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Juanjo Galan
123
Juanjo Galan
Department of Architecture
Aalto University
Espoo, Etelä-Suomi, Finland
This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG
The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
Foreword I
This book presents a comprehensive regional model that is the result of exhaustive multi-
disciplinary research. It features an integrative and sustainability orientated plan for the
south-central area of the Calderona Mountain Range (Sierra Calderona). The plan exceeds
strict municipal demarcations and covers an area of incomparable heritage, natural, and
cultural wealth.
The Universitat Politècnica de València and the municipalities of Serra, Náquera, Marines,
Olocau, and Gátova developed the plan for the south-central area of Sierra Calderona, with the
invaluable assistance of their fellow citizens. The plan offers an exceptional example of
sustainable planning and of the effective management of natural, cultural, and social resources.
The implementation of this comprehensive plan will certainly contribute to improving the
quality of life of the inhabitants of the Sierra Calderona.
It is essential to treat both the Calderona Natural Park and its habitats with due respect, so
that future generations will be able to discover and enjoy its privileged and rich environment.
That is why an effort was needed to forge a strong complicity between nature and society,
based on an integrative approach and on a balanced combination of layers and interests.
Development paths, that used to diverge, converge now harmoniously in the Strategic Plan,
and the combination of different disciplines leads now to intelligent and sustainable growth.
v
Foreword II
The traditional urban–rural dichotomy and the classical systems of planning are being chal-
lenged by new ways of living, working, producing, consuming, and enjoying free time. At the
same time, science is providing us with clear evidence of the deep connections between social
and ecological systems.
In this context, we try to navigate among the legitimate aspiration of each generation to live
better and the urgent necessity to understand local and global implications of our individual
and collective actions.
We are more people than ever before, but at the same time—and following the emergence
of new sustainability frameworks and new social and governance paradigms—we might be
better equipped to integrate complexity, to share the planet in a smarter way, and to look for
synergies instead of conflicting interests. Somehow, we do not have another moral and ethical
alternative.
This book is a pioneering exploration of what can be achieved when we choose the path of
integration instead of the highway of division.
Pekka Heikkinen
Head of the Department of Architecture
Aalto University
vii
Preface
The main reason for writing this book was to show, through a case study, the synergies that
can be provided by integrative planning and explore new possibilities to link all the disciplines
involved in regional planning. The book shows how, in planning, the whole can be greater
than the sum of the parts and that the sustainability framework can be an ideal platform for
multi-, inter- and trans-disciplinarity. This book is aimed at a wide range of professions and
experts, who will find themselves represented in the Sierra Calderona Strategic Plan and will
get new insights on how their specific work or knowledge can contribute to a bigger picture.
The whole work incorporates new methodologies and graphical systems for regional and
local planning and constitutes an example of multidisciplinary planning based on principles of
sustainability, system thinking, participatory governance, and local adaptation.
In particular, this book presents a set of 10 sectoral plans and 18 pilot projects covering a
complete set of territorial layers and organized into the following chapters: Landscape and
Land-Use Plan, Natural Environment Plan, Game Management Plan, Agriculture Plan,
Livestock Farming Plan, Urban Planning and Well-Being Plan, Cultural Heritage Plan,
Tourism and Public Use Plan, Socioeconomic Development and Sustainability Plan, Gover-
nance and Implementation Plan. In addition, the 18 pilot projects develop in detail some of the
most crucial and innovative ideas proposed in the sectoral plans and have often been devel-
oped in close collaboration with local entrepreneurs and groups.
This book follows the publication by Springer of the book Analysis and Strategies for
Sustainable Regional Planning: Sierra Calderona Strategic Plan, Spain (Galan, 2018), of
which the comprehensive analysis and diagnosis of the Sierra Calderona and the subsequent
formulation of regional objectives and strategies have informed and guided the definition
of the sectoral plans and pilot projects presented in this volume.
