MUNICIPAL GOVERNMENT. The admin istration of the affairs of a city, town, borough, village, or other minor civil division of a State, but generally restricted to the government of pure municipal corporations as opposed to quasi muni cipal corporations, salt as (mnities. townships, and school districts. Municipal government sel dom reaches its fullest development outside of the larger cities. but numerous municipal ac tivities are often undertaken in progressive urban communities of only a few thousand inhabitants. Since the municipality is the creature of the State, it follows that its form of government, its various activities, and its powers are not only derived from the State. but are also subject to alteration or repeal at its will. The municipality has a direct and far more intimate relation with those subject to its government than does the State, supplying many wants common to its in habitants, and performing or supervising the per formance of Many services which outside of the municipality are left to private enterprise.
In some of these respects, as in the exercise of the police power, the care of the public health, the administration of elmrity, and the adminis tration of local justice. the municipality is actu
ally the agent of the State, and discharges duties of interest to the State at large: in others, as in the furnishing of water or light, the State per mits the community as a whole to act as a local organization for the satisfaction of purely local needs of interest to the community only. The very remarkable growth of the urban popu lation during the last half century has greatly increased the importance of municipal govern ment, and at the same time multiplied its diffi culties. About three-fourths of the population of England and Scotland now live under conditions of urban life, while in the older parts of the United States the town dwellers outnumber the country dwellers. For the origin and nature of the legal powers of municipalities, see Muxict rAurY; see also the general article GOVERNMENT. For the history, growth in population, and cer tain economic, social, and political phases, see CITY.
Munieipal government may be considered under four main heads: (1) Functions: (2) organiza tion; (3) finance: (4) public. policy.