The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1913-02-28
Scott Is the Only DetrOiter to
Vote Against Verdier Mea-
sure Aimed to Relieve De-
troit Trolley Conditions
MURTHA'S APPEAL FOR
MEASURE is ELOQUENT
Health Conditions in Bay City
Enough to Warrant Action
of Upper House
From a staff Correspondent.

LANSING, Mich, Feb. 2s.-Acting
directly contrary to q written opinion
furnished by the Encouragement, the
senate in q vote of 20 TO 6, attached
an Immediate effect clause TO tho
Verdier home rule bill which was re-
ported out Of committee and by sus-
pension Of the rules, carried through
all the necessary parliamentary steps
TO its passage IN single sitting,
Thursday afternoon.
Opposed to the immediate effect
provision we're Senators George G.
Scott, OF Detroit; Ftzgibbon, Of the
eleventh district: Weadock, OF the
eighth; Straight. OF the ninth: Ros
| cnkrans. OF the fourteenth. and Pow
! ell. Of the eighteenth. The bill Itself
passed, % TO l. Senator Fitzgtbbon
cast the lone ballot. and Senator
Weadock refrained from voting.
Important changes from the pres.
ent law are made In the bill to facili'
tate the institution OF municipal own
ecship OF public utilities, and In the
re-enactment Of piecemeal charter re-
vision legislation. The haste with
which IL was acted on was deemed
necessary In order for II TO be made
use OF in the April election. and TO
make this possible, the bill was
amended ia reduce from 30 TO Is days
the time which charter changes orig
mating IN the city council. must be
published and lie on the table before
action Is taken on them.
Mayor Marx, and others from Do
troit, have been urging the exigen'
[, cies OF the situation in the metropo
! lis. and Senator verdier. the author
Of the bill. acting in. the interests OF
| Grand Rapids, led the night for an i'm
! pressed surprise at the practical
unanimity OF approval accorded his
efforts
! In answer to the question Of wheth
er immediate effect Is demanded
within the meaning OF the constitu
Ton, Senator Murtha made an efo'
quent plea for t. He said in part
Under the allowance OF this act, De
, troit will have power to bring TO a
| satisfactory end situation which
must be incomprehensible to anyone
who is not in immediate touch with
| IT by living within the confines OF the
territory affected. On the one hand
IL great corporation conducting
| business under expiring franchises
from the city on the other are $50. 00t
citizens considering whether to issue
| bonds for 100000 with which 70 pur
chase buses to carry passengers on
one OF the city's principal thorough
| fares
THE people will not reissue the
| franchises because they have been
stirred by the great prir ,ciple OF pub
| lie ownership. They want to man
age their own affairs. especially the
street railway business.
Detroit needs rs miles OF new
trackage. Under the circumsta noes
we cannot expect the company to put
II in, but II you give us this law we
can remedy the situation by con
domination OF the property IL In nc
other way.
Waiting as minutes for Fort-st
car, as I have done one comes to ap
preciate the need for some action
The usual wait is Is to 30 minutes
and | am only one OF thousands thus
delayed. II you could only see the
multitudes crowdiDg into those cars
every evening to the menace OF their
health and safety. you would appre'
ciate why Detroit needs this legisla'
ton now"
Senators G.. G.. Scott and Fitzgib
bon spoke against the inclusion OF a
section declaring immediate effect OF
the law to be necessary, and also op-
posed the motion ~ give the bill such
effect. laying stress on the opinion
rendered by the encouragement,
Senator verdier. however. cited
decision of the oregon supreme court
in an exactly parallel case affecting
the charter OF the city OF Portland.
and handed down under constitu
ton similar In this respect TO that OF
Michigan
This decision quoting from former
Chief Justice Brewer Of the UnfteC
States supreme court. established the
principle that the decision OF the leg
islature that given circumstances
were sufficient TO justify action FOR
the public peace. health and safety