ABSTRACT
This chapter presents the "centralizing" tendencies that have been so commonly accepted as to have been designated "the dogmas of centralization". It reviews the most conspicuous dissents from the "orthodox" position. The chapter summarizes the writings that present the case for or suggest a plan of decentralization. Governmental reformers and writers on administration were confronted with certain conditions. These reformers were men of finer sensibilities and—on any reasonable interpretation—deeper patriotism than their fellow Americans. The progressive democracy is bound to be as much interested in efficient administration as it is in reconstructive legislation. Actual administration should be the duty of a non-partisan and permanent bureaucracy. In centralized administration the coordination is at the top, with resulting delays, jealousies, and jurisdictional disputes. In decentralized administration, the aim is to create a "whole" of purposes, personalities, and instrumentalities which is greater than the mere sum of the various constituent elements.
