The Detroit times., 1909-07-17
PLANNED To KEEP
& FIFTY At WORK
investigation Will Be Under Diec'
ton Of Council Committee. Courts
Ruling Thus Being Dodged

In neat Tuesday nights council
meeting. action viii be taken whereby
the work OF the mayors Committee OF
Fifty will be- continued under the
charge Of the council committee on
franchises. OF which Aid. John Harp.
fer is chairman. Aid. Gilman will in
troduce resolution resembling the
action Of the council in appropriating
$1,000 for the mayors committee,
which action the supreme court has
declared void.
After the passage Of this resembling
resolution, Gilman will introduce an
other authorizing tho franchise com.
mittee 10 make a thorough investi9a-
ton Of the street railway question,
employing such experts and assistants
as required and acquiring by purchase
any information or reports pertaining
10 the subject which may be available.
providing the same have been pre-
pared within the past year.
For this purpose, $4,000 Is TO be
set aside from the contingent fund,
the controller being directed TO pay
bills presented by the committee and
approved by the mayor and COM
mittee.
This will enable the council to re-
imburSe the Committee OF Fifty for
the money il has spent and TO pay
its experts for their work, also look
ing after the accounts for printing
etc. There Is some doubt among the
aldermen as to whether the council
committee can pay Secretary Remand
and the Committee of Fifty, but the
resolution is intended2 to be broad
enough 20 cover his salary also.
Inasmuch as the supreme court did
not pass upon the question raised by
the Federation OF Labor regarding the
legality of paying this money out o.
the contingent fund, there is still
possibility for the Federation to ask
for another injunction.
Justices Blair, Grant, Ostrander
McAlvay and Montgomery concurred
In the decision adverse TO the city.
while Justices Brooke. Hooker and
Moore dissented
In the opinion IL is held that the
council had no right 10 delegate its
power to expend money for investigai-
ing this question TO the mayor and his
committee, the matter being strictly a
legislative one. In another section OF
the opinion, the court holds that the
council may collect information for IT.
self through any proper agency desig-
mated, even through the mayor or a
committee employed by IT, This leaves
loop-hole for the completion OF the
fifty's work, the plan being for the
council to purchase the information
secured by the committee. The opin-
lon says:
IL Is not contemplated by the
charter of Detroit that the mayor
shall make extensive investigation
requiring the examination of wit
nesses and the expenditure OF
large sums OF money, for the pur-
pose OF equipping himself To rec
ommend action TO the common
council, and the provisions essen
tiai TO make the investigation are
not given him therein. Such in
vestigation falls within the domain
of legislative action, and the To-
cal legislature is given the neces-
sary powers to make them effec-
tive.
The committee has already expend-
ed about $4,000 in cash and Is liable
for about as much more. Chairman
Frank w. Eddy has advanced $1,000.
and Mayor Breitmeyer and Secretary
Renaud have raised $4,000. These gen.
tlement expect the council To REIN
burse them.
The injunction was sought by the
Detroit Federation of Labor. VI. J. Nc
Guire acting as relator
Mayor Breitmeyer is not greatly
perturbed over the supreme courts
decision.
"The committee will go ahead and
complete it's work" he says When
/ was elected last fall the people un-
derstood that ! was going 10 name
committee to settle this matter, and
I'm going to make good. The council
will stand behind me-"