The San Francisco call., 1899-03-11

CALL HEADQUARTERS, SACRA-
MENTO, March Ex-senator Dickinson's
bill reorganizing the State Board of Har-
Dor Commissioners was finally laid to rest
to-day, and with it were buried the pre-
tensions of power that have been the
boast Of Dan Burns, Major Mclaughlin,
Hervey Lindley and their army OF touts
during the past three months
In vain did Burns, Mclaughlin, Lind
ley and their followers line up the Re
publican Senators and threaten them
with everything from the displeasure of
the chief executive to political ostracism
If they failed to vote to reconsider the
vote by which the bill was defeated on
Wednesday; in vain did they insist that
1t was the pet measure of Governor Gage,
and that, as such, it should be supported
by every Republican vote in the Senate,
and in vain did they further debase them
selves by calling to mind their humiliat-
ing experience of yesterday when they
craWled in the dust at the feet of the
Grant men and begged to be allowed to
dismiss the charges of contempt against
Milton J. Green. The result was in every
case the same The Grant men scorned
the advances of those who had been will
ing TO do a servie act after being beaten
into submission and because of prospec-
tive gain; they had the Mexican down and
knew it. and knowing it, were not dis
posed TO surrender the advantages of a
victory so hardly won. The other Repub-
lican stalwarts, led by Senators Davis and
Boyce, ignored alike threats and offers of
personal gain, and showed the way to
success that marked Burns as boss
without a following, a politician without
power.
Among those whose votes contributed to
the defeat of the measure on Wednesday
were Senators Hoey and Burnett. Both
Of these legislators have been voting for
Burns for Senator since the beginning of
the session, and the fact that they broke
away from Burns and voted with the op-
position on the Harbor Commission bill
caused great surprise and Indignation in
the Burns camp 1t was upon those two
men that the full strength of the Burns
batteries was turned last night and to-day
in an effort to pull them down and force
them against their convictions to vote to
reconsider the vote by which the bill was
Qe1eated, or at least 10 vote to postpone
the consideration of the motion to recon
slider until some future time. Both Sen
ator Hoey and Senator Burnett, TO their
credit be it said, refused to yield 10 either
threats or inducements of personal gain.
They had voted against the measure on
principle, and they declared their purpose
to continue TO vote against it to the end.
That they carried out this declaration to
the letter was one of the bitterest drops
in the whole bitter dose forced down the
afternoon.
The defeat of Burns and his followers
was made more overwhelming by the fact
that they made their fight not on the
merits OF the bill but upon motion to
postpone action on the motion TO recon-
slider until Monday afternoon. Wednesday
a majority of the Republican Senators
and all of the Democrats put the stamp
of diSapproYal on the proposed measure
SO far as its merits were concerned. To-
day the same majority put the seal of
their disapproVal on Burns and his politi-
cal Vaccinations and pretensions. Hav
ing killed the bill, they wished to kill
Burns, and they did 1T so effectually that
there is no need OF an autopsy to ascer-
tain the cause Of death; Should one
be held. the verdict would be ''oVerin-
dulgence in political pretensions."
,s1s There We're we're all all kinds Of lobby
game up. 1t was not a good time
for it. That every one Of it's friends was
willing TO admit; but there are certain
restrictions to parliamentary proceedings
and one Of them is that when a Senator
gives notice that on a certain day he will
move to reconsider a certain vote he must
make his motion or let his intention to
reconsider pass from sight. 1t was a case
his motion just after the time for the
consideration of the Assembly file had
expired.
In making his motion, he said, he had
one or two amendments to offer to the
schedule OF salaries as set forth in Jne
bill, and he thought Monday was none
too soon to bring them up for considera-
ton Wolfe put the motion in definite
shape by moving that the matter, go over
.,
supporters of the bill seconded the mo-
Davis objected. He said the Senator
from Marin had asked that the question
go over from yesterday afternoon until
to-day on the ground that he desired
tor Davis called attention to the fact that
the Senators were present in numbers as
great as ever could be expected.
Continuing, Davis said: Il withdrew
my objection to a postpOnement from yes
terday purely out of courtesy. L ex-
pected the measure to come up for con-
sideratiOn to-day, and so did everybody
else. We have all the afternoon and all
the evening to consider the matter, and
there is no need to put it off any longr.
the bill, or we can vote it down and finish
it, but there is no reason to postpone it.
Davis declared the bill was illogical
upon the showing of the author himself.
He called attention to the report of the
investigating committee and to the fact
that it charged corruption in the manage
ment of harbor affairs. He calleG atten-
tion to the fact that two members of tho
board were, by the terms of the bill re-
tanned in office, and the third would be
out of office, by the expiration of his
term, in two weeks. Both members re-
tanned must be honest, Davis said, or they
would not be retained, and within two
weeks the Governor would appoint
third, also honest, and so all the investi-
eating committee could ask would have
been granted and so what was the use Of
IF there be corruption to correct" de-
manded Davis, why retain two Of the
corruptionists in office? On behalf of the
Republican party, its heart and soul, its
rank and file, let us stand by our prin-
ciples in spite Of the temptation to use
the powers which have been given us and
we will be doing. higher politics than if
we pass this bill"
Then Leavitt had something to say.
Measure after measure, he declared, had
come up, and had been laid over merely
as matter of courtesy to the Senator
who moved to postpone. 1t was a Sena
torial courtesy, he said and he proceeded
10 dilate on that ethereal thing which al
lows all that the rules forbid and sane
tions much that is unparfiamentary. He
said he would like to answer Davis, "the
Senator from Amador," but he would not
do so on a motion to postpone. He would
wait until the bill came up for final pas
sage, an intention somewhat premature
and OPTIMISTIC,
Boyce was the next man who had some,
thing to say, but his remarks did no good
10 the bill. 1--WE have been on watch all
day" he said; I'VE have been waiting for
this bill to come up and we propose to
put it in a coffin and screw down the lid
SO this corpse will never rise again.
Luchsinger said he would vote for
postponement out of Senatorial courtesy
Wolfe added few words on the same
subject of courtesy and then proceeded