Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1907-02-13

council Monday night helped matters
along He commended Alderman Eek
hart, who was present. for his stand
against the ordinance, the adoption of
which he characterized as defiance of
a referendum submitted 10 the people
most directly affected.
/ F. G. Young stated that he was in
favor of a citiZens' party and was
heartily ashamed of the aldermen who
passed the telephone ordinance.
Paul Kersch suggested that there
were two questions to be decided be-
fore it was possible for the meeting to
proceed with any business. One was
whether il was desired to undertake a
permanent effort for better city govern
ment, or merely to defeat some present
candidate: and the other was whether
4 it was the sentiment that d ticket
should be placed in the field regardless
of the action of either of the old par
ties. He was in favor of the move
: ment if permanent, but not if merely
| temporary.
Dauber Makes Statement.
: Here Alderman Dauber arose to ex-
r plain his position on the telephone
! franchise. He said: I'm sorry that
. il happened last night voted for the
( ordinance in good faith After the
5 meeting of the Rock Island club
thought | wouldn't support it. but then
} people came to me and asked me ii
5 we intended to ruin the city with costs
\ of litigation which would be from $l2-
= TO $4,000, and | changed my mind.
2 would be glad to make amends if !
+ had a chance. OF course, we can't say
' much for our side now"
. This remarkable apology to an ag
. Srieved constituency is given here be
2 cause from things that have happened
/ since Monday night it is reasonably
; certain that other aldermen who voted
4 for the franchise would make sim
t liar statement if called upon under thc
= same circumstances as Alderman Dau
Der was.
r Alderman Eckhart also made a state
f ment but of a different sort. He sali
5 he had declared himself sufficiently
8 Monday evening and there was little
o need of talking now Everything ap
e peared to have been cut and dried Hi;
t efforts TO secure a postponement were
l. futile and he held that he had done
1 his duty.
Il F. w. Bahnsen raised point of or
+ der after MI Eckhart had finishe !
4 urging that the meeting was not fol
t the purpose of talking telephone mat
u tiers but he had no sooner sat down
l. that Mayor McCaskrin leaped to hi,
feet
started With mn Oath.
81 have nothing to explain" h,
! shouted My record is as clean ana
a damn sight cleaner than lot of YOU
n sitting here" He declared that
! play had been made by a fOrme
= mayor and an alderman present in tn
- Injecting who had voted the streets o
! the city away and he went on in char
lacteristic fashion intimating that the.,
:. had not been an honest mayor or al
- honest alderman till he was elected
> He was the only mayor who had dare;
: to take the giant monopoly by the horn
and bring it groveling in the dust
- His hands had been clean. He ha
- tried TO lift city affairs out of polite
- even when he stood alone against tn
other 13 men in the council, and We
he had never had the backing of tn
business men
He was going on in this strain whc
- Charles McHugh arose and demande
: the floor declaring that the mayor ha
insulted every man in the house an
should not be given a further hearin.
After a situation of considerable DIR,
matte intensity during which the chai
s man and others interposed. the mayc
was allowed to proceed. and did so
Chastened spirit He sought to shO
that he was the original citizens NOV
ment man instead of the original NJ
CaSkrin man, as many have come
believe. and said he favored the o.
jects of the meeting as SO far d
clared. 1t would be a great thing fC
the city if il should win. AS TO IL
telephone ordinance he had alwa,
worked for the interests of the Peep
and would do so in the present i
stance when the proposition came b
fore him. After the mayor had fms
ID he left the meeting.
Proper Course Discussed.
A discussion followed upon the pro
Ter course for the meeting to pursu
Some favored immediate OrganizatiC
and the nomination of candidate
while others he'd that it won
be better to wait. Eventually
motion that citizens party
formed regardless of the action of Il
old parties this spring prevailed.
On motion of H. E. Curtis the fl
lowing were named as committee
permanent organization: First wal
A. Fl. Head; Second ward, DR.. r.
Pearce; Third ward. l.. Cool; Four
ward, II. H. Cleaveland; Fifth wal
H. e. Curtis Sixth ward, c. J. Larki
Seventh ward. Paul Thiesen.
While this committee was at wo
another committee composed of T.