New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1905-05-06
THE RECORD.

r,hora comes time in the life OF every iesl0
latl1re when hasty or prejudlceu opSe- go, os-
| likely 10 pronounce it the worst lh"t 80.
! or,b1od Whom the session has endeo the luz
,,.rouv onnoors that the record is Compounded
! of Good and had measures but that nearly al
+he VIGOROUSLY offensive schemes nave A"iio1
Tlras the legislative body as Who're ple'v 80
n +olerable reputation, even though 1t Hi'!
baan held I'M To reproach during its existence
and some Of its members go nome ultoli'
credited. So 1t is this year. Inc leglsialuAo %
1905 has repeatedly seemed to De on lle Ne0
Of mourning general and lasting opproDrlunl,
~ - +ho fnol moment II has steered clear OF
homeless disaster by rather narrow m'n en-
while sending TO the Governor NUMBER Oh val
uabla measures We regret to say tnaI lneI7
are both Senators and Assemblymen, heretofore
esteemed, whose votes in several instances car
not be attributed TO honest error. Inc! nave
disgraced themselves and betrayed ther eoii
stituents and they ought to be retired TO prlVate
life as soon as possible -, ,.,,
The worst items on the list or graz piiIS
appear to have been defeated without exception
though if NAV be found that some job Whlch
escaned observation slipped through in the last
hours. The failure of the Niagara power DILL
after many strange vicssitudes, ts cause for
rejoicing because of the natural ruin WHICH II
threatened the gross invasion OF private anu
municipal rights which it authorized ana lle ue-
testable methods employed in It's DehdL' Inc
corioS of street railroad bills, which the Inter
borough company was constrained 10 achno"l-
edge as its own after The TribuneS Albany
CORRESPONDENT had proved their parentage by an
admirable process of analysis and comparison
were beaten, as they deserved to be- Ii thelr
sorrco and character had been frankly set forth
at the outset they would not have been 1ndlg-
nantlv denounced. But the truth is that the
company ought to have asked the local aulnorI-
ties for the privileges it wanted ana nave OIL
fered terms which might have Justlned lhe
grant 1t was a shabby thing to invoke the
mower of the legislature in a furtve manner lor
the sake of avoiding obstacles which the hapla
Transit act, the charter and puDnc sentiment
mt in the path of every such scheme for cor
porate ACKNOWLEDGEMENT.
The police reorganization bill affecting this
CITY, which embodied the substance OF the rec
concentrations made by the Committee of Nine
failed at the last after making unexpected mead
way 1t contained several provisions or a nope
full character and, on the whole, we are sorry
that it did not pass. The experiment Woud
have been interesting, at least, but we cannot
consider its postponement deplorable misfort-
une. The measure was the result OF an honor-
able effort by public spirited citizens to improve
the degraded and demoralizing conditions winch
now exist and which are perhaps lncurapie
under the present system, and Tammany cheer
fully co-operated in destroying whatever pros
pect of reform it offered. Several bad bills
which it might be unjust to describe as tainted
are defunct including the three platoonS police
scheme, which would inevitably have mace an
unhappy situation worse.
When we come to affirmative legislation we
find that a good many wise things have been
done The liquor law has been so amended as
to put out of business a large number or the
abominable "Raines law hotels" The Mayors
water bill and the State Commission water Dill
were passed, and the interests of this city were
further served by a provision for pipe galleries
in future subways The aldermen have lost
their power to hold up franchises pending the
completion of corrupt arrangements to their
satisfaction. We cannot say that the stock
transfer tax and the mortgage tax acts are like
" to overcome in operation the strong hostility
they have provoked. Except for the need of in
creased revenue they would not have been pro-
posed, and there is some reason to think they
will not fully meet expectations in that respect
On the other hand, 1t is probable that their ca
pacity for harm has been exaggerated in some
quarters. 1t is to be regretted that plan Of
mortgage taxation which would have been more
generally satisfactory and, we think, more pro-
ductiVe also was not adopted.
The bills relating to gas and electric lighting,
an exceedingly important part of the legislat-
ureS work, remain to be considered. 1t is nee
essary to say at once that their passage, and
especially the failure of the one that did not
pass, were attended by an exhibition Of some of
the worst traits of human nature. 1t is virtually
impossible to doubt that q great amount of
money was cOrruptly used for the purpose of
bringing to naught the investigation SO well con-
Quoted by the Stevens committee There is,
however, good reason TO hope that money and
regulations will prove to have been thrown
away. The bill directly reducing the price of
gas to private consumers not in our opinion
of the first Importance. 1t is more essential
that a good quality Of gas should be honestly
supplied at proper pressure, that the monop-
oily should be righteousy dealt with in respect
to its franchises and all its operations and COM
PEELED TO discharge its obligations to the letter
The measures which have been passed, if they
go Into effect and are scrupulously administered.
VIII be Of great benefit to the people, even
though the commission to be appointed should
be unable or unwilling to reduce the price of gas