Therefore, the whole contents of the Sierra Calderona Strategic Plan have been included in
two volumes, both of them published by Springer:
• Analysis and Strategies for Sustainable Regional Planning: Sierra Calderona Strategic
Plan, Spain;
• Sectoral Plans and Pilot Projects for Sustainable Development: Sierra Calderona
Strategic Plan, Spain.
ix
Acknowledgements
For their collaboration and support in the preparation of the Sierra Calderona Strategic Plan:
For their assistance in the preparation of the GIS cartography and regional maps:
For their advice and support in the Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV):
xi
xii Acknowledgements
For their advice and support in the Municipalities included in the Sierra Calderona
Strategic Plan:
1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.1 Contents of the Book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 The Scope: South-Central Area of Sierra Calderona . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.3 The Sierra Calderona Strategic Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.4 Analysis and Diagnosis of the Sierra Calderona . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.4.1 Natural Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.4.2 Agriculture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.4.3 Urban Environment and Well-Being . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
1.4.4 Transport Infrastructures and Mobility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
1.4.5 Landscape and Territorial Models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
1.4.6 Sustainability (Material and Energy Flows) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
1.4.7 Demography and Employment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
1.4.8 Local Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
1.5 Regional Objectives and Strategies for the Sierra Calderona . . . . . . . . . . 20
1.5.1 Natural Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
1.5.2 Agriculture and Livestock Farming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
1.5.3 Urban Environment and Well-Being . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
1.5.4 Infrastructure and Mobility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
1.5.5 Cultural Heritage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
1.5.6 Tourism and Public Use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
1.5.7 Landscape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
1.5.8 Sustainability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
1.5.9 Socio-Demography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
1.5.10 Economic Activity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
1.5.11 Governance and Regional Planning and Management . . . . . . . . 22
Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
2 Landscape and Land-Use Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
2.1 Motivation and Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
2.2 Landscape Characterisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
2.2.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
2.2.2 Landscape Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
2.2.3 Landscape Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
2.3 Visual Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
2.4 Landscape Assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
2.4.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
2.4.2 Landscape Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
2.4.3 Landscape Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
2.5 Landscape Quality Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
2.5.1 Landscape Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
2.5.2 Landscape Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
xiii
xiv Contents
10.10 Pilot Project: Study for the Improvement of Regional Metabolisms . . . . . 387
10.10.1 Motivation and Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 387
10.10.2 Current Flows of Matter and Energy: Linear Models . . . . . . . . 387
10.10.3 Potential Adjustments in Flows of Matter and Energy
in a More Sustainable and Circular Model (Fig. 10.9) . . . . . . . 389
10.10.4 Improvements in Ecological Footprints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391
10.10.5 Monitoring of Sustainability Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391
10.10.6 Associated Regional Objectives and Strategies . . . . . . . . . . . . . 392
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 392
11 Governance and Implementation Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 393
11.1 Motivation and Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 393
11.2 Study of Alternatives for the Establishment of a Supramunicipal Unit . . . 394
11.2.1 Possible Inter-municipal Associative Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . 394
11.2.2 Situation of the Municipalities of the Sierra Calderona
Strategic Plan Regarding Inter-municipal Collaboration . . . . . . . 397
11.2.3 The Sierra Calderona Strategic Plan in Relation to the Existing
Structures for Inter-municipal Collaboration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 397
11.3 Support Structures for the Implementation of the Sierra Calderona
Strategic Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398
11.3.1 Inter-municipal Office of the Sierra Calderona
Strategic Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398
11.3.2 Role of the Municipalities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 399
11.3.3 Links with the Sierra Calderona Natural Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 399
11.4 Implementation and Use of the Sierra Calderona Strategic Plan . . . . . . . . 400
11.4.1 As Reference Document . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 400
