The San Francisco call., 1906-10-11
RUFF WOULD TURN
ANOTHER TRICK.
Crafty Boss Is Laying Lines
to Control Moral Com
mittee of Lower House
TROUBLE LOOKED FOR
By Thomas b. Sullivan.

By Thomas B. Sullivan.
Abe Ruef is lettering a new slate
that may jolt the people of California
into realization that their citizenship
involves a few duties and response
bilities. The Bush-street boss is de-
termined TO name the members of the
committee on morals of the lower
house of the Legislature, which meets
next January. This committee will be
one of the most important in the au-
gust body which Will be CHOSEN to
make for us some of our laws and
unmake others. Before this committee
will appear some of the most vital
measures of proposed legislation and
TO it will be submitted several of the
most serious cinch bills which the craft
of the politicians can conceive.
Ruefs high regard for public moral
ity is of course his inspiration in this
instance. Public morality is about all
he seems TO have overlooked IN ms
campaign to govern our affairs. with
Mayors, absentee and acting, at his
command, with commissioners of every
shade Of intelligence and servility at
his beck and call, with police powers
in his grasp and Judges, actual and
prospective, at his Office door, it is not
amiss he should grasp at the Legis-
lature and its emoluments So he is
lettering his slate before he sees the
handwriting on the wall.
To a man Of Ruef's orderly and SEN
sitive disposition the management of
affairs legislative at the last session
was depressing. The clumsy error that
sent Bunkers and Emmons to jail and
I Wright to South Africa would have
been impossible if the lobby was right
ly organized. Ruef intends to see that
the organization of the third house is
7 oh al. 70
standard.
PREPARING CINCH BILLS.
And the lobby at the approaching
session of the Legislature will be such
/ as TO make glad the hearts of the gen
tlemen who for health's sake and their
/ States well being swallow the marsh
/ fogs of Sacramento for three months
+ Every vested INTEREST," in the State,
! legitimate and illegitimate, will have
+ to call at the captains office. Corpora
! tions good and bad, insurance COM
/ panies. racetrack operators, railroads,
directors Of amusements and everybody
/ else who has more money than the law
4 reasonably allows will know early in
4 January that something is doing at
I the State capital
They would know it now if they
were in the confidence of the bill max
ers for the process of preparing
most sweeping that will be presented
( to the Legislature and referred TO the
{ committee on public morals is a Sab
bath law. so-called. This measure is
I ostensibly designed TO prevent US from
! going wrong on Sunday. In reality it
IS scatter gun that is expected to
bring to earth every theatrical man..
/ concert and dance hall proprietor,
coUrsing promoter and amusement di-
B rector n the state
As a law this benign measure will
I close on Sunday every place of amuse-
ment In the State As far rs coursing
4 is concerned il is expected that the Su
pervisors OF San Mateo County viii
look upon the bill as an Intruder on
their reservation of special privilege
and golden opportunity. The bill prob
ably viii not become a law. but it will
make lively the deliberations Of the
third house.
Then. again. a race track war is
brooding in Los Angeles. It may not
hatch without assistance. but aid will
not be lacking and the fellows who in
duce the rest Of US TO play the ponies
VIII have to spend a few anxious days
at Sacramento. From every point OF
view the prospect is roseate FOR a
I lobby more powerful than any that has
disgraced the State in years.
LOSES THE SPEAKERsHIP.
Through some mishap not yet ex-
planned Ruef has injured his chances
for naming the Speaker of the Assem-
sbly. This distinguished official will
choose the committee where the work
is handled. Ruef had George MCGOWAN
in training. but that handsome young
man lost the nomination. Even Ruef
wouldn't have the astounding assur-
ance 10 suggest any other in his bunch
Of legislative beauties for the place. so
il looks as If the Speaker will be Sc
lected from the interior Of the State.
The Bush-strect boss is striving his
utmost 20 overcome this handicap.
With eighteen Assemblymen and nine
Senators from San Francisco he
has force formidable enough
to be recognized, and his pur-
pose is to control this delegation COM
pletely without influence from Her
rim. This year this control will have
meaning only in reference to the lobby.
Two years hence it may determine
whether or not Ruef will grace Cali
fornia as her junior representative in
the United States Senate.
Among the measures that will be in
troduced at the approaching session of
( the Legislature, and one that will prob
ably recommend itself as just, is a bill
growing out of the outrages perpetrat-
ed by the insurance companies that op-
Grated in this City. AS matter of
fact there will be group of these
bills. some Of which viii receive the
Endorsement of Insurance Commission
er Wolf. One Of the most important if
it becomes a law, will force the insur-
ance companies to make a correct ap-
praisement of insured property at the
time when the risk is assumed and not
after. This viii prevent the rascally
ouibbling and evasion that have cheat
ed so many Of the insured out OF what
was justly due them.
PLANS RALLY AT SAN JOSE.