Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1910-01-26
WORKS STRIKES AT THE ROOT
OF MANY MUNICIPAL EVILS.
President of City Council Exposes Glaring
Wrongs Which He Declares Should
Be Remedied Immediately

ton of the members of the council that
/, l desire to take up and that is the
question of using passes by ofticers ana
employees of the city. AS some OIL you
will remember, during the campaign l
took the position that those passes
were Illegally issued and they ought
not to be used by any employe OF the
city.
After we were elected passes were
sent to me by the city clerk, and l
refused to accept them and returned
them, giving my reasons in letter
that [ wrote to him. I did not write
that letter for publication at ALL l de-
sired to allow each officer of the city
to determine for himself what his du-
ties were under the circumstances, as
l did But 1 understand now that some
officers or employees of the city have
referred this matter to the city attor-
ney for an opinion.
"I don't know whether it was done
by any member of the council or who
did it. But if an opinion is to be asked
of the city attorney IT SHOULD BE
ASKED BY THIS COUNCIL FOR
THE GUIDANCE OF ALL OF THE
! GERS OF THE CITY, THE COUN-
GIL INCLUDED. AND THE EN-
/ PLOYES.
Violation of Charter
at is claimed on the part of some
that these passes are a part consid-
Grafton or an addition to the salaries
of the representative officers and so
treated. If that be so then it is di-
rect violation of the charter of the
city, because the charter fixes the
compensation of every officer or per-
son in express terms, or that the en-
ployes shall act without any compen-
sation at all; and any indirect increase
of the salaries of the officers, by way
of free passes, is a violation of the
charter.
L desire to have this matter referred to a
committee of the council and the city at
tOrney for proper investigation. 1t will
make no difference to me what the legal
opinion of the city attorney might be with
respect to the matter, because, as a matter
of prOpriety and policy, L shouldn't carry
one of these passes whether 1t was decided
other officers will take entirely different
view of it, and they have the right to their
view. And, therefore, as the opinion OF the
city attorney has been asked, L think it
should be given.
Billboard Case. Reviewed
''There is another matter with respect
to billboards that has been urged upon
this council time and time again. The
newspapers are full of it and we have
to recognize the fact, as has been said
there by the city attorney, that we can
not legally exterminate these billboards
by any direct or Indirect action. II we
undertake laying heavy taxes against
them for that purpose and not merely
for the raising of revenue we would be
violating the constitution and undoubt-
eddy the courts would so hold, as they
have been holding all the time. If we
should undertake to regulate them and
it should show on the face of the ordi-
nance that the purpose is to eXtinguish
them, the result would be the same.
81 think every member of this coun-
ell, so far as 1 know, is anxious to do
everything he can to relieve us from
; the billboards.
But these newspapers that are US
ing their columns for that purpose may
be used, and very effectively used, in
my judgment, if they will publish the
names of the business men in this city
who are using these billboards for ad-
vertising purposes and the people of
the city will let it be known that they
are not going to patroniZe anybody
who does use them.
IF business men haven't civic pride
enough to advertise in some other way,
I think they can be brought to terms
in some such way as that. l would be
very glad if some means should be re-
sorted to to bring about the result, and
it is a matter l would be very glad
to have the council consider.
Suggests New Committee
IT think there ought to be another
committee appointed by this council to
take up these various waters of policy
and other things that do not belong
distinetively to any one of the standing
committees. There should be a COM
mittee on public welfare or something
of that kind to which matters like this
might be referred"
Councilman Andrews wanted to talk
on the pass question and President
Works yielded the floor Mr.. Andrews
said:
81 am glad this matter is brought
up. I had these passes sent to me in
the first place when 1 was on the police
commission. They sent around books
of small passes or tickets, and 1 made
inquiry whether or not it was in the
franchise that was given TO these COM
panies-a provision of that kind. of
course l wouldn't think of accepting
and I don't suppose any officer would
as an act of courtesy, it might be
termed or a complimentary ticket or
anything of that kind. I have always,
for thirty years, believed that anything
of that kind is simply meant as more
or less of an inducement to favor the
company giving it. But I found that
the franchises of these companies pro-
vide for that.
Hadn't Read Franchise
'Now, 1 may be pretty dull in this
matter. but l regarded that-of course
[ haven't read the franchise-but 1
inquired of the legal department, and
especially when / got a pass from the
Pacific Electric company, which came
in an envelope marked Compliments of
the Pacific Electric company I said,
1 don't take thai as a compliment at
all. If it were a mere compliment 1
would have fired it back, as a matter
of course; but understand that it was
provided in the franchise And l see
no difference, as far as I have been
able to investigate in a matter of that
kind, between that and the franchise
providing that per cent of the gross
earnings of the company belong to the
city. If it was matter of that kind,
why, / couldn't see any difference in
1t at all.
"I read on the back of this, in this
way, and I Intercepted the depart
ment with reference to it, This is a
free pass based upon no consideration
whatever and I refused to sign it,
and never have signed either of them.
I am using it simply because I under
stand that the provision is in the fran
chise, and if it is in accordance with
the charter 7 will use it, and l will
use it very cheerfully at the expense
, of the Los Angeles-Pacific company
or any other railroad company"
Thought 1t Part of Pay