The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1910-04-01
SENATOR B. NAMED
Attempt to Identify Him al
Insurance InG;a'aii.1T.
$1,000 Asked From President OF
Phenix Company to Help the
Campaign Fund of "0ur
Friend In Saratoga.

New York. March 29-The name ol
Senator Bracket was mentioned with
great frequency at the insurance hear
ing when Superintendent HotchkiSs
tried to find out from William II
Buckley. legislative agent for insur
ance companies at Albany, if Senator
Bracket was not the person referred
to in some correspondence that was
read as "our friend Senator b." "the
Saratoga party and "our Saratoga
friend"
Buckley had had trouble beating
Senator Brackets resolution intro
duced in the session of 1903 directing
the investigation of fire insurance rates
i'm this state. The letters covered the
session of 1904. That year Mr.. Buck
ley wanted 81 800 from George =. Shel
don. the president of the Phenix and
the chairman of the law and legisla
tive committee of the New York board
of underwriters, to help the campaign
fund of "our friend in the Saratoga
district
Mr.. Sheldon had suggested after the
1904 session was out of the way that
it would be good plan to aid things
in the fall election of that year in some
of the senatorial districts. Buckley
didn't approve of this plan very much
because, he said, "our friends forget
they had been helped when the crises
come" He said he thought it was bet
ter to withhold aid until Il crisis. hui
later, it seems. he thought it advisable
to do something for our friend in the
Saratoga district" Sheldon was only
able to send up $500, and Buckley sent
this back because he said it wouldn't
be appreciated.
1t appeared that following the busy
session of 1903 Buckley got on the iol
early in preparation for the next ses
sion. On Dec. Il, 1903, he wrote a let
ter to Mr.. Sheldon inclosing drafts of
some insurance bill proposed by oul
mutual friend Mr.. B."
On Dec. 10. two days later, Buckley
wrote:
Il have just returned from Sara
toga, where | had u satisfactory talk
with our friend Senator B."
who was that Senator B?" asked
Mr.. Hotchkiss.
Il have no recollection. | had lots
of friends in Saratoga"
You know Il Senator b. in Saratoga
don't your"
Yes"
II want to get an admission from
you that he was Senator Bracket"
You can't get it from me-"
Mr.. Hotchkiss could not get Buckley
TO admit that our friend, Senator b.
was Senator Bracket, who had given
him so much trouble the year before
Just who this person was Buckley
couldn't remember, though there ap-
peared TO be only one Senator B. in
Saratoga at the time.
With Mr.. Buckley still on the stand,
Mr.. Hotchkiss called Mr.. Gresmith.
general counsel Of the Travellers In
surance company, and asked him if
his company had ever paid Buckley
any money. He said that his COM
pany had made four payments to
Buckley in 19O3-S1S,9OO in April. ST..
600 i'll May and 81 800 in November
of that year The money, he said, was
paid to put through a bill which he
had drafted himself increasing the liza
bility reserve required of accident in.
surance companies.
Buckley he said, had been recon-
mended to him by New York man
now dead. The bill was introduced in
January or February of 1903 and was
opposed by most Of the accident com
panies, but was reported in May and
passed and signed by the governor.
Mr.. Hotchkiss brought out the fact
that although he got fee of S21 400
for helping this bill along Buckley
had not made any argument, but that
the company had hired another firm
of lawyers for that purpose, this firm
charging only $500 Mr.. Grosmith
didn't know exactly what Buckley had
done, and when Mr.. Hotchkiss asked
him why there was such discrepan-
cy between his fee and the fee paid
the other lawyers the witness said he
did not know. He admitted that there
had been trouble over Buckley's bill
and that before it had been paid Buck /
ley had threatened to sue the com
pany