PREFACE. Kansas City has the right under the Constitution of the State to fame its own charter, and is one of the few cities of the United States possessing that privilege. The Constitution of the State of Missouri and the "Enabling Act" passed by the general assembly in 1887 provide that cities in Missouri of the same class with Kansas City may, according to the terms in the Act contained, proceed to make their own laws for their municipal government. Following out the terms of this Enabling Act, the people of Kansas City in 1889 framed a charter which has been and is now the charter of the city. This old charter was an excellent one at that time, but its limitations and the necessity for larger powers in the administration of the city's affairs have long been realized, in view of the growth and expansion of the city. On November 8th, 1904, the thirteen freeholders whose names appear in this charter were duly elected to prepare a draft of a new charter. Under the law, it was necessary that the completed charter should be delivered to the mayor within ninety days from the date of the election of the board, and it was only after the most arduous and constant labor that the completed instrument was delivered to the mayor on February 6, 1905. In preparing the new charter, the Board, in every possible way, endeavored to obtain the views of the people of Kansas City upon all proposed changes in the organic law, and while the work was progressing, about three hundred written suggestions, many of them of great value, came to the Board from citizens of Kansas City, and were carefully considered. Many citizens of Kansas City took active part in the deliberations and discussions of the Board, the meetings being at all times open to the public and the press. Reporters of all the newspapers were made welcome at the meetings and the newspapers kept the sub jects under discussion constantly before the people. Among the citizens of Kansas City assisting the Board, whose work was especially valuable, were R. J. Ingraham and W. O. Thomas of the city's law department, and H. M. Beardsley, president of the Board of Public Works. Both by correspondence and by means of addresses before the Board, detailed information was sought and obtained from experts in municipal government in other cities. The charters and experiences of the leading cities of the country were carefully studied and freely used. Several committees of resident physicians submitted suggestions and resolutions concerning the organization of the Hospital and Health Departments. The Board also received communications from men prominent in this class of work in other cities, and was fortunate in having present at one of its meetings, Dr. C. A. Abbott, superintendent of the bureau of health of Philadelphia, and Professor L. S. Rowe of the University of Pennsylvania. After the first draft of the article on civil service was made, copies were sent to a number of leading experts in different parts of the country with request for criticisms. All responded, making suggestions which were, in many instances, adopted. Among those who thus interested themselves in this branch of the charter were Delos F. Wilcox, secretary of the Civic Club of Grand Rapids; Frank J. Goodnow of Columbia University; S. William Briscoe, for several years secretary of the Civil Service Commission of New York City; E. F. Moran, secretary of the Civil Service Commission of San Francisco; Warren P. Dudley, secretary of the Civil Service Commission of Massachusetts; Elliott H. Goodwin, secretary of the National Civil Service Reform League; Robert D. Jenks, secretary of the Pennsylvania Civil Service Reform Association; Frederick A. Cleveland of the University of the City of New York; Clinton Rogers Woodruff, secretary of the National Municipal League, and John C. Black, president of the United States Civil Service Commission. Immediately after their election, the Board of Freeholders organized by electing J. V. C. Karnes President of the Board and A. R. Meyer Vice President, and subsequently appointed J. W. S. Peters as Secretary of the Board, and Miss Laura M. Walker as official stenographer. The President of the Board to expedite the work appointed several sub-committees, to each of which were assigned particular portions of the old charter for such revision and additions as they might deem necessary. These sub-committees thus appointed were as follows: First Committee: D. J. Haff, chairman, A. R. Meyer and William Barton, to consider the subjects of Corporate Powers, Boundaries and Wards; The Common Council; Powers of the Common Council; Licenses and Ordinances; and the Establishment and Maintenance of the Parks and Boulevards. The work of this committee appears in Articles I, II, III and XIV of the new charter. Second Committee: D. B. Holmes, chairman, F. A. Faxon and George S. Graham, to whom were referred the Police Department; the Fire Department; Dramshop Licenses; Franchises; and the Construction of Street Railways; the Vacation of Streets and Alleys and Miscellaneous Provisions. The work of this committee is to be found in the new charter under Articles X, XVIII, XX, XXI and XXII. In addition, D. B. Holmes drafted an article on "Sewer Outlets and Condemnations Beyond the City Limits" (Article IX of the new Charter), for which no provision was contained. in the old charter. Third Committee: C.,S. Palmer, chairman, J. J. Green and John Donnelly were appointed to consider Revenue and Taxation; Condemning and Damaging Private Property, Grading Streets and Highways, Public Improvements and Special Tax Bills. The result of the work of this committee appears in Articles V, VI, VII and VIII of the new charter. Fourth Committee: R. B. Middlebrook, Charles Campbell and C. J. Hubbard were requested to make a study of Municipal Officers, and the Apportionment of the City Money and Creating Liabilities, Sinking Funds, and Appointment of Officers; Board of Public Works, City Supplies; Water Works and their Management and Control; Light, Gas, Heat and Electric Works. The work of this committee appears in the new charter in Articles IV, XI, XII and XIII. Fifth Committee: F. A. Faxon, chairman, A. R. Meyer and C. S. Palmer were asked to prepare the Hospital and Sanitary articles of the new charter. At the request of the chairman, F. A. Faxon, D. B. Holmes was added to this committee and assisted in the preparation of these articles. The work of this committee is contained in Articles XVI and XVII. Sixth Committee: R. B. Middlebrook, chairman, George S. Graham and William Barton were appointed to investigate and take the lead in the Board's consideration of Civil Service. This article is XIX of the new charter. In addition to the work above specified, D. J. Haff prepared and offered for the consideration of the Board a special article on Street Cleaning, which was adopted. This appears as Article XV. Immediately after the formation of these sub-committees, steps were taken toward obtaining data and information concerning the municipal organization and government of other cities. After consideration of the information thus obtained, the several committees drafted articles upon the matters committed to them and submitted them to the Board. As soon as they were prepared, the Freeholders held full board meetings almost daily, discussing the articles as reported to them. All the proceedings of the Board were daily reported in the press, and many provisions proposed and discussed were afterwards, upon mature deliberation, abandoned. The charter should be studied by all interested in particular subjects, in order to acquaint themselves with the exact provisions as finally adopted. This suggestion is especially applicable to the Excise, Franchise, Public Improvements and Civil Service Articles. After all the articles were finally approved by the full Board, on February 1, 1905, the President appointed Messrs. D. B. Holmes and D. J. Haff an editing committee to revise and harmonize the several articles into a consistent whole, and on the recommendations of this committee a number of important provisions were inserted in the draft as it now appears. Every point of departure from the old charter was discussed by the Board sentence by sentence, and in many instances, word by word, and changes were adopted only after careful consid |