The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1895-01-23
WANTS TO LExOW THE CITY.
Ret. Mr.. Ollie Raises Storm In the San
Francisco Delegation.

Francisco Delegation.
SACRAMENTO, Jan. 22.-Quite a storm was
raised at the meeting of the San Francisco
delegation this afternoon. A committee
from the Civic Federation of San Francisco,
consisting of Rev. E. R. Ollie, Rev. Thomas
Filben and Wallace Bradford, came up on
this mornings train to advise in the mat
ter of forming the "Lexow committee. F"
Rev. Mr.. Ollie was the first speaker. He
appealed to the delegation to press the
matter to a successful issue.
''Great public feeling has been aroused
by gross neglect of officials in our city," he
said. "a cyclone of indignation has swept
it from end to end. But what has been
said and done is only an intimation of
what will follow. The Police Department is
rotten to the core. That is not the only
place where change is needed how
ever. There are other departments
under State control that are just
as bad. In order to combat these
wrongs, you must have strong committee.
We propose to supply the attorney to con-
duct the investigations, because we want
to be sure that no favors are shown. Our
federation is non-sectarian. We want law
and order, and to get it we must have
committee of men above suspicion and
with regulations such that their word will
carry weight throughout the entire State.
With such a committee we could in sin
gle week unearth frauds such as would
startle everybody. Without such COM
mittee the investigation would be farce"
The members of the delegation listened
in silence but their silence was ominous.
Four of the San Francisco Assemblymen
are on the Committee of Public Morals, to
which the resolution had been referred,
while Bettman of the Forty-second Dis
trict is its chairman. They did not like
being appealed to, to see that another COM
mittee be appointed in their stead of men
who could be trusted.
Wallace Bradford rather added to the
storm that was gathering. He stated that
he was a representative of the Federated
Trades. He wanted the election laws to be
adjusted so that all votes should be counted
in favor of the candidates for whom they
were cast. He wanted the delegation to
see to it that the election frauds were in
vestigated and that the committee APP
pointed consisted of men who would have
no Interior motive in whitewashing guilty
parties.
This was more than Devine of the Thirty
fourth could stand. He had been fidgeting
in his chair for some time and looking
anxiously at Bettman. At the last he came
to his feet and called for re-reading of the
resolution the visitors were urging. Then
he denounced it in vigorous language
"This is unkind, unwise, unjust and I'M
warrantable, y he cried. "This resolution
has been referred to the Committee on Pub
lie Morals, OF which l am member 1
must say that I can't see any reason why
these men should say that we are not com
petent to deal with that question. What
is worse, they want men, they say, whose
integrity is above reproach. They want
no city men and they want men whose
reputation is known to the entire State.
l want to say that I have lived in this State
forty years and that have always been in
favor of all that is good and Just and kind.
Even if / do live in the city, claim that
no one has right to say that am not
competent nor worthy to carry on this in
vestigation."
Here Mr.. Ollie interposed that he did not
know to what committee the resolution
was referred. He assured Mr. Devine that
his remarks were entirely impersonal As
soon as quiet was restored Powers of the
Forty-first resigned the chair to Dinkel-
spiel of the Thirty-ninth District and said
that he was in thorough sympathy with
the movement under discussion. He
thought the memorial should be placed on
file, as the matter had not been heard but
was to come up for discussion tomorrow
morning. This was carried.
The delegation commented unfavorably
on the two bills introduced by Mr.. Boothby,
one of which authorizes Justices of the
Peace in cities of over 100000 inhabitants
to appoint bailiffs, and the other provides
that these bailiffs should receive the same
pay as those of the Superior Court. They
recommend for passage Mr.. Dinkelspiel's