Los Angeles herald., 1907-06-09
Mulholland Explains
Letter
pespIcabIe Methods Of KNOCKERS
Shown Up at Meeting at Turner
HalI--Gessner Williams
Speaks

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them there who dared raise voice IN
their own defense.
Early in the evening, while Mayor
Harper was speaking, there had been
few feeble interruptions from the rear
of the hall 1t is doubtful if the mayor
heard them at ALL At any rate he kept
right on with his talk and the dis
turbance ceased.
Later the first blow to the knockers
came when former Mayor Snyder VINO
presided, introduced James r. Roach:
Mr. Roach is a prominent member OIL
the Public Ownership league. A few
days ago some one of the knockers con-
ceived a bright plan. He thought 1t
would be a good thing to advertise Mr..
Roach as opposed to the bonds, and so
he did it. His only mistake was in
not consulting the principal first.
Circulars were printed and dis
tributed, purporting to come from
Roach. and in which he was made to
challenge Stanley B. Wilson to debate
the Owens river bond question, Mi
Wilson to take the affirmative and Mr..
Roach the negative of the proposition.
Last night Mr.. Roach, from the plat
form of Turner hall, not only disavowed
anv challenge to Mr.. Wilson, but went
further and said that he is in favor of
the bonds first, because the city needs
the water; and second, because the
project is in line with public owner
ship, a cause with which he expressed
himself as being in entire accord.
Got His "Irish" Up
Later, when William Mulholland got
nm to talk another kpocker got his. Mr..
Mulholland told how he had written
letter to one of the human woodpecker
tribe who had been flinging challenges
in his direction, and how he had MS
'.Irish" up at the time.
when l answered that challenge,
he said, "I understood that this man
was the author Cf certain charges that
had been made against me in the Even
ing News. Later 1 found this was
mistake, but 1 believed it at that time.
Some things had been said that l
thought ought to have a private settle
ment, before any public debate was ar
$, ranged and when 1 wrote him 1 sug-
gested that he come and see me at my
office.
'I understand he used that invitation
very dramatically at Simpson auditor
iums last night, fiourishing the letter
around and demanding to know what it
meant, and saying he was an honest
E. man and didn't want to come to my
office to be bought.
81 seem to have been very successful
in buying people. l must have bought
the mayor and the mayor who pre-
ceded him; and the councils and water
commissioners, and board of public
works and the chamber of commerce
and so many more that it's a wonder
my bank roll didn't give out. And
that's the fact about that letter.
Mayor Harper was the first speaker
at the Turner hall meeting. Remem-
bering his bank training he discussed
the financial side of the proposed
issue first, showing that the plan was
sane and practicable from a banking
standpoint and good business as well.
Found Plenty of Water
Next, in jovial strain, the mayor
told of his trip into the Owens river
valley and of the watery predicament
of a representative of the Evening
News. who suffered the humiliation Of
being water bound in the very river
which his paper had insisted frequent
ly ran dry.
'The automobile broke down in mid
stream" said the mayor, "and there he
sat, waiting for us to come along and
pull him out. There was enough
water there so that he didn't attempt
to get out any other way.
Before | sit down I want to say to
you that the city's credit is involved
in this election. The east expects un
city's credit fails. We are facing a
crisis and 1 ask you to meet it with me
at the polls June 12."
The mayors speech was received
with prolonged applause. He was fol-
lowed by Gessner Williams.
Gesner Williams said in part:
In publicly expressing my conclu-
sions on the Owens river project and
on which our people will vote on
wednesday next l do so because
have promised those who believe in a
liberal government and those who SUD-
ported the public policies which 1 ad-
yocated a few months ago that I
would pursue close study of the
project and present to them the result
thereof free from political domination.
influence or suggestion.
My first impressions were those of
uncertainty and doubt, but from the
public press (studying the articles writ
ten on both sides), from personal in
vestigation, from consulting those who
are in position to know conditions, and
py appllcatlon of my own reason, II
nave deliberately reached a conclusion
--the project must be carried out.
People, both here and abroad, con-
tinually ask, But how about the water
SupplyY The question comes across
the broad Pacific and is echoed from
the mountains to the ocean again, But
how about the water supply?' How
about it when Los Angeles is grown
from the mountains to the ocean, from
Santa -1onica on the north to Balboa
on the south, when Los Angeles will
be in fact Southern California-'How
about the water supply?' The question
must be answered. Like the ghost of
Hamlet's departed pa-'But how about
the water supply?' Is now the accepted
time or shall the question remain -un-
4 answered for twenty years or more Gas
suggested by some), or forever? How
about the water supply? Unanswered
many people hesitate to cast their
future in Southern California. Now is
the accepted time; our people and the
world should know that the question
is settled and that it,is for water.
Those who oppose this project pre-
sent but four ohjections:
Il. Graft.
''2. There is an abundant supply in
the immediate vicinity.
"3. The cost.
"a. The alkaline impurity.
Officials UnimpeachabIe
ION the proposition of graft little at
tention mGy be paid. Within the past
twelve months, with four magnificent
candidates in the field, by an over
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