Los Angeles herald., 1909-10-15
COUNCIL VOTES
ON UTILITY LAW
SOLID SIX STANDS TOGETHER
AFTER LONG FIGHT
PROPOSED ORDINANCE EMAScU-
LATED FOR CORPORATIONS
Designates Measure as Passed
as Absurd-Hewitt Denies Drom-
colds Statement That He
Drew Paper as Read
tContinucd from Page One,

for a commission of five members, each
to receive $1,000 a year. Dromgold
moved the passage of the ordinance
and was promptly seconded by Healy,
who declared the Municipal league had
no business to try to dictate what the
council should do.
Then Councilman Wallace took the
floor and spoke at length. He pointed
out that by the council appointing the
commission departure was made from
the established rule of things. He
showed that every other commission in
the business of the city was appointed
by the mayor and confirmed by the
council. He had no criticism of the
men selected as commissioners, but he
did critiCise the methods of their ap-
pointment.
ANY ordinance that departs from
the established order form is open to
criticism" ." said Mr.. Wallace. 1T is one
of our set principles that the mayor
shall appoint our commissions and they
shall be confirmed by the council
There is not one commission in the
city but is appointed in this way. This
will not meet the public approval. The
public certainly will not approve an
action of the council in it's closing days
naming officials who are to fix the
rates of the utilities.
Salary Is FarcicaI
"The proposal to pay these commits
sioners $1,000 a year is departure
from the usage of the city All the
other commissioners, however long
they may have to work for the city's
interests. give their time free. There
should not be one dollar paid to the
members of the commission but there
should be far more than $1,000 paid to
the experts whom the commission en-
ploys Mr. Schuyler is one of the
most prominent men in his profession
and he will never do the engineering
work required of this body for $1,000 a
year. He cannot afford to do So But
l believe he is the kind of man that
would give his services to the city FREQ
and would be a competent man to en-
ploy the proper engineers to do the
actual work.
Your ordinance condemns itself on
its face, because you have so appro-
priated money that you know nothing
can be done. Your ordinance appro-
PIRATES $4,000 for the years work. OF
this amount $4,000 is to be paid the
commissioners in salaries and $2400 is
TO be paid the secretary of the COM
mission, leaving only 5000 with which
TO do anything else, and this amount
will be eaten up in postage stamps and
other incidentals. 1t is absurd, farci-
call"
When he had concluded Wallace
moved as a substitute the Municipal
league ordinance and was quickly Sec
onded by Wren.
DromgoId Gets Excited
Again Dromgold jumped to his feet
with his face red and so excited that
his words stumbled over each other in
their frantic efforts to get off his
tongue He shouted that Wallace's mo-
ton was not a substitute, that it could
not be a substitute, that brr-r-r-rspt
sst or something else about as intelli-
gible and sat down utterly exhausted
by his effort,
Wallace smiled at him pityingly, and
finally Dromgold backed down, begged
Wallace's pardon and admitted it was
a substitute. But, in a few seconds,
Wallace and Dromgold were in another
parliamentary tangle. Dromgold in-
sisted his own ordinance was the only
one before the house, although he had
previously admitted Wallace's substi-
tute. An appeal to the chair brought
q decision in favor of Wallace.
BY this time Wallace was red in the
face with suppressed anger.
This is absurd" he declared, after
the chair had ruled Dromgold in
dulged in more talk but Wallace de-
manded his right to the floor and con-
tinued to talk about the Municipal
league ordinance and that it was an
important matter. He said the time
would come soon when a large part of
the expenses of the city government
could be paid by revenues from fran
chises.
Attorneys Watch Blue Pencil
But every word relating to fran
chises was carefully trimmed by
Dromgold from his ordinance and two
corporation hirelings, Herbert j.
Goudge and Sam Haskins, watched
him narrowly while he did the trim
ming. They sat ever at his elbow yes
terday and they had maintained their
seats from 10 o'clock in the morning
to $50 at night the day before.
The ordinance first introduced had
provided that the commission was to
have advisory powers in the matter of
franchises and should recommend to
w ~ VA AW