The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1893-03-26
SOME OTHER HOG.
The City Gave the Legislature the
Use of the Auditorium
Free of Cost.
But the House Sergeant-at- Arms
Asked tor Fifty Gents
All Round.
As tho City Got Nothing. S~ergeant-at-
Arms Ives Can Rise and Explain
Who Did Get 1t.

The iiberality Of Helena was manifested on the
last day of the session of the legislative assen-
bly,, when the members of that b,dy had to pun
gle SO cents cash t. ay the rent of tho auditor
ium in orler that the cit ans Of the temporary
capital might witness the process Of b~alloting
for United st .tes senator, -houlder Age.
As stated once before, the Ago Is n
that Is, wrong as to it's conclusions. though
right in the premises. There is proof that
it was not the Helena hog that did it. It
was some other hog.
eyes, I gave up fifty cents" says Repre-
sentative Stephen Carpenter. ut was on
the last day of the session, after the joint
assembly. A page brought me a paper,
which / just glanced at. and asked me for
fifty cents to help pay the rent of the audi
forum. The sergeant alarms, who was
standing near. said he had had to pay for
it himself, or words to that effect. I didn't
think anything about it and just gave the
page half a dollar. Representative Bray.
who sat alongside of me, did the snme, and
there were other names on the paper. The
page who tool the paper round says he
got about $50, which he turned over to the
serGeant-at-arms."
There were ffty-five members of the
house. Representative Davidson did not
attend after the joint assembly. That
leaves ffty-four. Fifty-four half dollars
mean just ~twenty-seven whole dollars.
PresumInR that everybody of the ffty-four
gave up half a dollar ito help pay the rent
Of the auditorium" which the city ten
dered free of charge to the legislature on
the occasion Of the last ballot for United
States senator. somebody made q few dol
lars. All the circumstances point to the
conclusion that that somebody was Frank
c. Ives, of Missoula. sergeant-at-arms of
the house.
There was 40 expense attached to open
ing up the auditorium on that occasion.
By reason of the somewhat limited accom-.
odations in the hall of the house, where the
had been decided on the day before the last
to issue tickets of admission. The next
m~orninQ-the one of the last day Of the
session-the sergeant-at-arms discovered
what he thought had escaped the eye OF
the city building inspector. He thought
the back wall of the building where the
house was meeting showed signs OF moving
off. In reality he only saw a crack in the
plasterinR where q hood had been built
over the stairway and where it joined on to
the hall. The hood is merely an incidental
part of the building, and il it saw fit to
move off from the wall it did not signify
that the wall was moving off from the
building. However, as the sergeant-at.
arms was engaged in the business of SER
geant-at-a,ms, he could not be expected tc
perform the additional duties of building
inspector without extrc pay. So he con
cluded it would be better to have anothe,
orl n 1opnAN hoI( f0r TIM iNtrk omroD,h1- 81
meet in.
At this point someone suggested the
auditorium. The serGeant-at-arms wal
furnished with the names of the three
members of the committee on public
buildings Of the Helena city council
They were Aldermen Harrity. Weber and
Post. Alderman Harritv was at the
Northern Pacific depot. and ns moments
we're precious the time could not be spared
to &C there and hunt him up. The story Of
how the serReant-at-arms secured the use
Of the auditorium free of charge ia bes,
told in the words of Alderman Post. of the
council committee On public buildings. He
says: IA stout man who, / unde. stood
was the observation-disclosures. came to my
house in the morning. He brought Il note
of introduction from one of the Fisks,
think Il. L. Fisk, which stated that Alder
man Weber was willing to let the legisla
ture have the use of the auditorium free O.
CudIRes 1 COuCuETSO AL tuo suggestion, anl
hunted up Building Inspector McNally
who opened the building for them. l dom
remember whether the sergeant-at-arm,
asked me about the cost, but | do remem
Der telling him there wonld be no charg.
for it," There was nc charge for the use o
the auditorium and no expense connected
with its use that would justify the sergeant
alarms in ~levying IN assessment of 81
cents per head on the member of tn,
house. The only labor attached to the
whole business was that of tuning a key il
q lock and opening a door.
THE city gave the use Of the auditorium
without one cent of charge" is the state.
ration to the same effect WAS made by tn
public building committee at the last meet
ing of the city council. This was done i,
order to have the council ratify the nctio1
of the committee. Tho collection of 8
cents per head from the members of tn
house BY the sergeant-at-arms, or by tn
pages acting under his orders, ITO help pa,
the rent of the auditorium" was therefor
something that concerns the sergeant at
arms and the members whom he imposed
on with the story. The page who took tn
paper around ia authority for tho statemeu
that he got about $50 and turned it over I
Sergeant-at-Arms Ives. It is in order 70
that officer TO rise and explain, il he car
in what way he was justified in levytnp tn
assessment. and what he did with til
money
Dr.. Warner's corscts toe and upward. in blac
and coiors. Butcher d Bradley s. los roadwa,
Wanted.