The government of our large cities has become a question of vital importance. It would be difficult to give a complete list of the duties devolving upon them. The principal duties are (1) the collection of municipal and state taxes, (2) the establishment and care of public schools, (3) the administration of justice, (4) police supervision, (5) the support of a fire department, (6) the care of the streets, (7) of street gas and electric lighting, (8) of sewerage, (9) of the water supply, (10) of public parks, (11) of sanitation and public health, (12) of prisons, (13) the supervision of the liquor traffic, (14) the regulation of street railways, (15) the enforcement of building regulations, (16) the supervision of charities, hospitals, asylums, etc. The form of government of all our large cities is much the same. It is substantially a reproduction, in form, of the state governments. First, there is a mayor, who is the chief executive, and is elected directly by the people of the city. His term of office is sometimes only one year, though more often two, three, or four years. In almost all cases he has a veto on acts of the city legislature, which veto may, however, be overridden by a two-thirds vote. Other subordinate officials are, the treasurer, collector of taxes, chief of police, health officer, etc. They are in part elected by the people, in part appointed by the mayor, or appointed by the city legislature. Practice varies in different cities. City legislatures are of one or two houses. The larger cities usually have two houses, and the smaller cities one house. The legislature is usually called the City Council, the upper branch the Board of Aldermen, and the lower and more numerous branch, the Common Council. The members of the city council are elected by the people. The acts of the council are called ordinances. They are not sufficiently general to merit the designation of laws. City judges are usually elected by the people. The administration of the various duties of municipal government are generally given to special boards of officers, as the police department, fire department, etc. For election purposes, cities are divided into wards, and the wards into voting precincts. Our methods of municipal government have proved the least successful of any of our institutions. Corruption and grave abuses exist in almost every one of the larger cities. Problems connected with city government are among the most important questions of our time. CHAPTER XVII. Government Revenue and Expenditure.