The record-union., 1897-01-03
LAWMAKERS GATHERING.
ke(rencnmelt and Reform Appears to be
the WatChWOrd.
what the Senate Will Not Allow Lieu.
enant-GOvernor Jeter-Distrib-
uting LOaVes and Fishes.

lorna Legislature will convene at Il
CLOCK noon tomorrow, and fully two
tblroS OF the members who will COM
pose 1t We're in the city last night. AS
usual, the hotels are all crowded, not
so much with law makers as with the
cbuZen who claims the right OF party
Preferment for campaign services rem
dered.
Interest yesterday seemed to be CEN
Tered in the figure Leutenant-Govern
Jeter would cut with the incoming Sem
ate, and in the proposition to curtail
the number of employees of both houses
III order to reduce expenses.
FLINT FOR PRESIDENT PRO TEN
That Thomas Flint, Jr., will be elect
ed President pro tenn. of the Senate goes
without question. There is method in
this. Flint is g strong man and under
stands the duties of the position thor
Uughly. He held the position during
the session of 1895, and owing to the
illness aid subsequent death of Lieu
tenant Governor Spencer G. Millard,
occupied the chair throughout the SeS-
sion.
JEyTER'S CHANCES.
Within the past twenty-four hours
even the right of Lieutenant Governor
William T. Jeter to swear in the new
members has been agitated, and the re-
suit of the matter is that Jeter will be
given no political power whatever, 9th
er than merely presiding over the Sem
ate after its organization.
Even Jeter'S right TO act in the lat
ter capacity is questioned, and it is
%l,o
new members and appoint committees,
and subsequently his appointment as
Lieutenant-G should be de-
clared invalid, all subsequent legislative
acts would be rendered nugatory and
void.
1t is declared by many of the Re-
publican Senators now in the city that
the refusal of the Supreme Court to
issue a writ of mandamus against Gov
ernor Budd, thus compelling him to in
clude the election of a Lieutenant Gov
ernor in his proclamation, only, in eff
feet, declared that no law on the stat
ute books made it obligatory upon the
Chief Executive to do so, and did not
declare the appointment legal
1t is further claimed by those inter
ested that there will probably be con-
test filed against Mr.. Jeter's claim to
the office, which may result in his re-
tirement to private life, and that it
would be poor policy to allow him to
swear in the new members and appoint
committees with the prospect that all
acts OF his may be declared void.
HOW 1T IS SLATED.
With this view of the situation a
preliminary caucus of the Republican
Senators viii be held to-day to ar
range the preliminaries for the action
required, the result of which will prob
ably be as follows:
The Senate will convene a. noon to-
morrow with President pro tenn Flint
in the chair.
The President pro tenn. will swear in
the new members.
By resolution, a Temporary Commit
tee on Rules will be appointed to re-
pert Tuesday
Adjournment.
Upon reassembling Tuesday the Tenn
porary Committee ON Rules will report
recommending that the rules governing
the last session be adopted, with the ex-
ception that the President pro TEN. be
empowered to appoint the Senate COM
mittees.
The report Of the committee will be
ADOPTED and the committees will prob
ably be appointed the same day, as by
that means the election of a United
States Senator will be held two weeks
from that date instead of three. as
would be the case were organization
deferred until Wednesday.
NO POLITICAL POWER.
The Lieutenant nt-Goyernor usually has
the power TO appoint three porters and
an equal number of pages, but the Re
puoIlcan Senators propose to retain all
places of political preferlnent for them
selves, and Jeter will be Shorn of the
locks representing appointive power.
IhoSe Senators who have charge of
Irat article known as the slate" vouch
Tor the correctness of the foregoing
statement, and while they intend to ex-
lend to Mr.. Jeter every courtesy con-
nected with the position of Lieute nant-
governor except the power of organiz-
ing the Senate, they propose that he
shall stand strictly with the minority.
DUCKWORTH'S CHANCES GOOD
1t is contended by the friends of ] s
Duckworth of Monterey. candidate for
Chief Clerk of the Assembly, that his
hght Is already Won Duckworth, from
present indications, will not only re-
ceive the solid strength from the south
ern section of the State, but Will be
Endorsed by majority of the members
from San Francisco.
Such a proceeding, and It is not de-
MED by those who should know. would
be deathblow to the hopes of Thomas
Atkinson of San Francisco, who has
been led 10 believe that the delegation
from the Bay was for him TO a man. 1t
is contended by Duckworth's friends
that Atkinson will receive but one vote
from the San Francisco delegation, and
THAT even that one IS in doubt.
Atkinson and Hawkett OF Alameda
have, ii Is alleged, attempted to form a
combination to defeat Duckworth and
son to take first, and Hawkett second
place But dt is said by Duckworth's
friends that while Hawkett means well.
he cannot deliver the goods and that
his hold on the Alameda delegation Is
more imaginary than real.
A MERRY FIGHT
The fight for the position of Sergeant
at-Arms for the Senate goes merrily
on, and some very shrewd work is being
done against Blackburn by the veteran
Senator from Alameda, Eli Denison.
The latter announces that Martin Low
of Oakland has the long end of the
string-at least he talks that way TO
members who falter in their allegiance
to Blackburn. 1t Is asserted by friends
of the latter that this move on the part
of Denison is for the purpose of dividing