via the com- mittee of 107 which nominated him to the whole public. Education through budget analysis and budget hearings. In fact education of the public has been found so pro- ductive of support that the public has been over-educated as to the merits of expert government and has been lulled by friendly zephyrs and self-starter bouquets into numb- ness that temporarily prevents its appreciating the need for equally frank publicity about needs neglected. It is not strange that expert government has not yet 172 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT worked out a correct balance between public explanation of its service and public admission of service not yet rendered. It is time-consuming work to be an expert governor of even a small city. City managers, for ex- ample, have about all they can do to take care of their daily work and to prevent successful charges against their work without worrying lest some one shall trust them too far and overrate their contribution. Here is where citizen agencies and the press have both opportunity and obligation. They can see official service with perspective that is impossible for those who are themselves rendering the service. They can tell frankly where the future of efficient government is being jeopar- dized by want of public understanding or by lack of official merit. The most we can expect public officials themselves to do is to be frank in recognizing when and where the public is not correctly informed as to their merits. When a citizen agency proposed to the New York board of estimate and apportionment that public misunder- standing of the West Side Improvement Plan should be treated not by debating tactics, but by education via a pamphlet which would take up one opposing argument at a time with its answer, the board at once admitted the probable helpfulness of substituting information for con- troversy. Wherever officials refuse to face frankly any breakdown in their own work or any gaps in public understanding, there is need for citizen publicity to sup- plement incorrect official publicity. Publicity by expert government when limited to pre- election weeks will be found a boomerang for expert- ness. There is not time during election for a city man- ager whose work is misunderstood to get before his community the facts necessary to prevent successful mis- INTERPRETING EXPERT GOVERNMENT 173 representation of the commission which hired him. ^ I beHeve there will be many ups and downs in city manager cities just because the expert governors feel reluctant "to blow their own horn." Nevertheless, I believe re- sults are certain to show that any voting body which has not been informed via small doses cumulatively throughout a manager's term, will be even more suscep- tible to the poison of misrepresentation than communi- ties which have never had expert government. Not Lip Service, but Street Service, Health Service, City Service. — On the other hand, where a city man- ager government has done its work in the open through- out its term, it will be vastly harder to misrepresent it successfully and to confuse electors just because its service is not lip service but street service, health service, water service, tax service, etc. An illuminating illustration of this was furnished last fall by St. Augustine, Florida (Winton L. Miller, City Manager), where the public voted confidence in the city manager plan by double the vote with which it was installed. The danger that expert government will be misunder- I stood unless its concrete services are advertised as per- sistently as commercial projects are advertised has been \ recognized in Dayton, Ohio, the first large city to try the 1 city manager plan. Several methods have been used by^ the government itself and by business men to make sure that the contrast between "government by deficit" and "government by City Manager Waite" shall be unevad- ably explained to voters. When necessary to secure popular vote for the current operation budget and per- manent improvement budget. Manager Waite prepared complete and dramatic contrasts from official records. 174 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT These contrasts were explained by the manager himself to workmen in factory after factory, to groups of busi- ness men, to people on street corners, and to churches and clubs. They were further explained very drama- tically in public exhibits, cart-tail speeches, film stories, exhibit placards, and the contrasts were again brought into prominence through newspapers, news and edito- rials. The Rotary Club took a hand and mobilized the manager and other officers and business men who had learned the story. Later the Bureau of Research ran a series of full page paid advertisements with illustra- tions and facts. On top of this a series of bulletins was started by the Bureau of Research with the frank avowal : Good government is not automatic; it does not furnish its own motive power. It produces maximum results only when all the people interest themselves in it. Unless all citizens interest themselves, it is a case of "everybody's business being nobody's business" — except the politician's. An organized campaign of education — based only upon facts about service rendered — should be conducted in sup- port of our present form of government. Not for a minute may experts safely assume that their communities are going to be saved by the information or efficiency which they themselves possess. On the contrary, the information that counts is the information which reaches those for whom government exists, i.e., the pubHc. Experts, public or private, are excellent for absorb- ing as well as for reflecting public interest and public in- formation. It frequently happens that expertness, scien- tific reporting, scientific accounting and scientific manage- ment become a menace instead of a help because men of science fail to keep in touch with unscientific minds. INTERPRETING EXPERT GOVERNMENT 175 Unescapable Information, Not Merely Obtainable Information! — Expert government's pub licitx_can no- where be effective which does not act upon the same Un y principles that private advertising has adopted for the selling of goods: I — Put your information where it will be seen. Y i 2 — Write it so the people will read it with understanding. /\ A 3 — Tell the truth so that people will keep on believing. / '^ ' It is unescapable information, not obtainable informa- tion, that keeps the public from misunderstanding and repudiating expert government. Nor may experts safely forget that they are not the whole of the government for which they are responsible. They cannot impart what they do not possess ; they can- not possess all the necessary truth about their own work unless their co-workers and subordinates possess and feel for that truth. Thus it happens that those experts will be most effective in publicity who are, first, most effective in doing, and who are, secondly, sure that their own sub- ordinates clear down to the rank and file know and tell the essential facts about their government's service. Because the fate of so many reports is the scrap heap or shelf heap, officials still quite generally write quarterly and annual reports on the assumption that few, if any, persons will read them, especially that few taxpayers will read them. Naturally there has been a catering to the organized demand from colleagues in similar work for comparative information. Thus police commissioners are apt to write their reports for other police commissioners and not for local officers or public. It is surprising how many college presidents really address their reports to other college presidents or to the big foundations, instead V\N 176 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT of to the constituency which furnishes them with children and ought to furnish them with money. It is not fear of interesting but fear of being charged with trying to interest, which palsies the reporting hand and freezes the imagination. When Mayor Mitchel printed his report to the Citizens' Committee of 107 on his first two years there were no photographs, no attempts of any kind to hold the unwilling auditor. When, however, the committee issued for free popular H I consumption a digest of Mayor Mitchel's speech it used (large type, much black facing and many attractive and ' informing illustrations. - "Plain Talk" to Citizens. — Perhaps the most notable departure in official circles from traditional reporting is the 1914 report of Morris Llewellyn Cooke, director of public works, Philadelphia, from 1912 to 1916. This report has significance because of its content — a merito- rious textbook, a sort of first aid to the injured and about to be injured among reporters and reportees, whether inside or outside public office. It is moreover especially significant because Mr. Cooke is not a yellow journalist or a butterfly or a susceptible Simple Simon. Instead, he is a well known scientist; he was chosen by the Carnegie Foundation to make its report on academic and industrial efficiency; he is executive officer of a national bureau whose claim for support is that it gives scientific, impartial information regarding public utilities ; _upgn_him perhaps more than any other has. jajlen the mantle of scientific management left by F. W. Taylor. He has no income-need for public office. But you just ought to see what he thinks of publicity by and for expert government! What Mr. Cooke found dignified enough, plain enough and interesting enough INTERPRETING EXPERT GOVERNMENT I77 for the public works department of Philadelphia is worth studying by citizen agencies of information and by others in the now large army of persons trying to interest the American public in what happens to their money when spent in government, philanthropy, and busihess, and what happens to the public because of that spending. Plain Talk (25 point, ff) is the title. Where there is ^o vision the people perish (ff) are the last words on page 108. On the cover inconspicuously in the lower right hand is Report of director, department of public works, Philadelphia, 1914 (8 point). In full face type above an appealing quotation from William Penn and under the title are the following: Economies Public Singing Gas Works Drinking Water Pigeons Street Cleaning Good Roads Bridges Sign Boards Contracts Garbage Band Music City Plan Public Utilities Graft Street Lighting Marketing Water Waste And Other Things of General Interest Then follows the foreword which Mr. Woodruff has already quoted in his chapter in "The New View of Municipal Government," ^ to which is attached the postscript : "At least look at the pictures !" The first photograph is that of a pigeon making a nest in a window box passed by 100,000 people each day — ^to typify the importance of not being distracted from the main purpose of public service. Throughout the volume are other photographs of before and after work — build- ^See p. 7. 178 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT ings ; streets ; workers at work and workers banqueting ; changes of type; cartoons; jingles; facsimile letters; copies and explanations of official records. Never, how- ever, for one line is the reader allowed to forget that the purpose of this report is to give the reader information that belongs to him, that will help him, and that is needed by him. If other agencies of information, particularly those paid for by citizens, had used similar methods of inform- ing the public, Philadelphia might possibly have changed officers, but certainly would never accept a lower standard of public service or of public information. Essay Statements, Bromidic Comments and Quota- tions. — A striking example of inexpert publicity by experts is afforded by the latest annual report of the United States bureau of education. Its summary of work done throughout the country for 20,000,000 children in elementary schools is signed by a government specialist in school systems. Yet only nine pages in all are given to this most important of educational fields and these are taken up with essay material, bromidic comments and quotations from other pamphlets. Of 15 pages in the commissioner's own report seven consist of quotations from a letter previously written. In fact, if purely perfunctory matter is subtracted and matter which bears all the earmarks of being supplied by some clerk, it is doubtful if the commissioner of educa- tion for 100,000,000 people took the equivalent of two hours in preparing his annual statement. Yet that state- ment listed 23 different alleged nation-wide needs dependent upon the United States bureau. What it would cost to provide for those needs and to finance the broad program suggested is not even hinted. Facts justifying INTERPRETING EXPERT GOVERNMENT 179 the claims for the bureau are utterly lacking, yet the work of the United States bureau is in the hands of persons called specialists selected by competitive test. This publicity by expert government actually stands in the way of public understanding and public support. Reports Intended for Citizen Information — Not for Other Experts. — To this unexpert publicity by national expert government a striking contrast is furnished in the educational field by Supt. F. E. Spaulding, formerly of Minneapolis and elected in 191 7 to the superintendency of the Cleveland schools. Mr. Spaulding's eligibility to the Minneapolis and Cleveland positions rests largely upon his publicity work as government expert at the head of Newton, Massachusetts, pubHc schools. At a time when several other experts in city school systems and in colleges were disparaging the public's ability to under- stand the public service it paid for, Mr. Spaulding frank- ly took the position that the public was entitled to know what it was getting for its money. He prepared detailed and comparative analyses of service rendered and of cost which elicited unusual interest and discussion among his own taxpayers and called him dramatically and helpfully to the attention of colleagues throughout the country. The superiority of the recent Minneapolis reports is fiot so much in the fact that they went to the public in small installments as that they were prepared by an expert for the understanding of inexperts. After admit- ting the public's right to understand and to be told in ways that would make it easy to understand, this expert scorned none of the devices which the printing and advertising worlds have employed to "put across," "get over," "sell," "land" their stories. Changes of type, i8o EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT short paragraphs, diagrams, photographs, indentations, and last, but not least, attractive titles were employed. The fact that two school board members who endorsed the building program and other educational program were voted out by the electors, and persons critical of the program were voted in does not subtract one iota from the merit of the educational method employed. The spirit is well stated in this sentence : "In order that the people may demand or permit in the light of intelligence not in the darkness of ignorance, misconception or prejudice, a series of monographs is being issued ... for the purpose of informing the peo- ple concerned of local educational conditions and needs." How titles can be made to express sympathy for those who pay the bills and attempt to measure up to their rights, is indicated by the following among 21 titles: A Million a Year — a five year building program, etc. The Price of Progress — legislative program, etc. Where Are the Children? — a continuous census Keeping the Children Well — open air rooms, etc. Out of the Beaten Track — school publications, entertain- ments, various activities not in the regular curriculum Making Children Strong Children Who Are Different The Critical Period — the junior high schools After the Day's Work — evening schools Possibility and Opportunity — vocational guidance, place- ment and supervision Citizen Understanding Essential to Continuance of Expert Government. — Upon the character of publicity by expert government depend the continuance and exten- sion of that kind of government. Whether expert government shall try to do its work in spite of public INTERPRETING EXPERT GOVERNMENT i8i misunderstanding and without regard to public under- standing depends upon what questions the public asks. Observation indicates that this in turn depends upon the public's organization for asking questions. Where civic bodies are organized to support or abet officials, govern- ment experts on the inside will be misled in one city- after another to believe that it is not necessary for the public to understand. The civic agency which cares more for its own interest or for friendly relations with expert governors than it does for concrete results from such government for fhe whole public rapidly becomes more arrogant than expert governors themselves. No more hostile attack could be made upon expert government than the insidious urging by a Chamber of Commerce president as in New York that experts should make up their own minds without holding public hear- ings. Of course, what the president of the Chamber of Commerce meant was that when a small handful of men within a larger handful of men representing large inter- ests favor a plan which a majority of expert governors favor, the public should be satified with the Chamber of Commerce's declaration of trust in private conferences between expert government and the New York Central, and between the New York Central and the Chamber of Commerce. The comment of Borough President Connolly of Queens laconically summarizes the real meaning of not holding back public projects until the public knows what interests are involved: "They don't have public hearings in Russia." ^ * ^Throughout this paper Dr. Allen raises pertinently the ques- tions arising in connection with the cooperation of unofficial experts with city government. Readers who care to pursue this subject farther are urged to read Edward A. Fitzpatrick's "Municipal Research — A Criticism" in the New Republic of i82 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT January 2, 1915, and Frederick A. Cleveland's reply under the title "The Basis of Municipal Research" in the same magazine of January 23, 1915. They ought also to read a discussion of the same subject by the same persons in the April and October, 1916, numbers of the National Municipal Review. Dr. Cleve- land's views on this subject are presented also in a booklet, "Expert Municipal Service with Citizen Support," issued by the Philadelphia Bureau of Municipal Research, June 25, 1914, in a booklet on "The Citizen and the Government," recently issued by the New York Bureau of Municipal Research, and in a pamphlet called "Responsible Government" published in Mu- nicipal Research in January, 1916. — Editor. CHAPTER XI THE LOCAL RESIDENCE REQUIREMENT FOR PUBLIC OFFICE* THE local residence requirement for public office (i) Tends to perpetuate mediocre technical and expert service. (2) Means the continuation of party spoils. (3) Makes impossible adequate training for all experts and (4) A national supply of experts, and (5) Is therefore one of the biggest obstacles to the American ideal of an efficient democracy. These statements may seem overstated, for sake of emphasis. Let us examine them and see. We will limit our inquiry to the principal administrative experts who set the tone for the entire corps of the city's employees. The Local Residence Requirement Means Mediocre Technical and Expert Service. — There is needed an inspector of gas in a large city at a salary of $5,000 per year. The tide of provincialism in this particular city runs strong. "Aliens" are not wanted. Therefore, by law or by decree of the Civil Service Commission, ap- plicants for the position are limited to those who are residents of the city. * Reprinted from The Public Servant. 183 i84 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT The position requires integrity and willingness to put the public weal first. There are ten applicants, of whom five pass the examination. Of these five, two have been sent in by the gas company. One is a ward worker who has crammed up for the examination, and barely passes it, but passes high on ''personality and tact," which counted 4 out of the 10 points. A fourth is a clerk in the present bureau, a man who passed low on the "personality and tact" test, but who was suffi- ciently immersed in office procedure to pass his other tests with high percentages. A fifth is a graduate of an engineering school in a nearby university, endowments ito which are being expectantly awaited. This particular graduate the faculty had not thought sufficiently capable to warrant a recommendation for private employment. Moreover, his family connections and his aspirations are such as to make him very amenable to "social pressure" from the gas office. One of the five must be chosen. Which is the best choice? Is it not the ward worker? A similar examination is given in another city for an identical position. The examination this time is open to all without residence restrictions. Again there are five successful applicants. One is a local politician who in his oral examination assures the examiners that he can do any "organizing" work among the voters the city administration may wish him to do. His technical qualifications are just sufficient to let him pass. A second is a resident of the city, and once an instructor in chemistry in a nearby university. His technical qualifications are high. He sends word to the appointing authority that councils are "with him." The character of the councils is such as to make it sure that this THE LOCAL RESIDENCE REQUIREMENT 185 means inimical pressure from the gas company. A third is a highly qualified non-resident expert from a nearby gas company, who says in his written examination, that utility questions are to be solved solely by confer- ence with the president of the home gas company. A fourth is a resident graduate from a high-grade engineer- ing school. The tests assure him to be capable and fearless. A fifth has served the public most acceptably in a similar position in a larger city at a salary of $3,500. He has excellent technical preparation, knows how to deal with the public, and his ideals as a public servant have been well tested. Now which of the five should be appointed? Is it not the experienced expert ? But, you say, these are extreme cases. Quite to the contrary, they are taken almost word for word from official records and are typical of what is going on day after day in American municipalities. The number of quaHfied men free to take such a position are sufficiently limited in the United States as a whole. It stands to reason that the possibilities of a good choice are all the fewer when applicants are limited to their home towns. The residence limitation assures mediocrity in public office; the removal of the residence limitation gives opportunity for the prepared expert who w^ishes to be a public servant. The Continuation of Party Spoils. — The local resi- dence requirement means the continuation of party spoils. Why? Because when the choice is .limited to mediocrity in technical preparation, the wisest choice is the politician; for other politicians ''higher up" will then be held to account for what this politician does. The i86 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT forces determining the responsiveness of this official tO' public needs will be either political contributions from the gas company or reasonable standards of public light- ing and qualities of gas acceptable to the voters, and the latter, sooner or later, becomes the determining factor. Nothing is so hopeless as the city employee who is an "expert" when the city politicians want to justify his retention, and a "me too" when orders are given. Local residence requirements mean the continuation of party spoils because party spoils are to be preferred to the alternative of irresponsible, ill-prepared employees. The Local Residence Requirement Means Inadequate Training for all Experts. — If the mediocre is to be chosen and the party favorite selected from the me- diocres, why, pray, should there be any special training for public service ? But even assuming that only the best qualified are appointed, why should any one take the time to train for the policy-determining expert positions which set the tone to city administrations and the salaries for which warrant preparation? Why prepare for the position of assistant city solicitor, or chief clerk in the department of public works, or market clerk, or engineer in the transit department, if you cannot look for continuous employment in governmental service elsewhere? The- fact that governmental work cannot be a profession is one of the greatest possible handicaps to governmental efficiency. Who will be so shortsighted as to train him- self for a given life work when the only position avail- able therein is a certain expert position in his home town ? And what university will think of offering the training needed for special public work under such restrictions ? If we had consciously set about to make government THE LOCAL RESIDENCE REQUIREMENT 187 inept and mediocre no surer means could have been chosen then to limit applicants to their home towns. A National Supply of Experts Is Impossible Under the Local Residence Requirement. — There are many urgent reasons why there should be no residence limi- tations upon engineers, bureau chiefs and all those in expert service. One of these is that the opposition to "aliens" is based primarily on the knowledge that the local expert is amenable to social and economic pressure that will tend to make him "safe and sane," in other words, dishonest. And if faith in the expert is to de- velop, all taint of dishonesty or amenability to "pressure" must be eliminated. How many cases could be cited of virile and honest criticisms of public utilities, say, coming from the highly qualified within a city? The number is few indeed. Moreover, the honesty, efficiency and competent standards of experts will best be furthered by the creation of a national supply of such experts to the end that evidence of "taint" will reflect on the expert's standing among his associates. This is a factor of no small importance in developing a class of experts in whom the public can have a righteous faith. If the sciences involved are to be developed, opportunities must be nation-wide. An Obstacle to Efficient Democracy. — And if these objections to the local residence requirement are true, or even approximately true, the ideal of efficient democ- racy remains an idle dream. The essentials to competency in governmental work are four: (i) scientific selection of the worker; (2) training of the worker for his job; (3) the inculcation of the ethical standards requisite for public office; (4) i88 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT the continuance in office of the highly trained in order to avoid the expense, delay and waste due to frequent training of experts. Every one of these essentials is impossible under local residence requirements. How It Is Done in Germany. — In making appoint- ments the magistracy of the German city is left with a wide latitude of choice with no restrictions as to local residence. The only restrictions are those imposed by the national laws requiring technical qualifications for given positions. The usual course in case of vacancies is for the admin- istrative board to advertise the fact that applications for appointment to a stated office will be received and considered. The advertisement usually states the amount of salary offered; the provisions in regard to pension, the duties to be performed and the qualifications expected. These qualifications never include local residence. Ad- vertisements are made for all the leading positions, including the Burgomeister. A typical advertisement runs as follows: "NOTICE "The post of Syndikus in the Magistrat of this city has become vacant. The stipend is 6000 marks per year with an increase of 600 marks every three years until the maxi- mum of 9000 marks is reached. The appointment is for life; and provision is made for a pension on retirement after long service, as well as for the granting of an annuity to the widow or orphans of a deceased incumbent of the post. The Syndikus is expected to preside in the Industrial and Mercantile Court (Gewerbe- und Kaufmannsgericht) and is intrusted with a general supervision over the legal affairs of the city. Candidates who have passed their second legal THE LOCAL RESIDENCE REQUIREMENT 189 examination and who have had successful administrative ex- perience are requested to submit applications accompanied by testimonials and other suitable documents to the city clerk before August 20. ^Trankfort-on-the-Main, THE MAGISTRAT. "July 17, 1916." How It Is Done in England. — In England where the qualifications demanded are equally high, the council usually authorizes the tovi^n clerk to announce, either through the local newspaper or otherwise, that appHca- tions for appointment to a stated position will be entertained. All positions are open to the competent regardless of residence. Not only is there no local residence requirement but the city council advertises for applicants and invites the competent everywhere to try for the position. Thus in twelve issues of the Municipal Journal, the leading municipal paper in England, there were 485 advertisements for positions to be filled. A typical advertisement, taken from the Mu- nicipal Journal, is as follows : "The Council invite applications for the office of MED- ICAL OFFICER OF HEALTH, and SCHOOL MEDICAL OFFICER, for the Urban District of Tottenham, from legally qualified and registered Medical Practitioners as re- quired by the Local Government Act, 1888. "Salary £600 per annum, apportioned as follows: As Medical Officer of Health and School Medical Officer, supervising arrangements for the Medical Inspection of School chil- dren £500 As School Medical Officer, actually inspect- ing scholars £100 £600 I90 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Does any one believe for a moment that there is not a close relation between the efficient government of German cities and the careful government of English cities and the nation-wide appeal for applicants regardless of local residence requirements? The "Is" and "Ought" in America. — Even assuming that the relation of the local residence requirement to mediocre service in a spoils system is not so immediate or direct as here outlined, is not the relation so evident as to justify its abolition? For who profits by its main- tenance ? Certainly not the citizen who wants loo cents in service for every dollar in taxes. Certainly not the public official who wants a high grade administration. Certainly not the employee who wants to make a profes- sion of his life work. Those only profit who want the spoils and whose "interests" require a "control" over the expert in office. For the abolition of the local residence requirement does not mean that all or even a great portion of the city's policy-determining expert positions go to those not residents of the city. It only means that the best avail- able talent will be secured for a given position. If the position is such as to require a knowledge of local conditions this knowledge can be tested in the examina- tion. But why deprive a city of the best available talent, why deprive the nation of a silpply of experts, why deprive the employee of the desire to grow into larger positions when there is no necessary relation between residence and the service wanted ? The abolition of the local residence requirement means to move from provincialism into worthy public service. CHAPTER XII RECENT IMPROVEMENTS IN METHODS OF RECRUITING THE PUBLIC SERVICE ONE of our ex-presidents recently made the observa- tion that "if we selected employees according to the length of their noses, it would be better than the political spoils system of appointment." This statement not only contains a considerable element of truth, but suggests the original theory of civil service reform in this country. The open competitive exami- nation, while not so crude as the device of measuring noses, was intended at first to serve much the same purpose, namely, to substitute a non-political method of appointment for the political one that had proved so disastrous in former years. There was, to be sure, even in the early days of the merit system, an appreciation of the more positive value inherent in the so-called civil service examination, but the thought uppermost in the minds of reformers at that time was to exclude the spoilsman from public office. New Demands on the Public Service.— ^In recent years, however, as a result of the rapid expansion of public functions, new demands have been made upon the recruiting agencies of government. They have been called upon to furnish in some way not only office 191 192 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT clerks of the lower grades, but the trained personnel for conducting the increasingly technical and intricate activ- ities of city, state and nation. As the business of government has become a more serious undertaking, those responsible for administrative results have grown more exacting in their requirements and have come to demand positive proficiency in employees as well as negative innocence of political intrigue in securing appointment. These new demands have compelled the recruiting agencies of our cities to concentrate attention upon ways and means of adapting the examination method of selec- tion to the changed conditions of employment. The old scholastic tests, which were copied from Great Britain and served their original purpose fairly well, had to be modified and made more practical. New methods of ascertaining personal fitness had to be evolved and the whole process of selection had to be refined and per- fected. What follows is devoted to a brief exposition of the more notable recent improvements in the methods of selection for public employment. The Practical Test. — One of these notable improve- ments is the introduction of the "practical test." This innovation, while not wholly recent in character, has come into general use only during the last ten years. It con- sists in having applicants give an actual demonstration of their skill in the kind of work for which they are candidates and then rating them on their individual performances. The underlying idea of the practical test is that a person's ability can be judged better from his work than from what he may write on paper in answer to formal questions. During the last few years the practical test has been used quite generally in the selection of skilled manual RECRUITING PUBLIC SERVICE 193 workers, such as painters, carpenters, blacksmiths, plumb- ers and machinists. As a rule, applicants are asked to perform some definite task that brings into play a number of important principles of their particular trades. In an examination of carpenters, for example, the Phila- delphia Civil Service Commission under Mayor Beau- kenling required each candidate to make a mortise and tenon joint and to show by sketch and table the parts of a given panel piece. The examiners in charge of tests of this character are usually themselves skilled in the trade involved and can tell almost at a glance from the way an applicant goes about his work whether he is experienced in it or not. This idea is being applied also to other than skilled labor employments. The Municipal Civil Service Com- mission of New York City has recently made the practical test a part of its scheme of selection for the positions of inspector of blasting, inspector of weights and measures, inspector of fire alarm boxes, swimming instructor, playground attendant, and psychologist. In Philadelphia, where the whole merit system was greatly strengthened under the Blankenberg administration, a similar exten- sion of the practical test to a wide variety of employments took place. Among the more unusual positions for which applicants were required to demonstrate their qualifications in a practical way are those of bacteriologist, assistant dentist, assistant milk inspector, interne, hydro- grapher, draftsman and checker. Other cities through- out the country are making similar progress in the direc- tion of practical tests. There are, of course, very definite limitations on the possible scope of application of this idea. So long as the character of the employment is mechanical, or involves dexterity of hand or limb, or requires observational 194 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT powers and understanding of materials, an actual demon- stration of skill and ability is helpful in showing fitness for the job; but the moment duties become purely admini- strative or purely intellectual in character, the practical test ceases to be of value and other means of selection must be employed instead. Systematic Investigation of Experience and Char- acter. — Another recent advance in examining methods is the closer and more systematic investigation of the experience and character of applicants for public po- sitions. In the earlier days of the reform movement, civil service commissioners gave some attention to this phase of their work, but the methods used were decidedly lax and ineffective. The usual practice was to send formal circular inquiries to previous employers and to persons given by the applicant as references, and if the replies did not reveal any gross misrepresentation of facts on the part of the applicant and did not otherwise prove him to be a scoundrel, nothing further was done to safe- guard the service. Of late years, however, the more progressive civil service commissions have done away with these lax methods and have made experience and character investi- gation a real and effective part of the civil service examination. The New York City Commission now has a special bureau of character investigation, and the Philadelphia commission has the nucleus of a similar organization unit. These investigating bodies make a thorough inquiry regarding the age, marital condition, residence, previous employments, education, and possible arrests or summonses to court of persons who have passed the mental and physical examinations. In making this inquiry, the investigators begin with a careful RECRUITING PUBLIC SERVICE 195 scrutiny and comparison of the statements contained in the original application form, the training and experience paper written in the course of the mental examination, and a special "character sheet" which is filled out by the applicant subsequent to the mental examination. This part of the inquiry is supplemented by communicating with previous employers and other persons who know something about the applicant's record and character. Whenever is seems necessary, a visit is made to these persons and the facts are obtained by first hand inves- tigation. Such items as age, arrests and summonses to court are usually verified from public records. If, after a full inquiry of this kind, it appears that the applicant has made false statements of an important nature to secure employment, or has serious blots in his career, he is required to report personally to the commission and to explain such matters as are in question. In case the offense is grave and the explanation unsatisfactory, the applicant's name is dropped from the list of eligibles and may not be considered further for employment. The practice of examining closely into an applicant's experience and character was applied first to the police and fire services, but it is now being extended to practically all other classes of municipal employees. In the course of time, no doubt, every important public employment agency in the country will make similar efforts to protect the public service from the morally unfit as well as from the mentally and physically un- qualified. Special Oral Examining Boards. — A third step for- ward in recruiting methods is the recently adopted prac- tice of having applicants interviewed by special oral examining boards. This may be regarded as a develop- 196 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT ment of the ordinary oral test which has been one of the instruments of selection ever since the introduction of the merit system in this country and is still used quite generally for lower grade positions. The difference between the ordinary oral test and the more recent development lies chiefly in the fact that the former is designed merely to gauge the more obvious traits of personality of the applicant, whereas the latter aims to bring out also his general grasp of technical and admini- strative problems, his resourcefulness and executive quali- fications, and his ethical standards. These interviews are usually conducted by men of high standing in the professions or vocations from which eligibles are to be drawn. For example, if an engineer of wide experience is wanted, a number of eminent engineers in the community are asked to serve as inter- viewers ; if the post to be filled requires a high order of medical knowledge, the interviewers chosen are them- selves physicians of experience and reputation. Very often these special boards have charge of the entire examination, and the oral interview is only one of a number of equally important functions entrusted to them; but at this point it is their use in connection with the oral interview that is being emphasized. In the oral interview, an applicant meets his examiners just as one professional man would meet another, on terms of equality, and the discussion that follows is on important topics relating to the work for which the candidate applies. These discussions may last for almost an hour, during which time each member of the oral examining board has a good opportunity to form an estimate of the applicant's general qualifications. This estimate is represented by a percentage mark and is taken into account in arriving at the final rating of the ap- RECRUITING PUBLIC SERVICE 197 plicant. The weight given to the oral interview, of course, varies for different positions and under different examining boards, but as a rule it is not less than thirty percent of all the weights in the examination and may be as high as forty percent. When we bear in mind that a rating of seventy percent is usually necessary to pass in a civil service examination, it is obvious that the oral interview plays an important part in the process of selection. This innovation on the old time examining methods is used, of course, for the higher grade employments only. In fact, it is one of the recent developments that has made possible the filling of high salaried and expert positions by competitive methods. In Philadelphia and New York City the oral interview has been employed successfully for posts ranging as high as $6000 in annual compensa- tion, and there seems to be no good reason why it could not be used with equal success for any responsible position. The Unassembled Examination. — A fourth recent improvement in methods of selection is the unassembled examination. As the term itself suggests, in an examina- tion of this kind, the competitors need not come together in one room and write their papers under the immediate supervision of the civil service authorities. Such state- ments and discussions as are called for in the test may be prepared at home and sent to the offices of the civil service commission by mail. Applicants may live in entirely different parts of the country and yet compete for the same position without the expense and incon- venience of traveling to a common point, except possibly for the oral interview for which only those who emerge successfully from the written examination are eligible. 