11.4.2 As Binding Document . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 400
Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 400
12 Public Participation Plan (Phase 3): Sectoral Plans and Pilot Projects . . . . . . 401
Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 408
13 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 409
13.1 On the Objectives of the Sierra Calderona Strategic Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . 409
13.2 On the Contents of the Sierra Calderona Strategic Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . 409
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 412
About the Author
xxiii
Introduction
1
Fig. 1.2 Land-cover in the geographical range of the Sierra Calderona Strategic Plan. Source Adapted from CORINE LAND COVER 2000
4 1 Introduction
Fig. 1.3 Intersection between the geographical scope of the Sierra Calderona Strategic Plan and the zoning defined in the “Use and Management
Governing Plan of the Sierra Calderona Natural Park”. Source Own Elaboration and CITMA
Fig. 1.4 Structure of the Sierra Calderona Strategic Plan. Source Own elaboration
1.3 The Sierra Calderona Strategic Plan 5
answers to the problems and opportunities of the five the local economy, and in particular, they could improve the
municipalities included in the plan. It will be fitted if it relationship of the population with the surrounding natural
considers the peculiarities of the Sierra Calderona and if it environment. The economic activity has been estimated to
creates the necessary bridges between the broad principles of comprise:
the Territorial Strategy for the Valencian Region and the • Timber production: €120,000/year
more specific determinations of local plans. Finally, it will • Biomass production (chips): €34,000/year
be integrative if it establishes a fruitful and effective dialogue • Cork harvesting: €13,000/year
between all the territorial layers, objectives and interests • Truffle harvesting: €179,000/year
addressed in the Plan. • Honey harvesting: €30,000/year
Interestingly, the Sierra Calderona might be perceived as • Game hunting: €140,000/year
a prototypical example of a natural area located at the limits Fire risk: Fire is the greatest hazard in the area, as the
of an urban agglomeration. Such areas are often exposed to housing estates and towns surrounded by forest are the most
the same pressures; they face the same challenges, and vulnerable areas. Currently, the prevention and extinguish-
therefore, they can share similar strategic solutions. ing system includes a system of tracks and paths integrated
into a network of forest firebreaks. This firebreak network
could be reinforced with rainfed agriculture, which is now in
1.4 Analysis and Diagnosis of the Sierra serious decline. Hydrants and water reservoirs are distributed
Calderona irregularly. There is a strong concentration of hydrants
around towns and housing estates in the surroundings of
The Analysis and Diagnosis of the south central area of the Náquera, Serra and Olocau and a concentration of water
Sierra Calderona was developed in the first phase of the reservoirs in the northern part of Sierra Calderona.
Sierra Calderona Strategic Plan and presented in the book Public use: The path and road network (forest tracks and
Analysis and Strategies for Sustainable Regional Planning: trails) is extensive but discontinuous. Some areas of high
The Sierra Calderona Strategic Plan, Spain (Galan 2018). interest are difficult to locate and/or access and there is a lack
The analysis and diagnosis was structured into ten the- of recreational sites. There are few campsites and rural
matic areas or layers which, at all times, have been inte- accommodation options, as well as shelters in the interior
grated in order to provide a crosscutting profile of the region. area (Figs. 1.5 and 1.6).
This subchapter includes a summary of each thematic area
with the purpose of facilitating a full understanding of the ten
sectoral plans and pilot projects included in this book.
1.4.2 Agriculture
1.4.1 Natural Environment Agricultural land: This land-use accounts for 20% of the
area of the Sierra Calderona Strategic Plan and could be
Forest: This land-use represents 68% of the surface area of divided into two main categories: montane agriculture,
the five municipalities included in the Sierra Calderona mainly represented by rainfed crops (olive, almond, carob
Strategic Plan, of which 56% is strategic and 44% common trees) in a very strong recession; and lowland agriculture,
forest land. Forest plays an important environmental and mainly irrigation crops (mostly citrus trees, as they represent
landscape role, as it is mainly located between settlements 52% of the total agricultural land) (Fig. 1.7).
on the south of Náquera and Olocau. Regarding land own- Abandonment of soils with high agricultural fertility:
ership, most of the forest is privately owned (71%), how- Urbanization, especially during the last decades, has mainly
ever, in the municipality of Serra there are significant developed over soils with a medium, high or very high
pockets that are owned by the municipality or the regional agricultural fertility.
government. Economic possibilities of agriculture: The study of the
Protection: The Calderona Natural Park mainly comprises a profitability of different crops, permits us to conclude that
matrix of forest, including a network of rainfed agricultural professional agriculture, mainly on irrigated fields, is still
crops and small urbanised areas. The Natural Park covers feasible. However, crops that are more profitable should be
49% of the area included in the Sierra Calderona Strategic introduced, and production, processing and marketing
Plan and 64.5% of its total forest. activities should be optimized.
