Morning journal and courier., 1889-04-19

necks and the other in our pockets and were very loving. Even Brother Gallagher invited
 me to join his whist club and Brother White said that he and were very near together in matters of reform" The speaker referred to the small attendance at the Chamber of Com Inerce when the child was born after eight months of agitation and said only eighteen favorers of consolidation were present.
 Attorney Case then closed the argument for the opponents of the bill. As ever he humor and Individuality which the noted orator infuses into his efforts, his argument was substantially as follows:
 The bill is confessedly to extinguish the town of New Haven, which is corporation that antedstes the legislature which creates the constitution itself.
 It's existence proceeds all other government, and is independent of all others and cannot be destroyed by legislative enactment. It elects the general assembly and makes and changes the organic law of the State. The government of our fathers and the State it- self is but an aggregation of towns organized together for the mutual benefit and protec- tion of all.
 And this confederation of towns of free corporations Is asked to destroy, so far as the legistive power is capable of this destruction, one of it's own members to take away it's identity and to transfer it's power and privilege to charter creation of State unknown to the constitution. So that here- after it shall be one thing at home another thing abroad; g town when it comes here to participate in the governmental the whole people of the State, and something far differ ent and less than town in the matter of local self government at home.
 The democratic feature of it's government is to be absolutely wiped out and no town meetings for any purpose or any subject are evermore to be held.
 It is manifest that so great a change, so
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 First, great, not to say unanimous, des mand of the people to be affected;
 Second, clear and cogent reasons why that demand should be complied with, and the
 burden of proof is on the petitioners. Who asks for it? Where is the evidence of
 that great uprising of the people which you are entitled to ask for? New Haven is city of eighty thousand inhabitants, sufficient in
 intelligence, thrift and the practical wisdom which enables 8 people to choose well it's own form of government. How many of them can with any show of fairness be said to ask
 this chanRea
 Consolidation has been agitated for twenty years, but the city has never asked it, and to-day instructs it's agent-the corporation counsel-not to meddle with it. There have been no public meetings, no thronging lines sf petitioners, nothing but bare handful of 33.
 As many people could be got to sign pa per to Fen6 the green 1oE u Marhei garden. And the New Haven men who give ii strength at home and character abroad, Gov. Harrison and Gov. English and Gov. Inger- soil, men whom the whole State know and has hastened to honor iu the past, and would I be glad to honor again, H. M. Welch and N. D. Sperry, and such as they whose devotion I to New Haven and her interests is measured \ only by the years of their lives, they are here | in protest against it.
 You might we'll stop here and say: "Gen ! tlemen, in this matter of local self-govern- ment you have failed to satisfy us that there | is any popular demand for this change. Al ! some time you may take the sense of the people on this subject, and it is ! your duty to do it before you ask us to take | action. We are not interested except to dc | the will of the people, and you leave us ir ! the dark as to what the will of the people is Nor is it our duty to send this question to | an indifferent community to decide upon It is not Providence nor the policy of lfgisla- ! tion to tempt the people with gift tol \ which they have not asked. What are the reasons for this change? II is answered. Four meetings are imprac- ! ticsble and dangerous. People who live ln | the town and not in the city do not pay @ ! fair proportion of the taxes. The shufiing about school matters. The mischievous proposition about taxa l tion.
 | There is corruption and abuse in the dis \ tribution of charity and the carrying forward of public improvements.
 The violation of the pledge to East Haven. ! MT. filling had the closing for the petition \ CTS.