The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1909-05-17

F'N Hetchy Injunction suit i.
lV1 Kind of dummy cOnnesctiOn.
I happen TO be the one who
don't care a rap so they used me-
am not in any ones employ, and NO
one is paying me for appearing in this
suit. and as I can get amusement out
Of IL without IL costing me much,
take a hand in ft.--Statement Of Henry
Root. plaintiff in Injunction suit TO
prevent sale Of Hetch Hetchy bonds.
Frankly admitting that he is but a
dummy in the suit brought by the ad-
herents Of the Spring Valley water
company 10 enjoin the board of super
visors from selling the first issue Of
s2s0O0O worth Of Hetch Hetchy water
bonds. Henry Root. the nominal plain
til in the action, yesterday freely dis
cussed the suit Root tacitly admitted
that the men who inspired him TO hg-
ure IN the suit as an interest tax payer
and who engaged Attorney ". L
BrObeck to press the action, are prac-
tically the same men who on the eve of
culars bitterly attacking the Hetch
Hetchy project The respect with which
the voters received the advice" of the
Interested bankers. and others, was de
rnonstrsted by the vote which showed
them under.
Admits Being Dummy
william H. Crocker, the Tevis inter
ests. Frank Dunn. the Tobin interests
and members Of the real estate nrm of
Baldwin & Howell are the leading
spirits behind Roots suit, he tacitly
admitted last evening when seen at his
Z lodgings at Fell and Baker streets.
prhue Root would nor openly betray
the people whose dummy he confesses
himself TO be. he was too honest to
deny, when pressed, the identity Of
those interested. These are the same
men who have made the fight for
spring valley whenever the water is
sue arose.
Root himself is veteran civil en-
gineer OF California. he was. in 1866,
one Of the party of surveyors who 10
Gated the route Of the Central Pacific
railroad over the Sierra Nevada noun
tains. He continued his connection
with Huntington. Stanford and Crock
er and had charge Of the construction
and designed the greater part Of the
Market street cable railway He was
one OF the expert witnesses called last
week IN the Calhoun trial to testify re-
garding the condition Of the cable
roadbed after the quake.
race.
The bankers and financial promoters
who signed the anti election day cir
cular opposing the Hetch Hetchy
project were William Thomas. William
T. Babe. J. X Wilson. William H
Crocker. James r. Kelly. f. r. Lilien-
thai. r. NJ Hotaling Leon sloss, R. NJ
Tobin and J. D. Grant. Some. If not
al Of them. are behind Root in the
suit filed Saturday, and in addition to
them are members OF the firm Of Bald
win & Howell and the Tevis interests.
Backed by "Soreheads"
= an a tax payer here and If the
F5etch Hetchy project did go through
my taxes might be increased about
500" said Root, but that is not the
reason for my entering in this matter.
There are other people interested and
behind me-many Of them are sore
heads Yes, the Tevises are soreheads.
can't say that I entered this because
J love controversy, but 1 wa willing
to go to the front and bear the brunt
OF Il. while there are a lot OF people
who say they have so many interests
that they don't want to be prominent in
this fight
7 think members OF the board of
supervisors viii be relieved to have
this suit come up and settle the oues-
tion OF the legality or the bonds.
know that som Of them seem in the
dark about the legality of the pro-
cedings-particularIy c cater and Con1te.
The chief fault have 20 ma with the
proceedings Of the board is the fact
that they appointed New York attor-
ney, Judge Dillon. to pass upon the le-
gality Of the bonds The board should
have got a local lawyer to do the work.
The lawyers have been compiling
this case for about three weeks The
matter was suggested several months
ago, but it was droppd Tor while, and
] thought it had gone by the board.
but 7 heard a short while ago that it
had been revived They are using me
public character, guess.
Root takes his appearances in the
suit as good joke. He laughed good
humoredly about his role as plaintiff
and said that he did not think the