Los Angeles herald., 1909-03-14
TELLS CITY CLUB
RECALL is GREAT
CIVIC SAFEGUARD
PROF. HANDLEY EL00UENTLY
LAUDS MOVEMENT
PROVISION PROTECTS PEOPLES
RIGHTS, HE SAYS
Audience Enthusiastically lndorses
Candidacy of Alexander and De-
claresThat Council Should
Appoint Him

afternoon before the City club yester-
day. His subject was the Recall"
and he handled it from every point OF
view in such a mastery fashion that
his audience was frequently moved to
loud and prolonged applause.
Prof. Handley had prepared an ad-
dress on this subject to be delivered
before the club, but in the last few
days such changes have occurred that
he was forced largely to reconstruct
his speech.
but the main issue has not been de-
cided" said Prof. Handley. 1.-The man
was not the thing. The underlying is
sue of this campaign is a clean city
government. Personalities that have
come out are only incidental. These
men (E1arper and Kern) are involved
only as they embody a principle. Ana
the battle has not yet been won. 1t Is
not enough to put the enemy to rout,
but you must take the fort and the held
and man it yourself"
He took UP the recall as an inStitu-
tion and reviewed the objections that
have been made to it, both as prin-
ciple and in the specific instance in
which it has been employed in Los An
gcles.
Recall 10 American
"The objection has been made that
the recall is un-American," said Prof.
Handley But is it? Was it borrowed
from Turkey, for instance, or from any
other Asiatic or European nation? NO!
The recall could never exist where the
sovereign power was not vested in the
sovereign people 1t was born on Amer
ican soil. 1t rests on the constitutional
rights of the government. If you give
the people who elect an official no
power to recall that official when he
proves unfaithful to his trust, you have
placed a limit on the powers of the
people. 1t is the most American of
American institutions. The power the
people give an official is the peoples
power. 1t does not belong to him.
"Then they have said the recall ham
pers an official. Any one who has, a
spinal column is not going to be ham
pered by anything. The recall is the
same principle of impeachment of the
president. Congress has the power to
impeach the president. There is every
reason to believe this last congress did
not love Theodore Roosevelt. Yet it
does not appear Theodore Roosevelt
was hampered by fear of impeachment
But it will hamper an official when he
begins to make his own laws and en-
force them in his own way. Then he
will be hampered by the recall. That
is Just exactly what the recall is for
1t will hamper a man every time he
proves too big a coward to stand be-
hind the law and enforce it whether he
likes it or not.
Their Contention Absurd
'It has been said that invoking this
recall will hinder the return of prosper
ity. This is IS absurd as some OF the
other objectio~7 that have been made
When a real estate agent takes a pros
pective buyer to look at a piece of land
he doesn't say, as an added induce
ment Here is a saloon that doesn't
obey the laws of the city, that has a
gambling den and redlight attachment.
and all these privileges are VOWS 1t
you buy this property If he points
out matters pertaining to the city gov
ernment it is that it is clean anC that
law and order prevail. 1t is to produce
the law and order inducement that the
recall is invoked.
This is putting a blot on the city,
say some. There is a reason for this
recall. If there was no reason you
could not have secured enough sigma
lures to have brought about this cleo
ton. The reason for the recall is the
blot on the city. not the movement it
self Therefore. this recall will re-
move the blot, not put it on the city
THAT the men behind this movement
are no better than they should be is
one of the cries of the opposition. I do
not know whether | am include in that
sweeping statement or not. But we
have nothing to do with the private life
or actions of anyone. 1t is the official
acts that count in this case. This is
but one of the side issues the opposition
has raised to confuse the main ques-
tion. They dare no face the issue
squarely on its merits.
Alexander independent
"The contention that there is an aris-
tocracy trying to gain control of the
ernu Of fl1n pitNv has hppn raised. |
Does it impress you that Uncle George
Alexander, the leader of this move
ment and the one chosen as the candi-
date for mayor, is a typical aristocrat?
I think that answers the aristocracy
question as we'll as ANYTHING could do |
And they say Uncle George will take
orders from this aristocracv. If Uncle
George was taking orders the Southern
Pacific organic ton would not run !
away from him so easily It is simply
because he knows he will not take or
ders from Walter Parker or anyone
else that they hate the man.
But we have Just begun the fight |
between the political machine and the
people. 1t is our duty to keep them on
the run until we run them clean out of
existence.
"The citv council cannot but know
the will of the people in this matter;
and if they don't look out they will |
hear from that will The manhood of
this city is on trial all over the world, |
and Los Angeles will demonstrate to
the world she has manly men,
DromgoId Speaks
AS soon as Prof. Handley had con-
cluded r. w. Dromgold, councilman
from the First ward, arose to a ques
tion of personal privilege. He told the
City club q movement was on foot in
his ward to recall him for voting for
Ed Kern as q member of the board of
public works. He stated Kern would |
have been appointed under any circum |
stances without his vote. and that in
voting for him he was simply playing |
Nolitics, so he could go to the other
side when necessity arose and say he
had helped them out-now would they |
please recinrocate? He declared the in
vocation of the recall in his ward was
not justified.
Discussing the matter of the council !
appointing a mayor, Mr.. Dromgod said
1t was his opinion that it would be bet |
ter. not to appoint a MAYOR at all.
''The city will not suffer for lack of
a mayor until the recall election" said
Mr. Dromgold "In fact, if it stood |
quietly for two or three weeks it would
be a good thing for it. morally"
-o- o-S-o--------
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