198 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT It is only during the last five years that this type of examination has been used to any appreciable extent. The usual procedure in holding an unassembled ex- amination is as follows: First of all, the examination is given wide publicity in order to enHst the interest of a large number of qualified persons. Sometimes it is advertised from coast to coast. The advertisement gives a concise statement of the duties and compensation of the position to be filled and the requirements to be met by applicants, as well as directions for entering the competition. Upon receipt of formal applica- tions, the civil service commission asks each appli- cant to submit a statement setting forth in detail the facts regarding his education, experience, achieve- ments, books or articles published, and such other matters as may help to throw light on his past career. He is also asked to prepare a discussion, or thesis, on some important problem of administration or professional practice. In preparing this discussion he is free to consult any authorities he pleases, but when he submits his paper he must certify that it is his own work. After the experience, statements and discussions have been filed with the commission, they are carefully examined, usually by a special examining board of experts, and rated. Then all applicants with a standing of at least seventy percent in these two parts of the test are summoned for the oral interview, the character of which has already been described. In order to determine the final grade of each applicant the ratings in all parts of the examination, including the oral interview, are averaged. The unassembled examination has at least two great advantages over the ordinary assembled type of civil service test. In the first place, it widens the field upon which a governmental agency may draw for high grade RECRUITING PUBLIC SERVICE 199 men. This is also an advantage to persons who are seek- ing to make public service a career, for it opens avenues to more responsible positions which would otherwise re- main closed. In the second place, it overcomes the reluctance of most men who already have made their mark in the world to submit to the less dignified ordeal of an assembled test. Experience has shown that the most prominent of professional and business men are not averse to entering competition for public office when it is conducted along unassembled lines. ' Because of these advantages, this type of examination has enabled civil service commissions to fill the very highest grade of technical and expert positions in the service. Philadelphia, Chicago and New York City have demonstrated the practicability of the unassembled method in selecting competent technicians and admini- strators for the most responsible and highest salaried positions of a non-policy determining character. It is safe to say that this type of examination holds forth the greatest hope of the upward extension of the merit system, a vital need to more efficient government in America. Standardization of Public Employment. — Finally, there is the movement toward standardization of employ- ments which is helping to perfect the methods of selection for public service. The peculiar contribution of this movement is not so much a new device for testing the fitness of applicants, as it is a more intelligent and more equitable application of devices already in use. It is obvious that the problem of recruiting the service is seriously affected by such conditions as lack of adjustment between duties and compensation, lack of uniformity in titles and entrance requirements for posi- 200 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT tions having similar duties, and lack of definitely established lines of promotion, with entrance require- ments for employments in the lower grades leading naturally to the requirements for employments in the grades higher up. These conditions, however, obtain in varying degrees in nearly all branches of the public service. Since the standardization movement aims, among other things, to correct these chaotic conditions, it is helping to smooth the way for the recruiting work of civil service commissions. In a properly standardized service every position involving a certain character and grade of duties bears the same title, has the same entrance requirements, carries the same range of compensation and opens the same opportunities for promotion as every other position involving these duties. This gives examining boards a definite basis upon which to proceed in formulating their tests and also makes it possible for new employees who have met the same requirements to begin their services for the government under similar conditions of employ- ment. The standardization movement began about six years ago in Chicago and since that time has spread to numer- ous other governmental units, among them Seattle, Port- land, Oregon, Los Angeles County and the City of Oakland, California, Houston, Texas, St. Paul, Milwau- kee, Cook County, Illinois, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, New York City and the states of Wisconsin, Ohio, New York and New Jersey, all of which either have already standardized their services or are now in the process of doing so. If we may judge from the general interest shown in the subject of standardization, many other cities and states will take similar steps in the near future. Other improvements in examining methods might be RECRUITING PUBLIC SERVICE 201 recited, such as the development of standards for rating experience, the more general use of physical examina- tions, and the closer adaptation of tests to actual work requirements, but an elaboration of these cannot be attempted within the limited scope of this chapter. All of them, however, form a part of the general advance in the science of selection which has taken place during the last two decades. A Contrast, by Way of Summary. — It would be mis- leading, of course, to create the impression that every city in the country where the merit system has gained a foothold is being served by the most up-to-date recruit- ing methods, for such is not the case. Many cities, in fact, have civil service in name only, or still have it administered according to the ideas of 1883. Lack of popular appreciation of the merit system has left many civil service commissions with insufficient funds to ful- fill their functions in an efficient manner. This is true even in some of our larger cities which on the whole have given more generous financial support to their civil service commissions than cities of smaller size. The last stand of the spoilsman is usually an effort to starve into helpless inactivity the official body by which the prin- ciples of the merit system are to be enforced. On the other hand, the more fortunate and more pro- gressive commissions have demonstrated what can be done under proper conditions, and what these commis- sions have done others will do in the course of time. The old idea that civil service is an impracticable dream and incapable of meeting the needs of a business-like govern- ment has been adequately refuted by the successes of these commissions in filling every variety of position by competitive methods. This has been made possible very 202 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT largely by such improvements in the methods of selection as the practical test, the more systematic investigation of experience and character, the oral interview before expert examining boards, the unassembled examination and other advances that have taken place in recent years. What makes the whole outlook still more hopeful is the fact that the work of perfecting the merit system has only been begun and that progress in the next ten years may be even more remarkable than it has been in the years just passed. CHAPTER XIII MAKING THE PUBLIC SERVICE ATTRACTIVE NOT long ago there appeared in one of our popular magazines an article entitled "38,571 Jobs with a Poor Future." The jobs referred to were those in the classified civil service of the federal government at Washington. As the title itself suggests, the article gave a gloomy picture of general conditions of employment in the federal civil service and particularly of the poor hopes for the future that are held out to the average government employee. The writer's purpose, it would seem, was to dissuade young people from entering the public service. ^ Tv70 Fundamental Considerations. — Whether or not this article gives us a true portrayal of actual conditions, it helps to remind us of two important considerations in our endeavor to improve the personnel and the effi- ciency of American government. One of these consider- ations is that, if the right kind of men and women do not seek public employment, no scheme of selection, how- ever perfect, can bring them into the public service. As a matter of fact, this has been one of the difficulties experienced by civil service commissions in the past, es- pecially in communities where political influences still played an important part in appointments, promotions and removals. A civil service examination could not be 203 204 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT made to produce a list of first rate cligibles out of an- aggregation of second and third rate applicants. The other consideration is that all efforts to induce the best type of men and women to make public service a career will always prove more or less futile unless conditions of employment in our federal, state and local governments are rendered at least as attractive as they are in other fields of endeavor. Even granting for a moment that by merely appealing to the idealism of our citizenry we can enlist the services of many of the best trained and the most public-spirited of our young people, it seems hardly fair to expect these people to serve without some of the usual rewards that come to men in other walks of life. It is not here assumed that condi- tions in private employment are perfect and should be held up as a model for our governments; for it is all too obvious that there are features of private employment that are decidedly undemocratic and anti-social, and ought to be avoided. Our contention is rather that gov- ernment ought not only to be an instrument of social good to those whom it serves, but that it should deal in the light of the highest ideals of democracy and equity with those whom it employs. Until government suc- ceeds in doing this, we shall have difficulty in getting the best talent into our public service, and until then we really have no right to expect the best talent. In view of these considerations, it is fitting to inquire into conditions of employment as they obtain at the present time in American cities and to trace briefly the various movements and tendencies to better these con- ditions and to make public service more attractive. Greater Security of Tenure. — Perhaps one of the first questions still asked by every prospective civil servant MAKING PUBLIC SERVICE ATTRACTIVE 205 is, "How much security in tenure shall I have if I accept a government job?" No person who is economically dependent cares to entrust his lot and that of his family to an unstable occupation. He can afford neither the risk of a period of unemployment nor the waste of experience involved in changing from one line of work to another when his employment is arbitrarily terminated. What, then, is the present status of tenure of office dur- ing efficient sefvice in American cities? It is necessary in discussing this topic to distinguish between cities that have civil service provisions and cities that do not. There are now about two hundred and fifty cities in the United States in which the merit system has been estabHshed. These are scattered throughout twenty-eight states and range in population all the way from less than five thousand to upwards of four million inhabitants. One hundred and one of these cities have a population of thirty thousand or over, and thirty-seven a population of one hundred thousand or over. With the exception of Baltimore, all of the ten largest cities in the United States now operate under civil service rules. This, however, leaves the vast ma- jority of cities and towns still outside the pale of the merit system. Very little can be said on the favorable side of the question of tenure of office in those cities which as yet do not have civil service provisions in force. While it is true that quite frequently we find public servants who have been left undisturbed for many years under a spoils regime, yet these instances are the exceptions rather than the rule. Tenure of office is always uncertain where public jobs are regarded as political plums to be distributed to the faithful followers of the victorious political party. 206 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT In cities that have adopted the merit system, there is more security of tenure. The mere fact that under civil service rules a vacancy must be filled from a list of eligibles, and not by the appointment of a personal or political favorite, of itself removes one of the strong incentives to create a vacancy. Moreover, a person who is known to hold his position as the result of a merit test is less likely to incur the ire of party leaders than one who owes his appointment to the opposition's poli- tical favor. In addition to these two deterrents, many civil service laws require the official who makes the re- moval to submit his reasons in writing to the civil service commission, and the accused employee is given a certain number of days in which to file a reply. The reasons given by the removing official must be neither religious nor political. Unfortunately this provision in civil service laws is usually carried out in a most per- functory manner and hence fails to accomplish all that might reasonably be expected of it. Perhaps the most effectual method of protecting em- ployees from unjust removal is the so-called trial board method. Where this is in vogue an accused employee may appeal from the decision of the head of his depart- ment to the civil service commission which has power to investigate the charges itself or to designate a special trial board to act in its stead. If, in this investigation, the charges are not sustained by the evidence presented, the civil service commission may order the reinstatement of the accused person, and the department head con- cerned is obliged to carry out the order. Almost in- variably the decision of the civil service commission is final and no appeal to the courts is possible, except on the question of the legality of the procedure followed. This method, with slight modifications, has been in- MAKING PUBLIC SERVICE ATTRACTIVE 207 corporated in a considerable number of civil service acts, the most conspicuous of which are probably those apply- ing to cities in Illinois where the power of removal re- sides almost entirely in the civil service commission. Other cities where removals are subject to review by the civil service commission are Seattle, Spokane, Portland, Oregon, San Francisco, Oakland, Los Angeles, New Orleans, and all of the cities in Ohio that come under the operation of the Ohio civil service law. In a number of cities policemen and firemen are accorded the protection of a trial before a trial board, although other groups of employees receive no such protection. In commission governed cities an accused employee sometimes has a right to appeal from his department head to the com- mission itself, which may overrule the charges and order the employee's reinstatement. There are those who object to the trial board method on the ground that it tends to undermine discipline and to render the administrator helpless in his control over subordinates, but this contention does not seem to be borne out by the facts of experience. On the other hand, the trial board method appears to be a long step toward greater democracy in employment and gives fuller recog- nition to the right of every person to a job for which he is fitted and to continuity of employment as long as he gives honest and efficient service. It certainly makes for greater security of tenure and a more attractive public service. Adequate and Fair Compensation. — Another im- portant factor in rendering public service attractive is the adequacy and fairness of the salaries and wages paid by the government. This, of course, immediately raises the question — What is an adequate salary or wage ? To 2o8 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT attempt a complete answer, even if this were possible, would carry us far afield in the realm of economic and political theory, and in this brief discussion there is not time for such a digression. Suffice it to say that even the very lowest paid workers ought to be given at least sufficient remuneration to enable them to live under healthful and decent conditions and to give their chil- dren a fair start in the world; and that every worker, no matter what his rank, should be enabled at least to possess the tools of his occupation, by "tools" being meant those things which are essential to the efficient performance of the work in hand, ranging all the way from the carpenter's saw to the scholar's library and the specialist's membership in scientific and technical societies. This can hardly be called a "standard" of adequacy, and is not advanced as such; it is rather an ideal, or a point of view, intended to govern the fixing of compensation for public servants. w With this somewhat elastic concept in mind, what can be said of the adequacy of salari^ ancj wages in the public service? In the first place, it is difficult to gen- eralize on this question, except within certain narrow limits. Conditions vary under different jurisdictions and in different classes of employment under the same juris- diction. It is fairly safe to say, however, that the lower grade workers, especially along manual lines, usually fare better in the ertiploy of the government than in private service, but even in the former they are none too well remunerated in these days of soaring costs, and quite frequently they are underpaid. In years past, office employees and also professional, scientific and technical workers of the lower ranks enjoyed a substantial margin of income over their fellow workers in commercial and industrial life, but during the last few years this margin MAKING PUBLIC SERVICE ATTRACTIVE 209 has been rapidly diminishing, and in some instances conditions have actually become reversed on account of the lesser flexibility of public salaries in adjusting them- selves to ojfianged standards of living. Many public servants belonging to this group are undergoing severe hardships because of inadequate pay. When we reach the higher executive and administrative offices the gen- eral range of salaries can hardly be called inadequate, unless we accept as our standard a not unusual practice in private business and industry where the rank and file of the employees are frequently kept down to the starvation level while the directing officials are granted ^princely emoluments far in excess of the ordinary de- mands of life. It is none the less true, however, that the l!9l0$v salaries paid outside make it difficult at times to secure the ablest men for executive positions in the pub- lic service. The whole problem of public salaries and wages will dou btless become more difficult in the future than it has ^Rn in the past. In the first place, it is almost inevi- table that with the rapid expansion of governmental ac- tivities there will be a corresponding increase in the number of public servants whose salary needs must be given attention. In the second place, there is the rising cost of living which has already reached a point quite on a level with the general range of public salaries, and in many places a point above that level. It is, therefore, no longer possible to permit the old payroll rates to continue for indefinite periods without adjustment of any kind, as was formerly done. The situation has become urgent and must be met without much delay. Fortunately the way is being paved for dealing with this problem in a more intelligent manner than hereto- fore. The standardization movement, which has been 210 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT described briefly in another chapter, is accomplishing the important work of equalizing the conditions of employ- ment and thus providing an equitable basis for horizontal changes in compensation. All the more enlightened legis- lative bodies as well as civil service commissions have come to realize the primary necessity of such a measure in undertaking any extensive revision of the public pay- rolls. It must be remembered, however, that an equal- ization of pay for similar employments is not of itself a solution of the salary problem, for it is equally im- portant to effect a distribution of the payroll funds along sound social and economic lines, which may mean some- thing quite different from copying the practices of private business establishments. This latter task will require a broad social vision as well as a vast fund of informa- tion regarding the conditions of employment and the needs of all classes of government employees, and upon the manner of its performance will depend very largely the future attractiveness of the public service from the standpoint of remuneration. Opportunities for Promotion. — A third essential to an attractive public service is the opportunity of pro- motion offered to employees. The importance of this can hardly be overestimated. The prospect of rising in rank on a merit basis and attaining to positions of honor and distinction as well as higher compensation is a powerful drawing card, while the absence of this pros- pect is bound in time to prove disastrous to the service. In cities that are still under the spoils system there is usually little more than a gambler's chance of reach- ing higher posts by promotion, and merit, of course, is quite a secondary consideration in the matter. The sue- MAKING PUBLIC SERVICE ATTRACTIVE 211 cessful wire puller or vote getter as a rule fares much better than the man who simply attends to his duties. More favorable conditions of promotion obtain in those branches of the public service where the merit system has been established, although even there the ideal is often far from realized. To a limited extent the appointing officer is still given free rein to promote whomever he wishes, subject only to the perfunctory approval of the civil service commission. In . nearly all the larger and the more progressive cities that have the merit system, however, promotions are controlled more effectively by the civil service commission and are determined by com- petitive promotion examinations. As a general rule, these examinations consist of a written mental test and a comparative rating of the seniority and efficiency of the various competitors, although there are variations from this rule. Since the factor of efficiency is difficult to ascertain, a considerable number of commissions do not include it in the promotion test, and a number of other commissions do not place any value on mere seniority in service. A few civil service commissions simply give an ordinary mental examination to provide list of eligibles for promotion. In most cases, the ap- pointing officer has the same limited choice from the resulting list of eligibles that he has in making appoint- ments from original entrance lists. In a small number of cities a wider choice is permitted from promotion lists. As already intimated, one of the most difficult prob- lems connected with promotion examinations is that of ascertaining the relative efficiency of competitors. The only feasible means seems to be to maintain efficiency records of employees, but thus far experiments along this line have not been any too encouraging. In many employments it has been difficult to devise satisfactory 212 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT standards for marking efficiency, and without definite standards the markings are almost useless for compara- tive purposes. It still remains to be seen, therefore, whether or not the idea is of real practical value. A further consideration that vitally concerns the prob- lem of promotion is the degree of standardization that obtains within the service. Unless the various employ- ments have been properly classified and graded and salaries have been brought into adjustment with duties, there can be no orderly or equitable application of any scheme of promotion. Until recently this phase of the problem was almost wholly neglected, but the movement toward standardization which is now under way is grad- ually correcting the haphazard conditions of employment that have been for so long an obstacle to equitable pro- motion. Finally, it is important that the higher grade positions and offices in the public service may be reached by com- petitive methods and in the regular line of promotion. In this respect conditions in our cities are much better to- day than they were ten or fifteen years ago, but even now there is room for considerable improvement. In many cities the more important and high salaried jobs- still go to political favorites rather than to men of demonstrated merit within the service. It is encourag- ing, however, that the adaptability of the competitive examination to the very highest grade of public positions is being demonstrated so effectively by the more pro- gressive civil service commissions throughout the coun- try. As soon as competition becomes the accepted method of filling these important posts at the top, our public service will offer much more attractive opportuni- ties for promotion than it does at the present time. MAKING PUBLIC SERVICE ATTRACTIVE 213 Welfare Work for Public Servants.^-A fourtfi con- sideration in making the public service attractive is what has come to be known quite generally as "welfare work." Very often this term is used loosely to embrace prac- tically every condition of employment — from the pro- vision of sanitary drinking cups to old age pensions — that in any way affects the well being of employees. The sense in which it is here used, however, is more restricted and confines our attention to what is being done for employees in active service aside from meeting the more formal obligations of employment such as assuring se- curity of tenure, paying adequate salaries and wages, and providing opportunities for promotion. Welfare work thus defined would include the maintenance of a healthful and attractive physical environment for work, provision for recreation and social diversions, special assistance in case of sickness, accident or financial stress, and other similar services that employees may need. Work of this character may be performed wholly by the government, or it may be carried on in part by the cooperative effort of employees themselves. On the whole, it may be said that welfare work in public service in this country is still in its infancy, just as it is in private industry. A few of the larger cities, one state and the federal government have made con- siderable progress along this line, but in the remainder of the public service practically nothing at all noteworthy has been done. It is natural, of course, that work of this character should begin in the larger services and in congested communities long before the need of it is felt in smaller organizations and in less densely populated places. Leadership in welfare work probably belongs to the departments of the federal government in Washington, 214 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT D. C. There the matter has been taken up in a serious and comprehensive manner by the chief clerks of the various departments, and a number of important activi- ties are already under way. Among these may be men- tioned the emergency surgical and medical service to employees taken ill or injured while at work ; the periodi- cal inspection of officers to insure that sanitary conditions are maintained; the provision of tea rooms, lunch rooms and rest rooms within the office buildings for the con- venience of employees, and also the roof gardens over- head for recreation; the various organizations of em- ployees with their social, educational and beneficial fea- tures; and the cooperative purchasing of food and sup- plies to reduce the cost of living. In the larger cities, particularly in New York, similar efforts are being made, though not always on the same extensive scale. In a large measure the employees themselves carry on these activities. Mutual beneficial funds for the payment of sickness or death benefits are very common. Coopera- tive purchasing, credit unions and building and loan associations are also quite popular. Organizations for athletic sports are frequent, and the different employees' associations usually hold social functions to develop a closer acquaintance and better fellowship among their members. In the state service of Wiscoilsin the civil service commission has taken the leadership in a number of welfare activities, particularly along educational and, recreational lines. It has been instrumental in organiz- ing groups of employees for the purpose of self-improve- ment, hearing lectures, taking cross country hikes, play- ing tennis and baseball, and developing a better spirit of fellowship in the service. From this brief summary it will be appreciated that while the welfare activities now carried on in rather MAKING PUBLIC SERVICE ATTRACTIVE 215 scattered fashion are not of overwhelming importance, yet they help to make public employment more attrac- tive than it would otherwise be. In the course of time, no doubt, activities of this character will become more widespread throughout the public service as well as more thoroughly developed and efficiently organized. It should be remembered, however, that, after all, the most fundamental welfare service that any employer, whether public or private, can render to his employees is to pay adequate salaries and wages, and that if he fails in this any other welfare measures will be justly viewed with suspicion by both employees and the public. Disability and Retirement Allowances. — A fifth fac- tor of importance in rendering public service attractive is the provision made for disability and old age. While social and economic necessity is a much more powerful argument for some system of disability and retirement allowances than the fact that such a system helps to make the service attractive, yet the latter consideration is not to be passed over too lightly. With the opportunities of pioneer life almost gone, a person now about to enter the employ of any establishment, whether public or pri- vate, is much more concerned about what definite pro- vision has been made for his security after the years of usefulness have passed than he was fifty years ago, when his chances of making a fortune were very much better. All other things being equal, the prospective employee of to-day will cast his lot with the firm or enterprise that maintains an equitable system of pension and disability allowances rather than with one that fails to do so. As in case of many other forms of social legislation, the United States has been much slower in adopting the idea of civil pensions than most European countries. 2i6 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT The last two decades, however, have witnessed a rapid growth in the number of laws providing retirement al- lowances for various classes of public servants. Prac- tically all of our larger cities and many of the smaller cities now have all or part of their civil employees under the protection of a pension plan of one kind or another. Thus far, teachers, policemen and firemen have been the most favored classes in this respect. This is due per- haps to their larger memberships, their better group organizations, their closer contact with the every day life of the people, and the standardized conditions of their employment. Doubtless the hazards of the occupation of firemen and policemen have helped these two classes of employees to obtain favorable consideration for their demands. That the pension idea will in time be extended to all other groups of public employees is inevitable. A considerable number of American cities, among them New York, Chicago, Philadelphia and Boston, already have in eifect pension plans that cover all classes of municipal employees. The federal government as well as practically all of the state governments unfortunately have not yet made any provision for the superannuated employees directly under their jurisdiction. Commendable as the pension movement itself is, the character of the various pension plans adopted in the United States is by no means free from criticism. Gen- erally speaking, these plans have been devised in a hap- hazard manner and with slight regard for actuarial data. The probable cost has seldom been anticipated, and many public pension funds are either already bankrupt or rapidly approaching bankruptcy. There has been also much haziness regarding the fundamental principles that should underlie any adequate and equitable system of pensions. As a result, many of these plans are not only MAKING PUBLIC SERVICE ATTRACTIVE 217 unstable financially, but operate unfairly to all parties concerned. The outlook for the future, however, is encouraging. During the past few years more thought has been given to the whole problem of superannuation and old age pensions than at any previous time in our history. Spe- cial investigations are being made into the operation of various public pension funds and a more intelligent grasp of the essentials of pension legislation is resulting. In this connection mention should be made of the recent report of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, recommending "a comprehensive plan of insurance and annuities for college teachers" in which the fundamentals of the problem are discussed with unusual clarity. The report of the commission on pensions of New York City setting forth the results of an investiga- tion of various pension funds established for New York City employees also contains valuable material on the subject. If this spirit of inquiry continues in the future, we may confidently look forward, not only to a further spread of pension legislation, but also to a decided im- provement in the character of our pension laws. Popular Appreciation of the Public Service as a Life Career. — Finally if the public service is to be made attractive, it is important that public servants be held in popular esteem rather than in popular contempt. Un- less this condition is brought about, all the other measures to make public employment more attractive will fail to accomplish their full purpose. In the early history of this country the spoils system unfortunately brought the entire public service into dis- repute. The inefficiency and corruption in government which were due very largely to the spoils system naturally 2i8 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT reflected upon the character of those who were in gov- ernment employ. At the same time private business and industry were making rapid strides and commanding public attention, while the activities of government were being repressed by the persistance of the laissez faire doctrine of political thought. In consequence of this development there came to be attached to the government employee not only the odium of inefficiency and dishon- esty but the almost equally repellent stigma of being engaged in an unimportant enterprise. During the last few decades, however, the conditions that originally provoked this unfavorable popular attitude have been radically changed. The spoils system, it is true, has not been wholly uprooted from public life, but it has been greatly restricted by the progress of civil service reform. Outright corruption is now an excep- tional thing in public administration, and even inefficiency is no longer so prevalent as it used to be. As for the laissez faire theory of government, that has been com- pletely abandoned in our political conduct if not always in our political thinking. Governmental activities are expanding constantly and are daily becoming more vital to the well-being of every citizen in the land. Business and industry, formerly so arrogant and all-powerful, have been compelled to yield to the regulating arm of government, and as time goes on will very likely have to yield even more to the one potent agency of public wel- fare. Whatever else may be said of government in these days, it can no longer be regarded as unimportant. With this change in the background of public employ- ment, there ought to be a corresponding change in the popular attitude toward public service itself. Doubtless this change is taking place, imperceptibly at times per- haps, but none the less actually and inevitably. Cer- MAKING PUBLIC SERVICE ATTRACTIVE 219 tainly a change is observable in the attitude of people toward the higher grade of public servants, that is, to- ward the technical and professional men who are in posts of great responsibility. There are also indications of a more favorable attitude toward the underlings in governmental departments. In cities like New York, Chicago and Philadelphia, it is no longer a positive handi- cap to an applicant for private employment to have been engaged as a civil service appointee under the city gov- ernment. The' gradual infiltration of college graduates into the public service is another weather vane of the popular mind regarding the dignity of serving the state. Then, too, we have numerous civic agencies, such as gov- ernmental research bureaus, the society for the promotion of training for public service, training schools for public service, and other similar organizations, all of which emphasize among other things the importance of public service. If our governments continue to increase in effi- ciency and if the work of educating the rank and file of the people with regard to the real facts and needs of government goes forward at its present pace, the time can not be far distant when the American people will accept at its full value the saying, **There can be no higher ambition than that of serving the state, nothing more creditable than to serve it well." Two Minor Considerations. — Besides these six major considerations in making the public service at- tractive, there are two others of minor importance that should not be wholly overlooked. One of these is the abolition of the practice of assessing office-holders for political purposes. Fortunately this practice is becom- ing less and less prevalent, although it still continues in some of the less advanced communities. The other is the 220 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT correction of the abuse of requiring public employees to perform political services for party organizations. This, too, has been greatly restricted in recent years, but by no means eradicated entirely. Both practices are relics of the spoils system and are certain to disappear along with other features of that time-dishonored institution. How directly the removal of these two abuses will con- tribute to the attractiveness of the public service is quite obvious. Summary. — The importance of making the public ser- vice attractive has been pointed out in the opening re- marks of this chapter. We cannot hope to obtain and keep the best talent in the public service unless we do make it attractive. In the last analysis, however, the problem of making the public service attractive is one with that of making public employment democratic, equi- table and efficient. Our concern should not be so much to provide an artificial glamour that will lure men into public careers as it should be to devise and build up rules and conditions of employment that will give practical effect to the principles for which we are striving. If, in addi- tion to selecting men for the public service on a merit basis, we assure them of security in tenure during honest and efficient service, give them fair and adequate re- muneration, offer