New-York tribune., 1891-04-24
FOR THE FOREST COMMISSION
THE ASSEMBLY ADOPTS THE MINORITY hI-
PORT OF IT'S COMMITTEE.
SEVERAL DEMOCRATS VOTE WITH THE RE-
PUBIICANs, DEFEATING HILLS ATTEMrA
TO CONVICT THE COMMISSIONERS
WITHOUT A TRIAL.


.rDv AnriI % (speciaD.-Twice in one week mas
.bc Assembly David b. HIPS own, deserted lts OWN
Wy, "a ,,sod absolutely to follow his dictates longer.
1r', Was done a few days ago on his state roNu
sohore q propostion to spend about Slo'ooooVO on
roads in the state, but one that the larlhcrs ~
undated because they knew that THIS money was "
| be used for political purposes. . .. .o,, .b.
O0 -, todav the Assembly refused to follow the
ne~, o .orcs 70 himself all OF the credit Of giving
' non,ocratIc majority and repudiated what he con-
,ad % be perfecty prepared plot 10 rum uie IeP
utation Of three gentlemen, so thaV he 'ouiu
cortrol ~ the Forest Commission ana use l, o' pm
,caI advantage His plot failed ana uie AS'TiolS @
| instead of adopting report con'l0u1e wv, va n,ooD
ror,,tssioners Of almost everything vile ana mean
49,, dn,ont the or-Governor forced SIX Dem
1T r,or,hors NJ the Assembly Public LANDS ana
rorestrv Committee to sign, adopted one "hoii p'
,be commissioners for their efforts to"aru PIesoi e
| the forests and for laying out the bohuaiies VI Wv
new parks Beside this, the report "inon 'lo - .ha
by adopted clearly acquits the Conhlissoiio'' u
| charges that Hill had brought against ''oN' ..,.
| - -, 90 11nl,s vicious and underlanded a'tScN
| - ~ roros+ Commissioners Is long ohe' Es'lS
Ist winter he took into his confidence hewSpapO'
man whom he filed with charges against '"o @ oo-''
missioners sufficient TO convict the'u Vi n''O r,, -
| ,hrg ovccpt murder in the first desrec' i,n'
his openlng gun. The paper represehVeu W III. va
found friend called daily for an hVest's"'iO"
|
| = r,oiorstv NJ the Assemblymen last laii' anu u
~, cbeoban would be speaker the Committee on iuO
| -, ID ord Forestry was constructed specany luz
| tho nurnose OF making this attack. RYAN, VI -
| chester was named as chairman anu 'h0 10. -
| committee was made up so that tncro "ouU ~
clear Democratic majority when nm 'ouiN a.o
~ ~ -Ittoo was charged with investigating TWO
points-"a general inquiry cohcerIil"s t n.sorros
tion NJ the laws in relation to the foreSt
~ tho rorest Commissioners; and to report "ha''
20 arv chances in the present laws are necessary W
better nrotect the forests belonging to the o'aV'
instead Of pursuing the inquiry in these TWO uile0
tons the majority Of the committee Deut 'p'.l ,'
solely toward convictng the three at4 q,
OF wrongdong. That they failed ID uiaU 49, 60, .,
shown conclusively by the action OIL '"0 1''7'''
| morning. t, +bor, wore
| =, nooIol order for yesterday, but Mr. Ryan,
oopc then that there hope OF carrying Irousn
bis renort. asked that the special ofuer pe C"l'0
| along until to-day, to come up aV hoVi' ~
| ocrood ~ and a few minutes after noon louaS "t'
| Pvan who led the attack In MS maJorlS ioP' v
| moved a call Of the house. The cau was ueoIuIeu
n.dorod and there was consequently the vexatious
49, bich ALWAYS attends calls in sending out the
cor,oon+-at Arms for absent members. Inc omcer
snent some time in his search, and faHed 10 nhu !"
