Newark evening star and Newark advertiser., 1910-04-04

Now see the youthful solon start out
on his career,
So young and fair and promising-the
road before him clear.
He will not stop until each foe the
people have is whipped
But hold-stop-wait a minute-alas
his foot has slipped.
ON THE SIDE.
State Senator Harry V. Osborne, the
promising young Essex county repre-
sentative in the upper house, whose
friends say has come to political grief
In deserting his constituency--the pub
ljc-by his vote in connection with the
amending of the Lee trolley grab bill,
Is today receiving condolences from his
associates at the State House in Tren-
ton. Usue' stern and dignified. the
youthful senator is meek and subdued
as he promenades around the State
House.
The trolley grab bill, which deprives
the people of any say in the matter, is
scheduled for final passage in the SEN
ate tonight or tomorrow. II Mr.. Os-
borne who voted last week against
the Silzer amendment providing that
consent of so per cent. of the property
owners must first be secured, and who
showed his affection for the Public
Service Corporation by moving the Lee
bill to its third reading, intends to vote
for the final passage of the measure
he is keeping it to himself. Mayhap
the trolley lobbyists know what way
the Essex Senator proposes to vote,
but the public eye, and especially the
people of Essex county who sent Os-
borne to Trenton to protect their in
terests, are watching with keen inter-
est for the roll-call on the bill in the
Senate.
IL Osborne is sorry that he voted
against the peoples amendment he is
keeping his sorrow to himself II he
votes now against the passage of the
bill he will be placed in the position
of the man who ate his cake and cried
because he couldn't keep 1t. Osborne
is not saying anything. and of all sub
iects the Lee bill to him today is deli
cate topic. However, it matters not
what a man says. His worth is in his
acts, not in his motives.
There are many of Mr.. Osborne's con-
stituents who would like to have in
fluenced his vote last Thursday night
TO the extent OF persuading him to vote
against corporate greed and for the
Silzer amendment, which was offered
in the interest of the people. the only
real amendment proposed in the whole
Senate debate on Il measure. None
desires to influence his vote today.
Some of the men who had pledged
themselves to the Lee bill would have
welcomed chance to vote for the Sill
= ger amendment if Senator Osborne had
u helped to present the case in its right
" light,
~ While Senator Osborne was lining UP
M with Senator Wakelee in the closing
~ hours of Thursdays sitting of the SEN
I'D ate. Minority Leader Mark A. Sullivan
over in the House was showing how
to beat bad bill by putting through
against tremendous odds a motion to
strike out of bad bill, the Seharff
worxmen's compensation act. that
vital thing, the enacting clause.
Senator Osborne knew all that had
gone on in the House, and should have
known that his course on Thursday
was wholly pleasing to the Public Serv-
ice. If he did not know it then, he
knows it now. His colleagues were
frankly amazed at his course and didn't
hesitate to express themselves.
But the records of the Senate pro-
ceedings will show for all time that Es-
sex county's representative on Thurs
dav. March 81, voted mo" on an
amendment that would require troll
lev company to get consent before It
4 proceeded with the usual K trmalities
n for laying extension tracks.
The Lee bill ranks along with the
water steal measure as franchise GIT
whereby corporations are allowed to
ronfiscate private rights and private
. !, perty. The Lee bill would enhance
L the value OF the trolley franchise by
J Z ,ntold thousands
The grab pui which without the con-
: Sc. y of the property-owners enables
the Public Service Corporation to run
a trolley loop around Military Park. is
i one of the most vicious me assures that
i has appeared in Trenton in many years.
' II ignores the trolley act of seventeen
years standing. which provides that
before a trolley franchise can be grant
ed the consent of abutting property
owners must first be secured. No con-
sent whatever is required by the Lee
bill. and there are persistent rumors
that money was freely circulated by
the -olley people to get the bill
through.
House Minority L'Ader Mark A. Sui
livan saw the vicious part of the
Lee bill and fought untiringly in the
House to kill it. So well did he fight
the bill that on March it was beaten
despite the fact that the Public Service
lobbyists had been Dragging of votes
enough. 1t took the lobbyists week
to change enough votes to put the bill
through the House on reconsideration.
Mr.. Sullivan openly charged per
nicious" and sinister" influence when
attacking the reconsideration of the
bill on the floor of the House.
The Lee bill was drawn for the
specific purpose of taking from the
property y-owners their right to have
anything to say as to the right of way
of. such corporations 1t is the most
reactionary and brazen piece of COR
continued ON second Paxc.l