The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1907-04-12
Men Responsible for Objection
able Proviso in Improve
ment Law Can't Be Seen.
1T Is NOW UP TO
THE FEDERAL BUNCH
Representative Jensen Says
PrOyisO Was Not i'm Bill In
trOduced by Him.

Nephi U, S. C. Jensen, representative
from Salt Lake county, who introduced
in the House the bill which contains
proviso which makes the carrying ont
of the proposed improvements in Salt
Lake City almost impossible, because
of the heavy expense attached thereto,
claims he is not responsible for the OBJ
jectjonable clause. He, however, throws
an Illuminating light on the measure and
its authors, and if he docs not point
directly, he does indirectly to the
source from which the obnoxious pro-
hibitive proviso emanated.
He states that the measure was hand
ed to him for introduction by John j.
Thomas member Of the Board of Equal
ization and brother Of Postmaster A.
l.. Thomas, and that Ed Cnllister, Col
lector of Internal Revenue, was par
ticularly active in his efforts 10 have
tho measure become law.
John ]. Thomas left the city yester-
day and will be absent for three or four
days. Collector Callister was seized
with illness yesterday while at his Of
fee and went home. Inquiry at his res
idence elected the information that he
was i'll in bed, and therefore could not
be seen. The Tribune was therefore
unable TO obtain any statement from
these gentlemen. but the prlma facie
evidence points to the conclusion that
the Federal bunch as whole, some
member thereof or some one influenced
by them is directly responsible for the
proviso which prohibits the improve
ments.
The measure was drawn by one Of
their number and introduced in the
House at their request; Postmaster
Thomas had the bill introduced in the
Senate Callistcr and others Of the
combination lobbied fervently and &C
lively for its passage, and all the evi-
dence points strongly TO the fact that
they could not he and were not igno-
rant of all its provisions.
Talk With Mr.. Jensen.
A talk with Representative Nephi L.
S. c. Jensen with regard TO the OBJ
lectionable Proviso in the bill, led to a
search. AS originally introduced by
him, it did not have the clause requir.
ing separate advertisements and sepa-
rate contracts. Mr.. Jensen says that,
according TO his recollection. the bill
was handed to him for Introduction by
John j. Thomas, a member of the State
Board of Equalization. Mr. Jensen
disclaimed all knowledge of the clause
in question, and stated that number
of influential persons here urged upon
him the passage of the bill.
He says that Postmaster Thomas
seemed very solicitous TO have it passed,
and waited upon him three or four
times with plea to have the bill
pushed, Ed Callister, Collector of
United States Internal Revenue. was
also very solicitous that the bill should
be passed. and made his anxiety in this
respect known number Of times to
Mr.. Jensen. Others also, he says urged
him from time to time TO see that the
bill was passed, but he was not sure
enough of the names of these other
persons to be snfe in giving them
Representative Jensen says that he
had no personal knowledge Of the mat
ter at all, but took the word of those
who We're laboring with him in favor
of the bill, that 1T was a good measure
and ought TO be passed. When told
that Postmaster Thomas claims to have
taken the section from his bill in which
this proviso occurs and attached il to
the bill introduced In the Senate by
Senator Benner Y. Smith, Mr.. Jensen
raised the question that this particular
clause was not in that section when he
introduced 1t; and an examination of
the bill bears him out in this; the
clause was not in the bill as printed
and must have been inserted subse-
quently, whether by Postmaster Thom-
as AZ the tIme that he inserted it in
Senator Smith bill or by some other
person, does not so far appear.