Los Angeles herald., 1909-02-25
STATE SENATOR
HURT IN MELEE
FIST FIGHT ENDS DISPUTE AT
SACRAMENTO
LEROY WRIGHT is VICTIM OF
PUGlLIsTic BOUT
San Franciscan Attacks Newspaper
Man-Attorney General Webb
Addresses judiciary
Committee
[By Associated Press.l

SACRAMENTO, Feb. 24.-During an
alteration over the Islais creek bill
in the iounging room of the senate to-
night George McRae of San Francisco
struck John Neylan, San Francisco
newspaper man, and when Senator Lee
roy A. Wright Of San Diego undertoolz
to separate the combatantS the latter
received a severe blow on the jaw from
McRae's fist.
Explaining the cause of the fight,
Senator Wright said:
''Neylan asked me why 1 dropped out
of the fight for the proposition to con-
denim only forty-four blocks Of land in
Islais creek basin in San Francisco
karbor.
Il told him that 1 had heard rumors
that money was being used in the fight
between the advocates of the 44-block
proposition and those who wished to
condemn the whole sixty-three blocks
specified in Senator Welch's bill now
before the legislature.
''Neylan and McRae then discussed
the matter in what I believed to be a
joking manner until McRae struck Ney-
Ian. The latter grappled with the for
mer and 1 attempted to separate them,
Whereupon l received a blow in the
face.
Il have held all along that there was
no necessity for condemning any Of the
property under discussion, as it is held
by the state under an old grant
McRae has been advocating the con-
demnation Of oily forty-four blocks in
the basin. He came here as the repre-
sentative of the Ship Owners associa-
tion of San Francisco.
Webb Addresses Committee
Attorney General Webb for several
hours tonight addressed the senate
judiciary committee in defense. of the
Stetson absolute freight rate bill.
Senator Leroy A. Wright of San Di-
ego, author Of a bill giving the rail-
road commission power<to fix a maxi
mum rate, who also is a member of
the committee, moved that when a
rate bill is reported to the senate it
contain the maximum rate feature.
This brought the fight to a crisis and
Mr.. Webb took up the gauntlet He
declared such a measure would be un-
constitutional and devoted himself ex-
clusively to this phase of the case.
Under the Stetson bill the commission
would be compelled to fix an immova-
BILE rate for each commodity shipped
by rail, while under the Wright meas
ure the roads could lower the tariff at
will.
The committee adjourned until to-
morrow without having reached a con-
clusion.
Fish and Game Laws
After hearing a long and bitter at
tack upon the fish and game commits
sion, the assembly committee on fish
and game decided tonight to render an
adverse report on the resolution in
troduced by Assemblyman Harry Polls
ley of Red Bluff, calling for an in
vestigation of the commission.
The resolution criticised the members
Of the latter body for failure to make
report on the years work.
ASsemblyman L. w. Juilliard,
speaking for the resolution, read a
score of letters from persons in va
rious parts of the state demanding an
investigation.
H. P. Andrews, ex-county attorney
of Tehama county and once a candi-
date for attorney general on the Demo-
cratic ticket, also appeared for the
resolution, contending the commission
should not have paid the salaries of
two deputy wardens, D. M. Bond and
M. A. Carpenter, after they had been
placed in jail on a charge of murder
ing an Indian in Tehama county.
The committee decided after the hear
ing that enough facts had not been
adduced to warrant an investigation Of
the commission.