them opportunities for promotion ac- cording to merit, provide for them agreeable and health- ful working conditions, make it possible for them to fortify their old age or days of disability against want and give them the consciousness of being engaged in an honorable calling, then we are well on our way, not only to a more attractive public service, but also to a sys- tem of employment that expresses in practical operation our highest ideals of democracy, equity and efficiency. CHAPTER XIV UTILITY PROBLEMS AND EXPERT CITY GOVERNMENT IT has been well said that no one process of Nature is more interesting or more wonderful than any other process of Nature, and it may be likewise asserted that no one department of the activities of a modern city is of greater importance to its inhabitants than any other department. And yet, in considering city admin- istration in its relation to the need of experts in gov- ernment, the activities we have come to call public utilities come closer to the lives of the people every day of the year and are seemingly more important than any other. We are likely to think of the city's financial manage- ment once or twice a year when we pay our taxes; we may inquire into the administration of the health de- partment when there is a threatened epidemic ; but water, gas, street railways, telephones and electric current touch us daily in a thousand ways, and with an insistence that challenges our attention, particularly if there is any lack of efficient service or other cause for complaint. There need be no apology, therefore, for considering here in some detail the value of expert service in caring for these very vital requirements of modern city life. Public Utilities Mostly Privately Owned. — By far the greater number of municipal utilities in American 221 222 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT cities are privately owned. Waterworks are an excep- tion to this rule, and this largely because opponents of public ownership usually advocate public ownership for this particular utility for sanitary reasons ; yet in a list of nearly four hundred American cities published by the Municipal Journal in 1912, twenty-four and one-half percent had privately owned waterworks. It is likely that four-fifths of the utility problems which come up to public officials for solution are in connection with pri- vately owned and operated utilities. Securing Franchises for Public Utilities. — To begin such a business, a grant of rights upon the streets is necessary, and a franchise of one sort or another must be obtained. Now come before the city council represen- tatives of the applicant, bearing a document ready-pre- pared by their own legal talent, reading to the layman as if the city and not the corporation were to receive the chief benefits of the grant. And, indeed, the assured benefit to the city may be very great, but it is fair to assume that the chief incentive of the applicant is the possible profits from the enterprise, and that no pains have been spared to write the franchise so as to produce them. If the business is a new one, proposing to furnish a service not heretofore had in the city, the city council is inclined to accept it on the terms offered. In the early history of electric lighting there were instances where blanket grants were made "to any company desiring to supply the city with electric lights." Early franchises were usually brief, and frequently contained nothing whatever regarding the quality or price to the consumers of the service rendered; now it is thought necessary to write into a franchise specific provisions covering all the EXPERTS AND UTILITY PROBLEMS 223 principal points on contact between the grantee, the city government and the patrons of the utility. The Lion and the Mouse. — Where a city is large and growing rapidly, and the prospects are favorable for substantial profits from the utility, applicants for fran- chises are likely to appear before the city council with a formidable array of experts, engineers and attorneys, fortified with such local support as private interest or political influence can rally, prepared with convincing argument and plausible reasoning, and ready at times, when argument fails, to use those subterranean methods of persuasion or coercion which have debauched councils and produced the shameful conditions which have been exposed in many of our cities. The ordinary elective city official, no matter how honest and conscientious he may be, is entirely unfitted to cope with such a situation, and the weak or corrupt man, too frequently found in public life, is as clay in the hands of the potter. It is a pitiful sight to see the representatives of most cities contending before a court or a commission with representatives of a public service corporation over some franchise difference or the reasonableness of some rate or service rule. On the side of the city you will note one of the members of the city council, perhaps a butcher or a book agent, in close confab with the city attorney, elected to his position for almost any reason except his qualifications to meet such a situation as has now arisen. Rarely will the city council allow the employment of a utility expert; to pay such a man fifty dollars per day seems scandalous to the alderman who has never earned a thousand a year. On the side of the private corporation you will see, if the matter is of considerable importance, a collection of 224 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT men skilled in the conduct of such cases, company offi- cials, attorneys, engineers, accountants, experts in their lines, acute, keen, resourceful, brought if necessary from across the continent, selected for their ability as wit- nesses as well as for their professional acquirements, used to all the intricacies of such procedure and possess- ing every means of upholding their side of the contro- versy which brains can suggest and money procure. The mouse may sometimes gain an advantage over the lion, but the chances will all be against it. Why Experts are Needed in Framing Franchises. — Let us assume that most city officials would do right if they knew what is right; but franchise conditions are not usually questions of abstract right or wrong, and cannot be adjusted upon that basis. Some franchise problems are those of broad and general policy, and these should be comprehended and settled by the elected rep- resentatives of the people ; but most of them are so tech- nical that they can be satisfactorily solved only with the advice and assistance of the expert, the trained and experienced man who can bring to their solution not only the results of his personal training and experience but also the experience of others, gleaned from his spe- cial knowledge of how to find and adapt the records of their accomplishments to the use and benefit of his own city. In a franchise recently asked for in a western city, it was found that the applicant, in the preparation of the document, had omitted provisions covering not less than thirty specific and separate points, all more or less im- portant in the conduct of the business and in the relation- ship of its activities to the interests of the public which it proposed to serve. All of these were points which EXPERTS AND UTILITY PROBLEMS 225 should be covered in a modern utility franchise. Among them were provisions for the use of space on poles and in conduits for the city's wires, arbitration of disputes by the city council, protection of life and property, fixing rates for service, beginning and completing construction within a reasonable period, purchase by the city, con- trolling sale, combination or pooling, giving the city ac- cess to books and accounts, keeping records in the city, preventing discrimination in service or rates, keeping up service to modern standards, and requiring wires placed underground when so ordered. The document was largely copied from a franchise granted over twenty years ago, and which contained all the provisions which were thought necessary in that early era of the business. At that time the profession of utility expert advisor to municipalities was not known in this country, and even now the men who successfully follow that profession can be counted upon the fingers^ while the officials of the twelve hundred American cities having five thousand or more population are struggling almost daily with problems which require expert knowl- edge for their solution. A franchise grant is usually for a long period of time, and the cost of mistakes or omissions in its form and substance is likely to multiply itself year after year until it reaches an enormous total. The cities of the United States have without doubt lost many millions of dollars by reason of hasty, ill-considered franchise grants, much of which might have been saved to the people if their interests had been handled by expert admin- istrators. Regulation of Privately Owned Public Utilities. — Nor is it alone in the granting of franchises that experts 226 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT are needed; the problems of their administration are fully as difficult, particularly of those grants which were made in the early days when brevity was the chief con- sideration in their drafting. These problems come up for solution frequently during the whole term of the grant and call constantly for the best ability of the trained and experienced man. The use and care of the streets, the stringing of wires and cables, the conflicting interests of the different utilities in their occupancy of public places, and all matters relating to the physical property of the utility, its installation, care and maintenance are but the smaller part of the problem. The greater part is made up of those matters of business policy and pro- cedure in which the utility comes into such intimate con- tact with the public, its patrons. Safety provisions, service rules, accounting and col- lection practices, rates and charges, extensions and house connections are the source of never-ending con- troversy, and when a citizen is in difficulty with a public service corporation his first appeal is to the city official whom he supposes has authority over it. If the official knows what he is about, reasonable contentions can usually be adjusted without difficulty, and unreasonable ones denied with safety. If he is not well posted upon the rights and practices of his local company and the usage in other cities, if he does not know the franchise requirements and such statute and charter provisions as bear upon the matter in hand, then hp flounders and accomplishes little or nothing. Utility corporations are run by men who know — able, keen, resourceful — experts in their line, experienced in the operation and the usages of their business, following it for a life work. As a rule, they are fair-minded men, ready to meet city officials and customers halfway, realiz- EXPERTS AND UTILITY PROBLEMS 227 ing the importance of building up and keeping alive a favorable sentiment in the community in regard to their utility. Given city officials who are experts, who know their work well and who have a chance to profit in salary and tenure of office by reason of their knowledge, fidel- ity and ability, adjustments are ordinarily easy, and re- lations mutually satisfactory. Even in states where municipal utilities are controlled by public service commissions, it will be found that when the above stated conditions prevail, most differ- ences are readily settled and state commissions are greatly relieved. Commissions are loath to interfere where dif- ferences can be satisfactorily adjusted by local authori- ties. Even contentions for lower rates are frequently settled in this way, with better results for the people than when made the subject of tedious and expensive litigation before commissions and courts. But the pub- lic official must know what he wants and the reasons why it should be granted. Franchise makers usually fail to recognize the possi- bility that changing conditions in the business may create before the end of the long term of the grant a situation under which injustice may be done either to the corpora- tion or to its patrons. Such a situation occasionally does develop, and such injustice to either party concerned is never of ultimate benefit to the community. These changes have come in greatest measure to utilities de- pending upon electrical methods and contrivances. The development of the art has been so rapid, inventions fol- lowing each other in such speedy sequence that no one was wise enough to foretell the revolutionary changes in the industries involved. To meet such changes, to adapt new inventions to public service and to adjust the chang- ing relations between the utility and its patrons by reason 228 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT of their discovery and introduction, is a task for trained and experienced men, and one which cannot be ade- quately handled by men elected for a two- or three-year term because of their personal popularity or their political affiliations. The "Hello, Bill" type of politician, still too common in city official life, may be able to express the desires of his constituents as to whether or not a bridge should be built across the creek at Main Street, but to put him in charge of building the bridge, or to allow him to place one of his henchmen on the job, is to take a desperate chance with the money and the lives of the citizens. Alderman Jones may convince his associates in the city council that the streets in his ward are inadequately lighted, but if it were put up to him to determine what sort of lighting is the most efficient and economical pro- curable within the appropriation, he would be at sea and rudderless. Public Operation of Public Utilities. — Every busi- ness which can be classed as a public utility is carried on somewhere in the cities of the United States under public ownership and operation, and the tendency of the time is toward an increase in the number of these public undertakings. To place the control and management of such a business in the hands of inexperienced or un- trained men is only to invite disaster. The record of failures is sad reading, and is made the most of by those great interests which own and operate private utilities in many of our cities, as an argument against public owner- ship. And yet the great majority of such public under- takings are successful, and they owe their success to the trained men who are retained year after year in their EXPERTS AND UTILITY PROBLEMS 229 operation. An elected commissioner or a committee of the city council is put in charge of a great public business — a waterworks, electric lighting plant or gas works — entirely without experience or training. If such men are honest and intelligent, they realize their ignorance and, desiring to serve their city well, they will attack the prob- lem cautiously, studying its details, procuring the best advice obtainable and retaining the subordinates whom they believe are competent and useful. If they "know not and know not that they know not," public business suffers. But it is unfair and discouraging to the competent expert who furnishes the brains to make a success of such a business, that he should go through life as an underling, knowing that political conditions may bring about his dismissal at any time and that his job is in the hands of officials unfitted for the work, who are changed fre- quently and who are drawing the good salary to which he is by right entitled. The best men will not stay long in such a position. Profits vs. Service. — There is a fundamental differ- ence between publicly and privately owned utilities, both in general policy and, to some extent, in administrative detail. A private undertaking is run for profit, and a public one is, or should be, run for service; a private concern will naturally make dividends its first considera- tion, a public one should aim to earn only the actual cost of its service. The European tendency is to make utili- ties pay a profit and to use that profit for the relief of the taxpayer, but in the United States that policy is pretty generally frowned upon. It seems manifestly unjust to levy an extra tax upon the citizen in proportion to his use of water, by means of a water rate exceeding the cost of the service, in order thereby to lighten the load 230 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT of the general taxpayer who, according to the theory of taxation now operative in our cities, should contribute in proportion to his wealth, or such of it as he is unable to conceal from the assessor. Nor should service rates for a publicly owned utility be made excessive in order to retire too rapidly the bonds issued to finance its construction. In a private utility undertaking the initial cost is covered by issues of stock and bonds, the former frequently issued in excessive amount and representing little or no real investment. If the earnings are large they are not applied to debt payment, but usually go to pay dividends upon further issues of stock which have constituted "stock dividends," distributed gratis to the stockholders, and involving a continuing and increasing burden upon the business. State public service commissions not infrequently find securities issued against public utilities in this manner, which total two or three times the value of the property. Publicly owned utilities should, and usually do, plan to retire gradually their interest-bearing debt, and when a portion of the bonds are retired, that portion no longer figures as a liability and no longer requires interest pay- ments. How rapidly public utility debts should be paid is a very interesting and important question, and one which demands careful study by the administrative ex- pert. Take, for example, a waterworks wherein more than half the investment is in a distributing system built of cast iron pipe. We do not know the life of cast iron pipe, as the oldest of which we have knowledge was laid over two hundred years ago and is still intact in service. By charging a sufficiently high price for water, the debt incurred in laying' this pipe might be paid off in twenty years, the period for which the bonds were issued; but by doing this we would be placing an extra burden upon EXPERTS AND UTILITY PROBLEMS 231 the present-day water user in order that the consumer of twenty years hence might get his water for half the price we now pay. How rapidly shall we pay the debt? Experts in public administration must be qualified to advise elective, policy- forming bodies as to these and other matters of vital import in general policy and, when the general policy is adopted, to conform the management of the business to that basis. The Problem of Rates. — One of the most interesting and difficult problems in the management of a publicly operated utility is the adjustment of rates for service. A nice balance between justice and expediency must be worked out, and the satisfactory solution of the problem calls for the best intelligence of the highest type of ex- pert. An equitable gas rate should involve a fixed charge, applicable to each service in proportion to its size, sufficient to cover interest on plant investment, de- preciation, accounting and all "overhead charges," and not covering consumption. But thousands of consumers use so little gas that such a charge would cause their cost per thousand feet used to be three or four times the cost to the larger consumer, and would practically prohibit their use of gas. So it has been found expedi- ent to make a rate that involves carrying many small accounts at an actual loss, made up by a slightly greater charge on the larger accounts. The mysteries of '^maximum demand," '^connected load" and "readiness to serve" make many electric light and power rates so complicated that it is impossible for the layman to figure his bill from his meter reading, and many managers have become convinced that a simpler rate is more desirable, even though it is not quite so nearly just. The cost of city water supplied by pump- ing in a hilly city depends to a considerable extent upon 232 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT the height to which it is pumped, yet it would be con- sidered inexpedient to charge the consumers on the hills more than is charged for a like service in the valleys. The man who rides ten miles on a street car for five cents rides at less than the cost of his transportation, this loss being made up by excess profit on carrying an- other passenger a few blocks for the same fare; a flat rate for any utility service is no nearer absolute justice than would be a flat rate for your milkman. And yet flat rates are expedient in some cases. To make a rate which will yield an income covering all the costs of the service and retire some of the debt obligations each year ; that will distribute all costs with reasonable equity between classes of consumers and among individual pa- trons in each class ; to determine how much of individual service expenditures shall, by right, be borne by the consumer and how much be taken from gross earnings ; these problems of public utility operation must be solved, if solved at all, by men trained and experienced in handling these intensely technical subjects. Numerous Other Problems Demanding the Expert. — But the fixing of fair and reasonable rates is only a part of the expert service required of the official in charge of a publicly owned and operated utility ; he has other problems which demand just as much knowledge, acumen and judgment. When a city elects to go into the utility business (and that tendency is becoming more and more common), it must determine many questions of general policy in the new business and the thou- sand and one matters of more or less important detail upon which the success or failure ot tHe undertaking may depend. How large a plant is necessary ; how far into the future EXPERTS AND UTILITY PROBLEMS 233 shall its growth be considered; where shall it be located for most economical operation; how shall the necessary money be raised and how rapidly shall it be repaid ; what source of power shall be utilized and what type of machinery shall be purchased; how shall the product be distributed — all these are questions of vital import and a wrong answer to any of them may mean failure. No official need be qualified to decide them all without the assistance of specially employed experts; he would be foolish to attempt it, but he should have that training and experience which will enable him, after obtaining the necessary data and advice, to make intelligent decisions, to uphold them before his city council and to carry them out efficiently. The Professional Aspect of Expert Service. — When difficult questions come to the elective city, official, unless he be of a very unusual type, his tendency is to delay his decision in the endeavor to avoid it and to bequeath it to his successor. Particularly is he likely to procras- tinate if his decision one way or the other is likely to bring censure or criticism. He shrinks from doing the thing which he knows must be done, and seeks plausible excuse for his inaction. He knows that his time is short, and that people forget easily, and it is but human to wish to escape from unpleasant experiences. Not so with the expert administrator. His tenure of office is, or should be, indefinite; it depends upon his determination and his ability to meet the demands of his life work with honesty, intelligence and courage, and he cannot sidestep the issue. His fate does not depend upon the vagaries of a fickle electorate, nor even upon his giving satisfaction to the governing body of any one 234 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT city, but upon his making good in a large way in his chosen profession. The administrative expert is coming to American cities; how soon he will come depends upon the people who inaugurate movements for civic advancement and the voters who uphold them. It need not be expected that experts of the highest type will come to those cities where office holders are held in distrust and hampered by provisions of charters and laws which restrain and embarrass the honest and efficient official. All progress in governmental efficiency must follow the adoption of a constructive attitude on the part of the citizenship toward those who serve in public office and who are trained, able and willing to serve well. The expert is sorely needed, and he will come as soon as we give him a fair chance to make good. CHAPTER XV TRAINING TEACHERS: ITS LESSONS FOR TRAINING FOR PUBLIC SERVICE* THE administrative and supervising officers in our best city school systems are experts. They have received specialized training. The officers in other city departments — the police, tax and public works depart- ments — ordinarily are not experts. They have not re- ceived special training. Except in a very few scattered instances it is impossible to get such training. Should such training be given? If so, what lessons may be learned from the training given those who enter the service of public education? The administration and operation of city, county and state school systems constitutes a public service in the full sense of the word. School men and women render a community service. They are paid from public funds and are as truly public servants as are the employees in tax, health, public works, or any other city departments. * Public education is the only field of public administration where there is general acceptance of the training for public service program. The program, particularly in city schools, has been accepted for some considerable time. It was felt, therefore, that in a book like this it is indispensable that a state- ment of the forms and results of such experience should be presented. — Editor. 235 236 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Many similarities between the educational branch and the other branches of the public service may be found by one who considers the matter seriously and with open mind. Why, then, is there an elaborate and suc- cessful system of training for one branch of the public service and not for all the others ? This is a question of vital importance. It cannot be answered here but it is hoped that this discussion may serve to arouse a sense of real need for such training as well as to suggest pos- sible courses which such training might follow. In this discussion it is assumed that the reader believes there is such a need and that he is interested in considering what suggestions the field of education has to offer. Types of Training Schools and Classes. — The system of training for service in the public schools of our country provides for all, from the humblest rural school teacher to the superintendent of our largest city schools. The following types of schools and courses are included in this system of training: 1. Training classes in high school: The courses are usually one year in length and prepare for teaching in the rural schools. 2. County training schools: These schools are usually given over to the prep- aration of teachers for local rural and graded schools. 3. State normal schools: The normal schools in most cases cover the first two years of a college course, but in some cases the work is equivalent to a full college course. These schools embody various courses. In general they train kindergarten, primary, grade and some high school teachers. TRAINING TEACHERS 237 4. City training schools : Some cities maintain their own training schools for preparing teachers for the city system. (Very suggestive for other departments of the city serv- ice.) 5. Schools and departments of education: Most colleges and universities have their "Schools of Education" or their "Departments of Education." They prepare largely for high school teaching and for administrative positions in the public school system. Some of the university "Schools of Education" are very highly organized and in most cases they offer graduate work leading to the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Among those taking courses in these schools are to be found experienced teachers and school administrators preparing themselves for better positions and for more efficient service. With such a system it is possible for those with the in- clination and ability to receive training for just the type of school work which they prefer and for which they are fitted. What is more significant, the service of pubHc education is provided with specially trained men and women. This is a big factor in developing an effi- cient service. Essentials in the Training for the Field of Public Education. — Three things are essential to the trained and efficient man in the field of public education. They are: 1. A selected and correlated body of knowledge; 2. Ability and skill in the application of that knowledge; 3. A comprehension of the social significance of his job. These three things are also essential to the trained and efficient man in other branches of the public service. Be- 238 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT cause they have been recognized in their entirety in the training of the public school man, his work has come to be looked upon in the light of a profession. If work in the public service in general is to be looked upon- in this same light, these same factors must play an important part in the training given. A Selected Body of Knowledge. — No wide awake and intelligent school board would choose a man for high school teacher of science simply because he received a high general average in his college course. Neither would they appoint a superintendent on the grounds that he has been a good teacher or a successful business man. Employees for the majority of positions in the field of public education are chosen because of their specialized training. The training of the school man prepares for a definite thing which in turn determines the distribution of emphasis among the various parts of the body of knowl- edge which he is considering. The school man has a training in dealing with a selected body of knowledge, selected because of its useableness and its direct applica- tion to his later work. The character of the knowledge emphasized contributes very largely to the efficiency of the man in his work. This knowledge is so linked up with application that it is readily recalled and is useable^ The teacher of history must, in his training, dwell upon those parts of the subject that will help him in the great- est degree to make clear, to those whom he is to teach, the true meaning of the events of history. He must be made to see, if he has not before, that his own whims and in- terests cannot guide him, but that history has a real value only as cause and effect are woven into a chain of events which lead up to and explain the movements and con- ditions of present-day life. TRAINING TEACHERS 239 The supervising and administrative officer in the field of public education must also go through this same process. He has not the intimate knowledge of each subject as has the teacher who has specialized along that line, but he has his own selected body of knowledge. It has been selected from various fields and sources and correlated to meet his special needs. One of his business friends may be just as familiar with one part of it as he is, another with another part of it, and so on. This knowledge has been selected because of its direct applica- tion to the problems which he is to meet in his every day work as an administrator of public education. If he had gone through all the branches of knowledge and through all the writings from which this material was gleaned his task would have been many times as long, and what is even more vital, the right selection and cor- relation of this material would not have been made. The special body of knowledge given him in his training is selected not to give him a general idea of how school systems are administered, but rather to give him some- thing to use in his own work of administration. It is considered and criticized from the dynamic rather than from the static point of view. Some of the subjects he considers are: School Hygiene; Vocational Guidance; The High School Curriculum; Organizing a City School System; Financing a City School System; Public School Administration, etc. Why does the administrator of a public school system have presented to him a specially selected body of knowl- edge while the administrator of the department of public 240 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT works or tax department does not ? If the work of any city or state department is so conducted that it calls for the possession of general knowledge only, on the part of its officers, its efficiency and organization may well be questioned. Unless there is a reason why the public school administrator and his co-workers should reach a higher degree of efficiency than should the administrator of the department of public works and his co-workers, a lesson may well be learned from the care taken to put into the hands of the schoolman a body of knowledge specially selected to apply to the problems which he as a public servant must meet. Skill in the Application of Knowledge. — Knowledge and theory are inert. They may be attractive and very pleasing and satisfactory to their possessors, but never do they become really live and vital forces in the life of a community until they have been tested and reshaped through the process of application. In the training of men and women for service in the public schools this principle is recognized. In this branch of the public service provision has been made for giving those in train- ing actual practice in the very work which they expect to take up and under conditions so far as possible similar to the conditions of actual service. In preparing for the work of public education the policy has been developed of giving preliminary experi- ence and practice in the application of knowledge under such conditions that there will come the maximum of training and good results and the minimum of waste and inefficiency. It is a sort of hunching and wise direction of the knocks of experience under expert guid- ance. It is a condensing of experience. The expert is present to see that the pupils giving the candidate the TRAINING TEACHERS 241 experience, receive no harm in the process. The candi- date gets his experience under careful supervision before he really enters into the position for which he is prepar- ing. This is done and done successfully to-day in at least one branch of the public service. Why not in the others ? This development of skill and ability in the application of knowledge is made possible in several ways. In con- nection with training schools and training classes for prospective servants in the field of education there are to be found : 1. Practice schools covering the work of either the grades or the high school or of both; 2. Special classes for practice teaching; 3. Arrangements for practice teaching in the public schools ; 4. Practice upon and criticism from one's fellow stu- dents ; 5. Observation and discussion of the organization and work of a model school connected with the training school; 6. Observation and discussion of the organization and work of a public school system. All means available to bring the student into close and direct contact with the actual work and problems of public education are brought to the service of this prospective public servant. Teachers and administrators are not given all this careful training for the reason that they are below the average in ability or because they are so unfamiliar with the field of public education. It is safe to say that as a whole they are as familiar with this field as those ap- pointed to positions in other branches of public service are with the fields which they enter. Every prospective teacher knows the public school system rather intimately 242 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT before he takes this training. He knows its organization ; he knows many of its defects; he has been a victim of its deficiencies ; he has perhaps a number of theories for its improvement. He knows it well from' one point of view, from without the operating organization ; but in the training school he must learn of its actions from within. He must learn what it means to become a part of this machinery of government for a higher civilization. He must now be trained to take his place as an efficient working unit in this organization for public education. As a part of the schedule of the training school the class room teacher is assigned for a given period to a class in the practice school. He is to teach this class for a given time. He prepares work according to the prin- ciples he has learned. His method books are of great value to him but of even more value is the experience which this class is giving him. His theories get some hard knocks; he makes readjustments. He talks with less assurance about the right and wrong way to teach, but his working efficiency is increasing and that is the thing of real value, the final result that is sought. The prospective superintendent has probably had experience as a teacher and as a high school principal. He knows the system and its workings from the inside and yet he feels the need of further training. He takes up the study of problems that confront the administrator. He is given training in the practical application of his knowledge. As a type of the practical work done in the best of these training schools : — The prospective adminis- trator assists in working out plans and policies for the conduct and administration of the practice school. He observes at first hand the administration of public educa- tion in some city. He is assigned a real problem of administration to work out in connection with a particular TRAINING TEACHERS 243 school system. And mark this: — The results of his study are of real value. They deal with actual conditions. They have been worked out in cooperation with experi- enced schoolmen. The prospective public servant is rendering a real and immediate service to the community at the same time that he is getting his training for fur- ther and wider service. Does this have anything to offer relative to training for other branches of public service? Are the problems connected with the administration of other city depart- ments and commissions of sufficient concern to make experience advisable on the part of those who deal with them as the people's representatives? Is the university graduate with his text-book knowledge and some experi- ence as a vote getter as well qualified as he should be to plunge into the midst of the administrative problems of a department whose work affects thousands of citizens? Or does he need the preliminary training in the applica- tion of his knowledge of public business as much as does the administrator of public education? The laboratory, the workshop, is already here. Many are the pieces of work waiting to be taken up. It only remains to so organize as to put this workshop to its full use and let him who is in training render under expert guidance a real service to the community. A Comprehension of the Social Significance of His Work. — Never can any line of work develop into a profession until those engaged in it have a vital realization of its social significance, until they place the service they are rendering ahead of the salary they receive. This means that men are at the work because their hearts are in the cause ; because they have a gripping realization of its significance in social and human welfare. 244 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Public education is to-day presented to prospective workers in that field in such a way that they cannot but sec its social and its human aspects. And these workers are continually urged to consider their everyday problems in the school from that standpoint. This new point of view is affecting all phases of education. It is leading to the continuation school, industrial education, part time schools, public lectures, mothers* meetings, social center school buildings, school nurses, etc. It is also affecting the content of the studies. They too are being socialized. This is all resulting because those in this phase of the public service are thinking in a broad and liberal way and in social terms. This, of course, holds true in some other branches of government work, but in very few aside from public education do employees come into the work with a vital realization of the social significance of that work. Some of the courses actually given in training schools for teachers are : The School and Society Social Aspects of Education The Social Mind and Education The School and Social Efficiency The School and Industrial Education Moral Principles in Education The Boy Problem The man working in the public school system knows the history of the movement in which he is playing a part. He sees that he is connected with a thing of progress and he pictures to himself the possibilities ahead. He sees how conditions and changes in the past have been leading up to the present conditions, and how in turn present conditions are only indicative of changes to follow, inter- TRAINING TEACHERS 245 mediate steps in a great movement. This vision is doing much to develop a professional spirit — a realization of the social significance of this phase of public service. There are many excellent books appealingly written that bring out the social aspects of various other depart- ments of government, and yet how few of our state and city employees come into the service fresh from the inspiration of such studies! The proper literature is waiting and ready to be used, waiting to be presented by those who as a result of their contact with the actual possibilities of service see and understand. The work of the public servant needs to be socialized, to be humanized. Then will the service rendered be the big thing. Then will a real professional spirit be de- veloped. "We must convince our servants in that more crystallized, not to say fossilized, region of social service called public service, in the first place, that it is not government they are serving, but society ; and that in the end, it is not even society which is so important as its individual constituents — men and women." In most departments of government it is difficult to convince employees of this to the extent that they will actually feel it. Yet this must be done and the right kind of training for public service will do much to bring it about. Summary However many defects and deficiencies may exist in the public school systems of our country one cannot but admit that great strides in increased efficiency have been taken during the past decade. We have in our school system men and women who because of their training are fit to cope with the present-day problems of education, men and women who have had a specialized training and 246 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT who see the problems of education in their broad and far-reaching aspects. This would not have been possible but for the development of a specialized system of train- ing for workers in this field. The system is in process of development, and changes are constantly being made ; but it has, however, much to offer in the line of suggestions pertinent to the training in other lines of public service. What then, in the training offered to those preparing for service in the field of public education is especially suggestive for the other fields of public service ? 