"
"I don't know that I fully comprehend you," said Goodspeed. "Please
illustrate."
"Well, take one state for an example, where the constitution
adopted during the reconstruction period introduced the township
system, and authorized the electors of each township to choose
their justices of the peace, constables, school-cominitteemen, and
other local officials. It permitted the people of the county to
choose a board of commissioners, who should administer the financial
matters of the county, and, in some instances, exeicise a limited
judicial authority. But now they have, in effect, returned to the
old system. The dominant party in the Legislature appoints every
justice of the peace in the state. The justices of the peace of
each county elect from their number the county commissioners; the
county commissioners appoint the school-committeemen, the roadmasters,
the registrars of election and the judges of election; so that
every local interest throughout the entire state is placed under
the immediate power and control of the dominant party, although
not a tenth part of the voters of any particular township or county
may belong to that party. In another state all this power, and even
more, is exercised by the Chief Executive; and in all of them you
will find that the county--or its equivalent, the parish--is the
smallest political unit having a municipal character.
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