The San Francisco call., 1897-02-11
Chief Clerk Triumphs Over
His Enemies in the
Assem- bly,.
PERMITTED TO RESUME
HIS POSITION.
Vote Results in His Favor After
a Bitter Clash Between
Factions.
FUTILE ATTEMPTS TO APPLY
GAG RULE.
Tactics of HIS Foes Win Friends for
the Man Whom They Sought
to Besmirch.
FUTILE ATTEMPTS TO APPLY
GAG RULE.

SACRAMENTO, CAL, Feb. 10.-After
fiery session continuing for more than
three hours, full of dramatic situations, in
the presence of the largest crowd that has
been gathered in the Assem- bly, cham Der
since the beginning of the present session,
under the inspiration of earnest speeches
by men who telt keenlY what they we're
saying, and after most manly and mas
terry defense on the floor of the House by
the man upon whose shoulders an erring
BODY was trying to dump its own political
sins, Chief Clerk Duckworth was rescued
from position OF peril and was allowed
to resume his station st the desk in the
face of his enemies, officially absolved
from all stain OF blame.
Had he been a man of less force of less
ability, of less adroitness. of less man
hood; had his friends wavered for even
single instant in that trying hour, he
would now be a private citizen with an
official brand Of shame upon his brow,
burned there by the highest authority of
the State. Every member of the Assem-
bly,, save Moultrie of Fresno, who has
been dangerously i'll since the beginning
OF the session, took part in the exciting
proceedings, and every one OF those
seventy nine, with the ignoble exception
of Malcolm of Santa Clara, placed his
name on record on the rollcall as either
for or against the dismissal in disgrace of
the chief clerk.
As Malcolm trembled and fell down in
the senatorial contest at the beginning of
the session, so to-day he fell down before
the light of an important issue, and
sneaked away in a sinister shadow just
before the call of the roll. During the
three hours p receding that event he occu-
pied prominent place on the floor now
fourishing in his hand q paper bearing
protest against the report OF the commit
tee censuring the members, now offering
an amendment and now rising to QueS-
tions OF information or OF personal priv
llege. He was fgurehead on the ship of
state, but when the name OF Malcolm was
reached on the roll the House knew him
no more. He had vanished-evaporated
like the mist from the tules in the light of
the rising sun.
Waymlre of Alameda, although he did
not evade the issue, was next in point of
undesirable prominence. When he gave
the reply in answer to question by Clerk
Duckworth that he had not summoned ex-
Sergeant-at-arms Parkinson as witness
before the investigating committee and
that 1t had been testified that Parkinson
had procured the appointment OF no less
than eighteen attaches on the temporary
roll the House held its breath. Then when
Camlnetti OF Amador In voice OF thun-
der demanded why Mr.. Waymire and his
committee had not censured Parkinson
when he had censured Caminetti for hav-
ing procured the appointment OF q small
boy as page there was a murmer of ap-
pIause from spectators and mem bers
alike.
From that moment the star of the
prosecution began TO wane, and it almost
TrRF L
charged Waymire and his committee with
bad faith; with Inconsistency; with the
gTossest injustice in refusing to make
charges against him with having neglected
10 notify him that he had been accused of
any crime or wrong-doing whatever; with
having Informed him that he was not on
trial, and then with bringing in resolu-
ton in the name of the chairman censur-
ing him and asking for his dismissal.
AT the outset an effort was made to deny
the accused clerk an opportunity of speak
ing in his own defense, and this effort was
so persistent so malicious and so spiteful
that several mem bers, their cheeks red
denlng with Indignation, jumped to their
feet and protested against the Spanish
method OF gagging and shooting pris-
oner first and trying him afterward.
There is no doubt that this coarse attempt
to trample upon the right of the clerk to
defend himself made friends for him out
OF several mem bers who had made up
their minds 10 vote for his dismissal, bat
whose manhood recoiled from an act so
eowardly and so unjust
Long before 2 oclock-the hour set on
the special file for consideration of the
report OF the committee of inYestigation-
the galleries and the lobby outside OF the
rail were crowded. So many ladies sat in
the front row in the gallery, so many had
seats on the floor, attired in their best
promenade dresses, their biggest plumed
arde haf hot
sembly cham Der resem bled the auditorium
OF tkeater during matinee performances,
with Speaker Coombs as the heavy lrage-
dian. This resem blance was made all the
more real by the handclapping and the
cheers by mem bers and spectators at every
striking point made in the proceedings.
And when the call of the roll was done
and the men cheered and the women
waved their handkerchiets and the mem
bers crowded around the chief clerk to
shake him by the hand and congratulate
him upon his vindlcation, one would have
thought that some issue of vital impor-
tance to the people Of the State had been
settled and that an ever-to- o-be-memorab BILE
page had been added to the history of Cal
Ifornia.
1t was m manifest from the very start that
the details OF the fight for and against the
clerk had been well and carefully ar
ranged, for Speaker Coombs had barely
finished his announcement of the order of
business before Dibble OF San Francisco
was on his feet moving the previous ques-
tion so as to shut off debate in which
disagreeabie things might be said by the
minority.
Democrat Caminetti and Populist Shan
ahan rose to points of order, but were i'm
paled upon them. Then Mead offered a
resolution to the effect that the names of
the censured mem bers who had recon-
mended the appointment OF attaches on
the temporary roll should be stricken off
the report. This was changed SO as to ex-
cept those mem bers who were not present
and did not JOIN in the report of the mile
age committee commenting the pay
ment of one weeks mileage to the tempo
rary attaches for one days work.
Price, the Republican member from
Sonoma, declared that the members who
were not present when the report of the
Mileage Committee was read had violated
their duty in negiecting a business of so
much importance, and that the whole
committee was deserving of censure.
IN his most vigorous manner Caminetti