Los Angeles herald., 1908-07-09
ACTION ON CHARTER
AGAIN IS DELAYED
SPECIAL ELECTION MAY NOT
BE HELD
Time Limit Grows Shorter Every Day
and Fllibustering councIlmen
Adopt Tactics to XIII
the Plan

non-partiSans or the city councll, leu
by Barney Healy, again delayed the
passage of the ordinance for board of
freeholders to frame new charter.
Action on the ordinance was sus-
pended until Monday.
Although the time limit for present.
ing it to the next legislature grows
shorter every day and the council was
advised by City Attorney Hewitt 1t
must act quickly, more time was de-
manded by some. of the members Of
the council. Councilmen Wren, Wal
lace and President Pease were the only
members showing pronounced desire
to have the ordinance passed at once.
No reason for the delay was given
| except that Healy was a. little peeved
| that the members of the charter re-
vision committee had not accepted the
councils invitation to meet with 1t
last Friday. A letter addressed to the
council which should have reached tnat
body last Friday morning but which
was not received until yesterday ex-
planned the charter was not yet in
shape to present to the board OF free
holders, and for that reason the meet
ing would be futile. Proof of this fact
had little effect, however, on the atti-
tude assumed by Councilman Healy
and others, and though every pressure
was brought to bear by President
Pease, Councilman Wallace. Alexander
Johnson and Meyer Lissner of the
charter revision commission, still
further delay was demanded.
Time Grows Short
Had the ordinance passed yesterday,
or IL it is passed next Monday, which 1t
will not be if the filibustering brigade
can prevent it, the election on the char
ter cannot be held until the last week
in December. The long process OF red
tape demanded by law makes this the
case. The next legislature meets In
January, and If the charter Is not
ready to present to that BODY py tnat
time 1t will have to go over two years,
until the next session of the legislature,
and delay that much longer steps for
the Greater Los Angeles and other
matters which the charter does not
give authority to consummate.
Several members of the council, espe-
cially r. w. Dromgold of the First
ward, want the charter revision COM
mittee to submit its finished product to
the council before steps are taken to
call a special election for the board
of freeholders. In answer to this
Never Lissner of the committee stated
there was yet no finished product to
submit, and in case there was it was
not the intention of the committee to
take the COunCl lIllO It's COhhuChCC-
He declared the council to be placing
itself in a delicate position when II
stated the charter it was proposed to
submit to the people receive the ap-
proval of the peoples elected legisla-
tors before they decided to give the
voters a chance to say whether or not
they would accept the new charter or
so much as elect board of freeholders
to officially frame the charter.
Are Tired of Delay
He further intimated that unless
something was done very soon the men
now acting as charter revision COM
mittee, with nothing but love for their
wages, would very quickly give up the
task and return to a consideration OF
their own business.
The work Of the committee now con-
sidering the charter, he stated, could
not be completed inside of sixty days,
and nothing had been officially accepted
by the committee.
Unless something is done quickly II
is evident the patched blanket that now
does duty as O city charter will have
to continue in force for at least two
years more. 1t Is equally certain there
are a certain number of councilmen who
are anxious that it shall. These coun-
cilmen have put themselves on record,
as favoring more amendments instead
OF an entirely new cndrteI, although IL
is the plan Of the new charter to use
ali that is good in the old one.
Disgust with the delay imposed on
them without an excuse being given
was depicted on the faces Of those
members of the charter revision COM
mittee present yesterday, and 1t is pos
sible. unless they are assured the coun-
ell will do something soon. large
number of designations may be re-
ceived by the council Monday.
There IS another strong probability
that initiatory proceedings may be
taken by some who are-watching the
movements for a new charter fof
amendments to be submitted to the
people at the next election IL the fill
busterers succeed in killing the plan
for a new charter. Such actions with
sufficient number of signatures would
make It mandatory on the council to
submit the amendments.