Perth Amboy evening news. [volume] (Perth Amboy, N.J.) 1903-1959, 1913-05-06
,pecia1 to the EVENING NEWS.

Special to the EVENING NEWS
Trenton, May 6.-Pursuant to the
call of Governor Fielder, the 13I
Legislature met in extra session il
an endeavor to enforce the Demo
cratic platform pledges on jury re-
form and constitutional convention
and to pass a bill to meet the situa
tion in several counties caused by
the adverse decision of the supreme
court ON the small Boards of Free
holders. Although the session was
called to meet at noon it was con
siderably past that hour when the
gavels fell in the two houses. The
delay was caused by the caucus OF
Democratic members and by the
jockeying over the jury reform prop
osition.
After the senate and assembly had
formally been called to order the in
vocation offered in each branch and
the other preliminaries transacted
Governor Fielder's message was
read. The bills on the three propo-
sitions referred to in the message
were then introduced, referred to the
proper committees and ordered
printed.
The preliminaries were much sim
pier than at the opening of the reg
ular session because all the officers
and committees of the regular ses
sion hold over and officiated today
1t was, therefore, much like a re-
assembling of the lawmakers after a
recess.
Before the meeting Mayor Witt.
penn of Jersey City, issued a state
ment expressing the firm belief of the
ability of the Wilson men to pass the
jury bill agreed upon at the Jersey
City conference. He declared that ii
was essential that everyone stand
absolutely against compromise or
any indirect effort to defeat this bin
He said: The passage of this meas
ure is vital to the future of the De-
mocratic party and either our pledges
must be kept at this special session
or we will go before the people as q
party who violated its platform
promises"
Mayor Wittpenn claimed that tht
friends of the compromise bill would
get two Republican votes in the sen
ate enabling to pass the measure
there. Just before the session met
however, the Republican senators
held a conference and decided to
support none but the Read jury bill
1t was very evident today that the
special session will figure prominent
ly in the campaign for governorship
Both the Democrats and Republicans
were trimming their sails to catch
every favorable political wind that
might blow.
The advance gathering of the
lawmakers this morning brought
continuation Of the jury re-
form struggle. The followers
OF President Wilson predict that
the compromise bill will be pass
ed. This measure provides for the
appointment of a jury commissioner
in each county by the chancellor to
have equal power with the sheriff il
drawing juries. There seems to bt
considerable drift of opinion in favor
of this bill, although the clever
Nugent assemblymen of Essex ant
the three anti-Wilson assemblymer
of Hudson are leading the fight IL
favor of the McDermott bill.
The crucial situation will come in
the senate, where the Democrats now
have only ten votes, or one less than
the necessary number required tC
pass a bill, owing to the absence OF
Senators Low and Munson. This
means that the Democrats in the
senate must get at least one Repub-
lican vote to pass any jury reform
bill.
The position of the Republican
senators in advance of the opening
of the session is that they will stanC
fast for the Read bill providing foi
jury commissioners appointed by the
circuit court judges Senator Read
the Republican leader, voiced the
attitude of the Republicans in this
statement; This is a Democratic
fight. We have offered them a good
bill and we propose to support our
measure. The Democrats have tried
many varieties of jury reform with
out success. Now let them support
our bill. They need not expect the
Republicans to lend any aid to their
own quarrel