1. There are training schools and training courses pre- paring for all grades of positions from the humblest to that of city superintendent. 2. The training itself is suggestive in its completeness, for:— a — Expertness is developed through a well- worked out system of specialized instruction and carefully directed study. b — The gaining of experience through the appli- cation of methods and principles before entering upon the regular duties of the service very greatly raise the caliber of work done by those entering the services, eliminates much waste, and increases ef- ficiency. c — In these schools there is developed a keen ap- preciation of the social importance and human sig- nificance of the work upon which the prospective public servants are entering. Given public servants with specialized and definite knowledge, ability and skill in its application, and a vital sense of its social values, at the beginning of their careers in service, and we are on the road to raising public service to an honorable and efficient profession. CHAPTER XVI TRAINING FOR THE MILITARY SERVICE* GOVERNMENTS have always trained soldiers. Thia is no less true of the United States than of other nations. Institutional training of officers began early. West Point was estabUshed in 1812. AnnapoHs was es- tablished in 1845. Volunteers are trained in the army, and the continued training of enlisted men and officers has always been a function of the army organization. It would be rather surprising if this experience in training men for the military service over so long a period would not be fruitful of lessons for training for the civil service. The Panama Canal is a great tribute to the educational system of the army. It is a great tribute to the capacity of the national government to organize training for its own service. The army is not merely a great machine of destruction. It is a great constructive force, notably in our national public works.^ I t is certainly a grea t educational organization. at *This paper was printed in part in The Public Servant, Sep- tember, 1916. *But not entirely so, let us add in this footnote. That the army engineers are, in connection with rivers and harbors im- provement, subjected to tremendous political pressure and that they have succumbed frequently to this pressure any student of "pork" knows. A national waterway commission would help the situation greatly. So much for an aside. 247 248 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT In the army, in the navy and in the Public Health Service the nation has clearly shown the great funda- mental need for training for public service and its own capacity to organize and develop it. Even admitting the esprit de corps of the army and the influence of a number of permanent officials, it must strike the thinking mind with something like a shock to note practically no organ- ized preparation and training for the civil service in contrast to the elaborate organization for the military service. However, we must accept that fact. Let us see now what the principles underlying the army system are which contribute to its success. The question may then be raised by the reader as to the applicability of these principles to training for the civil service. The Educational System of the Army. — "There has been built up in the army," says General Wotherspoon, "an educational system directed to that end that exceeds in completeness any other educational system in the country. Professional training in the army, unlike in some professions, does not cease when an officer has won his commission ; it goes on through all his career." And this statement is warranted by the facts, as will be shown in the sequel. This system may by way of introduction be outlined in skeleton form: 1. The Military Academy at West Point for the educa- tion of cadets. (4 years.) 2. Post schools for the instruction of enlisted men. (Va- rious periods.) 3. Garrison schools for the instruction of officers in sub- jects pertaining to the performance of their ordinary duties, (i year, preliminary, and 3 years in garrison school.) 4. The Army Service Schools at Fort Leavenworth, Kan- sas: TRAINING FOR THE MILITARY SERVICE 249 (a) The Army School of the Line (basic school — I year). (b) The Army Staff College (i year). (c) The Army Signal School (i year). (d) The Army Field Engineer School (i year). (e) The Army Field Service and Correspondence School for Medical Officers (i year and six weeks). 5. The Special Service Schools: (a) The Engineer School, Washington Barracks, D. C. (18 months). (b) The Coast Artillery School, Fort Monroe, Va. (Officers 2 years, enlisted men 3 years). (c) The Mounted Service School, Fort Riley, Kansas. a. School for Field Officers (Apr. i-June 15)- b. School for Company Officers (Sept. 25- June 30). c School for Farriers and Horeshoers (2 courses, four months each, Feb. 15- June 15, and July 15-Nov. 15). d. School for Bakers and Cooks (4 months). (d) The Army Medical School, Washington, D. C. (i year). (c) The School of Fire for Field Artillery, Fort Sill, Okla. (f ) The School of Musketry, Fort Sill, Okla. (g) The Signal Corps Aviation School, San Diego, Cal. (h) The Schools for Bakers and Cooks, Washing- ton Barracks, D. C, and Presidio of San Francisco (4 months). 250 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT (i) The Training School for Saddlers and for Battery Mechanics of Field Artil- lery, Rock Island Arsenal, 111. (ii months). (j) The School of Instruction for Enlisted Men of the Regular Army selected for de- tail for duty with the Organized Militia (7 weeks beginning July i). 6. The Army War College, Washington, D. C. (Perma- nent; temporary, i year.) 7. The Schools of Instruction for College Students (5 weeks — summer) . 8. The military departments of civil institutions at which officers of the Army are detailed under the provisions of law. Practical Training and Theoretical Instruction. — Fundamental in this educational system, whether it be in the preparatory training at West Point or in the con- tinuous training in the service of officers, or whether it be of enlisted men in the post schools, or in the specialized schools for cooks, electricians, farriers or other supple- mentary services needed by the army, practical training runs along with theoretical instruction. At West Point, for example, in the Department of Military Hygiene this coordination of theory and practice may be illustrated in the practice that on marches at the end of each day, the medical officer discusses practical matters from the point of view of the military sanitarian. In the depart- ment of practical miHtary engineering, "during the spring period this class (the second) is instructed in the field methods of electrical communication and is given practice in establishing and using buzzer lines under, as nearly as possible, service conditions. This course also comprises setting up and operating field wireless telegraph outfits." This actual work is supplemented by trips of TRAINING FOR THE MILITARY SERVICE 251 inspection. During the first year of the courses in ord- nance and gunnery, "visits are made to Watervliet Arsenal, where the processes of gun construction are observed, and to the Ordnance Proving Ground at Sandy Hook, where actual firings from the several classes of guns are observed, including usually one or more shots against armor, and where the latest developments in war material are seen." This same class in the department of Civil and Military Engineering is taken to the field of Gettysburg to famili- arize it with effects of topography on the employment of troops in the field. Even vacations are utilized for practical training. "Academic duties are suspended from the completion of the June examinations until the end of August. During this period cadets live in camp and are engaged in military duties and exercises and in receiving practical instruction in military and other subjects." All professional education might well profit by a careful study of this organized coordination of theory and practice. A corollary of the foregoing is the fact that the whole life of the student is an organised professional training. The academy accepts at its face value the wisdom of the proverb that "Life is the best teacher." There is no dis- tinction between learning and living. We learn through living. The army is the best illustration in any phase of the American educational system, not excluding the kindergarten, of the organization of this principle into an effective educational instrument. Continuous Training of Men in Service. — There is no place in the army where the educational process ends. After four years of combined theoretical and practical instruction at West Point, the young officer has immedi- 252 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT ately ahead of him at least six years of post-graduate work. During the first years of commissioned service the officers of all branches except the Corps of Engineers are required to pursue a preliminary course of instruction before entering the garrison schools. "All officers of the line of the Army below the grade of colonel, but actually engaged as instructors or student officers in the garrison school course, will participate in the post-graduate work." Officers of the Organized Militia are permitted to attend garrison schools on certain conditions. Three years are spent in the garrison schools. Then follow two years in the army service schools, one in the basic school, the Army School of the Line, and the other in one of the affiliated schools, the Army Staff College, the Army Signal School, the Army Field Engineering School, or the Army Field Service and Correspondence School for Medical Officers. Certain officers not below the grade of captain are detailed to the Army War College for a year. For all kinds of work, too, the army has special service schools. It has schools for the coast artillery service, the mounted service, medical service, the field artillery service. It has a school of musketry and the signal corps aviation school. It has schools for bakers and cooks, saddlers and mechanics. Developing the "Reserve of Ability." — Captain McArthur of the General Staff says, "No country in the world has as complete a system of professional scholastic training for its (army) officers as the United States." Then follows a rather striking statement of the reason for it. This reason has great significance in training for the military service. "European armies do not have this training because TRAINING FOR THE MILITARY SERVICE 253 the army is practically always on war footing and each officer is located in his niche. He must be able to render his service in the place in which he is then located. The declaration of war will not affect his position or his pro- motion except as the result of fatalities. The training, therefore, he needs is the narrow definitized training as colonel, as lieutenant, as captain, whatever his rank is. The army is a vast machine in which it is important that each part shall serve its specific purpose and be coordi- nated with the rest. The education, therefore, is very elementary and very mechanical. A perfect machine will best serve the purposes of the highly trained staif." The regular army of the United States is small, i. e., it is not on a war footing. The regular army must be the organizing and disciplining agency in making the volun- teers in war-time into an army. The specific duties that may be assigned to a particular officer are defined only by the whole extent of services to be performed. A mechanically perfect lieutenant is useless. We cannot afford to train merely lieutenants, colonels, and captains. We must train a man-in-arms capable of serving wherever the need is greatest. Or as Captain McArthur puts it: "But the system must he such as to educate our officers so that they will he ahle at a moment's notice, when the war expansion comes, to perform the duties of far- advanced grades and to render service in hranches of the Army, hoth line and staff, in which they are not commis- sioned in time of peace. For this reason we have established a progressive system of schools designed to teach officers and men, limited only by their individual capacities for its assimilation, the duty of the man-in- arms in all grades from lowest to highest." When the universities earnestly set to work to train f.v/V 254 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT men for public service, so far as aim is concerned, this point is of tremendously vital significance. Training in Administration Combined With Train- ing in Technique. — Worthy of special note in connec- tion with the last point is this fact, that besides the tech- nical training given, there runs along with it specific training in organization and administration. As to method this is probably the best way to secure a mobile body of officers. In the Army School of the Line, for example, the first thing noted under ''Military Art" is : (a) Troops in campaign — Organization, field orders, marches, camps, supply, and the care of troops in the field. Instruction in sanitation, and the care of troops to be given by the Army Field Service and Correspondence School for Medical Officers, Instruction by conferences, lectures, and practical problems. The Army StaflF College aims to train selected gradu- ates of the School of the Line for the more important staff duties with large commands in time of war. In the Staff College under "Military Art" three things may be noted : (a) Staff duties — To include duties of the General Staff, supply and administration. Instruction by lectures and conferences and practical problems. (b) Practical demonstration of the uses of all means afforded by the Signal Corps for gaining information and furnishing lines of information in the theater of opera- tions, including balloons, wireless and ordinary telegraph, telephones, etc., in conjunction with field exercise. (e) Care of troops — Instruction in the care of troops is given by the Army Field Service and Correspondence School for Medical Officers. The purpose of the School of Musketry is to teach TRAINING FOR THE MILITARY SERVICE 255 officers of the mobile Army how to handle the fire of their commands so as to obtain the maximum effect. The methods of instituting a satisfactory system of fire dis- cipline and control are taught as well as the development of firing tactics for the infantry arm of the service. Original research work and practical application of tac- tical principles and their coordination are also included. Developing Research and the Spirit of Experimenta- tion. — With the problem-method of teaching and the field training which characterizes the work throughout, the spirit of inquiry, of curiosity, of research, must be continuously stimulated. Definite provision is made for original research in the School of Musketry. Part of the object of the Signal Corps Aviation School is "to develop by experimental research practical aero- nautics as applied to military problems." The War Col- lege is, in part, a kind of research organization for the whole military organization, promoting the advanced study of military subjects. Graduating into the Service. — Other points could be made, such as the care in the selecting of men for training at West Point, the valuable by-products for civil life secured by training in the army schools. We do want to make one other point. After the training at West Point, a position is practically assured. By act of Con- gress it is provided "That when any cadet of the United States Military Academy has gone through all its classes and received a regular diploma from the academic staff, he may be promoted and commissioned as a second lieutenant in any arm or corps of the Army in which there may be a vacancy and the duties of which he may have been judged competent to perform, and in case there 256 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT shall not at any time be a vacancy in such arm or corps, he may, at the discretion of the President, be promoted and commissioned in it as an additional second lieutenant, with the usual pay and allowances of a second lieutenant, until a vacancy shall happen." Summary. — By way of summary and by way of suggest- ing the applications of these principles underlying training for the military service to the civil service, a series of ques- tions may be formulated. For the citizen at least three ques- tions may be asked: Shall we provide training for the civil service similar to the training for the military service? Shall we have a civil West Point? A civil Annapolis? Shall we provide for continuous training of the men in the civil service? For the public administrator and the civil service com- mission, and for the university or university officer charged with training men for the public service or of training men in the public service, these questions may be formulated: Shall we in training men for the public service 1. Combine supervised practical training with co- ordinated theoretical instruction? 2. Combine training in administration with training in technic? 3. Develop the "reserve of ability"? 4. Develop research and the spirit of experimenta- tion? CHAPTER XVII THE METHOD OF TRAINING— COOPERATIVE, PART- TIME PART-TIME training has been variously referred to as "the laboratory method," "practical training," "learn- ing by doing,'' "cooperative training," "field work," etc. The value of practical application of theoretical knowledge is obvious to the layman as well as to the teacher, but the possibilities of the word "practical" are by no means exhausted in college laboratories of chemis- try, engineering and biology. A wish for more intimate and vital relations with life's activities has turned whole cities and states into laboratories of training and research for the college student — he is taught to know life by actually living it. Not a New Educational Development. — It is an error to regard this part-time principle as a new educa- tional development. It has long formed the basis for Germany's continuation schools and is a standard method of procedure in medicine under the name of hospital experience, and in normal training under the name of practice teaching. Dean Schneider, of the University of Cincinnati, extended the use of the same principle a few years ago to engineering, and a few farseeing educators, notably Professor Jenks of New York University, Dean 257 258 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Ayer of the University of Akron and Mr. F. C. Schwedt- mann of the National City Bank of New York are just now beginning to prove its value in business training.^ Theoretically, it is sound educational method to apply school-learned theory to practical uses during the course of training rather than after its conclusion. Prac- tically, the processes involved in accomplishing this end are by no means simple, and require careful supervision and coordination by alert and experienced instructors. Laboratory work in an activity of real Hfe means that the mind of the student is constantly in touch with the newest developments of his subject and the teacher dare not lag behind. There is, too, a practical difficulty in coordinating outside work with the prescribed course of study ; the routine of the outside activity cannot be dis- arranged for the sake of the student, and the result is that in most part-time training schemes educational prec- edent has had to give way to the necessity of molding a course to fit extra-curricular conditions. This has caused acute discomfort to many a teacher to whom tradi- tional methods were sacred, and has brought about much criticism of the various kinds of part-time training. In spite of these difficulties, however, the part-time system is becoming more and more firmly fixed as a recognized method of education, although the technic of its applica- tion is still largely unstandardized. The public service, i.e., the service of city, state or nation in official position, is now generally recognized as a most promising field for the extension of part-time * Special mention should also be made of New York City's extensive and successful activities in cooperative business train- ing for High School students under the general direction of Dean Schneider and the direct supervision of the late Dr. John H. Haaren, Associate City Superintendent of Schools. THE METHOD OF TRAINING 259 training. The one factor which has done most to render this possible is the growing activity of various states and cities in classifying their civil service, thereby not only assuring permanent tenure of office based on merit, but also defining more closely for training schools, colleges and universities those subjects in which part-time students may receive training. Part-time Training for Public Service in Universi- ties. — In its broadest sense the term "part-time train- ing in public service" applies to the system by which regularly employed public servants receive instruction outside of office hours, as well as to that by which students work in class room and pubhc office under a regular alternation plan or by special assignment to the latter. Strictly speaking, though, the principles involved in the two systems are quite different, but the term "part- time training in public service" will, in this chapter, be limited to the latter application, i.e., with the student as the basis. It must be admitted at the outset that the record of actual accomplishment is as yet a short one, while great possibilities remain to be realized. Public service makes requirements upon nearly every depart- ment of human knowledge, and the part-time systems at present in use in engineering, sociology, economics, and medicine, are often used directly for the purpose of such training, as, for example, the employment of cooperative engineering students in city work at Cincin- nati and Akron. As a matter of fact the growing tendency exhibited by many urban institutions to put their students into the laboratory of real Hfe has already brought about informally numerous opportunities for training in various branches of public service, but up to the present time no school has been established with the 26o EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT distinct end in view of training for all kinds of public service. Such a school would necessarily rival the university in its scope and would require not only the presence of a great city for the application of part-time methods but also the income of a great endowment for its support. 2 The part-time method is as yet merely an incidental tool in the educational world; but the time fie ems not far distant when it may be elevated to the position of cardinal principle in the great University of Public Service to be. The Movement for Training for Public Service. — General interest in the part-time plan as the logical method for training public servants seems to have been first aroused by the activities of the American Political Science Association, whose Committee on Practical Training for Public Service issued their epoch-making "Preliminary Report" in the Association's Proceedings for 1913.^ As stated in this report the Committee was appointed "i, to examine and make a list of places where laboratory work for graduate students in political science can be done ; 2, to recommend to the various college and university faculties that due graduate credit be given to such place ; 3, to use its best endeavors to obtain scholar- ships for this laboratory work, and to secure an endow- ment for the building up of a trained body of public servants; and 4, to make, if possible, a system of card records and efficiency standards for graduates doing practical work in political science." Through the efforts of Dr. Edward A. Fitzpatrick, *Cf. the "Proposed Plan for Training Schools for Public Service" submitted by the Committee on Practical Training for Public Service of the American Political Science Association. ' Reprinted in pamphlet form, 1914. THE METHOD OF TRAINING 261 Executive Secretary of the Committee, there was called in New York in May, 1914, a National Conference on Universities and Public Service, whose Proceedings, edited by Dr. Fitzpatrick, form a valuable contribution to the literature on part-time training. As a direct result there was formed the Society for the Promotion of Training for Public Service, whose Boston meeting in 191 5 and Philadelphia meeting in 19 16 have carried on the work of the New York Conference. It is noteworthy that much of the incentive toward the adoption of part- time training as a standard method has come from professors of political science.* This is doubtless due to the particular applicability of the principle to the work of this department and also to the indisputable fact that public service training for any kind of activity should be built on a thorough study of political science. Field Work — Its Meaning and Its Scope. — A some- what broader field has been undertaken by the investiga- tions of the Committee on Field Work, appointed in 191 5 by the American Association of Urban Universities.^ This Committee defines field work® as including ''the activities of students in the performance of tasks of everyday life under actual conditions which may be ac- * Others working through professors of political science are largely responsible for the development. — Editor. 'Founded at Washington in 1914 for the purpose of studying "the relations of civic universities to their local institutions and communities." The report of the organization meeting appears as Bulletin, 1915, No. 38, of the Bureau of Education at Wash- ington. The proceedings of the second annual meeting (Cin- cinnati, 1915), also issued by the Bureau, contains a valuable bibliography by Mr. H. A. Rider of the Library of Research in Government of Western Reserve University (Bulletin). 'The following quotations are from a detailed questionnaire issued by the Committee, May, 1916. 262 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT cepted as directly related to concurrent class work." As examples are mention-ed : *'Work by students of the social sciences in philanthropic agencies, surveys of economic, industrial, educational and hygienic conditions, practice teaching, research assignments in current political and administrative problems, etc." It is the purpose of the Committee to report to the Association of Urban Universities on various methods at present in use in the conduct of field work and to recommend certain standards and methods, based on the result of this inquiry. The great centers for field work to-day are naturally in the larger cities. Without question New York offers opportunities for more kinds of part-time training than any other center of population. To indicate the extent of the possibilities there it is only necessary to mention such institutions as Columbia University, with its Teachers College, the College of the City of New York, New York University, the Training School of the New York Bureau of Municipal Research, the Institute for Public Service, the New York School of Philanthropy, the National City Bank — all of these and many others are definitely committed to the part-time principle as an educational method in certain adaptable subjects. Al- though part-time training possibly owes its present development more to training schools with no direct academic affiliations than to the colleges and universities themselves, yet such training schools would be impossible without the aid of academically trained men and women ; hence the universities may perhaps be looked upon as the natural seats of future activity. It would be impossible to review in brief space all the various applications of the part-time principle now in use. There are, in the departments of economics and sociology alone, almost innumerable variations. In fact THE METHOD OF TRAINING 263 these two subjects at present occupy the center of the stage of public interest. While medicine, pedagogy and engineering have evolved definite disciplines and a fairly well established technic in field work, other subjects leave much to be desired in the standardization of methods. Only a few interesting examples of the applica- tion of the part-time system to training for public service in colleges and universities can be mentioned here, but these may be considered as fairly typical of numerous other attempts.'^ Some Illustrations of Field Work. — Training in business subjects, while nowhere directly shaped for the official public service, is naturally an invaluable aid and preparation for most public officials. The part-time system has been adopted by Boston University in its College of Business Administration, students of the senior year being assigned by the faculty to regular employment in business houses. For this work a maximum of one- sixth of the full degree credit requirement is allowed. At the University of Akron a course in business adminis- tration has just been inaugurated with regular two week alternation periods for the students in college and office. The course is patterned on the cooperative engineering course and is under the supervision of the Engineering College. Considerable progress has been made in applying the part-time principle to the training of public health officers. For example, the School for Health Officers conducted jointly by Harvard University and the Massachusetts 'An interesting summary of the "Progress of the Movement for Training for Public Service" is to be found in the second number of The Public Servant, the official organ of the Society for the Promotion of Training for Public Service. 264 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Institute of Technology offers as field work in its course in Sanitation the actual problem of making a sanitary survey of a small city or town. The College of the City of New York requires considerable field work in its course in Municipal Sanitary Inspection and the Labora- tory of Hygiene of the University of Pennsylvania puts its students in Public Hygiene into the routine activities of the Municipal Health Department. A kindred sub- ject is touched by the field work of the Psychological Laboratory and Clinic of the same institution whose students in the course called Clinical Field Work are active in office work, visits to homes, schools, dispensaries, social agencies, and institutions. It would be hopeless to attempt completeness even in an outline of the part-time work done in economics, political science, government and kindred branches. A few types must suffice: The University of Cincinnati through the Municipal Reference Bureau, which it con- trols, is in excellent position to place its students in Municipal Government into various city departments for field work in skilled non-technical positions, as in the Employment Bureau, Department of Public Welfare, Board of Health, etc. The University of Indiana sends its students to serve with the State Bureau of Legislative Information and reports that there is more work to be done than students to do the work satisfactorily. The University of Minnesota offers a course in practice in the Law School with field work in the Bureau of Legal Aid, under the auspices of the Associated Charities. This so called "Legal Clinic" presents some 3000 cases annually for practice work by students. The University of Nebraska reports that the results of student field work in its course in Practical Legislation are "often used by the State Legislature and officers of administration as THE- METHOD OF TRAINING 265 guides in practical problems" — a most encouraging index of the value of field work. The Department of Botany at the University of Cin- cinnati has applied the part-time principle to instruction in a course for teachers of school gardening. Practical work is given in "the actual teaching charge of children's gardens." The social sciences offer innumerable opportunities for part-time training and nearly all urban institutions are now cultivating this field industriously by some form of cooperative activity with local agencies. Such connec- tions run the entire gamut from mere visits of investiga- tion by students to the actual support and conduct of a settlement house as at the University of Syracuse and a few other institutions. Professor James Ford of the Department of Social Ethics at Harvard believes that field work is possible in every one of the courses of that department and mentions as specific activities : the study of labor conditions and industrial opportunities, leader- ship of boys' clubs, settlement houses, and social centers, various social surveys in cities, rural social surveys, activities in charity organization, etc. The comparatively new study of Household Economics has found the part-time principle invaluable in training its students. Cincinnati has cooperated with many civic organizations in surveys of stores and markets, work as visiting housekeepers, assistant dietitians in hospitals and factories, institutional management and practice teaching in the public schools. Teachers College in New York has employed students in such part-time activities as public health investigation, nursing work in public schools and settlements and institutional administration in public school lunch rooms. Similar work is carried on at Drexel Institute, Philadelphia, and elsewhere. 266 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT The Library School of the University of Illinois may serve to illustrate part-time training in this branch. Here all seniors are assigned to field work in university and public libraries, reference libraries and with library com- missions. The student leaves Urbana and spends all his working time for one month in the assigned library. Part-time work in engineering schools has been already so often treated as to render further description unneces- sary. A few colleges are operating courses on the regular periodic alternation plan, notably Cincinnati, Akron, the Georgia School of Technology and the Throop School of Technology, Pasadena, California. Many others are re- quiring practical work during the summer vacations. In the municipal universities, particularly, this system is used to acquaint students with the routine of such city offices as require engineering practice, as, for example, surveying, pavement and bridge construction, etc. All of the part-time activities above mentioned are simply types from various great branches or departments of learning to which this kind of education is applicable. Conclusion. — Actually it is in most cases not re- garded by those in charge as formal training for public service. As a matter of fact, though, all training of this nature constitutes excellent practical preparation for the citizen-to-be as well as for the *public-official-to-be, and the direct contact which it affords with real life must gradually begin to have a deep effect on our citizenship. The problem of him who desires to establish a University School for Public Service Training will not be to devise new methods and applications of education, but to coordinate and to apply to his purpose the forces and tendencies which the last decade has brought into exist- ence. CHAPTER XVIII THE CITY OFFICE AS A TRAINING CENTER FOR PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT WHERE do city officials and employees now get their training if not in the city office ? This query is fundamental to any analysis as to the extent to which the city office can profitably be used as a training center for the municipal servant. The only preparation for municipal service that most city employees have had until recently, at least, has been as varied as that afforded by the private industries or partisan circles from which those employees have mainly come. For their only preparation as a rule has been the training for private enterprise or as "workers" for po- litical parties. City Offices as Training Centers for Political Serv- ice. — As to fitness and preparedness for their duties the city employees of the past half century may roughly be divided into three classes. In the first class are those through whom the partisan party carries out its partisan program. If the leaders of the political party think the election "safe" those of their own number may be selected for the leading elective positions. If the "peepul" seem likely to bolt a hand- picked politician, some "respectable" college professor — a Hughes, or a Wilson — may be chosen. But in neither 267 268 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT case is the employee trained for public service put into the numerous minor elective or appointive positions. For these positions must remain the means for financing the party — "rewarding the workers" we call it by courtesy. Such was the chronic status of city government in this country during the last three decades of the 19th century. Philadelphia remains an archaic example of this type of vassalage. During the partial respite from this condition afforded by the Blankenberg administration the Director of Public Works of that city found certain documents which proved that the city employees had been mulcted of $3,cxx),cxx) in the previous ten year period under the guise of "voluntary" party assessments. But v/orse than this, the city's employees themselves were but partisan tools to the bosses higher up. The government that ran the government were the bosses of the political party, and the pseudo-government was used to finance this actual government. Occasionally throughout the later years of the 19th century and with increasing rapidity through the first years of the 20th, this type of public employee was sup- planted in whole or in part by a second class: those elected and those appointed as a result of a popular revolt against "invisible government." These officials were usually dubbed "reformers," and it was the proper thing to refer to them as "failures." The reason for their "failure" was simply that they were not backed by a sufficiently strong organization to overcome calumny and ridicule, the method of fighting which professionals in politics use so effectively against the amateur. The new appointments under this class were often highly qualified so far as private industries could qualify them for public service. But the results of their work were not apparent, and often not permanent. CITY OFFICE AS A TRAINING CENTER 269 In both these classes the only direct training for public work that the city's employees could have was that se- cured in their positions after they were drawing public pay for their services. From mayor down, full half the time of such employees for the first year or two had to be spent in learning what to do and when and how to do it. In this regime the city office was the only training center for city work and that for what was in effect a half-time employee. For must not party work be con- tinued the while ? And was not first allegiance to "our friends" in the party rather than to the city ? City Offices Training Centers for Public Service. — Happily this second class is making way for the city administration with a well sustained public program sup- ported by permanent and well organized civic bodies. The forerunner of this type of urban government was the administration devoted to "economy and efficiency," first hailed as a "business" administration. It, too, at first was often indirectly controlled by the same invisible though compelling government that controlled the first class of public employees; but it is now developing into a reality in a growing number of American cities. It is in this class of city administration that the city office is being and can best be used as an effective training center for the permanent public servant. For now the test of fitness for office is no longer success in "rolling up majorities" in the home division,^ but competency in * Director Cooke in the Report referred to above found that the city employee in Philadelphia had not been allowed to move from one division to another without the consent of his party chief. Thus the city employee who could not continue as a good division worker for his party soon lost party "standing" and hence his job. 270 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT doing the careful technical work which is so essential to a successful public administration, whether the