Los Angeles herald., 1907-12-29
DOES HE DAREP
S(YTy HE wAYFARER" of the Oak
land Enquirer has not yet re

over the failure of Governor Gillett t,
take action looking toward the punish
ment Of the Southern Pacific criminals
who have proudly declared that the!
have been violating the constitutions
provisions relative to the granting O
rebates. On every possible occasion
this caustic writer in the Enquirer
takes Jab at the gubernatorial mid.
riff. No pretext for an assault upoJ
the dignity of the exalted personag,
escapes his clutches. Not only has tn,
Wayfarer turned to account every bit
of ammunition he could find to fit the
weapons he has aimed Gillettward, but
every other writer connected with the
Oakland newspaper seems to have
secured the state in the endeavor tc
secure not only ammunition but new
weapons with which to reduce the
naughty and naughty governor to q
state of submission.
Not long ago the Wayfarer. after
noting the fact that this episode in the
career of Boss Herrin had "waxed
quite eloquently indignant" over the
looting of the Safe Deposit and Trust
company's bank in San Francisco, con-
tinues to nag Mr. Gillett thus:
"Why is he not equally eloquent over
the robbing of our people by the South
ern Pacific? He has intimated that
bank busters should be sent to jail.
Who has heard him say that the rail-
road people should be sent to the
penitentiary for robbing the people of
California? Both the bank looters and
the railroad lawbreakers ought to be
punished. why is the governor so
outspoken against the former and so
silent with regard to the latter?
Remembering the Santa Cruz con-
vention and the $4,000 that Herrin is
said to have paid Ruef and Schmitz to
deliver the San Francisco delegation
and make possible his nomination, how
can anybody expect the governor to
become indignant enough at the rail-
road to cause him to demand that its
people be prosecuted for robbing the
people of California and violating the
plain provision of our constitution?
None of the bankers, however were at
Santa Cruz. None of them bought
delegations for Gillett's support. None
ent at Major McLaughlin's dinner with
Ruef and the governor. Therefore, the
governor cannot be accused of in
gratitude when he Jumps on the bank
busters, as he might be If he insisted on
the railroad law breakers being pun
ished. The only difference between the
Southern Pacific and the trust COM
pany despoilers of the people seems to
be that the former has been robbing a
million and three-quarters of people
and was very busy at the Santa Cruz
convention, while the latter robbed only
some few thousands and did nothing to
get Ruef and Schmitz to turn the San
Francisco delegation over to the gov
ernor. But really, it would not appear
that these are sufficient reasons for
playing favorites' to the degree of
soaking the bankers and letting the
railroad people go entirely unwhipped
of justice, now does it,
Even with this the Wayfarer cannot
let go. 1t keeps harping on the SUBJ
ject of the railroad commissions VIOLA
tion of it's oath of office, and incident
ally the violation of their oaths Of
office by the governor and the attorney
general. In further paying it's respects
to Boss Herrins executive officer this
newspaper person con-
tinues:
"a little while ago the Los Angeles
Herald sent reporter to Governor
Gillett with the following questions:
What do you propose to do in the
way of prosecuting the railroads which
have admitted rebating?
Surely you are aware, governor.
that the Southern Pacific officials have
within the last few weeks admitted to
Interstate Commerce Commissioner
Lane that they had granted rebates in
California and that it is expressly pro-
hibited by Sections 21 and % of Article
IL of the Constitution of California?
Would you have us believe. gov
0lHoi, IHdI you ndu read nothing of the
examination in which the admission of
guilt was made?
"'You state positively, then, that YOU
have never read of the examination re-
ferred to nor the articles pointing out
the section of the constitution which
has been violated?'
ITO the first question the governor
is here reported to have replied: 'Rebat-
ing? Isn't that matter entirely for the
federal authorities?' The governor is
a lawyer, and every lawyer knows or
ought to know that rebates given on
railroad traffic entirely within the state
of California are not infractions of the
interstate commerce law, and therefore
are not matters entirely or at all, for
the federal authorities Being a-law-
YER the governor knows, or ought to
know, that the constitution of the state.
which he swore to uphold and see car
ried out, forbids such rebates, and that
therefore they are matters entirely
for the state authorities to take up,
prosecute and punish Being the chief