Arizona republican., 1901-03-02

The evening organ of Senator Ives and the mcuthpiece of the so-called in-
 vestigation committee A GROSS which again Is the MISREPRE- senator alone. said last ESTIMATION. night;
 "The board of control made strenuous efforts to prevent in- quiry and the house for several days withheld its assent to employment of an accountant"
 jority of the members of the house do that the foregoing is a gross misrepre sentation. They know that an investi- gation was asked for on the part of the board, not only by democrats as well as republicans on the floor of the house. but that personal requests were made of the members by the territorial au- ditor for the appointment of a joint commission The members of the board have nothing to fear from the Ives in vestigation. They did not desire a joint
 
 the malevolence of the senator, for as an investigator he is no more powerful than as private citi- zen. The auditor and the board desired q joint committee so that the report wcrild carry with it the weight of reg ularty; that 1t should have the authority of the legislature be- hind 1t: not merely that of the council or that of the house. for each is only half the legislature. The ridiculousness of the proceedings in- stituted by Mir. Ives and advocated by three or four of his silly mouthpieces in the house. was so apparent that we can hardly conceive that his tools should have been given a patient near ing by reasoning men. An argument made by them in supp-rt of the coun- ell concurrent resolution was: "The council has begun the investigation: 1t has given a week or two to it. If we join it now we will have to go over all the ground already travelled by the council. thus delaying the work of in- vestigation." As a matter of fact, the council investigation of the affairs of the auditor and board of control has not yet been begun. It is true that the committee consisting of Mir. Ives. has held. we believe. three sessions of in- quiry into the circumstances of the printing of the biennial reports. but not a step has been taken in the di- rection laid down in the council concur rent resolution. Though the of- fees of the auditor and the beard of control are always open and though the council gave the com mittoe additional authority by the adoption of previous resolution to send for books and papers and to summon witnesses. that committee has so far. sent for no book nor paper. So the investigation is yet to begin and a house committee appointed today would have an equal start with Mir. Ives. But we will suppose that 1t were true that the council committee had spent two weeks in the investigation and had learned all that could be learned in that time. We will suppose further. that 1t had finished the investigation and had submitted its report to the council. That report could not be considered legislative report. It would have no greater or weightier sig nificance than the report of commit tee appointed by the board of trade or the w. c. T. IT.. or the Crittenton Home association to investigate the offices of the auditor and the board of control. The report of the council committee. though. could be given weight and authority by it's reception and adoption in the house. But certainly the house would not care to adopt a council re- port upon a matter of so much serious ! ness without going carefully over all the facts contained in the report. That, | with such verification of the facts as | house composed in a large part of gentlemen of decency, intelligence and a knowledge of business would | insist upon. wculd occupy as much time as the original inyestiga- | tion. so that the plan proposed by MT. |