Los Angeles herald., 1909-06-21
PROTEST
AGAINST FRANCHISES
MASS MEETING CALLED FOR
TOMORROW EVENING
Property Owners Do Not Wish Wharf
Frontage Sold to Southern
Pacific and Banning
Companies

SAN PEDRO, June 20.-The Fifth
Street auditorium, the largest hall in
San Pedro, undoubtedly will be unable
to hold the crowd of indignant citizens
who will assemble in meeting to-
morrow evening to protest against the
granting by the local trustees of a
tifty-year railroad franchise on Nor
mon island to the Southern Pacific and
the proposed sale of 5000 feet of wharf
franchises to the Bannings over the
same frontage, which includes all OF
the Mormon island peninsula tract of
100 acres of submerged land in the city
limits of San Pedro.
Petitions protesting against these
franchises are being rapidly signed,
one man yesterday securing nearly 200
signatures of property owners and
voters.
That the consideration made last
Tuesday of these valuable concessions
is deemed a farce is shown by the
statement made by a citizen who was
present at the meeting. He says:
Several applications were made for
the position of policeman at Terminal
island and East San Pedro, which had
been under the jurisdiction of San
Pedro for less than a week. There
being but three members of the board
present, Trustees Walton, Duffy and
Tilton, it was deemed best to lay this
matter over until a full board was
present, but when the applications
were made by the Southern Pacific and
the Bannings for the whole of the
water frontage at Mormon island,
which had likewise been within the
jurisdiction of san Pedro for less than
a week, it seems there were enough
members present to place the ordl-
nance for the railroad franchise on its
first reading and instructing the clerk
to advertise Immediately the wharf
e. l1fn ~
July II at 10 o'clock a. m. This date
was suggested by Attorney Frank
Karr, who represented both the rail-
road and the Bannings. The alacrlty
of the three members of the board was
followed by equal haste by the clerk
and the city printer and in twenty-fourr
hours the franchises were in type and
set for sale at the date suggested by
the railroad company"
Being in a reminiscent mood, this
citizen and taxpayer recalled how Ed
ward Mahar, agent of the Bannlngs
here, held out when he was on the
board against the franchises asked for
by Randolph H. Miner and his asso-
ciates for the 153 acres in the outer
harbor. While many enthusiasts were
clamoring for the immediate granting
of this concession, Mr.. Mahar advised
consideration. But now he comes
boldly forward as one of the five mem
bers of the Banning family ana asks
for his 1000 feet of frontage at Mormon
island. demanding immediate consider
alton by the three trustees"
The talk heard on the streets here
during the past few days has been
anything but complimentary to the
hasty action by the city officials, but
it is pointed out a chance still remains
for these men to square themselves
with the people.
The consolidation committee which
has called the mass-meeting has In
vited each of the trustees to be pres
ent and state his position on this rail-
road proposition The local chamber
of commerce, which is supposed to
look after these things, has also been
asked to come and protest.
While many do not think that any
attention will be paid to the citizens
bv either the trustees themselves or
the chamber of commerce, others con-
tend the trustees will all be out. Ru-
rnors that one or all of the trustees
are about to resign are being circu-
lated, the latest one being that they
will meet on Tuesday. grant the rail-
road franchise. and then resign in an
effort to hold up the consolidation
election.
With the speakers from Los Angeles
who will be in attendance tomorrow
evening and the local speakers who are
clamoring for an opportunity to be
heard the meeting promises to be the
most exciting public gathering ever
held in this city.