The San Francisco call., 1899-03-11

CALL HEADQUARTERS. SACRA-
MENTO, March 10.-Senate bill q. by
Simpson, went through the Assembly
on it's final passage this afternoon. with
only twelve votes against 1t.
1t gave rise to the first redhot debate
that has occurred over any bill during
the present session. For matter OF
two hours or more there was some
mighty spell binding. Caminetti OF
Amador made most of the noise; DID
BILE and Johnson did most of the work.
The measure before the House was
the much discussed Santa Fe bill. 1t
permits the Atchison, Topeka and
Santa Fe people to acquire the Federal
franchise of the old Atlantic and Pa
cific road between Mojave and the
Needles, the Southern California Rail-
way from BarstOW to Los Angeles, the
right of way over the Southern Pa
cific's line from Mojaye to Bakersfield
and the San Joaquin Valley road from
Bakersfield to San Francisco. All OF
these franchises and rights of way the
road needs, that it may bring into San
Francisco the first competing line that
has come to California's relief.
When the bill came up as special
order for this afternoon Caminetti
opened the proceedings by calling up
his substitute bill, which was already
printed in the Journal
Judge Dibble asked him to explain
before further action was taken Just
what his substitute was designed to
effect. Caminetti explained. 1t took
him just siXty-six minutes, but he ex-
planned.
I'm the first place." said he. nothing
but the stock of the California rail-
roads is permitted to be sold by the
provisions of my amendment. The
franchises and rights of way cannot
be transferred. In other words. the
buyer becomes stockholder rather
than an owner.
In the second place, bill 81 says in
one clause that no competing road may
be bought by its competitor. That's all
right as far as it goes, but the next
section nullifies it by providing that
any line now leased, competitive or
otherwise, may be purchased.
What L fear, and the reason for my
amendment is, that in passing bill No.
81 you take from California the right
to revise or repeal these franchises by
transferring them to a foreign corpora
ton"
Then Mr.. Caminetti opened out. For
over an hour he contended with much
eloquence that the bill was no more nor
less than a scheme to assist the South
ern Pacific to destroy possible Compe-
tition by amalgamating the new line
with it's own. True competition, he
said, was practically an in1possibility.
Judge Dibble pulled the constitution
on Caminetti and proved to the salts
faction of more than enough of the
members to pass the bill that Senate
bill 81 provided none of the fearful
things the gentleman from Amador
claimed it did, and after a brilliant
speech in favor of the measure gave
way to Grove Johnson, who, in his own
meek way, told Mr.. Caminetti he was
playing to the gallery.
Then a vote was taken on Caminetti S
substitution and it went down, Sc to A.
The question was then on the ma!
passage of the original bill. Caminetti
! jumped in with more amendments, and
! Dibble threatened to head him off with
a demand for the previous question if
he persisted in dilatory tactics.
"Choke me off, yelled Caminetti.
But answer to the people for what
you have done!'
| Then Grove Johnson got up again and
delivered a telling speech.
"If I did not know the gentleman
| from Amador as we'll as 1 do. if / did
not know his reputation for honesty
| and integrity in all things. 1 should be
| led to believe by his action here to-
| dav that he was doing railroad politics;
| that he was opposed to the Santa Fe
| people in their endeavor to bring
| comneting line into California to for
| ever relieve her of the one road doml-
| nation that has held he, down.
"God speed the day when we shall see
| in every pass and canyon of the
| Sierras the headlights of competing
| railroads AS a man who has his all.
| little as it may be. tied UP here, as
citizen who loves his State, as a man
whose children and grandchildren have