position be that of electric wiring inspector or director of police. There is now the permanency in employment prerequisite to worthwhileness in effective training. For under this type of administration the test of success is safe build- ings, or a diminished death rate, or good results in paving at minimum costs. The city employee is no longer the "go between" or the "me too." He is now the expert accountant and the efficient stenographer who keeps time sheets so that their worth may be compared with the worth of the accountant or stenographer doing similar work whether in another bureau or in private employ. Under such an environment the city office can be the effective training center for two classes: those already in and those desirous of entering public employment. That is, the city office can now become the public training center for the pubhc official, as distinct from the erstwhile center, for learning from your city job just enough about it to do good party service. Some Lessons from Private Business. — Just to the extent that public work differs from private work, the public office must be the training center in which the requisite knowledge, habits, and skill are assured to the public's employees. This big fact private industry is just learning; it costs money to take on a new employee no matter how menial or unskilled his work may be. The old freedom in hiring arid firing is thus receiving a sudden check because accurate cost records show a distinct money cost ranging anywhere from $50 to $250^ for ' Such as a telephone operator who must have a schooling for three months before she can go to work. CITY OFFICE AS A TRAINING CENTER 271 every hew employee that is added to the staff. In that industry requiring work to be done in a particular man- ner under special circumstances (and in what industry should this not be the case), all must work together in the harmony prerequisite for maximum output. In all such industries efficient use of moneys and energies re- quire special training in the offices or shops of the concern; and the employee receiving this training is too valuable an asset to be discharged without due regard to the money and efficiency loss necessary to choosing and training a successor. Now this same training at the same or greater cost must be given to the public employee. If there are frequent changes in employees the pubHc treasury must in effect bear this additional cost of training the new man. For the public pays the salaries of these men while they are being educated for their jobs by their jobs. Other principles as to handling an efficient corps in private industries apply to the public business. Private industry is now learning, not only that permanency in employment is essential to minimum overhead costs and that unearned dismissals demoralize the esprit de corps so essential to cooperative action, but also that special training must be given to the new employee and that all employees must have continuous training, whether for promotion or for the acquisition of new trades, in order that employment may be stable and effective. The training equivalent to this for the public employee is to be had only in the public office. In the public office must be obtained the first training for immediate duties. There must the training be secured for allied or substitute duties. There must the training be found essential to promotions. For the higher public positions can best be 2^72 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT recruited from below. Such training is as necessary for the legal department as for the accounting department; the Department of Health as for the Department of Public Works. There is need in the legal department for knowledge as intimate and as accurate as to municipal ordinances and interpretations thereof as there is of clear cut accounting methods in the auditor's office. The minor employee and the bureau chief or depart- ment director are the agents through whom the responsi- ble city chiefs get their work done and get their work interpreted to the public. And public work like private work is now essentially the work of the well trained. The success of the English government — hailed by many students as the model of efficient democracy — is due largely to the fact that the public office is the training center for the public employees. And this is just as true for the street car conductor as for the Oxford grad- uate who, after passing his classical examinations, goes into the public office for a term of years to learn his business whether that business be in the India or in the Home Office. The same training in public office is required of German public servants. Similar training must be vouchsafed to the public employees in America — the building inspector, the meter inspector, the inspector of meats and vegetables; the accountant, the engineer, the director of Docks and Fer- ries ! Where can any or all of these get the final training that adapts them to their specific duties, save in the public office? Both for the immediate adaptation of the well qualified to their special public business and for the preparation of experts for the higher public positions the city office must ever remain the community's training center. CITY OFFICE AS A TRAINING CENTER 273 The City Office as Training Center for Teachers of Government. — The second class to whom the city office can be of untold assistance "as a training center is the prospective city employee. This means, first of all, that the public office must be the training center for the teacher of government. It is indeed passing strange that professors, w^hether in the secondary schools or in the higher institutions of learning, should ever have the nerve to teach government without knowing a wee bit as to the practice of it. But such is the case with the majority of such teachers to-day. And yet within the Universities these same teachers would fain have themselves referred to as "political scientists.'" But happily within the last few years there has been a growing desire on the part of these teachers to learn by doing. Could Boards of Trustees and university presidents realize the transformation that comes in the choice of what is worth teaching, and in human interest and in student zeal, through the teacher of government who has done practical work in pubHc offices, they would never again put their first approval upon the doctrinaire who had had no such experience but who was "safe and sane" because "harmless." For, however harmless he may be to those who wish things to remain as they are, or who are fearful lest expected endowments be estranged, he is harmful indeed to his students and to public welfare — harmful because deadening to human zeal; harmful be- cause what he teaches is of no importance, even if true. Democracy, urban or national, can go forward only when teachers of affairs governmental know through their own experiences of what they speak. The City Office as Clinic. — No educational institu- tion unless specializing on some one phase of the pub- 274 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT lie service can prepare its students to enter immediate- ly into public employ. The engineering school must prepare the civil or mechanical or the electrical en- gineer; it cannot also differentiate between the public and the private civil, mechanical or electrical engineer. The same applies to the School of Medicine, the School of Law and the School of Business and Finance and to the other professional schools. As each typical private business must give to the public school or university graduate a special season of training before he is qualified to do its special work, so the public office must be the training center for the novice at public work no matter how well equipped he may be in general. Whether this training be called proba- tionary service such as is typical of pubHc service in Germany or whether it be of the type concurrent with school work such as has been exemplified particularly in the engineering school of the University of Cincinnati or in the Academy at Diisseldorf, soon to be described, is a matter on which judgments and local conditions will vary. But as to the necessity for such training all must agree. The one class of public servant for whom training of this type has long been recognized as a necessity is the teacher. The basis of Normal School work is that the students shall practice teaching while learning the princi- ples of sound pedagogy. For it has been well recognized that the teacher who does not learn in this way learns by practicing upon her own students at heavy loss to her own time and energy, and to the detriment of those practiced upon. The Germans have worked out practical laboratories for just such coordinate training. The purpose of the Academy for Municipal Administration in Dusseldorf, CITY OFFICE AS A TRAINING CENTER 275 opened for work in the autumn of 191 1, is to strengthen and broaden the knowledge of, and to offer a scientific and practical training to, Germany's municipal officials, and to give business-like, scientific and practical education to persons intending to enter the municipal service. A survey of the courses offered and the methods employed indicates that the academy is primarily an institution for the further training of the higher municipal officials. The courses offered give both detailed knowledge^ and training in securing from primary sources* information pertaining to the city's business. 'These courses include the following subjects: Constitutional rights; governmental rights; the police power; social ques- tions ; school and sanitary administration and legislation ; insur- ance law; road law; economics; agricultural economy; political science; sociology; resources of the country; national econ- omy; lawful rights of government; organization of city, state and nation; efficiency in government; science of finance; taxa- tion law; money and banking; public works; the city's utili- ties; statistics; building regulations and administration; culti- vation of prosperity and of refinement; defense of the country; the labor question; relief of the poor; business law; practical work in administrative law ; municipal finance and constitu- tional law "with special reference to the work of present and future city officials"; criminal law and their interpretation; criminology, hygiene and commercial and financial bookkeeping. The course of study is so arranged that advanced students can complete requirements for the examination in two semesters of about twenty-five weeks of study each. Students are advised, however, to take two years of two semesters each, before attempt- ing the examination. *0f a significance equally as great as the practical content of the courses is the practical work required of the students be- fore graduation. Following each lecture, and presented in a way leading from the less to the more complex, certain impor- tant, practical questions are taken up in a very intensive manner. These reports, on practical questions, prepared by every student. 2'j6 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Quite in contrast to the Diisseldorf academy, which trains primarily the higher officials, is the Professional Training School for Civil Service at Aschersleben vi^hich offers courses preparing primarily for the one year proba- tionary service in German cities, for the middle and lower classes of public employees, and for promotion from a lower to a higher grade of service. The stated purpose of this institution is "to give to young persons the general and professional education necessary to enter the public service career as a minor or middle officer." The course gives at the same time an opportunity to prepare for higher municipal administra- tive positions such as mayors in smaller towns and the higher posts in the larger towns. Preparation for the highest posts usually requires a degree of training equal to that for the degree of Ph.D., though one reason for the establishment of the practical school was to get relief from the theoretically trained^ doctor of philosophy. are in form partly written and in part a compilation of mate- rial. They may be presented in loose form or perhaps in the form of a bound work. These assigned reports on practical questions are prepared under the supervision of the expert in charge of the course and are so chosen and conducted as to bring the student very close to the local administrative machin- ery and to the definite problems in his own field, and more than this, inculcate methods of research on daily practical questions of Incalculable value in later public service. 'The duration of the general course is three years. The school also offers a one-year special course for the training of minor civil service employees under governmental, provin- cial and administrative boards, as well as a one-year continua- tion training course for the career of minor municipal officials. The school also provides a three-months' continuation course for those in military service who may desire to prepare during compulsory army service for minor governmental positions. To take this course the student must get leave of absence from CITY OFFICE AS A TRAINING CENTER 277 Graduates of the institution are assured in the school's announcements that they will be prepared as well for "private service such as factory clerks, cashiers, cor- respondents, office clerks and similar positions." Special emphasis is placed, however, on positions in the "imperial administration, railway management, cooperative and in- surance associations, street railways and other utilities, taxation boards, administrative courts," and similar city and governmental bodies. Aschersleben is urged to be just the place for training for the public service because "it is provided with all such modern accommodations as aqueducts, canals, municipal baths, gas and electric works, hospitals, slaughter house, etc., which serve as labor- atories for practical training." There can be no doubt that America's higher educa- tional institutions must adopt similar training facilities to the end that the city office and the school room may unite to give a broad practical training to the city employee, a training that will mean to the taxpayers 100 percent service for the taxes paid into salaries. Additional Reasons Why City Offices Should Be Training Centers. — There are reasons other than these of competency and efficiency as to why city offices should be a training center for the permanent city employee. In the first place, the only laboratory for certain types of work is the city office. Typical examples are housing inspection, food inspection, milk inspection, the adminis- tration of public parks and municipal markets. A general training of value to these services is available, but specific training must await actual experience in the public office. But more than this, such a training center is essential the military authorities. He receives his regular pay and in addition 13 pfennigs (3H cents) per day for expenses. 278 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT to give to the public employee a public point of view. For when a private employee enters into public work he necessarily carries with him the same attitude that he had in private work. How can we expect a public inspector of telephones to do the work the public should -have done if his whole training has been in the private employ of the very telephone company whose phones and service standards come under his jurisdiction? Is he not still the employee of the private company set into public office ? The most vital reason for the public office as a training center for the public employee is the different standards between private and public ethics. Thus in a private employ there may be no reason why a friend may not be tipped off as to future private or public activities through which he may profit. But what should we say of the public officer who informs his friend that a certain site of land is to be chosen for a public building at any cost in order that his friend may buy the land and force higher prices for it than he gave ? The Philad-elphia civil service commission has under the Blankenberg administration attempted to test the sense of public responsibility and the ethical standards of those who would enter the public service. The candidate was given an oral examination before a board of examiners who are accustomed to sizing up men. These examiners in several instances at least have rendered their judgment, not only upon the applicant's appearance and manner, but also upon his answers to questions dealing with his ideas of responsibility and ethics, watching his bearing and attitude while responding. For example, in the notice for the examination of gas inspector, in August, 1913, the commission set aside three points for the oral examina- tion. Through this oral examination, the examiners CITY OFFICE AS A TRAINING CENTER 279 endeavored not only to size up the executive qualifications of the applicant and to secure the service of men able to represent the city in its negotiations with competent men and public service corporations, but also to secure a man "of high civic purpose," and one "who recognized obliga- tions to the community other than those he owes to himself." The applicant's standards as to official and public responsibility can also be judged in other ways. Thus he can be required to submit any books he may have written or articles he has published. His thesis should also reveal his point of view. If in these he appears apologetic* there will be sufficient ground for considering that his sense of official responsibility is inadequate for the ser- vice needed. The learned technical societies to which he belongs, and his record therein, are also important as weighing the pressure he would feel to keep his profes- sional standing high. Of still greater significance are the public committees he has been a member of, and the other ways he has been of service to his community. Questions as to the advice he would give under stated conditions will reveal what he has thought about and wherein he is informed. A major portion of the appli- cants for a position of law-enforcing authority indicated that they would not enforce the law they were to be appointed to enforce^ one believing he could enforce its provisions "after ten years of education," another that he would consider non-compliance "tb an extent of five to ten percent" was compliance with the law. These vari- ous avenues can all be used to judge a man's social sense and the degree to which he will put the public's interests above his own and above those of corporations or private concerns. By extending diligence here, civil service commissions can help select a higher type of exp>ert. 28o EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT appreciative of public interests and social needs for the public office. "Doing the Thing" Is the Test.— But even under the best of selective processes, the test must be in the doing. It is only when the public employee is submitted to "pressure" that his real worth to the public becomes known. For under the pressure that can be brought against the public employee, the man with the best of intentions may turn apologist and succeed even in ex- plaining his actions to himself. The novice becomes a monk only after he has been in the monastery; the preacher a minister only after, he has withstood the temptations of the pulpit; the doctor a physician only after he has refused the subtle temptation to do the un- professional or illegal; the public employee an employee of the public only when he has under pressure put the public's interests above the interests of party or "the administration" or if need be above his own affairs. But this sort of social obligation can be fully developed only in a public office where the standards of pubHc ethics range high. The public office is in the last analysis the only center for real adequate training for the public service. CHAPTER XIX BUILDING ON TO PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION— WHAT TRAINING IS NEEDED FOR THE MUNICIPAL SERVICE THE demand for expert, trained officials in our munic- ipal service is recognized on all hands, and the obligation imposed on our universities, especially those maintained by the state, to provide the necessary facili- ties for making expert administrators would seem to be self-evident, if our state universities are not to fail in one of their most important duties toward the state that maintains them.^ University Training for Higher Positions. — V/e may confine our discussion, therefore, to the best method or means by which universities can meet this demand for trained administrators. In the first place, I believe that the University is not the place to train each and every official and employee who may be required in the service of the city. There should indeed be facilities for some kind of training for every municipal employee from the street sweeper and ditch digger up, but no one will con- tend that the university is the proper agency for furnish- ^ See an article by the author, "The City's Need; the Uni- versity'^ Opportunity," in the American City, Vol. X, No. 3, p. 249. 281 282 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT ing that kind, of training.^ It is in the higher positions, which demand more than mere technical knowledge, that there is real need for university trained men, men with broad and liberal ideals. These positions would naturally be the department heads, their immediate assistants and the chiefs of divisions. In attempting to outline a program for university train- ing in municipal administration one or two preliminary considerations may first be disposed of. In the first place, it must be kept in mind that the purpose of such an undertaking is to train men for what should be and is coming to be a real profession. Therefore, the course of training to be outlined should be regarded as a profes- sional course in just the same way that the now generally established professional courses of law, medicine and engineering are regarded. This would involve the establishment of a distinct department for that purpose and the granting of special professional degrees. This arrangement might raise some questions of university reorganization in many institutions, but there are no great difficulties in the way of a satisfactory adjustment of those questions. We shall, therefore, postpone a dis- cussion of those matters until after we have determined the arrangement and content of proper courses of train- ing. In the second place, it should be noted that there is a considerable amount of training required for this service which may be termed technical in one sense, but is in a larger sense liberal, in that it will turn out men distinctly better prepared to be good citizens even if they do not become officials, namely: a thorough foundation in the social sciences. Without this foundation you may have 'This training might legitimately come within the scope of university extension. — Editor. PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION 283 men well informed on certain technical aspects of their work, but lacking in that larger social consciousness which should distinguish the educated from the uneducated man. In this way only can the full advantage of having in responsible positions university trained men be realized. The Six Fields of Municipal Administration. — With these preliminary observations we may begin the con- struction of definite curricula in municipal administration to fit in as nearly as may be with the general scheme of university education in this country as a whole. The first consideration is to determine what. natural division of subjects presents itself for adoption, since manifestly it would be impossible to train a man in all of the tech- nical activities of city government. It would seem to be the most natural and logical way of proceeding to examine these activities of the city and to see if they do not fall into certain large groups of subjects which are more closely related to each other in the group than to any of the subjects outside the group. And though for purposes of discussion the activity of the city is divided into distinct branches, all are interrelated, and the problems of coordination must be considered as well as the peculiar problems of each division. There are certain lines of demarcation which seem obvious, and others which prove on examination to be almost equally natural. In the first place, then, we can say that the legal department of the city represents a branch of activity which not only requires special professional training, distinct from that which will answer in any of the other departments, but the problems with which it is concerned are different from those confronting the other adminis- trative services, no matter how they may be divided. A 284 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT separate legal department is therefore not only universal but logical and desirable. In the same way, we can say that the administration of measures for the protection of public health presents a sufficiently homogeneous field to warrant its being re- garded, as it almost invariably is in practice, a distinct branch of municipal activity. A third distinct branch of the municipal administrative service is that dealing with the finances of the city, includ- ing the assessment and collection of taxes, the receipt and expenditures of all moneys and the accounting and financial reporting of the city. This department, like the legal branch of the service, covers in a sense the activities of all the others on their accounting and financial side, but nevertheless it demands the services of men with special training in financial and accounting matters. Fourthly, we may constitute the educational work of the city as a separate field of activity. This would include not only the schools, but also the other educational in- strumentalities, such as museums and libraries. Fifthly, we may distinguish those administrative func- tions of the city which demand a knowledge of engineer- ing as the prime requisite. These would include the whole matter of care of the streets, sewers, water supply and all public utilities whether owned and operated by the city or merely subject to its supervision and regulation, and the care of the physical property of the city. There would seem to remain then only two general kinds of functions not covered by those already enumer- ated. These are th e preservation of public , safptv. that is, sj the protec t ion of person and property of the -individual. and the furt hpfi^prp ^i thf^ jmh\\c. welisLv e byi -positive measures of social meltnr^t inn. The public health depart- PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION 285 ment, it is true, is also concerned with the protection of the safety of the community from the sanitary point of view, and the education department is engaged in positive measures of social melioration in its activities. But the particular problems which confront these departments are sufficiently specialized and yet comprehensive to demand for their treatment a separate departmental organization. The public safety work would involve the activities of the police force of the city and of the fire fighting forces, and the connection between these two in actual operation is so close as evidently to demand a common head. But it is equally true, it would seem, that the social activities of the city which would, outside of the educational field, involve principally the administration of public charity and the prevention of crime are so intimate- ly and inseparably connected with the police problem of the city that one and the same person should have charge of what are in reality but two phases of the same municipal problem. In these six fields of municipal administration would appear to be included all conceivable activities of the modern city. The administrative organization of the city ought, therefore, to have reference to these natural divisions, and the problem of training men in universities for the higher administrative service in cities becomes, therefore, one of offering courses of study which would specifically fit men to serve as heads of these six depart- ments. Our university school of municipal administration should then contain six main sources of study correspond- ing to the six main municipal activities outlined above. The Liberal Elements in the Proposed Curriculum. — Taking up now one after another of these activities more closely, let us examine the particular matters on 286 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT which the prospective heads of such departments should be informed. But first it will be easier to point out the non-technical or liberal elements which it was pointed out at the outset should form part of the training of every higher municipal official if he is to be a truly university trained man. On this question of how large an element the so-called cultural studies, or at least those not having a direct bear- ing on the information which a department head should have concerning the matters under his control, should play, there is likely to be a considerable difference of opinion. The maximum amount of such work will, how- ever, be limited rather by necessity than by choice. That is, the amount of purely liberalizing studies that can be pursued in addition to the subjects having a direct hearing on future problems will be determined by the fact that the period of training as a whole must not contemplate a course of study disproportionately greater than that now demanded for the best training in the other professions. For that reason we may assume that a seven-year ^ course of study after graduation from a high school would be about the highest limit which, for the present at least, could be set for such a course, except for the health and engineering departments. The amount of time available then for purely liberalizing studies would vary in the different courses planned according to the amount of technical information that must be covered within the maximum period mentioned above. But certain funda- mental subjects may be set down as necessary in every one of the six courses. Collegiate courses in the English language may be regarded as a general minimum requirement for the equipment of a future department head. Ability to ' This is obviously the maximum. — Editor. PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION 287 express one's opinions effectively in writing demands not merely a knowledge of diction and grammar but practice in writing as well. The absolute need of such training can best be shown by referring to the almost unintelligible reports prepared and presented by the majority of public officials to-day. Another requirement of general applica- tion would be certain fundamental courses in the social sciences — that is, sociology, economics, and government, together with the amount of history necessary to make these subjects intelligible. The social sciences are abso- lutely indispensable in a course which attempts to train public officials who shall have a truly social and public spirited point of view of the problems they must meet. A thorough course in the development and present state of municipal science, not only in this country but in other countries as well, is evidently a necessity for every mu- nicipal department head no matter what his special field may be. In no other way can a broad oversight over the whole problem of municipal government, and the necessary cooperation of all its parts, with the consequent sympathy for and appreciation of the importance of the other departments be insured for the future public servant. Thirdly, in view of the fact that we are in this country in matters of municipal government far behind France and Germany, it is of the greatest importance that a departmenf head should be in a position to study the experience of those countries in the past and to keep up with the developments in his line of work at the present time. A good reading knowledge of French and German becomes therefore a matter of prime importance for our purposes and as such a reading knowledge is not usually secured in the secondary schools, we must insist on the equivalent of three years of training in each of these 288 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT languages. This requirement, like that of the social sciences, can be viewed for the purposes here in mind as even more technical in nature than cultural, though of course the cultural value of such studies is apparent. One other subject remains to be mentioned as being of great importance to every prospective department head no matter what his specialty may be, and that is a knowledge of the fundamentals of accounting. The ability to under- stand, interpret, and present financial statements is one which every department head must possess if he is not to be greatly handicapped, nay even disqualified from properly supervising the activities of the department under his control. Taking as the basis for normal work in our univer- sities fifteen hours of recitations per week throughout the year, and assuming that three hours a week be given to each of the subjects enumerated above, we find that the equivalent of about three years work should be prescribed for all of the six groups of courses alike, leaving for each one three full years to be devoted to strictly technical subjects relating specifically to the field of work to be undertaken. Now we can take up in order the individual courses and examine what technical subjects would be included in each. This can be done only by considering in some detail the matters which will come up before the various department heads for consideration and determi- nation. Training for Legal Positions. — What are the tech- nical subjects in which the head of the legal department of city must be trained for the proper performance of his duties? In the first place, of course, he should be a lawyer trained in all the subjects which are required for admission to the bar in his state. But he must have in PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION 289 addition a most thorough training in the subjects com- monly included in the term public law. He must have an intimate acquaintance with the constitutional law of the United States and of his particular state. He must be fully informed on the law of municipal corporations particularly in his own state ; he must have had a course in the law of officers and administrative law in general, and should be acquainted with the legal principles govern- ing taxation. These are all questions that are most intimately connected with the performance of his ordinary duties as city attorney. Unfortunately there are few even of the standard law schools in the United States which give adequate attention to these subjects, so important to the city attorney, but this is a branch of legal instruction which will have to be developed as rapidly as possible wherever it is intended to furnish opportunities for university training of public officials. Another subject of immediate importance to the prospec- tive city attorney, all but neglected in our law schools at present, is the technique of bill drafting. One of the most important duties of the city attorney is to draft in the shape of ordinances the legislative desires of the city council. To do this properly he must not only have a clear understanding of what the city can legally attempt to do, which is what he would learn from the courses in public law enumerated above, but he must understand how to frame a given measure in proper and adequate language. Examples of meaningless, self -contradictory and otherwise utterly ridiculous enactments are to be found in great abundance in the ordinances of our cities, merely because the fundamental knowledge of proper bill drafting was lacking in the framing of measures which in their original intent may have been not only legally valid but entirely desirable. The prospective head of the legal 290 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT department of a city should therefore in addition to the regular three-year course of study recognized as a standard for legal training, devote an entire year to public law and the science of bill-drafting. Public Health Training. — In the training of a prospective director of a department of public health, it is evident that greater emphasis should be laid than is now done in the ordinary medical course on preventative medicine and hygiene. Considerable time should be de- voted in the medical course to a study of the sources of danger to public health found in our cities and in the best methods of meeting and eliminating those dangers. It would not be necessary that the director of the depart- ment of public health be trained in all the special subjects which are required of medical students intending to prac- tice the profession, for some of those subjects would virtually never be of use to the director of a department of public health, or at least would be distinctly of less use in making him an efficient municipal official than would others that might be substituted. But it must be remem- bered that the profession for which we are planning to train men is itself but in the process of making, and that the opportunities for employment in that line are, owing to the political methods of making appointments still prevalent, few and uncertain. We cannot, therefore, turn out at the present time men who would make effi- cient municipal departmental heads, but who would be at a disadvantage as compared with their fellows in the related professions to which they may have to turn to make a living. For that reason it would seem necessary, for the present at any rate, to include in the training of our prospective health department heads those subjects which he must be informed on to be admitted to practice PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION 291 as a physician. From this point of view, therefore, it would be almost necessary for the prospective director of public health to spend an additional year in the medical department specializing in subjects related to sanitation and public health. As the best medical schools of the country are now requiring the completion of a four-years college course for entrance to the medical school, this period of eight years would not be exceeded by the proposal here made. Training in Municipal Finance. — The third branch of administration for which it was found necessary to give men special training is the financial administration of the city. For the position of director of finances a man should receive as his technical training a thorough drilling in all branches of accounting, book-keeping, reporting and auditing, and in public finance, including methods of assessment and taxation, the investment of public funds and their proper custody and administration. He should be equipped with a knowledge of the principles of insur- ance which would enable him to manage a municipal insurance department to advantage. Training for Educational Administration. — The di- rector of public education should, of course, speciaHze in the history and philosophy of education, in school administration, in the educational systems of other coun- tries, in fact, in everything that is offered in first-class university schools of education to-day. In addition to matters dealing with the public school system of the city, he should be informed on the best methods of administer- ing the other educational agencies of the city such as libraries, museums, municipal theaters, etc. He would not, of course, be charged with the duty of immediately 292 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT directing the work of all these agencies, but he would have the duty of supervising their direction by men who are specialists in these various fields. All of these agencies and others that might be mentioned are intended to serve the same general ends, viz.: the improvement of educa- tional facilities in the city, and to prevent jealousies, duplication and mutual interference should all be under the direction of a single department head. Training for Municipal Engineering. — The director of the department of engineering must be thoroughly trained in the fundamental subjects in civil engineering with special emphasis on the sanitary side, as the most considerable portion of his duties are concerned with the civil engineering branch of engineering knowledge, vis.: the care of streets, sewers, parks, water works, etc. But he must likewise have an acquaintance with the elements of electrical engineering, and with architecture and city planning, as there are important questions coming under his jurisdiction which require a general knowledge of the fundamental principles of those subjects. Of course, the director of the engineering department cannot be an ex- pert in all^ these branches, but he must not be absolutely ignorant of their foundation principles or he will be unable even to come to intelligent conclusions concerning the opinions which may be rendered to him by experts under his direction. Furthermore, as the director of engineering is to have under his care the public property and works of the city as well as the supervision over the privately owned public utilities, he must be thoroughly trained in cost accounting and rate making. As in the case of the public health and training, so in the case of the public engineering training, it would be highly de- PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION 293 sirable that a prospective department head devote eight years instead of seven to his training. In this way he could receive virtually the same civil engineering training which his fellow students receive, and at the same time spend almost two years in these additional courses, for at the present time there is usually included in the ordinary four-year civil engineering courses the equiva- lent of an entire year in subjects which are not civil engineering, such as English, Economics, Business Law and certain Electrical or Mechanical Engineering sub- jects. Training for Public Safety Administration. — Final- ly, we come to consider the technical training requisite for a proper director of public safety and welfare. The duties of such a department head demand not only a thorough knowledge of police administration and methods of fire prevention and protection in this and other coun- tries, as well as the existing and past methods of dispens- ing public charity, but a careful study of the social and economic explanations of poverty and vice and their proper treatment. In other words, he must become ah expert in diagnosing the social and economic ills of the city and be able to apply positive measures for their amelioration and cure. This would necessitate advanced studies in all the social sciences as well as psychology and biology, and would occupy very fully the three years remaining for the more strictly technical training in his line of work. In each of these six main courses of training a suitable thesis should be required in the main line of preparation before a degree be given. Furthermore, it is important that this theoretical training be supplemented by practical 294 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT work.