The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1909-09-30
Voted Und3TBGSS unEVery
Question Of Legislation.
NOT AN EXCEPTION IN RECORDS
Throughout the Entire Session Of 1901
There Is Not a Single Sign Of lnde.
pendenee OF Thought or Action.

expressed in the statement that they
voted for every vicious measure which
was considered during the periods OF
their service and against every bill
which made for civic improvement and
political morality.
Stober came TO the senate with the
beginning of the session of 1893 hav
ing previously served one term in the
legislature covering the sessions OF
1856. Sisson's service in the senate
began with the session Of 1901. Both
participated in the election of Mat
thew Stanley Quay for his last term as
senator in congress. During the ses.
sion Of 1899 Stober attended most of
the joint sessions and invariably voted
for Quay who failed of election. In
the session Of 1901 both Stober and
Sisson voted for Quay and contrib
uted 10 his election Notwithstanding
the protest against that result implied
in the prolonged contest waged by
members OF their own party during
the session of 1899.
There were times when Sisson may
have suffered from remorse of con.
science because Of his servility to the
machine and recTeancy to his public
obligations. At least in private con.
versation he has been known to la.
ment the degeneracy of the body OF
which he was a member and the alb.
sence of that conscience and courage
which would resist. If not resent. the
mandates of the machine But Stobel
never experienced any trouble of that
kind. He accepted smilingly the sin.
lister orders Of the bosses and obeyed
them willingly. 1t may be doubted If
he understood whether they were right
or wrong.
Among the first machine bills which
were presented for the consideration
of the legislature of 1901 was that
known as the Pittsburg ripper. 1t was
the Quay reprisal against the late C.
l.. Magee for permitting certain
friends to join the insurgents Magee's
friends controlled the municipal gov.
.ernment Of that city, and the purpose
of the bill was to legislate them ont
Of office and put the friends of Quay
into their places. II was referred to
special committee, packed for the pur.
pose Of promptly approving II, on Mon.
day evening, Jan. 81, 1901. On the
same day it was reported out by J. A.
Stober and reached the stage of final
passage Feb. 13, Sisson and Stober
voting in the affirmative. Senate Jour.
nal. 1901, page 437
Both Sisson and Stober voted for
the bill known as the Philadelphia tax
ripper" Senate Journal. 1901. page
s12. They are also recorded as voting
for the fifth court bill for Philadelphia.
Senate Journal. 1901 page 3o7 On the
bill increasing the number Of factory
inspectors. they voted in the aflrma.
tive, Senate Journal. 1891, page 1887.
The purpose of this bill was to create
a lot of soft places for political work.
ers
There were three insurance bills
considered during the session of 1901.
That was the period during which
"the House of Mirth" flourished in Al.
bany and Insurance Commissioner Dur.
ham and his associates in the machine
were overlooking no opportunities to
get a share Of the yellow dog" funds
maintained by the big insurance COM
panies of New York. Both Sisson ani
Stober voted for the final passage OF
all these measures. Senate Journal,
1901, pages 500, 727 and SO.
The session of 1901 was made in
famous by the many attempts to raid
the state treasury by increasing the
number of judges. There were bills
providing for additional law judges IN
the Eighth and Eleventh judicial dis.
tricts and for orphans court judges in
Allegheny, Lancaster, WestmOreland
and Montgomery counties. Sisson and
Stober invariably voted for those
measures. The vote on the Eighth
district bin is recorded in the Senate
Journal page 1897, that for the Eley.
enth district on page 2126 of the Sen
ate Journal. The vote on the bill for
an associate orphans court judge in
Allegheny county Is found on page
2O27 of the Journal of the Senate.
One of the most colossal jobs OF the
recent legislation was what is known
as the Presque Isle bill. That measure
was intended to cede to the city of
Erie vast and valuable tract of lake
front land. 1t was introduced into the
senate during the session of 1901 by
Senator Sisson. II got no farther than
the committee during that session, hav
ing been defeated in the house after
an attempt to correct 1t had failed.
Probably, however, the crownins
ttrocity of the session of 1901 was the
srolley railway grab That iniquity was
sprung late in the session, and Seaa.
tor Wentworth of Montgomery coun.
ty, tried to prevent its passage by in.
PRODUCING a resolution for final ad.
j5urnment before 1t could be culmi.
mated. Bnt the machine was equal to
The occasion and defeated the Wentz
resolution. Both Sisson and Stober
yoted against the adjournment resolu,