New-York tribune., 1911-02-04
INSURGENTS WILL FIGHT
Continued from first psg-.

The range of legislation they could ipnu-
ence in both houses thus IS wide one
and makes their position very strong III
thev actually act as one man, as they
now say t..ey Will
Highway affairs. which have become
one nhasc Of the senatorship si,us'oh'
held the centre OF the stage to-day hVp-
ert Earl of HerlSimer. the Democratic
member of the State Highway Commis'
sion, which Governor Dix Is seeking u
have demolished. took hand III lHe
controversy tonight. Commissioner hari
denies the Governors assertion t'foe
az last nights dinner OF the Albany
Chamber OF Commerce, that the coinlnis-
sion IS in politics.
Replying TO the statement that 'he
commission had been operated on a par
tisan basis, as asserted by Governor DlH'
Mr. Earl said II was most emphatically
untrue"
Il did not accept my appointment, ne
continued, until l had the assurance 81
Governor Hughes that the department
was 10 be run on a non-psrtlsan OASIS
and not until Chairman Hooker, repre-
sentins the majority members OF the
commission. had assured the Governor
in my presence that all politics shoulo
be eliminated I want 70 go on record
at this time by stating that at no time
during the existence of the commission
have had occasion 70 feel that partisan
politics entered in the slightest degree
into any action taken by my associate
commissioners in regard TO any matters
that have come before us or in making
appointments Of employees.
"a Non. Competitive Appointments.
The commission has made twenty
four non competitive appointments dur
| ing its existence, and upon investigation
| find that thirteen are Republicans and
eleven Democrats. When the commits
sion was finally organized 7 recall that
! in the town roads bureau, in charge or
( Republican deputy. twenty-five former
employees Of the State Engineer in this
| department were recommended for re-
/ instatemcnt, seventeen of whom were
| Democrats.
! The large majority Of employees Of
! this department are taken from the sew
! eral Civil Service lists and are assigned
! i'm the order of their standing on such
! lists. irrespective OF political affiliations.
| Fatrolmen on the roads throughout the
state are, as rule, recommended by the
county superintendcnts, the local repre-
Sentatives Of the commission in the
counties and the supervisors Of the
| towns
Commissioner Earl then took up the
resolution passed by tho Herkimer
County Board Of Supervisors lavoring
| the abolition of the present Highway
Commission, to which the Governor re-
ferred last night.
! There are perhaps several eXplana-
! tions" he said. Certain members of the
| board, at the time the new Highway law
was under consideration by the Legis-
I lature. were on very friendly terms with
the State Engineer and favored the re-
| tention of the work I'm that Office. The
board at that time pr rotestsd against any
change in the highway administrations.
| Members of this board since have not
been successful In debating the policy
Of the commission on several occa sions.
Says Discrepancies We're Found.
Auditors from this department have
found discrepancies in the highway ac-
counts of the county and have caused 10
be returned within the last two years
some So. 800 TO the highway funds of the
towns of the county. The designations
Of town superintendents have been asked
for on the grounds Of dishonesty in one
instance and incompetency and dlatory
methods pursued in others This action
on the part OF the commission and my
self in particular seems not to have met
with favor OF certain controlling in
huences IN the board
Mr.. Earl was appointed by Governor
/ Hughes as the Democratic member Of
the commission after the Senate had re-
fused to confirm the nomination Of Dean
Herbert Cook Mr.. Earl was recon-
mended for the place by the State
/ Grange.
| Chairman s. Percy Hooker of the
| Highway Commission issued a tart reply
! to Governor DiX's attack on that body
! lie challenged the Governor 10 come
| forward with specifications and proof of
I thc charges he made IN his Chamber OF
Commerce speech. Especially he dc
manded that tho Governor make good on
| his allegations that the commission had
been a political machine instead of one
for road building. He ridiculed the Gov
crnor's assertion that the commission
was behind the deluge OF protests made
10 the Executive and legislators against
any change in the method of good roads
building.
The Governor must think there's some
pretty big man over here" said Chair
man Hooker, TO go all over the state
and get these people to 20 to the front
for him. 1t looks to me like an insult 10
the men who have written those letters.
There's another thing / might say
about this political activity charge. The
only political activity ever heard Of in
which anybody connected with this com.
mission was concerned was when Com.
missioner Earl delivered tho Herkimer
County delegates TO Mr.. Dix at Roches-
ter He was a commissioner. and natu-
rally ] couldn't discipline him"
Chairman Hooker's Statement
Mr. Hooker said that most ~ -be Cav
ernor's charges wero those already put