Honorable Judges, such men are in a position to legislate with thoroughness.  They are a commission council, the very nature of which makes it inevitable that they act with intelligence and efficiency.

Contrast now, the commission council with the isolated council.  Here we find positively no co-ordination between the legislative and administrative branches, while a century of experience with the scheme of checks and balances has proved conclusively that it can not prevent municipal corruption.  Moreover, legislation by the isolated council is not only chaotic in form but it is irresponsible, while in the case of the commission council the very fact that the head of each department possesses necessary information not only secures adequate legislation but fixes with certainty the entire responsibility.

The isolated council is a large and unwieldy body.  Each member of it has his own private occupation.  Without special preparation of any kind he attends council not oftener than once a week.  Intelligent action under such conditions is simply impossible.  The only way this council has of securing reliable information is from the heads of the administrative departments.  But even then responsibility is still divided between the legislative and administrative branches.  This deplorable state of affairs has been synchronous with the growth of the isolated council in America.

Is it any wonder that the old Des Moines council voted to construct a bridge only to find when the work was completed that the city did not even own the approaches, or that the old Cedar Rapids council let a similar contract at an exorbitantly high price, only to find, when the work was completed, that the contract called for no protecting wings or abutments, and the city was compelled to spend many thousands of dollars additional in order to make the structure safe?  Such nonsensical legislation is a direct result of the isolated council.  It fails to provide information essential to intelligent action.  It does not permit a proper co-ordination of departments so vitally necessary in successful city government.

    Lastly, city legislation demands unbiased representation.  In this
    respect a commission council is superior to an isolated council.

In the commission council each member represents the entire city.  Hence, there is no incentive to favor one ward at the expense of another.  In fact, any such an attempt could result only in disaster to the commissioner himself.  Furthermore, each commissioner is held individually responsible for his department.  Consequently he is forced to insist upon an impartial representation of the entire city.  This is well illustrated by the present situation in New York City.  The Bureau of Municipal Research, admittedly the most practical organization of its kind in the country, is conducting its work along the line of effective