Economic activity: The study of potential forest economic Livestock farming: Extensive livestock farming has virtu-
activities shows that they could contribute significantly to ally disappeared from Sierra Calderona. However, its
6 1 Introduction
Fig. 1.5 Strategic and common forest land in the south central area of Sierra Calderona. Source PATFOR, Vaersa
importance in the management of montane habitats might 1.4.3 Urban Environment and Well-Being
recommend its reintroduction in duly confined areas. Such
reintroduction would only be feasible if combined with a Urban land in the Sierra Calderona can be categorized into
strong marketing strategy and proper processing of the the following categories: Areas with a predominant resi-
products (meat, sausages, cheese, etc.). dential function (towns, villages, housing estates and
1.4 Analysis and Diagnosis of the Sierra Calderona 7
Fig. 1.7 Agricultural plots in plains (top), orchards and vegetable gardens in villages (centre) and rainfed terraced fields in mountainous areas
(bottom). Source Bingmaps
scattered settlements) and areas with a predominantly – Villages and Towns: The historic urban centres of Sierra
industrial or commercial activity. Calderona have a high visual quality potential for tour-
ism. However, some of them are difficult to access and
Residential Areas: The study of the urban fabric with a include some poorly integrated new buildings. It should
predominant residential use reveals the following: be noted that in spite of being an exceptional example of
8 1 Introduction
Fig. 1.8 Traditional urban fabric in a village or town (top) and new urban area in a town. Source Bingmaps
the rational planning principles that brought the creation – Scattered settlements: These often originate from
of rural colonization villages, Marines Nuevo is still not houses that were illegally built on non-developable land,
well known, and that the old village of Marines Viejo is some of which have subsequently been legalised and
declining very fast. In Náquera and Serra, compact urban integrated into housing estates by adding new built fab-
tissues of questionable quality have been adjoined to rics between them. Despite the fact that this kind of
their historical centres (Fig. 1.8). illegal housing is now strictly controlled, there are still
– Housing estates: These cover a considerable part of the some scattered developments pending regularization
build-up land and have experienced a very rapid growth (Fig. 1.9).
over the past decades. They are characterised by a Areas of Industrial/Commercial Activity: This category
low-medium density fabric of residential use with sub- includes industrial and commercial land. The main industrial
sequent negative implications in many sustainability estate is located in Náquera and because of its size and
factors. In the area covered by the Strategic Plan there are location, by the AP7, it could potentially become an
two main typologies of housing estates: Firstly, those industrial node of regional significance. Marines’ industrial
attached to villages or towns and, secondly, those located estate is also important, while the other industrial areas are
amidst agricultural plots or forest. The former could be smaller and have less activity. In general, their activity is
improved and managed together with the villages or linked to the construction sector and storage.
towns, while the latter, concentrated predominantly in the The commercial activity is mainly located in villages and
southern parts of Náquera and Olocau, pose a more towns, in the form of small shops, with the exception of a
complex problem that might require actions aimed at small shopping mall in the periphery of the town of
densification, improvement of public services and facil- Náquera. The lack of shops in the housing estates forces
ities, and better connections to towns, especially in those their inhabitants to rely on their own vehicles for
estates with a large permanent population. obtaining supplies. They tend to visit the big shopping
1.4 Analysis and Diagnosis of the Sierra Calderona 9
Fig. 1.9 Housing estate (top) and scattered settlement (bottom) in the Sierra Calderona. Source Bingmaps
malls, located mostly outside the municipalities, and to a Housing Stock and Vacant Lots: The construction of
lesser extent, the small shops at the local villages or towns dwellings in the areas designated for building (developable
(Fig. 1.10). land) would increase the amount of dwellings in Náquera by
10 1 Introduction
Fig. 1.11 Vacant lots in towns, villages, housing estates and industrial estates. Source Own elaboration
50%, in Olocau by 67% and in Serra by 110%. According to to prioritize the construction of new dwellings in those
the current Local Plans, those new dwellings would be pri- existing urban fabrics before generating new ones
marily located in low-density housing estates, producing a (Fig. 1.11).
