Eureka daily sentinel. [volume] (Eureka, Nev.) 1871-1887, 1883-01-30
THE STATES HUB.
Mutterings of a Storm in the
Legislature.


Equality Before h LNw-Antf.
Railroad Bills Fas Asleep In
PigeOn-HOIes-Sfeve Gage Before
the Grave and Potent senator's
Nothing Done. with q Chnnce for
More of the Same-Great Noise
and No W0Ol-Tidbtts.
CARSON, Jan. 81, 1888.
There was q very lively time in the AS
sembly tho other day when Senate Bill No.
8, introduced by Senator Brumsey, was
brought up. The bill provides for the at
taching of salaries of county officers. 1t
is claimed tkat the law was intended to
cover the cases of some o~fice-holders in
Storey County. Be this as it may, there
cannot be any serious doubt that the law
will be found to work admirably in a gen.
eral way. The bill was supported by AS
semblymen Brown, Galland, Muldoon,
Riepe, Pike and Perkins, all OF whom
made sensible arguments in favor OF Its
passage, AssemblymenBell. Dovey, Helm
and Grey Of White Pine speaking against
the bill. 1t was passed by a vote of ~ to
II. Some of the arguments against the
passage of the measure were thin as gossa-
mer, and one member ventured the opin-
ion that if it became a law it would be
almost impossible to get competent men to
fill the position! Another opposer OF the
bill said that under one OF its provisions
a District Judge might be ruthlessly
dragged before q Justices Court for failure
to pay a debt. This argument was what
the facetious Dick Swiveller would call
can umitigated staggerer," but the House
| rallied from the Gffeets Of the blow, and
even dared to pass a law making it possible
| for an ermined gentleman to be yanked
into the office of a plebeian Squire by some
greasy-coated and ~malodorous police Off
Ger, and this indignity, mayhap, instigated
by some shop-keeping follah, or some red
faced, yulgah renoyator Of soiled linen.
A TRIFLE ARD
Senator Westerfeld on Wednesday last
on a matter of personal explanation, which
was called forth by an intimation in the
Appeal that the Senator from Lyon pro-
posed an adjournment sine die on the 10th
proximo in the interest Of the G. 2. r. R.,
declared that his proposition was made
solely with a view to economy. The gen.
tleman denied any collision with railroad
managers or agents, and said that the
reason that the Committee on Corpora
tions, of which he is Chairman, did not
report any railroad bills was. that similar
bills are coming in, and there was time
enough to consider all such measures by
the 10th of next month. But it now falls
out that Senate bill No. 2S (Smyth's) was
in the hands Of Mr.. Westerfield's commit
tee 20 days yesterday-it was introduced
-. H. Okl ;pst orl thara is n Sapofa yr1n |
requiring committees to report on oil
bills in their possession inside of Is days.
Perhaps Senator Westerfield took no note
of time. There are three railroad bills
sleeping, sweetly sleeping" in the tender
embrace of the Assembly Committee OF
Corporations. These bills were all intro
duced early in the session, A. B. IL
(Riepe's) Jan. 5, A. B. 10 (Hardin's) Jan.
8 and A. B. 3S IMelarkey's) Jan. IL. Is it
not time that the members of our Legis-
lature who are not the thralls of corpora
tions, who were sem to Carson to legislate
for the people on a subject to which both
political parties were pledged ill State and
county platforms, on the hastings and
through the Nevada press, should have an
opportunity to back their professions by
good, honest work? True tits, as one OF
the railroad lobbyists said the other day,
Vldp, WdiiC ~ |
prison and militia bills are being con-
sidered, s'the Legislature will let the rail-
roads alone" This reasoning is good
from a railroad standpoint, and the humor
of it is pleasing, no doubt, to those who
sip the words Of honied wit and railroad
wisdom, as dished up to them by Gage
and Cleveland, but how do the people like
such double-dealing7
Since the above was written Chairman
Westerfeld has reported Senate bill No. %
(Smyth's) without recommendation, but
with the suggestion that it is similar to a
former railroad bill, which was pro-
nounced unconstitutional Assemblyman
Riepe's bill "a. B. 1877 got a black eye
from the Corporations Committee yester-
day.
MORE RAILROAD BILLS.
Senator Williams has given notice of the
introduction Of a bill fixing fares and
freights on railroads in this State, reduc-
ing present rates so per cent. Sent to
Committee on Corporations. Assemblyman
Hardin also gave notice of a bill to estab-
lish rates Of freight, which, on motion OF
its author, was referred to the judiciary
Committee. This reference was a we'll
aimed blow at Assemblyman Lait, Chair
man of the Corporation Committee, whose
loyalty to railroad interests appears to be
a generally accepted fact.
GAGE TO THE FRONT.
On Thursday night S. 7. Gage, attorney
lobbyist is an offensive word) for the @.
P. R. r., held forth in the Senate Cham
Der to the Committee or Corporations.
There was a fair-sized audience inside and
outside the Senate rail, and the remarks OF
this A. D. 1.-THE Secretary will please amend
by striking out the initials A. D.. and
insert Artful Dodgerl were listened to
with very marked attention. Gage, 1t is
needless to say, has the railroad subject at
his tongues end, and has an air of candor
and an honest seeming while he repeats
the well-worn pro-railroad arguments OF
Leland Stanford, Judge Sanderson, Sam.
| Wilson and Greed Raymond. The subject
under discussion was Senate bill No. %
| 1.-THE Smyth hilll which affords Gage an
| opportunity to show what a blessing rail-
roads were to the people OF this coast,
| especially the Southern Pacific; how sorry
the c. P. r. r. people were because they
| couldn't, owing to the extortions of the
U. P. R. r. and eastern connecting rail-
roads, deal more literally with Nevadans.
! We looked for a huskiness of voice, or the
dropping Of a sca!ding tear of sympathy.
| Gage had resolved to be a man, and a man
he was, bracing up against any emotional
weakness. A few judicial conuudrums
and suggestions, coming, Of course, from
the proper legislative quarter, helped the
speaker out of several quagmires Of muddy
logic aud sloughs of irregular rhetoric.
Senator Smyth p~ropoundea a few leading
questions to Gage, which puzzled the we'll
crammed railroad advocate 80 much that
his answers were awkward and indirect, in
fact, were not answered at all. Assembly
man Riepe, who means we'll, but is argu-
mentatively sloppy, took the floor against
Gage, and, If he failed to throw new light
on the railroad question. no succeeded in
a high degree in amusing the audience.
Gage, it is understood, is to have another
chance at the Corporation Committee,
which we, your correspondent, regard as a