Los Angeles herald., 1909-02-25
CONSOLIDATION
ENDANGERED BY
WHY METHODS
DILAT0RY TACTICS THREATEN
POPULAR PROJECT
ANGELENoS AT sACRAM
APPEAR APATHETIc
Senator Savage and Machine Divert
Attention and Loyal Citizens
Must Come to Rescue to
Save the Day
[special to The Herald. !

| q ACRAMENTO, Feb. 24.-Delayed by
~ the absence of Senator Hurd, ac-
~ ton on the obnoxious amendments
imposed by Senator Savage to the Nc
Cartney bill was postponed today at
| the request of Senator Mccartney, and
it is impossible to say when a vote will
be taken.
While the fighting senator from San
Pedro was assisting the 'allied inter-
etS' and Observation-Disclosures in the
entertainment of the junketing COM
mittee of the senate at the harbor city
last week, Mccartney succeeded in get
ting his bill set for a special order of
business tomorrow morning, but on the
return of Savage from the south there
was trouble and the bill was put back
to it's place on the second-reading file.
This was reached this afternoon, but
no vote was taken, as Mccartney stat
ed he had promised to wait until Hurd
returned.
The powerful influence of the South
ern Pacific machine, as represented
here by Parker and Burke, is being
exerted on the Los Angeles county
delegation to cause the defeat of the
original eeds-McCartney cOnsolida-
tion bills.
The vicious amendments proposed by
Savage have been tackled on the bills
and now all efforts are being exerted to
cause all the delay possible.
The question often is asked by those
public spirited men who have come
here from Los Angeles and San Pedro
in the interest of the consolidation
movement, why are so many of the
Los Angeles delegation SO cold and ap-
parently Indifferent toward this-the
biggest proposition which has been pre-
sented to the legislature this session,
as far as Southern California is con-
cerned?"
Answer Is Easy
To those working here for the pass
age of the bill the answer is not diff
cult 1t is the voice of the machine
that the delegation is listening to, rath-
er than the demands of every loyal
citizen Of Los Angeles and San Pedro.
That the bill as originally drawn
could have passed both houses
easily is admitted by Speaker Stanton,
who, on the day of the unfortunate and
foolish compromise visit of the dis
credited mayor said he had yet done
nothing to help along consolidation,
but he could easily put it through the
assembly and get sufficient votes to
carry it safely through the senate.
No one here doubts these words of
Stanton The powerful influence of
the speaker is felt in the senate, and if
Stanton had exerted himself in the SEN
ate as he did Immediately in the as
sembly the bill undoubtedly now would
be in the hands of, the governor for
signature.
No evidence has been shown that
Stanton or other of the Los Angeles
delegation has been doing any work in
the senate. Not one senator has said
he would support the bill because STAN
ton or other lawmakers had asked him.
Unable to defeat these amendments
at Los Angeles, Parker and his rail-
road hirelings returned to their quar-
ters at the hotel and have been busy
lining up the senators with Savage and
his crowd. Delay and then defeat is
their slogan.
March 10 the voters of San Pedro will
have an election to exclude certain ter
ritory in order to unite with Los Ange-
les. If action on both the charter
amendments to the consolidation bill
can be deferred until after that date,
the machine hopes to defeat the cleo
ton. in order to make all the delays
possible it is believed that ordinary
routine wheels at the capital have been
set back a cog.
With such old-time politicians as
Porter, Leavitt and Savage, it is con-
ceded the delays will continue unless
Stanton, Leeds, Transue and others
stop to listen to the voice of the people.