* It should, therefore, be provided that the can- didate for a degree in municipal administration spend the last two summers of his course of training in the active service of some municipality in the department work for which he is preparing. This training must, to be effec- tive, be received in a city of not less than thirty thousand inhabitants and along lines laid down by the professor in charge of the main course of study pursued. Its principal purpose should be to acquaint the student with the actual work of administration and to enable him to see in what respects the work as actually carried on could be improved in the light of what he has learned in the theoretical part of his course. In order to insure that the proper facilities be offered to students for this practical work, the legisla- ture should impose upon the cities of the state the obliga- tion to provide adequate facilities, without expense to themselves, for receiving such students temporarily into their service. Probably in most cities these facilities would be voluntarily offered at least to residents, provided the results of their observations were not made public in the shape of criticisms of the existing administration.^ Training City Managers. — There remains a word to be said about the training for city managers. The writer has not infrequently received letters from persons desirous of fitting themselves for the place of city manager. It seems worth while here to repeat what has been said in answer to such inquiries. It is not possible *Cf. In this connection a bill passed by the Wisconsin legis- lature (Laws of 1917), published in Appendix A to this volume. •For a discussion of the University Organization for organiz- ing training for public service, see Professor Beard's "How Shall a Training School for Public Service Be Organized?" Chapter XX of this volume. PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION 295 to attempt to train city managers as such distinct from the department heads whose training is herein outlined. If city managerships develop as they should into a real profession, it will not be possible for a man to step into such a position, at least in any but the smallest cities, after merely completing an academic course of training. The city manager must not only have a thorough training in the subjects mentioned as necessary for all department heads, but he must have proven executive ability of the highest order. Such ability can however show itself only in the actual work of administration and no wise city will therefore appoint a city manager who has not shown executive ability, no matter how excellent his academic training may be. But the opportunity for acquiring executive experience and demonstrating executive ability can come to a man only in actual administrative service in positions of the more responsible kind, that is as a department head or as assistant department head. To get into such positions the prospective city manager would have to be trained in one of the six fundamental courses outlined above. Therefore, it is clear that the only way to train for a city managership is to choose one of the six main branches of administration for study and then, after acquiring experience and a reputation for executive ability, go from such a position into the position of city manager. Only in the smallest cities is there a possibility that a man with a good training for city engineer would be employed as city manager without previous administrative experience, for such cities could not aiford to keep a manager for purely supervisory duties, but would have to entrust to him one or more of the city departments for immediate direction. As most of the administrative work in a small municipality deals with the engineering 296 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT problems of the city, it would be possible by appointing a well trained engineer as gity manager to save the salary of a city engineer. In this way a young graduate in municipal administration who had specialized in engineer- ing might receive appointment as city manager in a small city at a salary sufficient to attract him but too small to draw a competent man already established in his pro- fession away from his private practice. If such a young man had the proper general training prescribed above and proved himself a competent executive, he might reason- ably hope to receive a call as manager to a larger city and so enter the career. Except in that case, however, the graduate who had specialized in engineering would show no points of ad- vantage over men trained in any of the other fields of municipal administration, as far as qualification for a possible city managership is concerned. On the contrary, it seems clear that other things being equal, the man who had had the best training in the social problems of the city would be preeminently fitted for the post as city manager, where, as in the larger cities, the social problem in its broader sense is by far the most important, the most difficult to handle, and the one which the ordinary mu- nicipal official is least capable of solving. CHAPTER XX HOW SHALL A TRAINING SCHOOL FOR MUNICIPAL SERVICE BE ORGANIZED?^ IN determining what form of university organization is best adapted to develop and administer training for public service, we must make a preliminary inquiry into the nature of the work for which we are to prepare stu- dents. In other words, we should have definite notions about the functions of the institution which we propose to create before we decide upon its organization. It cannot be said too often or too emphatically, that a school of public service would not have before it problems identical with those which are presented to a faculty of law, medicine or engineering, for the simple reason that the public service embraces all professions and pursuits known to our complex civilization. If we look at the professional service of the City of New York, for instance, we find the following groups : Accountant Chemist Engineer Nurse Architect Dentist Forester Oculist Bacteriologist Dietitian Lawyer Pathologist Pharmacist Physician Psychologist * Paper read at the Third National Conference on Universi- ties and Public Service, Philadelphia, November 15, 1916. ' 297 298 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT If you will take the trouble to examine closely Table No. I in the "Report of the Committee on Municipal Service Survey," prepared by Dr. Frederick E. Breithut of City College, you will find a list of the various types of employees in the City of New York. This list, beginning with arboriculturist and abstractor, runs down through ax-man, chauffeur, chaplain, computer, curator, disin- fector, dock-master, fingerprint expert, housekeeper, hy- drographer, investigator, librarian, medical examiner, pension expert, professor, radiographer, rustic worker, silver cleaner, statistician, surveyor, transitman, waitress, x-ray assistant and yeoman. Even when we eliminate from this three foot list all those positions that do not involve college and professional discipline and, therefore, do not concern us in our present inquiry, we find that enough educational complications are left to tax the in- genuity of the ablest university administrator. Obviously in designing a university school or division of public service, we must have an organization which corresponds to the complextity of the functions it pro- poses to assume. By way of comparison, the organiza- tion of a law school is a simple matter. A dean and a faculty of specialists in the great branches of the law are appointed. Courses are laid out in accordance with the academic calendar. Students are taken through a formal program, and at the end of the second or third year they are graduated, and walk out of the portals of the school into a law office, or set out in the practice of the profession for themselves. If anybody is under the delusion that a genuine school of public service can be organized on the same plan, he should get rid of it at once, for he is not only suffering from grave mental disturbances himself, but is liable to jeopardize the TRAINING SCHOOL 299 steadily growing movement in this country for scientific training for public service. In preparing for scores of different professions and occupations, it is clear that every branch of college and university instruction is involved. For a great many of the positions in the public service, no academic training in addition to that which is already offered in the various schools is necessary. The problem here is not one of devising new courses, but rather of giving advice and guidancetothe students who contemplate entering govern- ment service, and of arranging for them to secure some practical experience in the lines of work which they propose to take up. For other branches of the public service distinctly new courses of instruction and field training should be organized. Without making a further analysis of the requirements of the public service, we may summarize the function of a public service school in the following form: ' I — Organization of a program of courses in all impor- tant branches of public administration. 2 — Coordination and re-grouping of courses scattered throughout various divisions of the university — combining, for example, courses in business and public administration, labor and trust problems with courses in highway engineer- ing or public health. 3 — Establishment and maintenance of a record filing sys- tem which will keep the authorities of the school up to the minute on the opportunities and requirements, actual and probable, of the public service. 4 — Maintenance of continuous contact with government officers. 5 — Provision for a system of well organized and con- trolled field training designed to give students practical ex- perience in the work which they will actually be called upon to do in the public service. 300 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT ^6-^Advising and directing students in choosing careers in the public service and laying out programs of instruction deliberately shaped (with the fullest possible knowledge of the^ requirements of the public service) in such a way as to fit them for the work they propose to undertake. These being the functions of a school for public service, it would seem that the following principles should be embodied in its organization : I — It should be controlled by a board representing all of the schools and divisions of the university, especially engi- neering, accounting and business administration, political science, law, medicine, architecture and the normal school. 2 — There should be a director supported by assistants chosen from the chief technical divisions represented on the board. 3 — There should be a central office equipped with all mod- ern appliances for record keeping. 4 — There should be a branch of the school as near as possible to the City Hall and the administrative offices of the city in order that constant contact may be obtained with city officers for the purpose of giving the students prac- tical experience. It should be th-e duty of the director and his assistants^ I — To keep a record of all positions, federal, state and municipal which are attractive to college students, and the subjects and dates of approaching examinations. 2 — To confer with civil service commissioners and exam- iners as to relation between university instruction and civil service examinations and standards. 3 — To organize in connection with the members of his board representing technical schools, field work in the sev- eral divisions. 4 — ^To study (intensively the educational problems in- volved in training for public serviced TRAINING SCHOOL 301 5 — To study and measure statistically the opportunities in the various fields of public service with reference to sala- ries at different ages, chances of promotion and conditions of employment. 6 — To act as vocational advisers to college students of all grades, giving them positive and accurate information con- cerning o'pportunities in all branches of the public service, official and unofficial. , Surely such an enterprise is worthy of the best talents and energies w^hich this nation can produce, and yet it is strange that in the midst of such talk about training for military service, so little thought is given by the people at large as to the task of training and selecting the great army of civil servants, now^^ amgunting in the United States to nearly two millions. It is doubly strange that in an age of magnificent benefactions to universities, no one has as yet had, or at least realized, the vision of a great school of public administration — an institution imperatively demanded by our democracy now struggling heroically to become efficient enough to bear the burdens of an industrial and imperial civilization. CHAPTER XXI TRAINING IN THE MUNICIPAL SERVICE EVERYTHING is to be gained and apparently nothing lost by looking upon governmental activities as basic- ally not unlike those found in the world of business and commerce and industry. Personally I have found it exceedingly helpful to lay emphasis on the points wherein public work is like that encountered in private under- takings and to minimize those points wherein the two are essentially different. In my judgment there are no more fundamental differences between the management prob- lems of the City of Philadelphia and those of the U. S. Steel Corporation than there are between the manage- ment problems of a steel company and what shall we say — of a leather tanning establishment. It follows that the problem of training workmen is essentially the same whether in public or private employ.^ * Mr. Cooke is emphasizing here the similarities in private and public service for the purpose of profiting by whatever experi- ence private business has accumulated that specifically relates to the problem of the public service. The fact that private business has not accepted the public service view could be read- ily demonstrated by putting the question which Mr. Cooke asks in his second paragraph to the managers of industrial enter- prises. The look of amazement on their faces would settle the question. I should be greatly surprised if one per cent of all the managers of industrial enterprises in this country would 302 TRAINING IN THE MUNICIPAL SERVICE 303 Given an adequate plant and sufficient capital, perhaps the primary question which should engage the attention of the managers of an industrial enterprise is one which absolutely determines the status of the employee, i.e., Is the well being of the employees or the article manufac- tured to be the ultimate product of the plant? On the an- swer depends the decision of so many questions affecting the conduct of the business — both large and small — that it must be met man- fashion right at the start. All the tendencies of the times make this an exceedingly practical and pressing issue. As long as the goods we manufacture are the prime consideration, rather than the welfare of those who produce them, just so long are we barred out from those upper reaches of achievement which we be- lieve will afford the distinguishing marks of an essentially democratic industrial regime. Training of Employees as Conservation. — Even in this enlightened age it is of course still possible for a farmer to neglect to fertiHze his fields and through an improper succession of crops further to deteriorate their soil. But the utter folly of such a course both from the accept the well-being of the employee rather than the article manufactured as the ultimate product of the plant. It is true that those who accept this humanistic conception of business open up to themselves reaches of achievement which to others are impossible. It need hardly be added that a democratic in- dustrial regime will insist ultimately on Mr. Cooke's viewpoint or at least putting it on a par with the viewpoint that the article manufactured is the controlling consideration in the business. Toward the close of this chapter Mr. Cooke has pointed out very effectively the distinction between the democratic and auto- cratic theories of management as applied to private and public business. — Editor. 304 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT standpoint of the individual and of the nation becomes more and more apparent as science reveals her secrets and education makes them the common possession of the agricultural classes. As long as the forest lands were at our very doors and in such abundance as to be ours for the asking, the neces- sity for their conservation was not evident. But now that the purchase of timber lands involves a large capital expenditure and that lumbering under modern conditions means planning on a large and expensive scale and — in an economic sense — more particularly because our stat- isticians can predict with a nicety the date of the exhaustion of the present supply, lumber interests are studying the details of every process to the end that waste may be eliminated and genuine efficiency practiced. The shortsighted policy of each for himself and let the future "go hang" is giving way everywhere to an attitude of confidence in long view policies — one in which the interests of present owners are seen to be inseparably interwoven with those of the future. The City — a Long Time Proposition. — The time factor here is all important. If those who own and control a business of to-day feel no interest in or re- sponsibility for the future, obviously the training of employees becomes little more than a financial burden. But once the discovery is made that the policy of frequent "hirings and firings" makes genuine efficiency impossible and that periodic changes in the management lead to disaster, there comes about a tie-in as between the present and the future which directly calls for both a systematic training of the workers of all grades and a stabilizing of the management. In industry the plant which does not put in practice these two policies cannot TRAINING IN THE MUNICIPAL SERVICE 305 compete with one that does. In our municipalities as we develop the methods for gauging economy and effi- ciency it will become more and more apparent that the systematic training of employees is an indispensable factor in securing increasingly satisfactory results. It must be clearly borne in mind that the earning of dividends in industry is in itself no gauge to efficiency. In fact this day-to-day necessity for earning dividends in privately operated establishments is one of the checks on efficiency, using that term in its broadest significance. But our city governments suifer no such handicap. The most important dividend city government can declare is paid in terms of the happiness of its citizen-stockholders. There may be some argument for doing the shortsighted thing in private enterprises, especially if you are losing money and perhaps in so doing you tide yourself over a tight place. But the city is a long time proposition. The share holders of to-day are very largely the share holders of to-morrow and when properly advised do not press for immediate returns if thereby the future is to be made to ^^ suffer. Therefore a city is well advised if it plans to have at all times the number of employees requisite to do its work in the most adequate fashion, to have each of them as efficient as possible in his or her own particular function, and then to surround each and every one of these employees with those conditions as to pay, hours, housing, education, direction and leadership as will make for the highest individual prosperity. Anything short of this is simply putting a brake on civic progress. It is only as we see in the happiness and the development of the workers the first object of all industry and make a by-product of their accomplishment that we secure the maximum of production. Clean streets, safe and economical bridge structures, good policing and a low 3o6 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT death rate — eve;n dream-high planning for the future — will come as the necessary by-product of a well chosen, well protected, well-trained and inspired personnel. ^ Training in Cooperation. — ^The fact that we are ob- serving unmistakable tendencies rather than fully ac- complished conditions as exemplified in agriculture and forestry only adds to the interest of the situation. Our joy lies in the recognition of possible progress, in having a vision toward which perhaps we may see only the direction and in the accomplishment of which our genera- tion may be allowed to take only the first few halting steps. So viewed, industry is seen to be emerging from a stage darkened by waste and misunderstanding into the warmer and brighter day of what we "fervently pray and ardently believe" is to be a genuine industrial democ- racy. If this dream is to come true it necessarily means training both in government and in industry of the individual both as an individual and, what is even more important, as a unit in a cooperative undertaking. Be- cause, of course, true democracy itself dawns only as the era of cooperation makes it possible. We should seek to emphasize this feature of coopera- tion because in all classes of government work it has been almost entirely neglected. It frequently occurs that the employees of two divisions in the same bureau do not cooperate in ways quite obviously possible upon even a casual observation of the work done by each. The curious thing about this is that more often than not the possibility of cooperation has never been suggested. Sweeping away the difficulties which prevent cooperation is always an easy task when once the desire for it has been aroused. In the absence of tangible illustrations such a feature as cooperation is apt to be such an abstract TRAINING IN THE MUNICIPAL SERVICE 307 idea to the average student of municipal government that it fails to suggest a definite line of action. Yet in the very citing of illustrations we seem to limit the field of its operation. But to those who sense the power of cooperation the scope of its possible influence is seen to be limitless. I remember hearing Frederick W. Taylor, the father"^, of Scientific Management, remark "good principles are jp^ almost always the result of good habits ; good habits in- J frequently develop simply from good principles." The I application of this to training municipal employees in ' cooperation suggests that we will never accomplish in this civic field the broader aims of cooperation until we have actually cooperated in the small affairs of our everyday municipal life. If we would learn to apply the cooperation principle in large and important affairs, we should respond the next time anybody gives us the opportunity to cooperate, no matter how small the under- taking. Any one of three bureaus connected with Philadelphia's City government — sewer repair, water or sanitation — might be interested in a complaint about water in a given citizen's cellar. Formerly the repre- sentatives of each of these bureaus visited the house in succession until in this way the one at interest was discovered. It was only a rudimentary type of coopera- tion which suggested that the first man on the ground should diagnose the cause of the trouble and report his finding to the proper bureau — even in some cases going further and actually taking the action which it was proper for the municipality to take. It was only natural that the inspectors of these three bureaus, having seen this change actually effected and their own usefulness materially enhanced thereby, should be ready for the next step in cooperation. As a matter of fact this one change 3o8 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT directly led to a long line of changes, each with its co- operative element, and many of them suggested by the men directly responsible for the work. Those high in authority should resist in every possible way the assuming of responsibility for individual plans or individual men. For each such plan and for each individual in the organization there should of course be some one specifically in charge. But those doing the leading should remember that they are responsible for principles — not results — and among these none is so in- clusive as the broad principle of cooperation. Depart- ment and bureau heads must be trained to cooperate. Employees must be trained to that type of service which sees in every act a great cause — one in which the petty annoyances of the movement are apt to be forgotten. All grades of public employees want to be taught to cooperate more broadly with the public. And last, but not by any means least, there rests a responsibility on the public official to train the public into an attitude in which government is not something apart from themselves, but an organism in which every citizen has his share and responsibility from childhood through old age. Follow- ing the Taylor precept above quoted, we used every opportunity in our work in Philadelphia to have bureau chiefs frequently get together at the luncheon table and at informal office meetings. We encouraged the same thing among the employees generally in organizing social gatherings and athletic carnivals. In order to get the public into the play, we made it a rule always to have some one in ''from the outside" and availed ourselves of every opportunity to have our employees invited to citizen gatherings wherever our work was discussed. The day of the man who lives and works by himself is past. No matter how good he may be in his specialty, the "in- TRAINING IN THE MUNICIPAL SERVICE 309 dividual worker" will be found to be an increasing burden to any organization. This is the day for cooperative effort. Training in Service Is for Every One. — The title of this chapter might just as well have been "Training Experts in the Municipal Service" because under the 100 percent standard which it is just as well for us to set for ourselves — even if we know we cannot achieve its full measure — every employee from bottom to top is to be as much of an expert in performing the function or func- tions specifically committed to his charge as it is possible to make him. Right here it is well to call attention to the fact that no one in the organization should consider himself exempt from this training. The modern science of management makes no difference in its application of principle to the president and the messenger, the general manager and the porter, yes — even to the mayor and the street cleaner. Each of them can be an expert and if he is he works — not under men — but under laws, laws recognized or unrecognized, but all as scientifically inter- dependent as those of chemistry or physics. // any one has "arrived" so completely as to need no further train- ing, a radical change of environment is suggested. This is especially true in the municipal field; one which has hardly been surveyed; much less been cultivated to the full extent of its possibilities. In planning any adequate scheme for training em- ployees, due consideration must be given to the fact that coincident with an almost incalculable increase in knowl- edge there has come about a growing complexity in the conditions under which all human labor is performed. Increase in specialization is forcing upon the industrial world a regard for the elements of management such, 3IO EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT for instance, as routing, the science involved in the most efficient movement of men and materials within a factory ; and balance, which is one name given to the control of the volume of work in the several departments neces- sary for the highest production of the entire plant. We must also bear in mind that society year by year is revamping its concepts of the laborer in relation to his job. We hear little in these days of the law of master and servant and less and less frequently we hear labor referred to as a commodity. The Man Must Be Considered as Well as His Work. — Notwithstanding these conditions, city officials and more especially our civil service folk still look upon a caulker very largely as a machine, and one almost ex- clusively engaged from morning to night in hammering oakum and lead into the joints of a pipe line. No one much cares what he does when he is not caulking in or out of the regular hours of labor. No one pays the slightest attention to what he is thinking about while he is caulking! My theory about this caulker is that his employer — the municipality in this case — is not without interest in anything that affects him in any vital way. If for the time being I represent the city as mayor, director, chief, superintendent or foreman in having some relation to this caulker it is up to me to so conduct myself as to make him think with and for our common employer — the city. It cannot be for the good of the city any more than it is for the good of the caulker that he should have just cause for believing that he is over- worked, underpaid, or that his loyal service goes un- appreciated. On the contrary, every opportunity should be taken for making him feel that his broadest prosperity TRAINING IN THE MUNICIPAL SERVICE 311 IS as much a matter of concern as the quality and amount of work which he performs. Original Selection Must Be Made with Reference to Training in Service. — More thought will have to be devoted to the selection of the workers if their later training is to be successful. It is obvious that these two functions are bound up with each other. I am a firm believer in the merit system, but if those who are at the present time responsible for its conduct in this country think it has "arrived," they have only to examine the relation between the functions of hiring and training in the most advanced industrial plants to be disillusioned. The theory generally held is that all industrial establish- ments are pretty much alike. As a matter of fact, two industrial plants that are alike in being splendidly oper- ated will differ as do two individuals of good character, so that more and more an employee must be chosen because he will fit into an organization. He may be a good man and an efficient worker and still not be as well adapted to the new environment as another appli- cant. There is a certain position in the City of Philadelphia requiring not only some technical knowledge but more particularly a keen appreciation of the ethical considera- tions which enter into many kinds of public acts. At my request the Civil Service Examiners — men themselves whose standards in such matters were very high — intro- duced into the oral examination for this post a discussion of questions which directly and indirectly enabled them to estimate the applicant's regard for those nice points in individual conduct which are apt to make or mar a public record. It was surprising to see how many men who had passed otherwise satisfactory tests failed at this 312 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT point. Going a bit further down in the scale I might put up with a "grouchy" caulker if I inherited him from a previous administration. But on the other hand, if I could develop a test for "grouchiness" in caulkers and thus keep them out of the organization it would make for efficiency and peace of mind. At best our present civil service tests must be considered very crude. Sometimes those examinations which require the most time and in which questions are asked which from the educational standpoint are the most difficult to answer, develop the smallest amount of the kind of information we want where the applicant is looked upon as timber for sub- sequent training. Organizing for Intelligent Selection: Central Em- ployment Office. — Perhaps the first and most obvious move to be made in preparing for this training work is the establishment of one employment office for the whole organization. In the Department of Public Works in Philadelphia with its 4,000 employees distributed among six bureaus and involving work covering 129 square miles of territory, we established such an office, notwithstand- ing the fact that our freedom of choice was limited to the Civil Service eligible list from which under the law we were forced to make our selections. We established agencies in every part of the city for supplementing the information secured by the Civil Service Commission. Very frequently we made additional use of the examina- tion papers and other records which resulted from the Civil Service procedure in our effort to get men and women of a type which would fit into an organization of the type which we were trying to create. To Abraham Lincoln is attributed the remark that any man at 50 years of age is responsible for his face. Partial respon- TRAINING IN THE MUNICIPAL SERVICE 313 sibility begins much earlier, and so we had as a part of our employment office records a photograph of every man in the department. If one does not make a constant effort to individualize employees by such methods as this, the temptation to think about them in the mass is almost irresistible and all possibility of anything even approx- imating scientific management disappears. I know of one concern which photographs employees periodically to make sure that the record is one of progress and not retrogression. The face seems to be as good a test of personal status as you can get. Our photographs were mounted on the regular employment card on which we kept as full a record as possible of the employee — his history, his characteristics and his attainments. The change to a central employment office is one easily brought about on the municipal service. In most private establishments the foremen do all the hiring and firing. This prerogative is so firmly entrenched and so highly valued, that sometimes it is not an easy matter to upset it in favor of the more efficient and modern method. But in the municipal service it has been so customary for the head of the department to make all appointments — usually for political reasons — that no special attention has been paid to the central employing agency. Employ- ment cards in the past have been too exclusively a means of recording men's faiHngs and misdeeds. They must be given a more constructive place in the whole scheme of the management. To this end, at least once a year at the beginning, and later on at more frequent periods, some report on each individual should be made to him by the one who through directing his work is in the best position to study and know about it. This means that every foreman should be made to report at least once a year on the character of the work done by every man in 314 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT his charge. When this report is adverse some effort should be made to call the matter to the attention of the employee in such a way as to effect an improvement. Rates of pay are best made a function of the employ- ment bureau. It is hard to be dogmatic in this matter. But other things being equal, no employee should be kept too long at the same rate of pay. The matter of his rate should at least receive periodically some one's special consideration. Ordinarily if you do not see pro- motion ahead for a man in your own organization, it is better to secure for him a position in some other organiza- tion where he may have such a chance. Sometimes you get a man so favorably located with respect to his abilities and limitations that it is to his interest to be let alone. The employer in this case knows he is paying all the man can ever be worth and so does the man. It does not make for a strong organization to have too many men so situated. A certain percentage of fixtures, each for cause — like a certain percentage of old men — • are ornaments to any organization. But for the most part, you want your employees to feel the thrill of "getting ahead" — the leader himself wants the thrill of knowing that he is at the head of so many hundreds or so many thousands of men and women who are moving forward — with something bigger and better ahead of them. Man-making. — Whatever is done, arrange the work of the employment bureau so that individual employees will know that they are not forgotten — that some one in the organization is thinking about their individual interests. It is most important to definitely organize so as to sound "shop opinion" both at regular periods and on special occasions. The old-time employer knew TRAINING IN THE MUNICIPAL SERVICE 315 intuitively what his employees thought about this and that matter of mutual interest. We have some of those old chaps still with us but they do not deceive anybody. The modern employer knows that, having every intention of doing the square thing in every relation with his co- workers and availing himself of every means of knowing what is wanted, he still can only know in a superficial way the real thoughts and desires and purposes of the great mass of those assqciated with him. This being true, it is up to those who seek to be true friends of the laboring classes and who desire to have all industry carried on on a genuinely cooperative basis to seek every opportunity to free the channels by which shop thought expresses itself. At best it will be a feeble echo of what is in the back of the men's heads. It is an easy step from the employment office to the service department. Here we must certainly find a visitor and a nurse — perhaps at the beginning the two functions combined in one person. We employed Miss Lillian J. Gibbs in the Department of Public Works to visit our sick and injured men in the hospitals, to be a friend in cases of sickness or death in the houses of our men, to keep an eye on the sanitary conditions of the places where they worked, to find employment for relatives of employees, to counsel with the ''booze fighters" and very occasionally "to get Tom — or Bill out" — in fact to be everybody's friend in time of need. The city official who has never had an assistant to do just these things should try it ! Of course you can broaden out the func- tions of this department so as to provide medical service, periodical physical examinations, the lending of money in emergencies; sick, accident and death benefits; home nursing and all sorts of similar activities, most of which can be found already in successful operation somewhere. 