Los Angeles herald., 1909-06-17
SECRETARY {. D. SEWARD
CONSOLIDATION
FIGHT OPENED
LOS ANGELES MEN SPEAK AT
SAN PEDRO
Largest Meeting in History of Seaport
Marks Beginning of Campaign
for Union of Three
Cities
Especial to The Herald

NAN PEDRO, June 16.-Ine largest
- gathering ever held in San PEDRO
~ marked the opening of the con-
solicitation campaign tonight. The au-
ditorium was filled, and a sentiment
which greatly pleased the members OF
the three consolidation committees was
evidenced throughout the meeting. The
San Pedro, Wilmington and Los An
geles committees occupied seats on the
stage.
DR.. w A. Weldon, chairman of the
San Pedro committee, who presided,
said in opening the meeting that the
Los Angeles committee had been in
vited down TO present the case for
consolidation and that the speeches for
the first meeting would be confined to
their addresses. The response from
the Los Angeles men advanced par
ticularly a desire for fairness on the
part of Los Angeles, and a strong
showing was made on this line. The
remarks of the speakers were fire.
uuently interrupted by applause and at
times by cheers, showing the apprecia-
ton of the audience. The opposition
which has so far come out in the
open was chased down to ]. c. Wray,
editor of a local paper, and he was
given an artistic dressing and his ar
guments disAeCted by the speakers.
Hardest right TO Tome
your consolidation committee has
had quite a fight to bring about the
situation now before you" said DR..
Weldon after calling the meeting to
order, "yet we realize that the hardest
fight is still to come. In fact, however,
it resolves purely into a campaign of
education. With the, people of San
Pedro all that is needed is to under
stand what consolidation means-then
they will certainly be for it.
Stoddard Jess, the first speaker,
chairman of the Los Angeles CONSOLE
dation committee, was referred to
when introduced by the chairman as
citizen of Los Angeles and property
owner in San Pedro.
"Crises come in the histories of
cities as we'll as in the lives of men,"
said Mr. Jess. Twenty years ago a
crisis came to San Pedro, when it was
mooted what place should become the
port of the commerce of this section.
Los Angeles was with you then, has
been with you since and always Will be
with YOU in the building up of the
greatest harbor in Southern California.
Must Stand Together
"Another great crisis is here, and it
is to be decided whether the two cities
are to stand together to develop this
port 1t is necessary Tor US TO Stdnu
together and put San Pedro harbor on
the map of the world. 1t is especially
important as the opening of the great
Isthmian canal approaches by which
the course of world shipping will be
changed from the Suez canal and
toward the Orient past our coast. Do
you realize that San Pedro is but
seventy miles out of a direct line be-
tween the Panama canal and the ORR
emit?
1.-THE interests of San Pedro and Los
Angeles are common. Without Los
Angeles San Pedro would not have
grown greater than she was a quarter
of "a century ago. Without great
harbor at San Pedro the possibilities
of Los Angeles cannot be achieved.
"The results of the campaign will
long be felt to the advantage or the
detriment of this country 1t will af-
feet the interests of children and
your children,s children. Delay this
question until the shipping that is
coming into the new channels this way
is diverted past you and it can never
be induced to stop here.
Los Angeles comes to you with
clean hands. We could not steal your
city If we would and would not If we
could. Every dollar that we realize
through the harbor means ten dollars
in benefits to San Pedro"
Jobbers Favor Consolidation
NJ H. Newmark. who followed Mr.
Jess, called attention to the attitude
of the Associated Jobbers of Los An
geles, of which organization he Is the