negative effect on regional and local sustainability indica- Seasonality: The population of the area covered by this
tors. Since numerous vacant lots are located in compact Strategic Plan varies from 13,000 inhabitants in low season
villages or towns and housing estates, it would be desirable to 40,000 in peak season, generating large fluctuations in the
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good deal of work was done by the Civil Service Committee of the
House, and none at all by the corresponding committee of the
Senate. The three chairmen of the House committee were Mr.
Lehlbach, Mr. Andrew, and Mr. De Forest. All three were able and
conscientious men and stanch supporters of the law. The chairman
in the 52d Congress, Mr. John F. Andrew, was throughout his whole
term of service one of the ablest, most fearless, and most effective
champions of the cause of the reform in the House. Among the other
members of the committee, in different Congresses, who stood up
valiantly for the reform, were Mr. Hopkins, of Illinois, Mr. Butterworth,
of Ohio, Mr. Boatner, of Louisiana, and Mr. Dargan and Mr. Brawley,
of South Carolina. Occasionally there have been on the committee
members who were hostile to the reform, such as Mr. Alderson, of
West Virginia; but these have not been men carrying weight in the
House. The men of intelligence and ability who once familiarize
themselves with the workings of the system, as they are bound to do
if they are on the committee, are sure to become its supporters. In
both the 51st and the 52d Congresses charges were made against
the Commission, and investigations were held into its actions and
into the workings of the law by the House committee. In each case,
in its report the committee not only heartily applauded the conduct of
the Commission, but no less heartily approved the workings of the
law, and submitted bills to increase the power of the Commission
and to render the law still more wide-reaching and drastic. These
bills, unfortunately, were never acted on in the House.
The main fight in each session comes on the Appropriation bill.
There is not the slightest danger that the law will be repealed, and
there is not much danger that any President will suffer it to be so
laxly administered as to deprive it of all value; though there is always
need to keep a vigilant lookout for fear of such lax administration.
The danger-point is in the appropriations. The first Civil Service
Commission, established in the days of President Grant, was starved
out by Congress refusing to appropriate for it. A hostile Congress
could repeat the same course now; and, as a matter of fact, in every
Congress resolute efforts are made by the champions of foul
government and dishonest politics to cut off the Commission’s
supplies. The bolder men, who come from districts where little is
known of the law, and where there is no adequate expression of
intelligent and honest opinion on the subject, attack it openly. They
are always joined by a number who make the attack covertly under
some point of order, or because of a nominal desire for economy.
These are quite as dangerous as the others, and deserve exposure.
Every man interested in decent government should keep an eye on
his Congressman and see how he votes on the question of
appropriations for the Commission.
The opposition to the reform is generally well led by skilled
parliamentarians, and they fight with the vindictiveness natural to
men who see a chance of striking at the institution which has baffled
their ferocious greed. As a rule, the rank and file are composed of
politicians who could not rise in public life because of their attitude
on any public question, and who derive most of their power from the
skill with which they manipulate the patronage of their districts.
These men have a gift at office-mongering, just as other men have a
peculiar knack in picking pockets; and they are joined by all the
honest dull men, who vote wrong out of pure ignorance, and by a
very few sincere and intelligent, but wholly misguided people. Many
of the spoils leaders are both efficient and fearless, and able to strike
hard blows. In consequence, the leaders on the side of decency
must themselves be men of ability and force, or the cause will suffer.
