New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1910-05-15
OLD GUARD GRud'SS BOLD
Said to Favor Merely a Super
ficiaI Graft Inquiry.
HUGHES MEN PLAN FIGHT

Wadsworth Machine Tool Of the
Worst Element of the Party,
They Declare.
| rBv Telegraph to The Tribune
| Albany. Nav 1.-THE Old Guard, believ-
ing itself once more securely In the saooie
| and safe from any punishment by GOV
! ernor Hughes or the people, has deter
mined to pass no primary reform leg1sia-
tion and to have a general graft investfga-
ton which would merely skim the surface
| If its critics read indications Alright with
the Assembly in terror under the power OF
the Rules Committee and the appropria-
lions bills safely in the grasp of the Wads-
worth Woodruff Barnes combination, the
| leaders apparently feel that they nave the
entire situation within their control. They
are going ahead with their preparations, it
/ is said, to nullify the two most important
features of Governor Hughes's legislative
programme on that assumption.
| Acting on that same assumption which
| they believe to be the truth. just as do the
| organization men. certain Hughes men IN
| the Senate are preparing for a battle royal
| this week They intend, in fighting for
real graft probe resolution and the Hin
man-Green direct primary bill. to place re-
/ sponsibiity where they think it belongs for
| the existing legislative conditions. They
/ say that the Wadsworth machine in the
| Assembly is being used as q tool of the
| worst element in the Republican party, and
| they intend to take such steps as shall
acquaint the public with the precise state
| of affairs.
The estimable personal character of
J Speaker Wadsworth and his popularity
arising from good fellowship have operated
| TO blind the public, these men say, to the
| fact that affairs in the lower house now are
| in many respects as corrupt as ever they
were in the good old days. about the re-
! turn of which some of the Assemblymen
| are rejoicing. These Hughes Senators hope
| to be able TO show how the Assembly ma
chine, with the estinlable young Speaker as
| window dressing for the establishment, is
| used to pull off jobs about which there
| might have been hesitation in the Nixon
regime.
Two-Day Battle Expected.
| It will be a two-day battle. in which the
| first fight will come over the general in
vestigation resolution. on Tuesday, unless
the income tax debate interferes with con-
| sderation of il that day. As passed by the
| Senate, when public sentiment was hot. that
resolution was couched in such terms that
| a real investigation would have been pos
| sibe. AS redrafted by the Assembly. passed
! there somewhat later. and now before the
| Senate when almost forgotten, the reSolu-
| ton is SO phrased that many believe any
attempt 10 uncover graft could be blocked.
! Moreover, certain matters have been put
| into the resolution which direct the COM
| mittee to do work which easily might SO
burden it with labor as effectually to pre-
vent it from doing much graft hunting.
| One or two changes of a word or two
each are the things to which the men favor
| ing a genuine Investigation object most
| They are the matters on which their hre
will be concentrated. The first was the
substitution Of the word land for or IN
such fashion that in their Judgment 1t would
be impossible for the committee to invesu-
gate anything the moment 1t got away from
Immediate connection with the business OF
the state That is, If a charge were under
Investigation that legislators had been
bribed through certain stock trapsactions
and the committee endeavored to trace
| them through a brokers' books, these Sena-
| tors believe it could be prevented. They
saw the broker could maintain that his
| books had nothing to do with the business
of the state. and could get away with 1t
on that contention.
Chance Makes Great Difference.
Another change made by the Assembly
was the insertion Of the words verified
unon knowledge as to charges of corrup-
ton which must be made for the committee
| to investigate The Senate's draft had It
that charges should be verified. The differ
ence is great. Swearing to the truth of
| charge upon knowledge" would mean that
If the charge proved untrue in any respect
| its maker would be liable to prosecution
| for perjury An affidavit on information
and belief would not subject him to such
prosecution. The result. these Hughes Sen
ators feel certain, would be that nobody
would take the risk of making charges, and
! the work of the committee be ended almost
before 1t was begun, so far as uncoverlns
| graft trails was concerned. Objections are
raised also to the stipulation that anybody
under charges may be represented by coun-
sci entitled TO summon witnesses and exam
inc and cross examine them. That is an n
novation in legislative inquiries, and should
| be left entirely to the committees rules in
| stead of being in the resolution to furnish
material for lawyers fights, they maintain.
| Also the Assembly draft of the resolution
| cOInDelS the SpeCldt tciiilHittcc " tohC op
| an investiga ton of fire and casualty in
| surance companies. An amendment to 1t
| in the Senate adds industrial life insurance
| companies. That amendment is said to
| have been suggested to Senator Cobb by
| Assenblynan Merritt. who handed the
| Consolidated Gas amendments to the pub
| lie service commissions law to Senator
| Davis. Why this work should be done by
| the special committee when it could be
handled by the Superintendent of Insur-
| ance in every respect better, with his corps
! of experts save In the pursuit of a graft
| trail is not apparent to this group of
skeptical Senator'S
They are especially wondering about the
| industrial life insurance investigation
| That in effect, they say, would be an in
| vestigation of the Metropolitan, and 1t is
known here that Superintendent Hotchkiss
| has had his experts investigating that
| company for couple of months. Some
| nersons believe the attempt to take this
| insurance investigation out of the hands
| of the Superintendent is meant to be a
hsckhanded blow by the machine at his
Governorship boom as successor to Hughes
on a Hughes platform. Others conceive it
m he an attempt in some fashion to befog
the situation generally.
industrial Probe Clause to Go.