The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-01-03
TO PROVIDE FOR RECOUNT Hughes Wants Honest Election, GRANTS EEARST's WISH Calls on Legislature to Review
 Mcclellan Contest. Governor Urges That Steps Bs Taken To Provide Better Traction ser-
 vice for New York and Brooklyn.

I Alpauy, N fr Sau A.--AdSt niBht
 caucuses settled the possible controver-
 sies which might have made the opens
 ing of the Legislature today other than
 perfunctory and the two houses com
 vened at noon.
 Lieutenant Governor Lewis Etuyve-
 sant Chanier. the first Democratic president of the Senate in many years was cordially received. Speaker wads- worth, assured of reelection also, waa | heartily welcomed.
 After the organization of the two houses, J. W. Wadsworth being re- elected speaker of the assembly. the first message of Governor Hughes was l submitted.
 l Governor p. Hughes, In his first mess sage to the Legislature. made the fok~ lowing recommendations: "A recount of tho votes cast for may~ | or fin tho New York city election ip l 190k, when. on the face of the returnss w. R. Hearst was defeated by George B. Mcclellan; that the courts be ein- powered to order a recount summarily | in the future and that the power to bring an action to try title to 0mce be taken from the attorney general and conferred upon the supreme conrtl
  on the name of candidate Will ap$ pear but once.
 "That the amount of money which q candidate may expend to procure hiH election be limited.
 That the courts be empowered to re- view the acts of political State convar- tions and State committees in expellina delegates and membera
 "That any general committee Of q party may adopt rules for direct nou@ nation of candidate at primaries 'That the State Board of Railroad Commissioners and the Commission ot gas and electricity be abolished and k | new board be constituted with powet to enforce its orders through the
 "That tho Board of Rapid TranNsss l Commissioners of, New York city abolished and Aew board created lcontrol franpsortation and reE1 lighting corporations In ercateTt York.
 .srhat children under 16 years or fs.. | be not required to work more than eight hours day and that tho work
 in which they may not engage be spec flied more precisely"
 On the recount matter the Governor
 reviewed the efforts of w. R. Hearst
 to secure a recount and said that the Court of Appeals of this State decided l that the present law did not confer | on the election officers any authority to recount the ballots and the Attor-
 ney General declined to try the title
 to the office. He said:
 Tt is a matter of the gravest con- cerp that the view should be largely even though erroneously, held that one who has been elected to office has been deprived of his seat through in valid returns. The failure to obtain summary recount through defect In the law has aggravated the sense oc injunstice."
 As to the future. he said. that pro- visions should be made to order re- count summarily. but the courts should determine the propriety of exercising the power.
 The Attorney General he said, re- commended that the authority to bring an action to try a title to an office be no longer lodged with him This the Governor approved and reeom-A mended that 1t be entrusted to tha
 It was claimed. the Governor said. that there is no limitation on the au- thority of political State conventions and State committees arbitrarily to ex-4 clude honestly elected delegates and members, and that the fraudulent or corrupt action of such a convention or committee cannot be reviewed or cor- rected by any court. He declared that "minorities should not be peN attted to make themselves all powerfuk ay tho arbitrary seizure of political organixa- tlons nor through corruption or Cishon- est methods and the courts should be vested with ample power to review in summary manner all such abuses and restore to defrauded persons the pol litical rights to which they are justlyl entitled" x
 For want of proper means for the < 0f raff q corporations" said the Governor, @per- nicious favoritism has been practieed Congress has legislated on the subject with reference to interstate commerce. But domestic commerce must be regu- latd by the State and the State should exercise its power to secure impartial treatment to shippers. There is also need of regulation and strict supervise, ion to ensure adequate service and due regard for the safety of the public. The most practicable way of attaining these ends is for the Legislature to confer proper power on 6 subordinate administrative body"
 All the existing transportation lines in Greater New York, the Governor Brooklyn, who are in business in Man. haitian, are subjected to such maltreat- ment and indigntties incident to their disgraceful herding that relief should be effected at the earliest possible mo- ment.
 lover capitalization and the improv- ident creation of guaranties and fixed charges to suit the exigencies of suc- cessive combinations entered into for the purpose of monopolizing the traf- ic have produced their nakural resuits,Y he declared.
 An anomalous condition exists in New York, said the Governor where the State Board of Railroad Conmis- sioners and the city board of rapid transit commissioners divide their aus thority and where the same corpora tions control elevated, surface and sub- way lines. This should be met by the abolition of the present city board and the creation of Q new board having all its powers and in addition tho peNe~ to control and regulate lighting eorp2f ratioua