3i6 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Of course it is easy to argue that this is not "training employees." But it is ! It has more to do with getting efficient service out of your men than all the other forms of schooling you can possibly give to them. It is the man making, home helping, character building, in- spirational end of the business. It means abundant life for any organization, industrial or governmental. The Strictly Educational Work. — The more strictly educational work cannot be done profitably except with a loyal, prosperous, ambitious, contented, well-led body of men and women. Granted that the steps necessary to produce this kind of a staff of employees have been taken, it is as natural to follow with educational work as it is "for a fox terrier to chase chickens." I have always found that it is better to have the desire for night school and other kinds of outside educational work grow out of an educational effort within the organiza- tion. We formed regular classes within the department for certain grades of our men. One of these was for firemen in our pumping stations and another was for in- spectors engaged on sewer construction contract work. We planned the work carried on within the department so that practically every one in a given grade could profit by it. Invariably out of any such group will ap- pear one or more who see the possibilities of further educational endeavor and are willing to make the sacrifice to get it. It does not seem to me to be a good idea to pay the entire fee for any such course, but a group of the higher salaried men always held themselves ready to contribute to it or at least to arrange that any such additional burden could be carried and paid on the installment plan. At one time, out of 4,000 employees we had 250 in the various night schools of the city. We TRAINING IN THE MUNICIPAL SERVICE 317 organized a committee of teachers — representing the different schools open to our employees — who met regu- larly in the City Hall to advise with employees who wished to take these outside courses. On the first Thursday evening of every month I made it a rule to go to my office in the City Hall to meet any employee who might care to call on me. During three years I never failed to have at least a half dozen callers and on one occasion there were nearly one hundred. Quite fre- quently these men and women wanted advice either for themselves or their childen on educational questions and frequently they came to express thanks for efforts made in their behalf. It must be admitted that for people with no special experience with educational institutions — except perhaps in the primary grades — the entrance into a school or college especially for courses in any way irregular, is no mean task. All the more reason for the help of an em- ployee in so doing. There is a saying around Cam- bridge (Massachusetts) that any one who understands the Harvard College catalogue is not detained — he is given his degree at once. The same air of mystery holds many men aloof from even some of our night schools, in spite of the fact that they are designed especially for those with the minimum of education. Of course, no one will underestimate the difficulty of making a man or woman with no previous experience with educational institutions feel as much at home in even a night school as they do at home or in the shop. But the trouble is not always just there. At one time I was responsible for the work of a man who collated the figures bearing on the daily analyses of a city's water supply. There was enough of this work to keep one man fully occupied. The incumbent felt that he would 3i8 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT be better fitted for his task if he could study bacteriology. I gave him a letter to a professor connected with a dis- tinguished educational institution founded some 150 years ago by an eminent American. He returned to me saying that it would be necessary for him to pursue the regular course providing for several years of con- tinuous work and in altogether regular hours. This of course he could not do. I then introduced him to a man connected with the same institution who I thought was in a position to brush away some of these difficulties. The latter advised my associate that it would be neces- sary for him to take two years of quantitative and qualitative chemistry before taking up bacteriology. I then picked out a man in the faculty whose personality was such as to lead me to believe that he would take a chance on my man and dispense with unessential con- ditions. When he found the seeker after bacteriological truth was 56 years old he intimated to him Osier-fashion that at any such advanced age to begin the accumula- tion of this kind of knowledge was a hopeless task. I only tell this story to show that progress in the educa- tional training of those in the city service is somewhat conditioned by the attitude of the local educational agencies. Helpful Reactions of Public Service and Local Schools. — There is no existing educational agency that I know which cannot be utilized in some measure in training those already within the public service. But I rather think that as we state the problem more and more broadly and definitely, entirely new types of out- side educational agencies will be developed for this par- ticular field. I see every reason to believe, for instance, that before long important administrative positions will TRAINING IN THE MUNICIPAL SERVICE 319 be filled in our municipalities by men who are part-time professors at college and universities specializing in some way on the municipal problem. I have in mind here men who are primarily teachers or research workers and with whom the direct service of the municipality will probably remain subordinate. There would be no es- sential difference here of course between a man who gave up all his time to the city for six months and who then taught at some school or college for six months and one who, let us say, gave his mornings to the work at City Hall and his afternoons to collegiate work. We have tried both plans in a small way and they proved equally successful. The effect of any such plan on the problems of training employees will be obvious. Is there not a correspondingly beneficial effect on the teacher who thus keeps in touch with real problems in a real world — outside the academic cloister? Again there is every reason to believe that men who are regularly in the city service and are planning to fol- low such a career will more and more be given time off — with and without pay — to go to specified educational institutions at home and abroad to complete the studies required for the proper performance of their duties. Municipal practice in most lines has been almost static up-to-date. But with the advance of* general knowledge and the greater interest in this field on the part of busi- ness interests and research workers, we must prepare for a period when methods and implements and policies will be more short lived. To know the best and to be able to practice it will require a character of training in the municipal employee not now in mind. To keep abreast of even some small specialty will require trav- eling about — perhaps study at some distant point — and the cities of the future which will be most highly sue- 320 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT cessful will be the ones which through affording oppor- tunities of this kind attract to their service the most desirable men. The Necessity of Organizing Government Demo- cratically. — All that type of legislation symbolized by the short ballot which has had for its object the locaHz- ing of administrative responsibility in a mayor and a limited number of other executives has had one effect which if we would train and develop our municipal em- ployees as a whole we must seek to offset. In moving for fewer heads to our municipal organization we are of course copying the organization which we find in most industrial enterprises. Industry does not pretend to be democratic, but our municipal organizations must be. It is one thing to have the president of the U. S. Steel Company a near-autocrat in all its affairs wherever they may be located from Pittsburgh to Vladivostok. But it would be an entirely different matter for the mayor of a city or its controller to assume any such position. In a democracy such powers are not given to any branch of the government — legislative, judicial or administrative. But as a matter of fact, to a very large extent this is what has happened in the development of our new administrative personnel. It is entirely right from a management standpoint that one man at the head should have large power in making and unmaking his organiza- tion. It is right that he should be as responsible to the people as the power thus given implies. But we will never get out of it what there really is in democratic government — municipal, state and federal — until the man down the line has some of the shackles taken off him and he is allowed to have more responsibility in TRAINING IN THE MUNICIPAL SERVICE 321 those matters which are his particular charge, receives a larger share of the credit for the work he actually does and is allowed to meet directly such criticism as his work may arouse and without having his statements fil- tered through three or four "superiors" who frequently both consciously and unconsciously color them for public consumption. We see this system in its full develop- ment in the average private utility company, where no one but the president is allowed to "talk." Such methods develop mummies, not men. To meet this condition — measurably at least — we re- quested employees of all grades to "talk" to the news- papers and to our citizens generally whenever they had news which it was to the interest of the city to make public — if it fell within the recognized province of the person giving it out. In other words, we not only ap- preciated the value of having news reach the people but approved of its reaching the public through the arm of the government most closely in touch with it. We made the request of course that action along this Hne be taken only when the employee was in no wise in doubt either as to his facts, the city's interest or his own rela- tion to the matter. Otherwise he was to consult. In four years of actual use nothing but good came of this policy. We secured a large volume of publicity for our work and instilled into every man in the service a new idea as to his relation to his own work. Again we requested that every report or letter written should be signed by the person drafting it. If a letter of transmittal was necessary this could be written. But those in responsible charge were urged not to assume credit or responsibility for work not their own through the old-fashioned procedure of forwarding reports up through all the stages of a military organization. It 322 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT takes time to make progress along such lines but we will come to it. When we do finally realize this idea of personal responsibility then to serve democracy even pretty far down the line — and of course to serve it well — will have just a little smack of Verdun in it. Another change in the same direction is the allowing of the public with their complaints and requests to get right to the man who has charge of the work. Of course if the mayor or a commissioner wants to make the people believe he is personally responsible for paving this or that street, for making individual arrests and for keep- ing microbes out of the drinking water, he can fool a certain number of his constituents but it is not good management, but it does not tend to produce a well trained body of city employees. Finally it must be noted that even in industry the mili- tary and autocratic system is already beginning to yield to a democratic functionalized regime. The necessity for the transference of skill is one of the forces bring- ing about the change. And in this new regime the teach- ing function will be one of the most prominent. Under scientific management some men and women are set aside for no other work than to teach. In that day — predicted by Rousseau over one hundred years ago — when education becomes the one great absorbing interest of the world, there are some of us who believe that the difference between an industrial establishment and an educational institution will not be very great. It will make for economy and efficiency to bring this condition about in our municipalities at the earliest possible moment. CHAPTER XXII PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS OF CITY OFFICIALS NOT all of the ills, by any means, of defective public service are due to political corruption, the spoils system, or the admission of untrained men. A good deal of the inefficiency in various municipal departments may be ascribed to the fact that 'the men are trained in a groove. As Walter Bagehot excellently pointed out, in criticizing the "experience" of trained officials, "They are brought young into the particular part of the public service to -which they are attached ; they are occupied for years in learning its forms — afterwards, for years too, in applying these forms to triffing matters. . . . Men so trained must come to think of the routine of business not as a means, but an end — to imagine the elaborate machinery of which they form a part, and from which they derive their dignity, to be a grand and achieved result, not a working and changeable instrument." The Need for Professional Organization. — The fact that a city street has carried congested traffic for a score of years is no proof that the city's growth does not demand more streets or wider ones. And the -fact that certain methods in departmental administration have served an indifferent electorate during the same 323 324 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT period is no proof that modern needs to not require new ideas or broader ones. Those who are familiar with public officials in town and city service know only too well what lack of vision and of initiative exists among many of them. Such characteristics are much more serious, of course, in the legislative body of the municipality and in the heads of departments, than in subordinate employees. The build- ing of adequate streets or the installing of a modern office system, once they have been decided upon, may be delegated to efficient subordinates; but who shall delegate the vision and initiative for these improvements to the policy-determining officials? Who is to tell the mayor, the fire chief, or the water-works official, who may have served twenty years at his present position, that his methods belong to a previous generation ? After all, bureaus of research are very few, and technical knowledge in high places is scarce. Moreover, the "practical" official may have little confidence in the "theoretical" professors of the universities, and may be of the opinion that books are generally "too general." Reports usually serve the purpose of augmenting the library stock ; and though the reading of municipal maga- zines has become much more general during the last few years, other stimuli to vision and action are needed. Learning from Catastrophe and from the Experience of Others. — Fortunately, it is not true of all municipal officials that they learn from catastrophe, rather than from the experience of others. But it is true that until a very few years ago, most officials were in such a posi- tion of isolation as to make it very difficult to get that inspiration and information on which real progress de- pends. There were needed agencies to make it difficult PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS 325 for the official to be backward; there was needed an aggressive campaign which would bring the newest and best in each field to the attention of the men entrusted with the execution of important municipal activities. And, for the advancement of municipal administration, there was needed that contact, cooperation and discus- sion among its workers and experts that would react upon the profession and produce successful achieve- ments. A significant beginning has been made in this direction. With the rise of numerous leagues of mayors, city man- agers, department heads, and municipal experts, aggres- sively seeking to reduce the seclusion of their respective cities, constantly bringing to light new discoveries and presenting comparative results in municipal efficiency, there has been introduced that essential element previ- ously lacking in good public administration — the train- ing of those who already are city officials. The methods of organization and cooperation among these professional associations should be understood by every person inter- ested in municipal science. Their salient features will therefore be briefly presented. Extent and Character of Membership. — Some organ- izations are international (including usually the United States and Canada), some national, some inter-state, many are state-wide, many include parts of states, and others are local. Of the first type are the International Association of Fire Engineers, the International Asso- ciation of Municipal Electricians, the International Asso- ciation of Chiefs of Police, and the Society for Street Cleaning and Refuse Disposal of the United States and Canada. Some of the "American" or "National" asso- ciations — which also frequently include members from 326 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Canada — are the National Municipal League, the Ameri- can City Planning Institute, the American Society of Municipal Improvements, the American Public Health Association, the American Water Works Association, the American Association of Park Superintendents, the League of American Municipalities, the Playground and Recreation Association of America, the National Educa- tion Association of the United States, the National Con- ference of Charities and Correction, the American Civic Association, and the City Managers' Association. There are organizations of cemetery officials, road builders, foresters, consulting engineers, librarians, "medical milk" commissions, and many others. There are some or- ganizations vi^hose membership includes the officials of certain groups or states, as for example, the Mayors' Association of the South Atlantic and Gulf States. Other associations including groups of states are sec- tional parts of national organizations, as the Central States Division of the American Water Works Associ^ tion. Associations whose membership is limited to offi- cials within the state are very numerous and varied. There are, for instance, "Leagues of Municipalities" in at least three fourths of the states, and in some of the states there are such organizations as the Massachusetts Association of Boards of Public Health, the New Jersey Sewage Works Association, the California Conference on City Planning, etc. Within the state, there are some- times district associations, as the North Idaho Munici- pality League, and organizations of classified member- ship, as the League of Cities of the Third Class in Penn- sylvania. There are also local organizations of road engineers or other officials within a county, etc. They indicate that the public service is recognized as a pro- PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS 327 fession, and that professional interests are drawing the men together. As a rule, there are two kinds of members in these oganizations, viz., those who are officials or ex-officials, and those who are experts in the profession or activity, and whose advice and cooperation will be of service. In some organizations, there is an associate membership which comprises manufacturers, contractors, and "supply men." In many cases, the unofficial group predominates. Wide differences in aggressiveness are apparent. Some of the state organizations, under the leadership of effi- cient secretaries, are larger both in membership and income than other organizations of national scope. Annual Meetings and Conventions. — The most im- portant feature of these professional organizations is usually their annual meeting. At some of these conven- tions, the social features are allotted time and attention out of proper proportion to the serious purposes for which the gathering is nominally called, but in general a notable improvement in this matter has been observed in recent years. Indeed, there has been in some in- stances a tendency to the other extreme. Convention sessions morning, afternoon and evening, punctuated only by serious discussions at "round table" luncheons or at group conferences, may prove to be not only more tiresome, but actually less profitable than a less intensive program. A mistake frequently made by program committees is failure to allow adequate opportunity for discussion of papers from the floor. The practical value of a con- vention depends not only on the value of the ideas brought out at the meeting, but also in the attention given to them. In both of these respects informal dis- 328 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT cussions and the "question box" are often superior to formal papers. They serve to emphasize both sides of mooted questions, and to give officials and "experts" a host of new ideas. Both groups hear ineffective methods knocked to pieces, and are told of the great suc- cess of newer or better ideas. Exhibits of apparatus and appliances are important features of many conventions. Like the advertising pages of municipal magazines, their object is to increase the sale of the manufacturers' products, but they have an educational value which should not be overlooked. Grov- ernmental efficiency in most city departments is depen- dent on the use of efficient machinery and equipment; and the city official is not profiting fully by a convention if he fails to give adequate study to the exhibit features. Municipal and civic conventions are occasionally timed to bring together at the same place groups occupying allied fields of activity. A notable example is "Munic- ipal Week," held in Springfield, Massachusetts, Novem- ber, 1 916, when the following associations met during the same week : the National Municipal League, the New York Training School for Public Service, City Man- agers' Association, Conference on Municipal Research, Massachusetts Civic League, Massachusetts Federa- tion of Planning Boards, Massachusetts Single Tax League and the Western New England Chamber of Commerce. As a result of such correlation between organizations of similar interests, opportunity is pro- vided to acquire information and ideas of great value to the cause of municipal progress. Publications of the Organizations. — Usually the proceedings of the conventions, including papers, ques- tions, and discussions, are published and sent out to PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS 329 330 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT members without additional charge. Thus members who are interested may reconsider at their leisure the facts and ideas brought out at the convention, and those who were not present may get the benefit of the pro- ceedings. Besides the publication of the proceedings of the convention, there are official magazines, bulletins, pamphlets and other printed matter available for mem- bers or subscribers, the amount of such matter depend- ing, of course, on the size and importance of the organi- zation. Information Service. — Many leagues and organiza- tions make provision for supplying members with infor- mation on subjects coming within their scope. A ques- tionnaire recently sent out to state leagues of municipali- ties showed that this was considered an extremely useful feature of their work. Where the importance of this information service is appreciated and funds for the establishment of a special bureau are not available, the secretary is the one assigned to render this service. Discriminate choice of the man who is to fill this office may be made, as, for instance, where the league of munic- ipalities of a stat-e chooses as its secretary the librarian of a municipal reference library — or the director of a bureau of municipal research at the state university. Many other schemes for securing cooperative service in running the information bureau are in vogue. Quite often, the political science and economics department of the extension division of a local university is pressed into service, and both professors and the advanced stu- dents assist the secretary, or the municipal reference library agrees to offer its services in answering all ques- tions addressed to it. The secretary of one of the state leagues of munici- PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS 331 palities, who is at the same time the secretary of the municipal reference library of the state university, has compiled an excellent report of his activities which is well worth simimarizing.^ Within a period of twelve months, a total of 472 inquiries and requests were an- swered, of which 333 were from persons within the state. Of these 333 inquiries, 295 were from members of the league, and 252 from city officials. Another class- ification of these 333 questions showed that 30 were from cities of the first class, 105 from cities of the sec- ond class, and 198 from those of the third, indicating conclusively that the information bureau was serving places where the absence of library facilities, etc., makes information inaccessible. In addition to the furnishing of information, which in many cases required difficult compilations, the service included the drafting of ordi- nances, ballot forms and resolutions. A complete list of the subjects upon which the questions were based is included in the report, which shows the interest in the subjects of traffic regulation, commission government, electric light plants, sidewalks, water-works, alleys, pub- lic utility rates, etc. With such service at the disposal of any member who merely writes for it, there is added another aid to efficient administration. Summary: Professional Organizations Are Continuation Schools In brief summary of the ideals and methods of these professional organizations, it may be said that they aim to serve as continuation schools for men who have been graduated from college or from business or professional *C/. also Exhibit 17 of the Report upon the Survey of the University of Wisconsin. Z2>2 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT pursuits into the public service. Through contact, dis- cussion and publicity, such organizations, like the Biblical householder, bring forth out of their treasures things new and old. They help to secure the adoption of modern ideas, while preventing the rejection of older methods which have stood the test of time. Through their research bureaus they compile information not previously correlated. They not only make information accessible, but aid in putting it to work by arousing a healthy spirit of emulation among their members. They bring the non-technical city official into contact with the technical man to the real advantage of both. Not the least valuable service rendered by organiza- tions of city officials is their educational influence on legislatures and courts in matters relating to home rule, simplified charters, city planning, etc. Many instances might be cited of progressive legislation enacted on the recommendation of leagues of municipalities; and it can hardly be doubted that the spread of modern ideas among associations of mayors and other city officials is having a reflex action in the more liberal attitude of the courts towards statutes and ordinances for the promotion of public health, safety and welfare. Matthew Arnold, in his "Culture and Anarchy," quotes two excellent rules of Bishop Wilson: "Firstly, never go against the best light you have; secondly, take care that your light be not darkness." When these two rules shall be adopted generally as the guiding principles of city government, the municipal millennium will be at hand. The professional organizations of city officials are helping, consciously or unconsciously, to instill these ideas into the hearts and minds of their members. They stimulate the desire to render better service, and they help to make available the knowledge of how much PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS 333 service can best be performed. As a result, many a city is saved experimentation in methods that have been found inadequate elsewhere, and many problems are worked out in cooperation that would be long delayed if studied in isolation. CHAPTER XXIII THE CONTROL OF THE EXPERT 'TPHE real founder of American democracy, Andrew ■*- Jackson, said long ago: "The duties of all public officefs are^ or at least admit of being made, so plain and simple that men of intelligence may readily qualify themselves for their performance." This was the seri- ous opinion of a strong and able man who typified American versatility in acquiring military skill and in rising from obscure poverty to the highest office in the nation. For his day Jackson was not far wrong. He wrote before the railway, the electric light, the tele- phone, the telegraph, and in fact before practically all of the great technical achievements of our time had revolutionized American life. The largest cities were relatively little more than rural villages. Almost any in- telligent man could look after the town pump, the vil- lage streets, and the county poor house. Aside from the surveying and the engineering work of the army and navy, there were few government enterprises that called for men versed in any of the sciences. In fact, most of the highly specialized sciences of our day were not yet within the ken of the wisest men. Yet this was the age which saw the rise of democracy in the United States. It was in Jackson's day that the old expert governing class represented by the Federalists of the 334 THE CONTROL OF. THE EXPERT 335 Hamilton school and the Republicans of the Madison school were utterly rej-ected, and government committed to the care of an electorate embracing practically all of the adult white males without regard to property or any other tests. In that generation were set the, standards of democracy which have become enduring parts of American custom and tradition. To this custom and tradition any one who has occasion to write or speak ■ about problems of American life and government must give heed. The Needs of Modem Democracy. — And yet the. most unbending advocate of Jacksonian democracy will \ i not deny that the responsibilities of government have been completely revolutionized since "the reign of Andrew." In an epoch when the government regulates railway rates, fixes hours of labor, controls the capital- ization of public service corporations, undertakes social insurance, builds Panama canals, operates great water- works, establishes municipal railway plants, to talk about the duties of public offices being so sirnple that any maiv of iriteTngence~catrTeadily qualify" lor tHelfils not merely absurd; it is criminal foIIyr' "Th an epoch when the government, in tact, employs expert accountants, architects, bacteriologists, chemists, engineers of all varieties, foresters, oculists, pathologists, to say nothing of the other classes of civil servants, it is obviously im- possible for any man of intelligence to prepare for any ^/^v public office in a few months. It is true that once uT^ a while an ambitious legislator proposes to make the circumference of every circle merely three times the diameter instead of 3.1416 times — in order to make calculations easier for farmers — but in the main, even democracy must admit that the man who constructs an 11 ii 336 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT electric light plant for a city must know several things which "an intelligent man" cannot "pick up" in a short time. To drive this point home, it is only necessary to turn over the announcements of the United States civil ser- vice commission and read the qualifications set for candidates for even minor positions in the federal gov- ernment. To take a single example, the following speci- fications were set by the commission for an examination for a mere assistant civil engineer held in November, 1916: (i) Mathematics and applied mechanics (covering alge- bra to and including problems involving quadratics; geom- etry, plane and solid; plane trigonometry and use of tables of logarithms or a slide rule; elements of calculus; and elementary questions involving principles of mechanics and hydraulics as set forth in college textbooks). (2) Theory and practice of construction on land and in water (involving elementary knowledge of designing and constructing highways, railroad dams, retaininp^ walls, foun- dation work, trusses, etc.). (3) Theory and practice of topographic and hydro- graphic surveying, as covered in first-clas>»> surveying text- books. (4) Training and experience. (5) Applicants must have had at least four years' prac- tical experience in engineering. Graduation from a tech- nical course in a college or university of recognized stand- ing will be accepted in lieu of two years of the required ex- perience. The rating in training and experience will be based upon general experience in civil engineering, and upon technical description in detail of some important work upon which the competitor has been engaged. This description must be handed to the examiner on the day of the exam- ination. THE CONTROL OF THE EXPERT 337 Although the materials are not at hand to make an exact comparison of the public service to-day and seventy-five years ago, it may be safely asserted that an ever larger proportion of public work calls for servants who have had years of technical training and wide ex- perience in highly specialized operations. We cannot pick up "Tom, Dick, Harry, and Will" through the agency of a genial legislator or through an advertise- ment in a Daily Gazette, and entrust the work of govern- ment to them. Moreover, technical specialists, in order that they may serve the government most efficiently, should have long tenure and the service should be so arranged that they may look to the public rather than to powerful private interests for their careers. If de-' mocracy is to be well served by trained specialists, it must so order its methods of employment that its ser- vants will find advancement by cherishing the public interest instead of by neglecting, purposely or inadver- tently, that interest in favor of private concerns. A permanent as well as a highly technical service is called for by the requirements of modern democracy. With- out such a service democracy cannot discharge the obli- gations inevitably imposed upon it by time and circum- stance. This is so inexorable that argument on the point is useless. le ' / The Dangers of Bureaucracy. — Nevertheless, it would be a cheerful optimist, indeed, who could see no dangers to democracy in a large and permanent public service performing operations so highly technical in character that the layman cannot understand even the simplest of them. Every one knows the evils of bureaucracy — routine, multiplication of useless positions, red tape, and official follies. Every class tends to exalt 338 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT itself and its work. This is as true of official classes as of other classes. Where there is power there are philosophers to praise and defend. Even bureaucracy- has contemptjor the layman. It takes undue pride in its own achievements. It is impervious to new ideas ^^1 arise out side of the circle o£ the "experts." It despises the amateur and constantly aver? that no good can come out of lay thinking and advice. It thrives on t he spirit of monopoly and constantly seeks to raise the barriers between itself and the uninitiated. _the-_jH'D_ blems QJ ^ budget-making are utterly beyond the ken of the average sixty-day legislator, no matter how conscientious he piay b6 ,, Itt" the, uly of 'ivJew York the budget is nominally made by the Board of Estimate and Appor- tionment and the Board of Aldermen, elected bodies re- sponsible to the voters, but any one acquainted with the facts knows that the budget is really made by a handful of obscure experts serving the subcommittee of the Board of Estimate and Apportionment. The adjustment of salary and wages schedules, the purchase of immense quantities of supplies of every kind ranging from radium to potatoes, the supervision of highly spe- cialized contracts — all this is too much for the kindly member of the board of aldermen who marches to the city hall once a week and then marches home ^ again. The unpalatable truth is that in spite of our vaunted democracy, a few always rule in every gov- ernmental jurisdiction with compHcated functions. X The problem of democracy is no t how to "raid the ) invisible government" every year or two, but how to { make it come out into the open and assume responsi- i bilil Rising Popular Intelligence and Independent Ex- perts. — If this analysis is correct, then no sleight of hand performance will do the simple trick of reconciling x a democracy and expert service. Our hope lies not in ' ^•^^''^ one thing but in many. First among these I would place the rising intelligence of laymen which enables them to exercise independent and critical judgment about the achievements of the expert. The steady refusal of the 340 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT public to accept the final verdict of educational experts is a cheering sign. Closely connected with the rising intelligence of laymen are the citizens' agencies which develop independent critics of the work of government. A bureaucracy which can never be disturbed by citizens' inquiry is secure indeed, no matter who votes. Highly I specialized civic agencies in various fields now support j)rivate experts to watch public experts. This is one ; of the most encouraging signs of modern democracy. With independent citizens, agencies and universities, and chools not under the immediate domination of the overnment bureaucracy, we may be sure that the voice f criticism will be heard in the land. In moving for- ward to a permanent and expert public service we are not returning to the privileged bureaucracy of Frederick the Great. In other words, the whole intellectual medi- um in which the modern public service operates is radically different from that of a century ago. Lay Control of Experts.^ — There are some who place much faith in the idea of associating boards of laymen with technical experts for the purpose of introducing the citizen element and citizen control. It is hardly to be said, however, that experience with this practice is altogether encouraging. There is plenty of evidence to show that the faith has been more than once misplaced. This is the theory of the commission-manager city gov- ernment, but in some cities at least, it has worked out that the commission of laymen has surrendered its think- ing to the manager who is "on the job all day." Lay school boards are quite frequently mere "rubber stamps." If they are not, it is because a few patriotic Mt is an excellent thing to raise this point, but is not Pro- fessor Beard a little too skeptical? THE CONTROL OF THE EXPERT 341 members surrender their private obligations and pay the price of becoming expert. The point is not that the lay board should be utterly rejected, but that reliance upon it as an effective instrument of day-to-day control over the expert in the public service is reliance upon a bent reed. The guess might be safely hazarded that the waste, inefficiency, and jobbery connected with state institutions nominally managed by boards of laymen will equal that arising in offices controlled by even irresponsible "experts." The l ay b oard^ is not the solu- tion of the problem. Public Hearings and the Control of the Expert. — The "public hearing" is the hope of a few advocates who expect wonders when the plain citizen is given an opportunity to "get at the public officer" when he is asking for more money or giving a record of his per- formances. The public hearing is a useful institution, but it has about the same relation to effective power that the right of petition has to the right of voting. Most public hearings are^aLsh^^^jwaste of., t^^^ they jprbdu ce^o re sults. The Edge budget bill in New Jersey provides for public hearings by the governor on departmental requests. The sole attendant at most of the hearings in 19 16 was a student of government inter- ested in the working out of the plan. The budget hearings in New York City are quite commonly monopo- ^ lized by citizens with more verbosity than enlightenment to exploit their petty hobbies. They have practically no effect upon the budget-making process. By all means let us have public hearings. They seldom do any harm and occasionally they^do some good. But to rely upon them to cohtrbl" experts, is like Relying on pop-guns to destroy battleships. In this connection it seems hardly 342 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT necessary to remark that most legislative "investigations" are mere farces, at least as agencies for exercising con- tinuous control over a service with bureaucratic ten- dencies. They are useful in satisfying public clamor and holding the ship of state on even keel while some popular temper is sweeping over the country. By all means let us have "committees of inquiry," but let us put little faith in them as instruments of democratic control. The Real Solution : Unite Power and Responsibility. — The real solution of the problem set by the title of this paper is not in some simple device such as a lay board or a public hearing. It calls for a complex operation. It calls for institutional changes and political practices Nj^hat will unite power and responsibility. R esponsibility cannot be maintained, if power is not granted to, and defi- nitely vested in, public officers who can be held account- able. No amount of citizens* agency work or public hearings can take the place of responsible representative ^\government. Technical experts must be employed and /their permanence of tenure assured, but they must be \ I sjo^organizedtha t their line s of re_sj>onsibility to political ^.officers ca n be clearly traced . The political officers on their part must be brought face to face with a legislative body so constituted and so organized as to make inquiry and opposition critical, effective, and responsible. This means that the way must be opened to executive leader- ship through the medium of legislative activity. Under the present system, the average member of the legislature is a mere amateur. His term is short, his hopes are pale, and his critical faculties useless. If perchance he has real talent for understanding the ad- ministration for which he is providing funds, it is of THE CONTROL OF THE EXPERT 343 slight use to him. He may criticize without fear and without reproach because he knows that he will never be obligated to assume the responsibilities of the officer whom he is denouncing. A Program. — A system of government that will rec- concile democracy and expert administration must pro- vide for the following institutions and processes: An executive department so organized that responsi- bility may be located in a small group of officers. All the institutions and divisions grouped under the direction of these officers and controlled by a work pro- gram and a budget system that will require records of work performed and costs by units of performance. A permanent civil service and a system of perma- nent tmder secretaries to sustain continuity of policy. The executive branch held responsible for preparing thfijbiidget and subjectedT to~open and above board legis- lative scrutiny. Effective use of the opposition as an agency of critical control and provision for assumption of responsibility by those who criticize and overturn the administration. Provision for submitting to the electorate for final decision all fundamental issues raised and formulated by those defending and those attacking a particular ad- ministration. Summary In other words, representative government must be made responsible government. Democracy cannot con- trol through hearings and lay boards or citizens* agencies — however helpful these may be as auxiliaries. It can- not only control through representatives entrusted with power and held strictly accountable for its exercise. W 344 EXPERTS IN CITY GOVERNMENT Unless we are prepared to consider some fundamental institutional changes, we might as well surrender the quest for popular control over the expert. H e has and will c ontinue to control democracYj,_no rnatter whether he is a p olitical or a scientific specialist. Invisible govern- ment will continue until we are willing to vest in a visible government the same amount of power that we permit the invisible government to exercise. APPENDIX CITY MANAGER ''MORTALITY DATA" The mortality rate attending the office of city manager is proving fairly high due to three factors : ( i ) The lack of training or of tact of many men who enter the new profession is such that they find themselves, or are found by their Councils, to be unqualified for the complex du- ties facing them on the new field. (2) The rapid pro- motion that has come to many, causing their change from one city to another. (3) The Call to the Colors has tended to thin the ranks of the profession. An examination of the records shows that of the 124 cities now claiming some variety of city-manager govern- ment only 48 are still retaining the services of the men first appointed to the managerial position. Of these 48, 31 have served less than two years, 4 have served from two to three years, 6 from three to four years, 4 from four to five years, and only 3 over five years. So far there have been seventeen instances of promo- tion of managers from one city to another, and in two cases managers have already been advanced to their third city. Charles E. Ashbumer, the first of the city managers, served at Staunton, Va., from 1908 to 191 1 at $2500; he was appointed manager of Springfield, Qhio. January i, 1 914, at $6000, and was promoted to Norfolk, Va., Sept. I, 1918; salary, $9000. 