Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1899-05-20

at this session to kill bills that aimed
TO curtail any Of their privileges. They
were told that "Pitcher" sherman and
the Senatorial syndicate would attend
TO all that. All corporation regulators
We're to be allowed to go through the
House and enter the Senate, where the
syndicate. which consisted. by the way.
of six members, would assume the
highly moral role of reformers and kill
the measures. asserting they were
'sandbags" or Matchmaking bills.
The gas frontage and consolidation
repeating bills were to be included In
that category.
The corporations fell in with the idea
readily. on the grounds. of course. that
it would be much more easy and ex-
pedient TO convince a small cotcrie
in the Senate Of the unworthiness of Il
measure than to impress such fact
upon a majority of both houses. hut
1.-The bestlaid plans OF mice and men
gang aft aglee." The Senatorial clique
discovered that they dare not smother
the gas frontage bill IL it were passed
by the House and sent over to the up
per chamber. The public, they found,
would not swallow the plausible cX-
cuse that this bill was a sandbag. The
public demanded the repeal of that in
famous measure, which gives over the
streets of Chicago to the tender mcr-
cies of the Gas Trust.
Several consultations were held both
in Springfield and Chicago over the
matter. The solitary individual who
represented the Gas Trust and most
other corporations during the session
Just closed. admitted that the dilemma
was a serious one.
This man is an old corporation law
yer. He Is a veteran lobbyist. He has
pulled his clients out of many bad
holes in Springfield In years gone by,
but he admitted this was as tight a
place as he was ever in. He Is a rail.
road lawyer; his name has been known
to every member Of this and past Legis.
latures for years.
He Is man full of resources. but lie
expressed the fear at one conference
held with his co.parceners mt the Great
Northern Hotel about three weeks be-
fore adjournment that In this particu-
lar instance ''he was up against the
real thing now.'
However, he did not quite despair.
and at last he cried "Eureka" April II
was the date fixed for finally deciding
whether the House should concur or
not in the date fixed for final adjourn.
mont. namely April u.
The veteran corporation lawyer de.
clared that this date must he cOncurred
in. and that meanwhile the gas front.
age bill was to be delayed In It's pass
age until the last moment, and then
allowed to die with the multitude of
other bills that must necessarily he
slaughtered as a result of the untimcly
adjournment. The Syndicate" was
overjOyed. 1t was relieved from very
embarrassing situation. Somebody
must be found, however. who would
have sufficient backbone to so handle
the matter that the gas frontage bill
would die with "the slaughter Of the
innocents." Now, The Eagle Is not to
be- taken as asserting that Speaker
Sherman was the man chosen to do this
work. nor that he was Influenced by
any unworthy motives In handling the
gas frontage bill as he did.
But the kickers who are back from
Springfield urge that the facts remain
that the bill was pressed by Representa-.
tive Brown from the committee stage to
Il favorable report, from that point to
second reading, and finally, through
that sturdy members eXcrtions. was
made special order on third reading
for day early In the last week of the
session.
| That there was big majority In the
House In favor of the passage OF the
bill, and that had II been allowed to
come up In the special order as fixed OIL
the House calendar 1t would have been
passed. That under certain speciOus
preteXts unfinished business" was Civ,
en- the precedence of the special order
against the rules ana traditions of the
House. That this unfinished bust.
ness though not nearly as important
| "N 'hS AaNuS"S >" vuVs''ous uuu 'uN
effect of pushing the gas frontage bill
to the rear, where 1t finally dropped
into the ruck of measures marked fol-
slaughter.
That Speaker Sherman left his plac.
as presiding officer and made q violent
harangue In favor of cOncurring in til,
extraordinarily early date fixed for al
journment. That after bitter fight OF
the floor of the House the date FIXED
forSine die adjournment was concurret
in by default because the Speaker arbi
trarily refused to allow the motion Il
reconsider the date fixed to come up
That the gas frontage bill on this &C
count died while on the order of thlrt
reading. These are but few of tn,
mountain peaks" of the history of thu
| defeat Of the popular gas frontage re
| peal bill. The gas consolidation repea
| bill. which was not OF so much public
| importance, was killed by the same
| tactics. There are most interesting de
tails yet remaining to be filed in.
The Eagle has been given these facts
voluntarily by dissatisfied and com
| planning members of both houses, wh'
have come back from Springfield will
an abiding conviction that they have
been terribly "conned' by few
hogs" as they term the House an,
| Senate cliauc who have. under tl,