single member. Then the call was ordcred on
Mr. RYAN moved the adoption of the majority r-
mort H. j. Lane the chairman OF the miloll's iNo''-
bors ~ the committee amended that motion by moving
IN adopt the report of the minority members ol lhe
committee. On making this motion he spoke brleny
+ 70 tho nont He said the resolution which caused
.ba Investigation called for the investigation OF only
two things and that at the first meeting OF the COM
| mit+ee the Commissioners asked for copies Oh inc
charges against them They were told by tle CHAIR
man that there no charges against them as COM
| missioners But continued Mr.. Lane, the lnvestlSa-
a
effort was being made 70 smirch the characters OF tho
commissioners All that the committee had on which
TO base any charges against the Commissioners was
the testimony of two witnesses. one OF these had
been proved to be a notorious lumber thef, ana the
other was a discharged employc, who by his own
letters had proved 10 be blackmailer one OF these
witnesses told of scheme which he concocted with
one of the employees Of the Commission, but ad-
mitted that the Commissioners themselves had aDSo-
Intev no knowledge OF 1t, and could not have aided
them If they had. Letters were received by ludge
warning the Commissioners against this man. 10
testimony produced showing any incompetency OF
wrongdOing OF any sort. The majority report simply
dealt in generalities The members of the committee
were five weeks trying TO some agreement as
to the report that they should bring ln In concnslon
Mr. Lane said, any who read the testimony would
agree with the minority members OF the committee on
| this question.
w. c. stevens, of Franklin County, followed Mr.
|
port of the minority report. lie had been asked by
| the committee to look into the transaction OF th'
! EvertOn Lumber Company, on which 50 much stress
was laid by the majority Of the committee, and he hac
| found that in place Of testifying against the com
mssiOners as he was expected to do he would be com
PEELED to testify in their favor. The Commissioner
| had done noble work in preventing the forest fire
| which destroy far more timber than do the lumber
cutters. Mr.. Stevens declared that any one who knew
anything about numbering knew that only the sol
| mt lxr lUlia
not float.
&. II. Bush, who, with Ryan, has been most anxious
| 10 do HIPS bidding and convict the Commissioners
| took the floor in defence of the majority report III
| advanced no new arguments While he was speak
ing fire broke out in paint store near the Capllo
Building, and in less than three minutes the chamDe
was practically empty. .
who had the courage to defy the Governor and slgi
the minority report, now obtained an opportunity Il
groundlessness Of the charges which Hill had brough
against the Commissioners. lie said that it was I
s6sSsi 3 s69T%a 5 Of q 5fS sTsqF an
the chamber by repetition Of what previously haC
been said in defence OF his biased report
The roll-cau showed that Hill had only forty-slX vote
TO sustain his attack, while there were sXty-0ne vote
against him. with a face rcd with anger Speahc
shcehan compelled to announce that the mlnorl!!
The Democrats who voted with the Republicans no
had been allowed them were Messrs. W. G. Bymc
Thomas F. Byrnes, Dcmarest, Duffy Gorman liiu
| Mullaney, Nolan, Quackenbush and sullivan. Iher
was not q break in the Republican ranks Every Re
publican members present voted with his party on IN
,de of fair treatment and justice, and against llN
hirbhqnded attempt to force out Of Office three Com
mssoners who have done their duty simply because u
wants 10 capture the Department Il add u MS streng
I'm the state. OF IT. cannot be expected tat III
| Will allow the vndicatiOn which his own Dcmocmu
Assembly has given to the Commissioners t. iutcfcr
with his efforts 10 get them out Of Oihce. The mex
step he will probably take viii be TO dismiss then
| without trial.
THIS CITY TO PAY ARREARS or STATE TAXES
, Albany, April 23.-The general fund Of the Stat
: Treasury is TO be sweed by another large sum
20 come from New-YOrli City, Controller Myers, o
New-York giving the statements Of amounts due from
NewYOrk City FOR arrears OF State taxes OF 1857 an,
1880 under judgments entered pursuant TO the decision
Of tho Court Of Appeals, affirming the decisions of I'm
lower courts In both actions. The total amount du
FOR and costs for the two years is 81 09O402 a.
from which is 10 be deducted credit given Decen
Der g. 1890, for S173,7O2 o. leaving the balance nov
due S0l6,G00 80 Controller Myers says that he la