345 346 APPENDIX Ossian E. Carr was manager of Cadillac, Mich., dur- ing the years 191 4 and 191 5; salary, $3000. He was called to Niagara Falls, N,.„Y., January, 1916, salary $5000, and succeeded Mr. Ashburner at Springfield, Qhifl, September, 1918. Gaylord C. Cummin was appointed manager of Jack- son, Mich., January, 191 5, at $5cxx); this was increased the year following to $6000, then to $7500, and he was promoted to Grand Rapids, Mich., in the spring of 191 7 at a salary of $10,000. Winton L. Miller served as manager of St. Augus- tine, Fla., from July, 1915, to April, 1918, salary $3600; he is now manager of Bethlehem, Pa. His official salary is $1 per year, but it is understood that he is receiving $10,000 through the generosity of the mayor and the council. Robert A. Craig was promoted from Phoenix, Ariz., where he served from April, 1914, to January, 1918, at $5000, to Santa Barbara, Cal., at $7500. Clarence A. Bingham entered the manager field at Norwood, Mass., January, 191 5, at $2400 salary. This was later increased to $3000 and he was promoted Janu- ary I, to Waltham, Mass., salary $5000. Charles E. Hewes was transferred from Alhambra to Alameda, Cal., in May, 19 17. He served at Alham- bra two years at $2000 and now receives $4000. H. G. Otis was appointed manager at Beaufort, S. C, in August, 19 1 5. He was advanced to Auburn, Me., February, 19 18, at a salary of $3600. E. A. Beck was city manager at Edgeworth, Pa., prior to his appointment to a similar position at Goldsboro, N. C, in July, 1917; salary $3300. Kenyon Riddle served as city manager and engineer at Abilene, Kansas, for five years prior to his appoint- APPENDIX 347 ment as manager at Xenia, QJug, January, 1918; sal- ary $3cxx). I. R. Ellison, manager of Grand Haven, Mich., served as superintendent at Eaton Rapids, Mich., prior to his present appointment. His salary is $2500. Hubert A. Stecker was promoted to the management of Charlottesville, Va., salary $2000, from a similar posi- tion at Farmville, Va., January, 1917. G. A. Abbott, the village manager of Birmingham, Mich., salary $2000, held a similar position at Grosse Pointe Shores, Mich., for two years prior to his promo- tion in April, 19 18. Karl M. Mitchell was transferred from the manage- ment of River Forest, 111., to that of Sherman, Texas, in April, 191 5 ; salary $2400. Claude E. Chappell was promoted from Big Rapids, Mich., to Jackson, Mich., in January, 1915 ; salary $3500. These last two have since left the profession. As to dismissals and resignations it is difficult to tell just where one leaves off and the other begins, as fre- quently a manager resigns in preference to being dis- missed. Again in some cities the position of manager becomes vacant automatically every one or two years, the manager being appointed for a definite term. In such cases failure of reappointment is practically equivalent to dismissal. Taking the list of cities as published herewith, my information is as follows: Newburgh, N,^., released its first manager after some five months' tenure. It is intimated that the desire to secure a local man was back of the reasons assigned for this dismissal. Portsmouth, Va., released its first manager after a six months* trial. Here, too, the reasons assigned dif- 348 APPENDIX fer with the individual making explanation. It is charged that the manager failed to produce results, that he was not a mixer and that he did not cooperate with his council. It has been counter charged that the real fault lay with the commission. Several members re- signed because of alleged log-rolling on the part of mem- bers of the commission. Beaufort, S. C., released its first manager after a three and one-half months' term. The reason assigned was "friction" between the manager and certain members of the council. The failure of Sandusky, Ohio, to reappoint its sec- ond manager last January is credited by the newspapers as being due to the manager's laxity in dealing with cer- tain local vice conditions. It is understood that Albion, Mich., released its first manager because of incompetence. Cadillac, Mich., failed to reappoint its second man- ager, and the general feeling seems to be that politics underlay this virtual dismissal, as the newly elected mayor had served as mayor under the old form and be- lieved in "standing by the home boys." The manager, released, came from out of the city, although four years' service, two as engineer and two as manager, would seem to have established his residence. The recent resignation of the Grand Rapids manager amounts to a dismissal and details will be found in the June, 1918, issue of the Short Ballot Bulletin. The same is true of the resignation at Manistee, Mich., reference to which will be found in the same article. Jackson, Mich., released its first manager and it seems fair to conclude that he was not qualified to hold a po- sition of this size and responsibility as he lacked organ- izing power and initiative. APPENDIX 349 Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., recently requested the res- ignation of its manager and assigned as the reason, the elimination of the expense incurred by his salary and the discontinuance of improvements during the war. Some nine of the city managers have entered active war service arid the balance of the eighty- three cases of managers relinquishing their positions are largely charge- able to resignations because of inadaptability or un- willingness to longer endure the hardships of the posi- tion. Harrison Gray Otis, Secretary, City Managers' Association. 350 APPENDIX TABLE NO. I Tbdd Cnr Manager and Local Residencs City Popula- tion City Manager Residence of Manager Time of Appointment Salary Sumter, S. C 8,109 3,706 2,712 116,577 46,921 11,134 4,843 9,957 8,375 12,381 3,252 5,314 4,732 1,324 3,719 4,519 31,433 12,412 12,727 2,486 10,400 27,805 19,989 18,266 4,657 30,445 41,641 12,706 11,659 10,321 5,494 1,903 8,412 5,208 28,946 26,730 33,190 5,833 10,517 4,778 Vacant Hickory, N. C J. W. Ballew $1,000 900 Morganton, N. C C. T. Cain Dayton, Ohio Springfield, Ohio H.W. Waite C. E. Ashbumer R. A. Craig Cincinnati, Ohio Staunton, Va 12,500 6,000 5,000 2,400 2,400 1.600 2,000 l,S0O 2,600 2,000 1,500 Phoenix, Ariz Phoenix, Ariz LaGrande, Ore Fred Curry LaGrande, Cre Amarillo, Texas Cadillac, Mich Manistee, Mich Springfield, Ohio Temple, Texas Amarillo, Texas Cadillac, Mich Manistee, Mich Montrose, Col Taylor, Texas Denton Texas.. M. H. Eardin T.V.Stephens Chas. E. Ruger J. E. McDaniel W. E. Dozier Sam C. Gary Collinsville, Okla F. A. Wright Lakeland, Fla Vacant Big Rapids, Mich W. J. Fairbum 1,200 Gaylord C. Cimamin. 0. J. S. Ellingson.... Wallace M.Morgan.. H.G.Otis 6,000 Sherman, Texas Bakersfield, Cal Beaufort, S. C Sherman, Texas Bakersfield, Cal New York City Tyler Texas. 2,400 3,000 2,400 3,000 4,000 3 600 Tyler, Texas Clay Hight Newburgh, N.Y Sandusky, Ohio. Henry Wilson K. B Ward .... Newburgh, N.Y Columbus, Ohio Ashtabula, Ohio Ashtabula, Ohio Yoakum, Texas. J. Warren Prine W. Lander .... 2,500 Niagara Falls, N.Y... Wheeling, W. Va Ossian A. Carr Cadillac, Mich In operation 1917 Detroit, Mich 5,CO0 Harrison G. Roby . . . 2,500 Santa Barbara, Cal . . . In operation 1917 E. L.Wells, Jr 2,500 St. Augustine, Fla... W.L.Miller Ray S. Blinn J. C. Commander . . . H. G. Volhner Daj'ton, Ohio 3 600 Westerville, Ohio Elizabeth City, N.C.. Webster City, Iowa. . Mt. Vernon, Ohio 1,500 1,800 San Jose, Cal Thomas H. Reed.... Berkeley Cal ... . 6,000 Watertown, N.Y In operation Jan. 1 '18. Bayonne, N. J 3,000 Portsmouth, Va Albion, Mich T.B.Shertzer Brownsville, Texas . . . Petoskey, Mich Grand Rapids, Mich. . Frank R. WillianiR... W.R. Caldwell Brownsville, Texas.... Detroit, Mich In operation July 1, '18 3,000 2,000 East Cleveland, Ohio. 9,179 TABLE NO. II Transfers op Citt Managers Staunton, Va $1,S Cadillac, Mich .to Springfield, Ohio. . . . .to Niagara Falls, N.Y... $6,000 5,000 REMOVALS Sumter, S. C W. W. Worthington Phoenix, Ariz Newburgh, N. Y Fred. C. Alber Sherman, Texas Karl Mitchell Big Rapids, Mich Beaufort, S. C Home Albion, Mich Roland Remley Jackson, Mich Claude Chappel Hickory, N. C S. C. Cornwell Montrose, Col P. W. Pinkerton. INDEX Administration, of cities. See City government ; urban wel- fare a problem of, S. Administrative experts, con- trolling of, 44; corruption among, 44; demand for, 62; direction of policy by, 45; need of, 40; power of, 43; superintendent of schools, 45. Akron, university of, 147; part-time training for public service in, 263. Aldridge, Henry R,, on city planning, 21 ; on town-plan- ning, 69. Allen, Dr. William H., 140. American Association of ur- ban universities, report of, on field work in public serv- ice, 261. Army, training for. See Mili- tary service. Army training schools, 252. Aschersleben, training of low- er classes of public employ- ees at, 2y6. Back-to-the-land agitation, i. Baker, Newton D., as Mayor of Cleveland, 17. Beard, Prof. Charles A., on New York Training School for Public Service, 137. Boards, lay, control of experts by, 340. Boards and commissions, in- dependent, for city manage- ment, 80 ; appointment of, 80 ; functions of, 81 ; relation of, to permanent service, 81 ; re- lation of experts to. See under City experts. Boston University College of Business Administration, 263. Bruere, Henry, 54, Buchtel College, 147. Budget making, problems of, 339- Bureaucracy, dangers of, to public service, 337. Burgomeister, German, 97. Business administration, field work in, 263 ; in city politics, 269. Business interests, relation of, to community welfare, 66. Business, private, lessons ap- plied to public service, 270. California, University of, mu- nicipal training courses at, 115, 117, 118. Canada, emigration into, of homesteaders, 2. Carmack, Senator, murder of, 60. Charleston, S. C, municipal college of, 145. Chicago, University of, public service training in, 116, 124. Chicago School of Civics and Philanthropy, 133. Cincinnati, University of, 147; field work for public service in, 264, 265 ; municipal service training at, 121. Cincinnati, women's city club of, 64. Cities, commerce of, and trans- portation, 3; flow of immi- 35X 352 INDEX gration into, 3; German, ef- ficiency of, 63; improvement of. See Municipal improve- ment ; manufacturing in, 5 ; population of, increase in, 2. Citizens' Agency, control of experts by, 340. Citizens, cooperation of, 64; with government through community center, 151. City, call of the, i ; congestion of, 23. City experts, administrative, controlling of, zt4J need of, 40; power of, 43. City experts, American experi- ence in, 99; political interfer- ence with, 100; selection of professional men as, 99; technical specialists as, 99. City experts, classification of, 73; control of, 72; corrup- tion among, 44; demand for, 62; direction of government policy by, 45 ; fear of, 40 ; in education, 82. City experts, in foreign coun- tries, 90; functions of, 93; in British council form of administration, 41, 93; in England, English public opin- ion of, 97; in England, per- manency of, 98; in England, results of, ^; in German consolidat form of govern- ment, 96; training of, 93. City experts, in management by independent boards and commissions, 80; fire and police boards, 83; health boards, 82; influence of, in developing expertness, 85 ; political control of, 83; re- lation of, to administrators, 84; relation of, to permanent service, 81 ; salaries of, 86. City experts, in mayor and council form of administra- tion, ys ; contributions of some progressive men as, 74; efficiency exceptionally found in, 77; "indispensable" men as, 77; interference with, 7S; permanency lacking in, 76, 79; professional men as, 78. City experts, need of, 37; present use of, 71 ; problem of, 71 ; superintendents of schools as, 45. "City fathers," Mr. Eshleman on, 40. City government, a "business," 34 ; adequate compensation for service in, 51; by law or^ public sentiment, 57 ; by mak- ing laws, 62; by public senti- ment, 63; career in service of, obstacles to, 50; citizen cooperation with, through community center, 151 ; civic education in, 68; commission form of, growth of, 57; com- munity cooperation in, 64; congestion of population and, 23; "conscious purposes" of, 24; "economy" and, 34; edu- cation of people in, 64; in- adequacy of, 23, 33; indivi- dual responsibility in, 63. City government, men leaving service of, 48, 49 ; conclusions on, 55, 56; loss from, 49, 50. City government, on party lines, 60; opportunity for ex- perts in, 32; political cam- paigns and, 67; public inter- est vs. private interests in, 23; public sentiment in, 66; publicity in, 64, 66; results of, 36 ; results in, responsibil- ity for, 60 ; saving by training in public service for use in, 48. City government, selfish vs. un- selfish motives in, 27; of contractors, 30; of individ- uals, 29; of parties, 27; of public utilities, 31. City life, advantages of, 33; disadvantages of, 32. Gity manager idea and adminis- ' tration board system, 89. City manager system at Day- INDEX 353 ton, 0., 57; at Galveston, Texas, 61 ; at Nashville, Tenn., 59; at Salem, Mass., 61; growth of, 57, 61; on professional basis, 62; suc- cess of, 57; value of, 58. City managers, in United States, data regarding, 345; university training for, 294. City office, as clinic, 273 ; train- ing center for public service, 269, 277; training center for teachers of political science, 272, 277. City officials, professional or- ganizations of, 323 ; annual meetings and conventions of, 327; as continuation schools, 331 ; aims of, 331 ; educational influence of, on legislature, 332; extent and character of, 325 ; information service of, 330; membership of, 323; need of, 323 ; organization of, 325; publications of, 328; summary of, 331. City planning, 21, 68. City politics, selfishness in, 26; warning against, 26. City welfare, a problem of ad- ministration, 5 ; relation of business interests to, 66. See also Public welfare. Civic education, 68. Civic spirit, 25. Civil engineer, assistant, civil service requirements for, 336. Civil service laws, results of, 63; requirements for assist- ant civil engineer, 336. Cleveland, O., Board of Edu- cation, 84 ; police activities in public welfare in, 17. College, new relation of, to community, 141. College of the City of New York, 146; field work for public service in, 264; public service courses in, 128. Columbia University, municipal administration courses in, 127; school of philanthropy, 133. Commerce, growth of, and transportation, 3. Commission form of govern- ment, 86. See also City man- ager system and Commission- manager form of govern- ment. Commission-manager form of government, 86, 87 ; ability of personnel of, 88; appoint- ment of personnel of, 91 note; contribution of, to ex- pertness, 87; control of, 91 note ; growth of, 87 ; person- .^ nel of, 88; public service of, 91 note; results of, 89; term of, 92 note; training of per- sonnel of, 90 note. Commission-manager idea vs. commission-manager form of government, 87 ; editorial note on, 87, 89-92. Community center, citizen co- operation with government through, 151. Community center, fitting citi- zens for expert government through, 161 ; by bridging chasm between expert and popular states of mind, 163; by correlation with govern- mental administrations, 164; by decentralization of cer- tain services, 166; by transfer of emphasis from things to men, 165. Community center movement, extent of, 161. Community Center, Wingate, 152; a continuation school for training for public serv- ice, 160; a means of binding government and people to- gether, 159; cost of, 160; or- ganization of, 153; special enterprises of, 154. Community center workers, schools for, 134. 354 INDEX Community cooperation in city government, 64. Community organizations, d^. Community welfare, relation of business interests to, 66. Congestion of population in cities, iz. Control of experts. See under Experts. Cooke, Morris L., 7; on con- structive municipal publicity, 7; "plain talk" publicity of, for Philadelphia, 176. Cooperation, in municipal serv- ice, 306; of citizens, 64; of citizens with government through community center, 151 ; of industry and govern- ment, 306; of officials, 65. Corporation counsels, 78. Cortelyou, George B., career of, 52. Country districts, foreign-born population in, 3. Country homes, individual self- help in, 5. Country-life movement, i. County organizations of city officials, 326. Criminal, early reformation of, 19. Dayton, O., Bureau of Munic- ipal Research, on municipal publicity, 8; city manager form of government at, suc- cess of, 57; expert govern- ment of parks in, 11; play- grounds in, 9; probation sys- tem of 18; public welfare in, 8; publicity for, 174; re- lation of business interests to success in government of, 66. Democracy, dangers of expert to, 337; expert service and, 339; expert service and, sys- tem for reconciliation of, 343; modern, dangers of bureaucracy to, 337; modern, »eeds of, 335 ; rise of, in the United States, 334. Democratization in training in public service, 320. De Tocqueville 100 years later, Z7- Diplomatic training courses in universities, 122. District organizations of city officials, 326. Dusseldorf, Academy of Mu- nicipal Research of, training of municipal employees at, 274. "Economjr" and city govern- ment, 34. Education, public, 46; adminis- trative and supervising of- ficers a selected body in, 239 ; essentials for training for, 2Z7\ evolution of, 123; ex- perts in, 82; scope of activ- ities of, 284; skill in appli- cation of knowledge for, 240 ; social significance of the work in, 243 ; summary of, 245; teachers a selected body in, 238; training of teachers for, 235; types of training schools and classes for, 236. Educational administration, university training for, 291. Educational work in training while in public service, 316; attitude of educational agen- cies in, 317; attitude of em- ployees toward, 316. Electric light rates, 231. Electric lighting franchise grants, 222. Employees in municipal serv- ice, selection of, according to training in public service, 311; training of, in public service. See Public service; welfare of, 314. Engineering, municipal, scope of activities of, 284; univer- sity training fot, 292; part- time training for, 26(S. INDEX 355 Engineering specialists, 78. England, civic university move- ment in, 144. England, experts in council form of administration in, 41, 93, 102; English public opinion on, 97; permanency of, 98. England, filling of expert pub- lic office in, 189; municipal administration plan in, 93 ; public office the training for public servants in, 2']2. Eshleman, Mr., on "city fathers," 40. Ethics of public office, 278. Expert, definition of, 39. Expert administration and de- mocracy, system for recon- ciliation of, 343. Expert bureaucracy, dangers of, zyj. Expert government, fitting citi- zens for, through community center, 161. See also under Community center. Expert government, interpret- ing of, 168; antagonism in, 168 ; citizens' understanding necessary in, 180; inexpert publicity in, 178; "plain talk" publicity in, 176; public mis- information and, 169, 170; publicity for, 168; publicity must be full information iiij 175; publicity regarding, ne- cessary, 172; simplicity in publicity reports in, 179; value of publicity in, 171, 173. Expert service and democracy, 339. Experts, in mdustrial life, 38; in public and private af- fairs, 39; need of, for public service, 335; need of, in city government, 37; needed for drawing up franchises, 224; needed for municipal control of public utilities, 227 ; needed for municipal operation of public utilities, 228, 229, 231, 232, 233; needed for munici- pal regulation of privately owned public utilities, 225; President Wilson on, 338; value of, 338, 339. Experts, city, administrative, controlling of, 44 ; corruption among, 44; demand for, 62; direction of policy by, 45; need of, 40; power of, 43; present use of, 71 ; problem of, 71 ; superintendent of schools as, 45. Experts, city, (American ex- perience in, 99, 103; political interference with, 100; selec- tion of professional men as, 99; technical specialists as, 99. Experts, city, classification of, 73; control of, 72, 102; by citizens' agency, 340 ; by lay boards, 340; by popular intelligence, 339; by public hearings, 341 ; by union of power and responsibility, 342. Experts, city, fear of, 40; fu- ture of, in United States, 103. Experts, city, in foreign coun- tries, 90, 102; functions of, 93 ; in British council form of administration, 93, 102; in England, permanency of, 98; in England, English public opinion on, 97; in England, results of, ^; in German consolidat form of adminis- tration, 96, 102; training of, 93. Experts, city, in management by independent boards and commissions, 80; fire and police boards, 83 ; health boards, 82; in education, 82; influence of, in developing expertness, 85; political con- trol of, 83; relation of, to administrators, 84; relation 356 INDEX of, to permanent service, 8i ; salaries of, 86. Experts, city, in mayor and council form of administra- tion, 73; contributions of some progressive men, 74; efficiency exceptionally found in, T]\ "indispensable" men as, "JT^ interference^ with, 78; permanency lacking in, 76, 79; professional men as, Experts, city, local residence requirement for office of, 183; obstacle to efficient de- mocracy, 187; results of: continuation of party spoils, 185; inadequate training for experts, 186; insufficient na- tional supply of experts, 187; mediocre technical and ex- pert service, 183 ; mobiliza- tion of, through staff organ- ization, lOI. Farm districts, foreign-born population of, 3. Farm-lands, public, settling of, 2. Farm-life, early, industry of, 4; individual self-help, 5. Farmers, immigrants as, 3. Field work in public service, meaning and scope of, 261. Finance, municipal, scope of activities of, 284; university training for, 291. Fireboards, experts in, 83. Fitzpatrick, Dr. Edward A., 260, 261. Ford, Dr. C E., 54. Foreign-born population in ci- ties, 3. Forests, conservation of, 304. Frankfort, University of, 145. Galveston, Texas, commission form of government at, suc- cess of, 61. Gas rates, 231. German cities, efficiency of, ^^3. . . . ' German civic university at Frankfort, 145. German consolidat form of government, experts in, 96, 103. Germany, filling of expert pub- lic office in, 188; municipal administration plan in, 96; training of municipal em- ployees at, 276. Government, cooperation of in- dustry and, 306; expert, fit- ting citizens for, through community center, 161. (^Sce also under Community cen- ter) ; representative, re- sponsible government, 343. Harvard University School for Health Officers, 130; sanitary survey by, 263. Health, public. See Public health. Health boards, experts in, 82. Health commissioners, 78. Health officers, schools for training of, 130. Household economies, field work in, 265. Hughes, Charles Evans, 74. Hunter College, New York City, 147. Hygiene, social, 20. Immigrants as farmers, 3. Immigration and urbanization, 3. Independent boards and com- missions. See Boards and Commissions, independent. Indiana, University of, field work for public service in, 264. "Indispensable" men in munici- pal administration, 77. Industrial life, use of experts in, 38. Industry, cooperation of gov- ernment and, 306; in cities. INDEX 357 5; in early farm-life, 4; urbanization and, 4. International organizations of city officials, 325. Interstate organizations of city officials, 326. Jackson, Andrew, founder of Democracy, 334; on duties of public officers, 334. Jacobs, J. L., 55. Jefferson, Thomas, on public office-holders, 48. Johns Hopkins University, in- stitute of hygiene and public health being organized at, 131. Keyes, Dr. Edward L., Jr., on social hygiene, 20. King, Dr. Clyde Lyndon, 16. Kolbe, President, of University of Akron, on municipal uni- versities, 143. Laws, making of, results of, 62; making of, statistics of, 62; vs. public sentiment in city government, 62. Legal aid, field work in, 264. Legal department of city, scope of activities of, 283. Legal positions, municipal, uni- versity training for, 288. Legislature, educational influ- ence of administrative organ- izations on, 332. Library work, part-time train- ing in, 266. Local organizations of city of- ficials, 326. Local residence requirement for office of public expert. See Expert, city. Louisville, Ky., University of, 14s. Lowell, President, of Harvard, 62. McFarland, J. Horace, 7. Manufacturing, in cities, 5. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, engineering ad- ministration courses in, 128; school for training public health officers in, 130. Mayor and council form in city administration, efficiency ex- ceptionally found in, 77; con- tributions of some progres- sive men in, 74; experts of, 72 ; "indispensable" men in, 77; interference with experts in, 78; permanency lacking in, 76, 79; professional men in, 78. Michigan, University of, mu- nicipal administration train- ing in, 125. Military training, for U. S. Army, 274; comparison be- tween European and, 252, 253; comparison of, with training for civil service, 256; continuous, for men in serv- ice, 251 ; developing experi- mental research in, 255; de- veloping the "reserve of abil- ity" in, 252 ; educational sys- tem of, 248; practical train- ing and theoretical instruc- tion in, 250; promotion fol- lowing, 255 ; summary of, 256; training in adminis- tration and technique in» 254. Milwaukee common council, 79; fire and police commis- sion, 83, 85. Minnesota, University of, field work for public service in, 264 ; municipal training courses at, 115, 117. Mitchel, John, on value of con- sultation, 65. Municipal activities, 8, 9, 12, Municipal administration, in- adequacy of, 33; urban wel- fare a problem of, 5. Municipal administrators. See City officials. 358 INDEX Municipal employees in Ger- many, training of, 274, 276. Municipal experts. See Experts, city. Municipal government {^See City government) ; manage- ment of, by independent boards and commissions, ex- perts in, 80. Municipal improvement, 7; city planning, 21 ; municipal pub- licity constructive, 7; mu- nicipal service in, 12; hy- gienic welfare, 17; parole system for prisoners, 19; police used in social welfare work, 17; probation system for prisoners, 18 ; public safe- ty activities, 16; public wel- fare, 8, 9, 11; social hygiene, 20; taxes and, 12; welfare of public employees, 15. Municipal life, obligation of, 22. Municipal publicity, construc- tive, 7. Municipal reform, old and new conception of, 65. Municipal research, bureau of, 66._ Municipal service, organization of, 297-301 ; taxes and, 12 ; training for, compared with training for Army, 247 et seq., 256. Municipal service, training for public service in, 267, 302; advancements in, 314; as conservation, 303 ; central employment office and, 312; consideration of employee himself in, 310; democratiza- tion in, 320 ; educational work in, 316; for future efficiency, 304; in cooperation, 306; se- lection of employees accord- ing to, 311; personal respon- sibility and, 321, 322; pub- licity through "talking" of employees for press in, 321 ; training for all employees. 309; yearly report of fore- men on employees in, 313; welfare of employees and. Municipal universities, in Eu- rope, 144;, in United States, 145; relation of, to expert city government, 148. Municipal university movement and public service training, 141.. Municipal welfare. See Pub- lic welfare. Nashville, Tenn., city manager system at, 59. National conference on uni- versities and public service, 261. National Municipal League, Committee on Constructive Municipal Publicity of, 7; Committee on the Relation of the City to Its Food Sup- ply, 16. National Municipal Review, article on "American Con- ceptions of Municipal Gov- ernment," IS-. . National organizations of city officials, 325, 326. Nebraska, University of, field work for public service in, 264 ; municipal training courses at, 117. New York, College of the City of, 146 ; field work for public service in, 264; public service courses in, 128. New York Central land grab, 169, 170. New York Constitution of 1915, defeat of, 67. New York School of Philan- thropy, 132. New York Training School for Community Center Workers, 134. New York Training School for Public Service, 136; scope of work of, 137. INDEX 359 New York City, Bureau of Municipal Research of, on expert government, i68, 169; center for field work in pub- lic service, 262; expert gov- ernment of, accomplishments of, 171 ; Institute for Public Service of, 140; New York Central grab in, 169, 170; police activities in public welfare in, 17; welfare of public employees in, 15. New York University, public service courses in, 116, 128. Normal school training for teachers, 274. Northime, Frank E., 55. Officials, public, cooperation of, 65; organizations of, 65. See also City officials. Panama Canal, a tribute to ability of Army, 247. Parks in Dayton, O., 11. Parole and reformatory work, 17; of Philadelphia, 19. Partisan employees, 267, 269. Party assessments, "voluntary," 268. Party spoils, 185. Pennsylvania, University of, and public service, 128, Pensions for retired public em- ployees, 216. Philadelphia, parole system of, 19; Bureau of Municipal Re- search, 12; contructive mu- nicipal publicity in, 7, 8; mu- nicipal service in, 12; "plain talk" publicity of director of public works at, 176; public service salaries in, 52. Pittsburgh, University of, 147. Playgrounds, in Daj^ton, O., 9. Police boards, experts in, 83. Political campaigns now inci- dental, 67. Political service, city office a training center for, :^7. Political science, city office as training center for teachers of, 273, 277; field work in, 264. Politics, selfishness in, 26; warning against, 26. Popular intelligence, control of experts by, 339. Private business lessons applied to public service, 270. Probation system in Dayton, O., 18. Professional education. See under University training. Professional men in municipal administration, 78. Public education. See Educa- tion, public. Public employees, welfare of, IS. Public farm-lands, settling of, 2. Public Health, Doctor of, de- gree, 132. Public health administration, field work in, 263 ; scope of activities of, 284. Public health service, university training for, 290. Public hearings, value of, 341. Public interest vs. private in- terests, 25. Public office of expert, local residence requirement for, 183; obstacle to efficient de- mocracy, 187; results of: continuation of party spoils, 185; inadequate training for experts, 186; insufficient na- tional supply of experts, 187 ; mediocre technical and ex- pert service, 183. Public safety administrations, university training for, 293; scope of activities of, 284, 285. Public sentiment and city gov- ernment, 66 ; and law, 59 ; vs. laws in city government, 63. Public service, attracting to, 203; compensation in, ade- quate and fair, 207; compen- 36o INDEX sation standardized in, 209 ; disability and retirement al- lowances in, 215; employ- ments standardized in, 212; fundamental considerations in, 203; greater security of tenure necessary in, 204; highest ideals offered in, 204 ; opportunities for promo- tion in, 210, 212; political abuses must be removed, 219; popular appreciation of, as life career, 217; promo- tion by civil service exami- nation in, 21 1 ; summary of, 220; trial boards for accused employees in, 206; welfare work for employees in, 213. Public service, career in, ob- stacles to, 50; civil service rules in, 205. Public service, classes of city employees in: partisan, 267, 269;^ "reformers," 268; "business" administration, 269. Public service, compensation for, adequate, 51 ; dangers of bureaucracy to, 337; ex- perts for, need of, 335. Public service, filling of vacan- cies in, recruiting for, 191 ; in England, 189; in Germany, 188; in United States, 190; investigation of experience and character in, 194; new demands in, 191 ; out-of- date methods in, 201 ; "prac- tical test" in, 192; recent improvements in, 191 ; spe- cial oral examining boards in, 195; standardization in, 199 ; unassembled examina- tions in, 197. Public service, illustrations of successful careers in, 53. Public service, men leaving, 48; conclusions on, 55, 56; loss from, 49, 50; statistics of, 49. Public service, national con- ference on universities and, 261; on party lines, 60; re- sults in, responsibility for, 60; saving of training in gov- ernment for use in, 48; So- ciety for the Promotion of Training for, 261. Public service, training for, 257; business lessons applied to, 270; agencies for, 105; city office a training centei for, 267; city office as train- ing center for teachers of, 273, 277; continuous training in, 271 ; coordination of prac- tical training with, 121; cost of training employees for, 270, 271; "doing" as the ac- tual test in, 280; field work in, application of principles of, 26s ; field work in, mean- ing and scope of, 261 ; for men engaged in public work, 115; for un,dergraduateSj 1 15- 1 18. Public service, training for, in universities and colleges, 105, 121, 122, 123, 124; amount of instruction in, 107; in tech- nical colleges, 109; methodt of instruction too academic in, 112; neglect of adminis* trative methods in, iii ; pref- erence for abstract prin- ciples of government in, 112; suggestions for im- provement in, 113. Public service, training for, movement for practical, 260; municipal university move- ment and, 141, 144, 145, 148; need of training schools for, 119; of lower employees at Aschersleben, 274; of muni- cipal officials at Diisseldorf, 274; part-time, 257-259, 274; part-time, for teachers, 274; part-time, in universities, 259; practical, during course, 257 ; public responsibility and ethics in, 278; schools for. INDEX 361 136; schools for community center workers in, 134; schools for health officers in, 130; schools for social work- ers in, 132; theoretical in- struction in, 105; training teachers as example of, 235 ; trend of, toward effective theoretical instruction, 105. Public service, training for, while in municipal service, 302; advancement in, 314; as conservation, 303 ; central employment office in, 312; consideration of employee himself in, 310; democratiza- tion in, 320; educational work in, 316; for all em- ployees, 309; for future effi- ciency, 304; in cooperation, 306 ; personal responsibility and, 321, 322; publicity through "talking" of em- ployees for press in, 321 ; training school for better private positions, 55, 56; se- lection of employees accord- ing to, 311; welfare of em- ployees and, 314; yearly re- port foremen on employees in, 313. Public utilities, 221. Public utilities, municipal oper- ation of, 228; experts needed for, 228, 229, 231, 232, 233; problem of rates in, 231 ; problems arising from, 232; profits vs. service in, 229. Public utilities, privately . owned, 221 ; experts needed in framing franchises for, 224; municipal control of, experts needed for, 227 ; mu- nicipal regulation of, experts needed for, 225; securing franchises for, 222-224. Pub- lic welfare, community bet- terment and, 8; in cities, a problem of administration, 5; in cities, scope of activ- ities of, 284, 285 ; in Dayton, O., 8; public safety and, 16; taxes and, 12. Publicity in interpreting expert government, 168; antagonism to, 168; citizens' understand- ing of, 180; inexpert, 178; must be full information, 175; "plain talk," 176; pub- lic misinformation and, 169, 170; simplicity in reports of, 179; value of, 171, 172, 173. Publicity, municipal, 64, 66; constructive, 7 ; through "talking" of employees for press in public service, 321. Recreation activities in Day- ton, O., 8. Reform system, municipal, old and new conception of, 65. "Reformers," 268. Responsibility, personal, in public service, 63, 278, 321, 322. Retirement pensions, 216. Riverside grab by New York Central, New York City, 169, 170. Roosevelt, Theodore, 74, Root, Elihu, on making of laws, 62. Rural welfare, 5. See also un- der Country. Safety, public, and public wel- fare, 16; scope of activities of, 284, 285. Salem, Mass., commission gov- ernment at, 61. School teachers, length of service of, 49. Schurz, Carl, on making and executing of laws, 63. "Shop-opinion" in municipal service, 314. Signor, George C, 54. Social hygiene, 20. Social sciences, field work in, 265. Society for the Promotion of Z^2 INDEX Training for Public Service, 261. Spaulding, Supt. F. E., of Cleveland, O., 179. St. Louis School of Social Economy, 133. State organizations of city of- ficials, 326. Stokes, Harry, assassination of, 59. Street car rates, 232. Superintendent of schools an administrative expert, 45. Taxes and service, 12. Teachers, evolution of training for, ^ 123; normal school training for, 274; of political science, city office as training center for, 273; of political science part-time training for, 274 ; training of, 235. See also under Education, pub- lic. Texas, University of, municipal administration training in, 125. Toledo, University of, 147, 148. Town planning, 69. Training for public service in universities and colleges. See Public service training. Transportation and urbaniza- tion, 3. Union College, sanitary en- gineering courses in, 130. Universities, municipal, and public service training, 141 ; in Europe, 144; in United States,. 145; relation of, to expert city government, 148. Universities, new relation of, to community, 143. Universities and colleges, pub- lic service training in, 105, 123, 124; amount of instruc- tion in, 107; in technical schools, 109; methods of in- struction too academic in. 112; neglect of administra- tive methods in, 1 1 1 ; part- time, 259; preference for ab- stract principles of govern- ment in, 112; suggestions for improvement in, 113. University and Public Service, Conference of, 143. University training for higher municipal offices, 281 ; fields of municipal administration to be studied, 283; for city managers, 294; for educa- tional administration, 291 ; for legal positions, 288; for municipal engineering, 292 ; f«r municipal finance, 291 ; for public health service, 290; for public safety administra- tion, 293 ; liberal elements part of training in, 285 ; so- cial science training neces- sary for, 282; special pro- gram necessary for, 282. Urban life, advantages of, 33; disadvantages of, 32. Urban welfare, a problem of administration. See also Public welfare. Urbanization, immigration and, 3; industry and, 4; rapid, in United States, 2; transporta- tion and, 3. Utilities, public. See Public utilities. Vanderlip, President, of Na- tional City bank, career of, 53. ... Vocational trammg, 46. i Waite, city manager, of Day- ton, o., 55. Washington, D. C, welfare work for public employees in, 213, 214. Washington University, St. Louis School of Economy of, 133. Water rates, 231. INDEX 363 Water works, public and pri- vate ownership of, 222. Welfare of employees in pub- lic service, 213, 314; public, scope of activities of, 284, 285. See also Public wel- fare. W^st Point, appointment upon graduation from, 255; prac- tical and theoretical instruc- tion at, 250. Western Reserve University, municipal administration training in, 126. Westward flow of settlers, 2. Wilson, President, on experts, 338. Wingate community center, New York City, 152; a con- tinuation school for training for public service, 160; a means of binding govern- ment and people together, 159 ; Community Clearing House, 156, 157; community labor center, 154; community night school of, 154; cost of, 160; organization of, 153; social clinic for unadjusted children, 155; special enter- prises of, 154, Wisconsin, University of, mu- nicipal training courses at, 117. Women's city club of Cincin- nati, 64. Woods, Police Commissioner, New York City, 83. a) 14 DAY USE RJKl URN TO DESK FROM WHICH BORROWED LOAN DEPT. RENEWALS ONLY— TEL. NO. 642-3405 This book is due on the last date stamped below, or on the date to which renewed. Renewed books are subject to immediate recalL i^M27WU^ ^ rrn28 70-UJIll BEC'D LD rtu ^^ ' ** 9^nm uAy e 19/u s < \ REC'DLD JUNl B70-2PM56 1 1 i j ^ilV.t^T.?i?i-3. "--HS^"^» 1 7 YB 08757 I. i I" m .iti