The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1899-02-08
Members Of Various Affiliations Flock to His
Rescue
HE WANTED A CONTRACT FROM JILSON
Grants Unique Manager Still Refuses to Tell Tales Out Of
School, but Will Probably Be Permitted to Go Scot
Free Without Being Purged Of His Ofense

! availed him much to-day had he not for
still another time written himself an ass
| over his own signature.
Instead of combining himself to regrets
and excuses that he had not been of suf-
! f1cient health to meet the charges against
| him he with the boldeSt of pens throws
| defiance at his inquisitors, reiterates his
| refusal to answer questions put to him
impudently I,waives his right to appear
! before the House to answer questions
and then bases his reasons upon a claim
| to an exquisite honor, the obscure points
! of which found no appreciation among
! the members on the floor. Even such
stanch Grant supporters as Radcliff,
! Cargill and Greenwich were so Inundated
at the utter foolhardiness of his commu-
nication that they took no stand and cast
! no vote when the Grant force was called
| upon to respond.
! Only the efforts of Valentine and Bel
shaw, Jilson and Dibble and Kelley of
Oakland, all men of contrary affiliations
who acted out of pure charity, saved him
from being dragged from his sick bed and
thrown into a cell in Sacramentos county
| jail in response to a resolution offered by
| ASsemblyman Brown of San Mateo.
| Mr.. Green's communication needs no
| foot notes In its explanation. 1t speaks
rather loudly for itself and reads as fol-
! lows:
| To the Assembly of the State of California:
L have thought it proper to address you in
writing on the subject of my refusal to answer
certain questions propounded by your special
! investigating committee inasmuch the con-
dition of my health admonishes me that 1
may not be able TO appear in person at the
! bar of the Assembly in the near future.
l realize that your honorable body has await
ed time with patience IN my case, and l
| that 1 have been compelled to ask your in
diligence in this behalf
l testified before the committee and here
repeat that 1 never at any time or place paid
any money or other consideration, or offered
or promised to pay any money or other con-
sideration to any person as an inducement for
a vote for United States Senator.
1 deny that any contributions contin-
gent upon the promise or implied promise that
the candidates should support any one for
Senator. On the contrary. in most of the
cases the contributions made through
some individual members of the State. joint
legislative or county committees. but chief
ly through prominent and active members of
the party. In instance there at
tempt offer made by me to corrupt a candi-
date or exact promise from him in return for
any assistance from me.
The committee found in their report, and
have also found that any moneys expended by
were legitimately expended and your honor
able body has adopted this report.
To answer these questions, which failed to
answer before the committee. would in no
instance show improper. illegtimate cor
rupt use of money, nor could such answers, If
made; change In the Least the findings already
by the Assembly. To answer the questions
propounded to me would be to divulge con-
fidential communications, and would serve no
useful purpose
1t is solely question of honor with me. 1
have faith in the recttude of my intention
and absolute confidence that answering these
questions would in no way change the report
of your committee or the action of the AS
sembly.
/ mean no disrespect to your committee or to
the Assembly-just this explanation will con-
hereby waive my right to be personally pres
ent, and now submit the matter to your
judgment. MILTON j. GREEN
No sooner had it been read than
Crowder of San Diego offered a resolu-
ton calling for the dismissal of the
charges against Green and the discharge
of the investigation committee. Mr.
CroWder made no statement explanatory
of his resolution, nor did he urge any
reason for it's adoption. He merely con-
signed it to the House and the fight, such
as 1t was, was begun.
Mr.. CroWder's resolution was divided in
two sections One had to do with Mr..
Green, the other with the committee, and
it was Immediately made the center of
attack by Assemblymen Burnett, Cosper,
Dibble and Valentine.
Works and Crowder were supported
throughout the argument by Mr.. Grant,
who was there in person and chewed gum,
and Walter Bacon, who has been Mr..
Grants attorney since Green's tndisposi-
ton.
Speaker Anderson put the resolution
duly before the House, and Mr.. Burnett
took the floor to say:
Mr. Green assures us that his use of
Mr.. Grants money was legitimate. He
says the report of the committee states
that he used Grants money legitimately,
but l deny that the report of the COM
mittee states any such thing. 1t is not
for Mr. Green to say he used the money
legitimately; 1t is not for this House to
say. We have looked into the affairs
of some members of the House who ac-
copied money, but there were others men
toned we have not investigated, and as
a matter of simple justice 1t is our duty
to not stop now. /, for one, will enter
into no such disgraceful compromise with
Milton Green.
ut is not better than felony for Sena-
torial candidate to put his money be-
hind a candidate for the Legislature, and
no one need tell me that there, Is not an
Mr.. Burnett finished and Mr.. Grant
who still chewed gum, smiled hatly and
continued to watch the game like can
didate for poundmaster watching a bal
lot count by a lot of incompetent election
officers.
Assemblyman Cosper said that there
were two elements in the reSolution-one
Green. the other the committee; and he
thought the two points should be taken
up separately and that the committee
should be disposed of first.
Dibble of San Francisco disagreed with
him on the question of precedence. Mr..
Dibble thought Green should be disposed
of first and said so. The truth of the
mittee discharged, no matter what the
cost; but Dibble wanted it to go right
on grinding out good Senatorial coin for
Dan M Burns. He was backed in mea-
sure by Melick of Pasadena, who wanted
Green punished for his contempt, and said
that the work of the committee was not
nearly finished If the charge was dis
missed.
HE speaks of his honor" said Melick.
land says he would break a confidence
were he to answer these questions. If
he has made charges against any one 1t
is against this House, and when it asks
these questions 1t releases him from Sc
crecy He ought be made to answer
During a pause at this point Mr.. Jilson
saw a chance to say word, and he did
so in manner most satisfactory to every
one save Mr.. Grant His financial rela-
lions with Green he gave up to the whole
House Green got bit the worst of it.
Mr. Jilson said: Through all this in
vestigation / have stood as meek and
lowly as the lowly Jesus. | have borne
nv cross without a word. If Mr.. Green
has tried to cruelty one man more than
another that man was myself. l believe
! he went to The Call and told Mr.. Leake
! that he had given me money. But he
! did not tell how 1t had been spent nor
! how l had got 1t.
II met Dan T. Cole in San Francisco
and he asked me if were going to make
| a canvass, and L told him I was not, but
| that | would be elected without a doubt.
| He told me had better take some money
| into Siskiyou with me and place it for
the benefit of the whole Republican ticket
and / took $500, and it went to the or
ganization to elect the party ticket.
"I was friendly to Mr.. Grant; / was a
| friend of Mr.. Perkins and had been for
years, and when l saw Mr.. Green in San