New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1906-03-29
SHANAHAN BILL LOST
Party Lines Broken in Defeat of
4nti-Merger Measure.
TBy Telegraph 70 The rrlbune.J


Albany, March 2S.-The Assembly defeated
the Shanahan Anti-Merger bill to-day at the end
Of the longest continuous session OF the lower
house in a decade. With only twelve more
votes for IT, the bill to abolish holding companies
and thus wipe out the Ryan-Belmont merger
would have passed. In the acrid debate that
preceded the ballot the names OF Thomas F.
Ryan and August Belmont were frequently men
toned. and more than Of the minority who
voted for the bill intimated strongly that ex-
traordinary influence from Wall Street had q
hand in it's killing.
In the fight over the bill party lines were
broken. The vigorous plea Of Assemblyman
Moreland, the majority leader. who was against
the BILL did not suffice to keep all the Republic
cans with him. The Hearst members and the
independents all voted in favor OF the bill.
Assemblyman Campbell. chief OF the Municipal
Ownership forces, in debating the bill, declared
that Ryan and Belmont we're the greatest curses
in New York. He said:
I've had a change Of heart I've found out,
instead Of this Legislature controlling these two
men they control a great majority Of your
members. You gave Belmont a subway fran
Chise that makes box sardines swimmers COM
pared with the subway riders in the city OF New
York. We ought to call the Ryan-Belmont COM
bine the public torture trust
other minority members charged that the OPP
ponents of the bill were taking orders from the
corporations. Assemblyman Moreland said that
the bill had three insurmountable faults He
added:
1t sets the stock corporation law into absolute
confusion 1t is imperative and probably un-
constitutional, and II is insidlous because II
reaches into the pockets OF innocent stockholders
and flches their money from them. Moreover,
Won want to pass this bill without providing any
procedure whereby thu Attorney General may
begin action for the forfeiture OF the stock 10
the state when any corporation violates the
provisions Of the act And who Will hold the
property for the state when 1t has once been
forfeited? I pledge my party to the support OF
any bill that will adequately conoat Lhese az
legged abuses. but the party cannot STAND LOT d
measure so widespreading and so unjust as
this
Mr.. Stanley, Of New York, said that the peO-
ple Of that city had been robbed in the most
constituencies manner by the "transit-siow or
rapid-people" and that he would fight to the
last against the watering OF public service
stock. stin. he did not think that the Shanahan
bill covered the ground adequately
Mr. Shanahan, the introducer denounced
roundlv the Ryan Belmont merger. He said:
rba holding company is the easiest devise
that was ever found TO cover monopoly The
Steel Trust was made possible by a holdlng
capital You call this radical Legislation, row
about the gas bills and the Insurance. oIlls IlltI
you are about TO pass? This BIZ follows only
the precepts OF the greatest jurists or the state
All Of us giving serious CONSIDERATION 10
rlrnicipaI ownership. / suggest that govern
mental interference with trusts should come
before. and 70 do this the remedy must be
drastic.
is only scheme to capitalize the increment in
value that Is the peoples gift II you pass this
Mn A. will have double effect 1t will prevent
the merger Of the Consolidated Gas Company
and the Brooklyn Union Gas Company, and
more even than that, il will eliminate the poiti-
ro1 strength that comes to those OF who
ACQUIRE importance as the unknown representa-
lives Of the great trust making corporations.
AssembIyman oliver. OF New York, was the
only Democrat 60 oppose the Shanahan bill
lie charged Mr.. Shanahau with having been
seem before the bill was introduced