The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1906-04-02
Governor Stokes While Not
Taking An Active Part In
the Fight Will Insist On a
Measure Before Adjourn
ment
PARTY LEADERS SCARED
THEY WARN THE SENATORS
THAT TO IGNORE THE CLERGY
is TO RUIN THE PARTY AND
THE CLERGY IS MUCH
AROUSED OVER THE sUBsTI-
TUTE
Especial to .grhe Jersey city News z,


Especial to ",rhe Jersey city News.')
TRENTON. April 2. 1906.-Just what
action the Observation-Disclosures conference
of clergy will take this afternoon when
they meet at the Trenton House to dis
cuss the Senate Committees substitute
for the Bishops high license bill is prob
lematical, but the consensus Of opinion
is that they will reject the substitute as
beng a complete surrender to the liquor
interests and totally Inadequate to REM
edy the evils which are said to exist
Rt. Rev. Bishop McFaul, Of the Tren-
ton diocese, is better in his denunciation
of the Senate Committees substitute.
He says it is the most impertinent thing
ever attempted by Senate Committee
and that its only excuse for being pre-
sented was TO appease public sentiment
regarding the Bishops bill and not to
correct or reach existing evils. At mass
in ST. Mary's Cathedral yesterday, Rev.
Bishop McFaul preached a sermon in
which he bitterly scored tha Senate Com
mittee for having presented ''sueh an al
legged substitute for the Bishops bill
He said it was not a substitute, but
merely d subterfuge for a brewers bill.
He asked for the aid of his parishioners
in defeating the substitute.
Rt. Rev. Bishop O'Connor did not re-
fer to the substitute yesterday, except to
say that he would attend the conference
of clergy in Trenton to-day when the sub
stitute would be. discussed. Bishop
O'Connor takes hopeful view Of the
situation and regards the committee 81 T.
stitute as good a measure as could be
expected from this Legislature, although
he would have been better pleased if the
Bishops bill could have been adopsed.
He holds the view that half a loaf is
better than none in settling the liquor
question and that with half loaf gained
next year the clergy could fight for the
other. He does not believe, he says, that
the existing evils of the saloon will ever
be remedied until law such as the
Bishops bill is enacted.
While Governor Stokes has not taken
any active part in the fight he has al
lowed it to be understood through his
lisutenants that he will never permit the
Legislature I'd adjourn sine die until it
has settled the matter to the satisfaction
of both sides. From this it can be gath
cred that some kind of a liquor bill will
be adopted by the present Legislature,
whether it is the Bishops bill revised
and amended, or the committees substi-
tute or an entirely new bill.
The impression that sthere can be no
evasion Of the question is strengthened
chairman Of the Republican State Com
arittee. He has told the Senators who had,
the Bishops bill in charge that it would
react against the Republican party if
they attempted to strangle the measure
in committee or in the Senate and that
party policy demanded that some kind
of conciliatory measure be adopted,
even if the Bishops bill was not granted
in its entirety.
Mr. Briggs is anxious TO succeed Gov
ernor Stokes and has been holding his
ear close te the ground during the past
few months to ascertain the trend Of
public opinion regarding the liquor bills.
He now fears that this question is the
rock upon which the Republican ship Of
State will split, unless it is settled be-
fore it strikes.
The people will hold the Republican
party responsible for the non-settlement
of the liquor question, Mr.. Briggs
claims, owing to the Overwhelming ma
jority it has in both Houses. That IS
Why the clergy caused a bill to be intro
duced at this session.
The brewers say very little, but they
are evidently pretty well satisfied. They
profess to object TO several features eIn-
phatically, but if they had to have the
measures as they came from the COM
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