The San Francisco call., 1897-02-08
SECRET SESSIONS
/ ONLY IN NAME
A Moral That Politicians
Are Slow to Recognize
and Act Upon.
interpretations and Annexations
Prove the Growth of the
County.
J. e &artin Still Unable to Crafty
the Earnest Wish Of His
Many Friends.
OAKLAND OFFICE SAN FRANc1soo CALI
QOc RrOadu.o,- tr,b =


90S Broadway, Feb 7.
There is great desire among the people
OF this city who are Interested in politics
. 10 see the secret system of conducting
q party and non party politics abandoned.
The only secret thing desired is the ballot
-Four years ago there Was an agitation
against secret sessions OF the Board of Ed
ueation. The School Directors got into a
habit OF me;ting and adiourning into
executive session." though every body
thought that every session was an execu-
tive one, and nearly every one of such
6leetlnGs was followed by some wild reve-
( laions. The explanation was given that
\ some OF the teachers characters were
Sqder diecussion, but it was soon learned
'tAat the awarding of large contracts for
school furniture was really the cause, and
since that time secret meetings have not
been held.
With modern newspaper methods there
Is.no such thing as a secret" meeting OF
any political body. No matter what pre-
cautions are thrown around the proceed
lngs report OF them can always be found
III next mornings papers, though the
moral OF this does not seem 10 have vet
borne much fruit. But whatever excuse
may be offered for the secret meetings OF
city central committees s. there will GER
t&1nlY be none offered for a secret couVen-
ton such as that held by the Municipal
League last week. AS matter of TACT
Inere was nothing said or done at the
secret convention that needed protection
from he public. but the closed doors IN
Ylted suspicion and the public accepted
the lnYuation. 1t was perfectly safe in
lndorslng the greater portion OF the Re-
publican ticket, but there is certainly no
hope Tor the candidates " hom ii romi-
naIed and who ave no other support
The league is not the power II was four
years ago when Dr.. Pardee was its CON
trolling spirit and its present attempt TO
split the regular Republican Ilcket will
Aot be successful.
Nothing shows the growth of Alameda
county more than the Incorporation OF
new towns Not long ago Pleasanton re-
Incorporated as a city of an advanced
class; Livermore will soon do the same
thing, and still more recently the town of
Emeryville has been created. Now comes
another town tor municipal honors and
mDurst Is considering the pollcy Of hay
e ing local government.
few years ago there was not house in
ElmAurst, indeed there was no such place
1he electric road opened, a church was
built, public school district was formed
iAouses arose ike mushrooms and soon
4 there was town much larger than Oak
D and was when she incorporated in the
\tlme when Horace CARPENTER was strug-
glng Tor his daily bread.
In this same connection is the growing
desire TO make Oakland a city ahead OF
Los Angeles There Is no reason why all
Ihe outlying territory should still be with
out street lights, sidewalks and protec-
tion. The advantages that Will accrue
from being part OF the city Will soon iu-
crease the value OF property 10 such an
extent that the additional proportlon O,
a on hp al ha
Try between Oakland and Berkeley is set
tied, and it would be impossible for the
different districts TO form separate incor-
poratiOns, as the cost of town officers
would be too heavy. Yet they cannot re-
main stagnant or property will continue
10 be OF no more value than if it we're
located in Palomares Canyon.
The only relief IS annexation and now
that the large property owners have taken
the matter in hand there is little doubt
but that 1t Will be annexed. The electric
roads run directly through the districts
from the heart OF Oakland and residents
would rather live on the outskirts of a
town than in the center If accorded the
same police protection and conveniences.
AS carfare is the same for three miles as
one, il would naturally seem as if annexa-
tion would speedily be followed by the
rapid settling OF the whole territory.
For over year ]. c. Martin has been
removed from the public eye, and proba-
bly, there are not ten men about whom
more inquiry would be made were they
also 10 drop out of sight. 1t is not the
will of Mrs. Martin that he should be thus
confined to seclusion, but a complicated
.maIady holds him its unwilling prisoner
That he was so popular is the best critic
ron by which to judge of his character,
for be held position which is not popu-
was the controlling legal mind of the
Southern Pacific in this district. Upon
his shoulders, more than upon any other