The herald., 1895-02-12
\ VERY NARROW MARGIN
One Vote Decided the Fate of the
Amendments
Take a Statement Regarding
That Resolution
To the Editor of The Herald:

To the Editor of The Herald:
There has appeared in print an article
from some of the members of the com
mittee of citizens to whose effort is due
the agitation of the question of amending
our City Charter and the submission of
amendments to the people, and while this
article is in the main truthful as regards
the action of that committee at its last
meeting, it is at the SANE time decidedly
misleading concerning the actual facts in
the case.
A perusal of the article referred to leads
to the natural conclusion that this COM
mittee had resolved unanimously, or
practically So to turn about and oppose
measures and propositions which it has
heretofore encouraged and advocated,
while as Il matter Of fact such is not the
case ut all. This committee was COM
posed of represe,. tative men, selected by
four of the leading organizations of this
city, and, as is already known to the pub
lie, it spent much time in preparing char
ter amendments. 1t was not always unan-
imously agreed, in fact there were one or
two of its members who were openly op-
posed all the time to the amendments as
proposed, but good majority was in favor
of them During the time that the
amendments were being advertised i'll the
newspapers, nothing was done by its adj
succ ,eded in having meeting of the
committee week before last for the pur-
pose of final action of the committee.
Nine were present at this meeting.
resolution declaring this opposition of the
committee to the amendments was in
troduced and after discussion was put
to a vote, the result being a tie,
four members voting to oppose
the amendments, and four voting TO
favor them and advocate their adoption,
whereupon the chairman, being the ninth
member present, cast the deciding vote
in favor OF the resolution and against the
amendments. From this it is easily seen
that this citizens committee is against
the adoption of the proposed amendments
only by very narrow margin, and those
members who favor the amendments do
not consent to or abide by the action of
the majority but on the contrary are as
earnest and ardent in their support as
ever
Another matter in which the article re-
ferred to is wrong, is in the appointment
of the committee to prepare an address to
the public. Great difficulty was expert
enced in selecting this committee, nearly
all present, including those opposed to the
amendments, declining to serve thereon.
However, now comes a communication
from a committee, and one gentleman who |
is named therein is not only in favor of
the adoption of the amendments, but he
also positively refused to serve on this
committee and his name is not signed to
its report yet it appears prominently as
being a member of the committee which
prepared the paper.
Regarding the arguments made in this
article, they are, to say the least, rather
lame. the proposed amendments are I'M
doubtedly a great improvement on the
present organic law of this city, and even
if they do not accomplish everything
which the allied committees hoped and |
labored to attain, they should be approved |
for the good which they will bring. They
worthy Of adoption for that reason.
T. D. Stimson.
G. j. Griffith.
Los Angeles, CAL, Feb. IL, 1895.