Danville intelligencer. [volume] (Danville, Pa.) 1859-1907, 1906-10-05
STUART DODGED
CORPORATIONS
Councils Records Full of His
DeIinquencies.
FRESH CHAPTER OF DETAILS
Shled From Everything That Might
Make, Boss Martin Think Him Too
Aggressive to be Doclc Mayor.
SPECIAL FEAR or RAILROADS

Edwin S. Stuart, head of the Nc.
Nichol- -Martin-Penrose state ticket, is
making few fine promises of what he
would do in Harrisburg If elected gov.
ernor Unfortunately for MIR. Stuart
nature never intended that he should
be a public officer, and he, after five
years experience as a select council
man in Philadelphia and four as mayor,
ought to be as well convinced as all
well-informed people in that city are.
that he has been utterly unable to
make the slightest improvement upon
nature in his essaying the performance
Of public duties. In private life Mr.,
Stuart is amiable, honorable, and in all
his dealings between man and man
perfectly trustworthy. But he was not
born to fight and he won't do it, He
has never done it. He can't do it If ne
tries. Being as gentle as a refined
wor1an and utterly devoid of aggTes-
siveness, 1t would be as reasonable to
set dandy lap-dog against ferocious
bandit as to expect Stuart, in Z gubrr-
Material clash with the public plunder
bosses, to get the best of them. 4 fresh
chapter OF pointers from the journals
of the Philadelphia select council ought
to convince any doubters in this mat
ter.
1t Is fair conclusion that member
of select council who, throughout the
five years preceding his election as
mayor, was chronic dodger from the
most Important of the votes during that
period, Is not the warrior wanted in
the executive chair at Harrisburg In
these times In this particular the con-
trast with the lifelong, constantly
active foe of law-defying corporations
and monopolies, Lewis Emery, Jr !s
as the penny dip to the unclouded
MONDAY sun. Mr. Stuart's incapacity
for dealing with the capitol lootcrs and
the whole outfit of public plunderers
would be sufficiently demonstrated by
his refusing the urgent requests from
his fellow-citizens to help them against
the gas-works robbers and franchise
thieves in Philadelphia, last year. when
he was put upon record as declining to
permit his name to be used in connec-
ton with the non-paTtisan town meet
ings of protest against the attempted
steals. But there are more unansWer-
able arraiGnments than that against
him in the select council journals.
No Other Member DodOed So Often.
A general idea of this volumnous in.
dictment was given in many newSpa-
pers of the state week ago. Now LET
some parts of his record as TO select
council votes on railroad and street
railway bills be inspected by an impair
tial public. Some of these bills, Of
themselves, have little interest for the
country" but they We're mouentous
for the city, and either to the rural OF
the urban citizen, Stuarts attitude
toward them proved him to be, in pub
lie matters, afraid OF his own shadow"
On May 10, 1887, he lodged the vote on
the Rapid Transit resolution, passed by
IA to H. urging the governor to approve
the Rapid Transit measure for which
the people of the city were clamoring.
He was present but mot voting when
foes of rapid transit was tested on sew
eral occasions in the summer of that
year. The details would take too much
space in this paper, but any citizen
wanting particulars can get them in
the public libraries of the city, as well
as in the Offices of the clerks OF coun.
ellis.
Some votes that he ventured to cast
upon those rapid transit questions were
to place upon the projects restrictions
which had the effect of delaying for 20
years the relief for the congestion of
passenger traffic in Philadelphia. On
great railroad day" in the chamber,
December 10, 1888, as on 25 other very
important occasions during his term,
Stuart, according to the official record
was absent. On that particular day
there came up the bill for the construc-
tion of the SchUylkill River East Side
railroad. which, with Stuart not pres.
ent. passed finally; and the German.
town passenger railway extension meas
ure, which caused a very hot fight
while the non-combatant gubernatoria
candidate was away. He was present
on February 81, 1SS9 but is not record.
ed as voting on the bill to extend the
on many important streets. Nor did he
vote on the next following measure
the Callowhill Street wharf lease, which
might have been made a wholesome
precedent for preventing the present
disgraceful handicapping of the city's
commerce by the railway corporations
hogging Of the most important wharves
along the Delaware.
Impeded Grade-Crossing Abolition.
But, behold! When these two bills
had been disposed of, Stuart was not
afraid to vote on the subsequent in.
nocuous measures. At a later session
there was in the house at Harrisburg
a bill for the abolition of steam rail.
road grade crossings. Ever since thai
year, 1889, that question has grown
with intensity of popular indignation
over the large number of persons killed
annually at those grade crossings. A
resolution in select council, on April
18, urged passage of the bill pending in
the legislature. Stuart, breaking his
rule to be absent or q dodger, when
such vital measures came up, voted tc
refer the resolution to a committee
Next he voted for indefinite postpone.
ment, which would have killed the res.
olution, an extremely moderate meas.
ure, as 1t merely indorsed the legisla.
tive bills declaration that there should
be no additional grade crossings except
where avoidance of them was not rea.
sonably practicable" Stuart, in three
different votes on that day. stubbornly
set himself against that modest provi.
sion for the prevention of the great loss
Of life that has since resulted from the
corporation control of councils and the
legislature. This Is one of the most
loudly-crying evils in Philadelphia to.
day.
Extremely Timld on Big Issues.
A select councilman might plead