The San Francisco call., 1898-05-01
Wonderful Conversion Worked in Him Relative to the Hos=
 pital Site.
Announced After Private Conference With Mrs. Merritt, the Daughter of Adolph
 SutrO.

Supervisor Dodge has recently de- veloped wonderfully. flexible mind, by the aid of which he has performed some curious and remarkable mental acrobatic :feats. For. weeks he fought against every. proposition to purchase lands for the: establishment of: ." mon key ranch in the. Mission, and no one fought more :. bitterly than: he the proposition Ito. authorize; the City At torney to. bring condemnation proceed ings for: such. lands Yet" on: the date when it came. to the crucial test, and just before. the"vote= was. taken. on. the A Aresolution," he showed. a Swayerfng~ front ~and finally went over. to the camp of the solid eight and" voted for the ~reso- lution. :~. : , :: -. = =: - : :
 Now heis training to turn a. complete somersault eon the matter of the site for the new City and County: Hospital, after the board. has formally. and to all intents. and purposes finally. approved and accepted the site that was .recom- mended by the Board of. Health. <; : " It was after4 a private conference Fri day. between. himself, Supervisor Rot tanzi and Mrs: pr. Merritt, the daugh- ter Of ex-Nfayor .Sutro, that the an nouncement was. made: by MT Dodge of his latest conversion. " It is a noto- rious fact. that Sutro has always. yio- lently opposed the proposition to locate the new. hospital. on the site that has been selected by the Board of Supervi- sors on the: recommendation of the four members of the Board of Health.
 There: is much that is strange about the change: of. N.ew that Supervisor Dodge n oIy~. profeSSes ito have under gone. He. stated yesterday that he proposed to secure, if possible, action by the: Board of Supervisors that would annul<the selection" of the present site and bring about the selection of. a. new site. :The present site. comprises about nine acres of land. and is situated to the west of. the 4;alboa boulevard, and is contiguous to + property. owned by Sutro.** The proposed Dodge site com priSeS: tWenty.-tiVe- acres, is located to the east of: the boulevard, and is re- mote. comparatively speaking, = from the lands of the <eX-May0r. It may. be stated that Supervisor Rottanzi has also been brought around to Dodge's way of thinking on this. matter. Dodge is chairman. of; the Hospitals Commit tee of the Board. of Supervisors, and Rottanzt is a mem Der: of that commit tee pr. Clinton is the third member of the .committee.: - :.....
 In. order to fully appreciate .Dodge's present attitude in this affair a brief IVY was :SelecCed.*is necessary. RottanZi'S position is:not quite so inconsistent.
 On: January IT, 1898, Rottanz: intro duced a-resolution. in. the. board re- questing and. empowering the Board of Health to; select a site for the new hos pital buildings. !fhe* resolution was re- ferred to the. joint Finance. and Hospi- tai COmmitte. :: On January 31 the committee reported faVorably. on the resolution; its: report: was adopted by the board and the following resolution was adopted:..: -.:::;
 Resolved. That: the Board of Health be and is hereby respectfully requested and empowered to- select a. site on the Aims house and Hospital tract for the erection of hospital building, and fill. with this that end and to .carry out the purpose indicat ted the City: and County Surveyor is hereby. *reduired.+ = when. requested by said Board"of- Health! to make a survey of the selected and to furnish a. dfa- gram and written description of the same 10 said board, -.
 On March.2 the. Board of Health filed a conlmunTcation with the Board of Su- perYisdrs informing them that site had been selected, and a description of the site was. furnished. On. March IA the Hospital Committee of the Super visors, to which the matter had been referred, reported in favor of the site This report was signed by Dodge and t.+:
 In accord with. this report the Board Of Supervisors on the same day by the unanimous vote of the eleven members present adopted a resolution formally approving and accepting the site
 Dodge gives as his reasons for agi- tating a change of site that the pro- posed new site is larger; gives a fine view of the surrounding country, and may in the remote future have street car facilities.
 By those who are aware of the care: ful and painstaking manner in which the present site was selected it is said that Dodge is showing bad taste if not positive diScourtesy and lack of confidence in the Board of Health by his proposed course.
 At the time the Almshouse tract was examined by the Board of Health the, twenty five acre tract was under con sideration, but was not considered de- sirable because it was much too large for the purpose, was too steep in many places and was too much exposed.
 Dodge states that he proposes to see the members of the Board of Health and try to induce them to come to his way of thinking. He may then bring the matter formally before the Board of Supervisors.
 The questions that are now beirg asked about the City Hall are: Why did Dodge, as chairman of the Hospitals Committee, approve the present site and vote for it in the board? Why did