For our good fortune, we have never yet lacked such leaders.
The Appropriation committees, both in the House and Senate,
almost invariably show a friendly disposition toward the law. They
are composed of men of prominence, who have a sense of the
responsibilities of their positions and an earnest desire to do well for
the country and to make an honorable record for their party in
matters of legislation. They are usually above resorting to the arts of
low cunning or of sheer demagogy to which the foes of the reform
system are inevitably driven, and in consequence they can be relied
upon to give, if not what is needed, at least enough to prevent any
retrogression. It is in the open House and in Committee of the Whole
that the fight is waged. The most dangerous fight occurs in
Committee of the Whole, for there the members do not vote by aye
and no, and in consequence a mean politician who wishes ill to the
law, but is afraid of his constituents, votes against it in committee,
but does not dare to do so when the ayes and noes are called in the
House. One result of this has been that more than once the whole
appropriation has been stricken out in Committee of the Whole, and
then voted back again by substantial majorities by the same men
sitting in open House.
In the debate on the appropriation the whole question of the
workings of the law is usually discussed, and those members who
are opposed to it attack not only the law itself, but the Commission
which administers it. The occasion is, therefore, invariably seized as
an opportunity for a pitched battle between the friends and foes of
the system, the former trying to secure such an increase of
appropriation as will permit the Commission to extend its work, and
the latter striving to abolish the law outright by refusing all
appropriations. In the 51st and 52d Congresses, Mr. Lodge, of
Massachusetts, led the fight for the reform in the Lower House. He
was supported by such party leaders as Messrs. Reed, of Maine,
and McKinley, of Ohio, among the Republicans, and Messrs. Wilson,
of West Virginia, and Sayers, of Texas, among the Democrats.
Among the other champions of the law on the floor of the House
were Messrs. Hopkins and Butterworth, Mr. Greenhalge, of
Massachusetts, Mr. Henderson, of Iowa, Messrs. Payne, Tracey, and
Coombs, of New York. I wish I had the space to chronicle the names
of all, and to give a complete list of those who voted for the law.
Among the chief opponents of it were Messrs. Spinola, of New York,
Enloe, of Tennessee, Stockdale, of Mississippi, Grosvenor, of Ohio,
and Bowers, of California. The task of the defenders of the law was,
in one way easy, for they had no arguments to meet, the speeches
of their adversaries being invariably divisible into mere declamation
and direct misstatement of facts. In the Senate, Senators Hoar, of
Massachusetts, Allison, of Iowa, Hawley, of Connecticut, Wolcott, of
Colorado, Perkins, of California, Cockrell, of Missouri, and Butler, of
South Carolina, always supported the Commission against unjust
attack. Senator Gorman was naturally the chief leader of the
assaults upon the Commission. Senators Harris, Plumb, Stewart,
and Ingalls were among his allies.
In each session the net result of the fight was an increase in the
appropriation for the Commission. The most important increase was
that obtained in the first session of the 53d Congress. On this
occasion Mr. Lodge was no longer in the House, having been
elected to the Senate. The work of the Commission had grown so
that it was impossible to perform it without a great increase of force;
and it would have been impossible to have put into effect the
extensions of the classified service had this increase not been
allowed. In the House the Committee on Appropriations, of which Mr.
Sayers was chairman, allowed the increase, but it was stricken out in
the House itself after an acrimonious debate, in which the cause of
the law was sustained by Messrs. Henderson and Hopkins, Mr.
McCall, of Massachusetts, Mr. Coombs, Mr. Crain, of Texas, Mr.
Storer, of Ohio, and many others, while the spoils-mongers were led
by Messrs. Stockdale and Williams, of Mississippi, Pendelton, of
West Virginia, Fithian, of Illinois, and others less important.
When the bill went over to the Senate, however, Mr. Lodge, well
supported by Messrs. Allison, Cockrell, Wolcott, and Teller, had the
provision for the increase of appropriation for the Commission
restored and increased, thereby adding by one half to the efficiency
of the Commission’s work. Had it not been for this the Commission
would have been quite unable to have undertaken the extensions
recently ordered by President Cleveland.
