The San Francisco call., 1897-01-27
LIVELY DEBATES
AS TO ECONOMY
Legislators Who Would Do
Away With Temporary
Organization.
Duckworth Is Yet Too Ill to
Appear Before the Investi.
eating Committee.
Speaker Coombs Decides That All
the Evidence Must Be Taken
in Public.

SACRAMENTO, CAL, Jan. 26-The
matter OF providing for the reorganization
of future sessions of the Assembly was
made the subject of lively debate in the
House this morning. 1t came up on the
special orders when Chynoweth's bill was
reached. The bill limited the mum Der of
attaches to be employed on prelimt-
nary organization. The reading of the
bill was the signal for a member, once
we'll known as q Democrat but who
short time ago drifted into oblivion on
the mud scow of Populism, to rise and
move an impossible amendment for the
purpose of being in harmony with his
Quixotic environment.
MeIick of Los Angeles, newspaper man
whose voice crieth aloud in the wilderness
of the Mojave desert near Lancaster, OPP
posed the amendment. "The law as it
stands, he said. 'tmay be good enough
for Populists, but it is not good enough
for Republicans. The gentleman says
that there is no need of temporary or
ganization. Whether that be so or not,
we fl nd in looking over the history of past
sessions of the Legislature that there have
been times when for weeks aud nearly a
month the temporary organization was
prolonged. At the time of Mr.. Stanford's
election to the United States Senate we
know that the temporary organization
was held for seventeen days, and there
have been other times when 1t was even
impossible to organize at all. This bill
provides for twenty-four attaches in the
Assem- bly,. They are absolutely needed to
carry on the business of the House."
Mr.. Waymire said that the bill would
give to the organization OF the Assembly
ample power in the selection of its clerks
and other officers. The bill would pre-
vent abuses such as had been noted in the
past,
The object of the bill, Valentine said,
! vas to take the matter out of the hands
! of the Speaker.
"The power of appointing the attaches
Should be taken out of the hands of the
| Speaker" continued Valentine, because
it was a power that was likely to be
abused. 1t had been abused two years
ago and it had been abused at this session.
The selection of the attaches by the chief
clerk is wrong in principle and perniclous
in practice. The Assembly should ap-
point its own employees. We don't need
whole army of temporary and permanent
attaches for the use of the temporary or
ganization."
Chynoweth took the floor and in his
most impressive manner begged the House
to vote down the amendment. The
amendment would leave the law exactly
as it was, and would allow the Legislature
at the next session to repeat the scandals
which have agitated the present session.
| On motion of Treacy the whole subject
matter and all the bills relating thereto
were referred to the committee.
There was Duckworth talk in the air all
the morning and disquieting rumor that
at least two mem bers of the committee
were in favor of conducting the investiga-
ton in the dark. There was more than
rumor in It, as the newspaper corre-
spondents learned, and committee of
reporters waited upon Speaker Coombs
and asked him whether he had agreed
that the proceedings should be of the
star-cham ber whitewash variety and he
replied that he would not consent to have
the investigation held in any but public
manner, and furthermore, that he would
use all the influence in his power to have
the investigation held with open doors
The committee of investigation met at
3P NJ. Judge Waymire presiding. Chyn.
oweth produced the temporary roll, and
on equest of Emmons the committee
authorized the chairman to issue a
subpoena for S. ]. Duckworth to appear
and produce all written requests and other
evidence, documenary and otherwise,
bearing upon the matter of the appoint
N ent OF temporary employees.
r. r. Duckworth announced that his
brother was still confined to his bed ana
unable to appear that his physician had
consented that he might go out to- morrow
for exercise, and that If strong enough at
that time he would attend the meeting.
The subpoena accordingly was issued SUBJ
ject to the certificate of Mr. Duckworth's
physician.
North of Alameda was called to the
tand and said that he had been informed
that among the papers in his possession
was document containing a list of ap-
pointees in Duckworth's own handwriting.
Chynoweth suggested that the witness
should produce the papers instead OF tell
ing the committee of what he had been
informed, and North replied that the
papers were under his control, locked in q
safe uptown. He asked that he should be
subpenaed to produce the papers, he not
desiring to volunteer any evidence.
Belshaw OF Contra Costa came next.
The letter presented 10 the committee bv