Los Angeles herald., 1906-06-17

territories Of Arizona and New Mexico
upon the combined votes Of the people
Of the two territories and not upon the
votes Of the separate territories. How
ever this plan was very properly re-l
jected by congress. For further in
formation concerning the grouping nfI
people in districts against their will,
refer 10 the congressional districts Of
this state which seem to take a bend
in traversing territory by which II Is
only possible to elect to congress mem
bers Of one political party.
Cites Gerrymandered District
"1f still further information is re
qured in this regard, I refer citizens
to the legislative districts I'm Calfor-
MIA and particularly one district I'm
Los Angeles county where the minority
party had chance to elect one mem
Der Of the Legislature, and even this
district by a circutous route running
from Pasadena, touching Los Angeles,
thence running around the hills to the
Soldiers Home and Santa Monica, has
been so changed that 1t has been taken
from the minority party. | do not IN
tend to discuss politics. | am merely
referring to districts.
"If I have not already sufficiently
answered the occasion for preparing
this amendment after one had been
adopted by the commission, the answer
is that so far as I am aware no COM
mittee has ever promulgated a docu-
ment which was by It deemed perfec-
| tion.
Legislature Could Revise
ut was well understood that the
legislature could revise the amendment
in any way they saw fit or could en-
tirely reject it. or could submit wholly
new ones, and it was of course within
the province of the commission when
the legislature met, to present new or
different amendments than the Haas
amendment Had Pasadena suggested
a correction in her interest, It doubt
less would have been adopted, as the
occasion for the amendments submit
ted has been alone for her benefit, and
let 1t be further remembered that any
amendment submitted by the legisla
ture would have to be voted upon by
the people of the whole state.
THE most recent suggestion. APP
parently emanating from the governor
and his officers is that the carrying
out of the Haas amendment under the
general laws of the state would be
equally ooercive with mine so far as
small communities are concerned. Suf-
flee it to say that it was intended to
ask the next Legislature to pass laws
to carry out the Haas amendment
body would enact any measure which
would force cities to come into consoll-
dation against their will.
Provides One District
my amendment provides for one dis
trct comprising small territory, as
above stated, and the Haas amend
fnent' would have been supplemented
| by legislation which would have as
sured the several communities against
any coercion. In either event they
were safe.
For the governor to take refuge be.
hind either of these amendments Is
ridiculous and he may revolve and
change his position as rapidly as the
views of Kaleidoscope, and the real
fact will stand out plainly that such
refuge is an afterthought. The amend
ments were doomed almost from the
beginning. At the time the governor
reversed himself after his first promise
tp Mr.. Butler no amendments of any
character had been prepared, and upon
his second reversal he had been in pos
session of the Haas amendment for
at least a week, and when he says that
these amendments are dangerous he
casts asperSions upon the whole people
of the state, because they would all
have to vote upon them before they
could become the law The committee
on legislation in San Francisco was in
possession of the Haas amendment
and was in no way deceived.
Loses Opportunity
"Somo reference has been made to
John w. Mitchels declarations before
the legislative committee in San Fran
cisco. l will say that Mr.. Mitchell, not
being a member of the law committee
did not have a copy of my amendment,
and in my opinion knew nothing of it.
After all is said. let us bear in mind
that no good can come from continual
agitation of this subject. The people
of Los Angeles and San Pedro are
agreed upon the necessity of consolida-