It is noteworthy that the men who have done most effective work
for the law in Washington in the departments, and more especially in
the House and Senate, are men of spotless character, who show by
their whole course in public life that they are not only able and
resolute, but also devoted to a high ideal. Much of what they have
done has received little comment in public, because much of the
work in committee, and some of the work in the House, such as
making or combating points of order, and pointing out the danger or
merit of certain bills, is not of a kind readily understood or
appreciated by an outsider; yet no men have deserved better of the
country, for there is in American public life no one other cause so
fruitful of harm to the body-politic as the spoils system, and the
legislators and administrative officers who have done the best work
toward its destruction merit a peculiar meed of praise from all well-
wishers of the Republic.
I have spoken above of the good that would come from a thorough
and intelligent knowledge as to who were the friends and who were
the foes of the law in Washington. Departmental officers, the heads
of bureaus, and, above all, the Commissioners themselves, should
be carefully watched by all friends of the reform. They should be
supported when they do well, and condemned when they do ill; and
attention should be called not only to what they do, but to what they
fail to do. To an even greater extent, of course, this applies to the
President. As regards the Senators and Congressmen also there is
urgent need of careful supervision by the friends of the law. We need
criticism by those who are unable to do their part in action; but the
criticism, to be useful, must be both honest and intelligent, and the
critics must remember that the system has its stanch friends and
bitter foes among both party men and men of no party—among
Republicans, Democrats, and Independents. Each Congressman
should be made to feel that it is his duty to support the law, and that
he will be held to account if he fails to support it. Especially is it
necessary to concentrate effort in working for each step of reform. In
legislative matters, for instance, there is need of increase of
appropriations for the Commission, and there is a chance of putting
through the bill to reform the Consular service. This has received
substantial backing in the Senate, and has the support of the
majority of the Foreign Affairs Committee. Instead of wasting efforts
by a diffuse support of eight or ten bills, it would be well to bend
every energy to securing the passage of the Consular bill; and to do
this it is necessary to arouse not only the Civil Service Reform
Associations, but the Boards of Trade throughout the country, and to
make the Congressmen and Senators feel individually the pressure
from those of their constituents who are resolved no longer to
tolerate the peculiarly gross manifestation of the spoils system which
now obtains in the consular service, with its attendant discredit to the
national honor abroad.
People sometimes grow a little down-hearted about the reform.
When they feel in this mood it would be well for them to reflect on
what has actually been gained in the past six years. By the inclusion
of the railway mail service, the smaller free-delivery offices, the
Indian School service, the Internal Revenue service, and other less
important branches, the extent of the public service which is under
the protection of the law has been more than doubled, and there are
now nearly fifty thousand employees of the Federal Government who
have been withdrawn from the degrading influences that rule under
the spoils system. This of itself is a great success and a great
advance, though, of course, it ought only to spur us on to renewed
effort. In the fall of 1894 the people of the State of New York, by a
popular vote, put into their constitution a provision providing for a
merit system in the affairs of the State and its municipalities; and the
following spring the great city of Chicago voted, by an overwhelming
majority, in favor of applying in its municipal affairs the advanced and
radical Civil Service Reform Law, which had already passed the
Illinois Legislature. Undoubtedly, after every success there comes a
moment of reaction. The friends of the reform grow temporarily
lukewarm, or, because it fails to secure everything they hoped, they
neglect to lay proper stress upon all that it does secure. Yet, in spite
of all rebuffs, in spite of all disappointments and opposition, the
growth of the principle of Civil Service reform has been continually
more rapid, and every year has taken us measurably nearer that
ideal of pure and decent government which is dear to the heart of
every honest American citizen.
FOOTNOTES:
[13] Scribner’s Magazine, August, 1895.
VIII
ADMINISTERING THE NEW YORK POLICE
FORCE[14]