Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-03-11
representatives Said to Be
Hostile to the Governors
Local Option Bill, Child
Labor and Compensation
Measures.
Foes of Temperance and HUI
name Legislation Waiting to
Knife Proposals in the Face
of Popular Demand-Execu-
tive Still Confident, However
trpnm 4 srArr connpsroNDnwr. ]


,,,pRtsRtJRG, March 1.-THE MEM
hers of the House today are waiting for
.hs leaders to give them an opportunity
!. break openly with Governor Brum-
A.ueh and bring about a fight which they
,yoild carry not only against local option,
Il. aiso against workmen's compensa-
M, child labor and other administration
,osasures. Tho Governors succession Of
,,oves in his fight for the enactment of
,ocai option law is the cause for this
bostlle attitude on the part of the'House.
promInent members of the House are
...anting what they term coercion" and
a,rterference" on the part of the Gov
amor. and they are talking open revolt.
,srhe House is like volcano" said one
prominent member last night
The Governors latest move, his state
ment Yesterday to the effect that he is
Investigating the campaign expense ac-
counts of every member in an effort to
learn whether any contributions from the
Iouor interests are included, has served
IN nut the wet" members. who hereto
fore have been quiet, UP in arms.
The members Of the House who have
openly said that they would vote against
local option, have been giving as their
reason that they are pledged to the
''wets."
The Governor yesterday asserted that
he has as yet found no item in any of the
members campaign expense accounts
that could be attributed to the liquor in
terests The resulting implication is that
the "wet" members are in the position OF
having to explain why they are pledged
10 the "wets."
The Governors searching probe into the
campaign expense accounts of the MEM
bers Is unprecedented, and that fact has
added to the resentment of the Repre-
sentstlves who are opposing the Governor
in his fight.
The Governor today repeated his as
aertion that the bill would pass the
House. "The bill will pass the House."
he said. II see no reason why should
not continue to believe this"
Letters and other messages that carry
pledges of support in the Governors
fight for local option continue to flood
the executive offices. They are pouring
in from every section of the State.
A FLOOD OF LETTERS.
The Philadelphia members of the House,
especially, are receiving hundreds of pos
tal cards signed by voters, asking them
10 vote for the local option bill. That the
Philadelphia members are sincerely talk
Ing into account the wishes of their con-
sttuents in this question, is shown BIZ
the fact that every Representative from
Philadelphia is saving every one of these
postal cards.
Democratic State Chairman Roland S.
Norris is in bad standing with the local
optionists today, as the result of a state
ment which he issued here. In the state
ment he called attention to the fact that
Governor Brumbaugh's name was on the
Personal Liberty ticket.
Mr. Morris came here at the request of
4. Mitchell Palmer to attempt to line up
the Democratic members of the House to
support the Governor in the local option
fight
Several of the Democratic members of
the House opposed to local option also
ran on the Personal Liberty ticket with
governor Brumbaugh, and they, there
fore. feel obliged to support the liquor
interests" said Mr.. Morris.
NORRIS HAS Suspicious.
DE also made another remark in his
statement that implied that the "llquor
ring supported Governor Brumbaugh's
campaign. II am hopeful that the Re-
publican machine will find very few
Democrats foolish enough to offer them
selves as victims to the liquor ring, which
used every effort to defeat the Demo-
srsuo state ticket last fall" he said.
chairman Morris influence here Is re-
saraed as negative. There are 40 Demo-
.t .Ials In the House and only eight of
.nen are regarded as followers of
the Palmer-McCormick organization, The
others are either members of the Old
nuard or are independent in their attl-
suue toward legislation. The Old Guard
local option. '7'