New-York tribune., 1921-02-17
Utilities Measure Sent to
Committees and Joint
Public Session Will BE
Held March 2 i'm ALBANY
Minority at Once
Opens Its Attack
Lusk Is Senate Sponsor
and Adler i'm Assembly:
5000 Copies Ordered
From a stag Correspondent

ALBANY. Feb: 16-The bill carry
ing out Governor Milles's recommenda-
tions for solving the New York trac
tion muddle was introduced in the
Legislature to-day. The sponsors were
the majority leaders-Clayton r. Lusk,
in the Senate, and Simon L. Adler. in
the Assembly.
After the days session Senator Lusk
Speaker H. Edmund Machold and As
semblyman Adler conferred and de-
cided to hold public hearing in the
Assembly chamber on March 2.
The legislative leaders declared that
it would be near the end of March
before the bill would be reported out
of the, committees for action by the
Legislature. In the Senate the bill was
referred to the Public Service Com
mittee. In the lower house it was re-
ferred to the Judiciary Committee.
5000 Copies Ordered
The introduction of the bill in each
house was accompanied by an explain
atory statement by the introducer and
an attack by the minority leaders on
the motives of the Governor.
Senator Lusk, after introducing the
bill, offered resolution providing for
the printing of 5000 copies. The reso-
luton was adopted, but not without
protest from Senator James j. Walker,
minority leader, who said:
will ro,+4a. l,L
majority leaders how the public re-
CARDS the program. There is no need
of giving them copies of the bill"
This reused Senator Lusk. He re-
piled:
"This statement of the minority
leader is in keeping with the oppo-
nents of this bill, who are waging
campaign against it that can be sue
acessful only if the public can be kept
ignorant of the truth.
There is propaganda Of misinfor-
nation being waged against this bill
by a mob of professional soapbox ora
tors, who have no knowledge of the
public utility program. The objection
OF the minority leader is in line with
the policy of suppression of true in
formation and demagogic propaganda
now being carried on in New York
City"
Senator Walker did not deny this
charge, but contented himself with an
attack on Senator Lusk, who, he said,
as chairman of the Lusk committee,
had done more toward creating soap
box orators and demagogues in New
York City than any other person
II know" added Senator Walker,
!"that you probably could get thirty
five votes in the Senate right now to
pass this traction bill and l will ven-
Senators out of the thirty-fve would
know what they were voting on. 1t
is not the measure which counts with
them. 1t is the force behind it. If
the bill were understood by the mem
bers you could never pass it.
Attacks Governors Motives
"But you know that the members
get their ideas from you. And you in
turn get yours from the Governor,
Where the Governor gets his no one
knows, but many of US suspect"
When Majority Leader Adler offered
the bill in the Assembly he said:
"This bill has been planned with a
view to preserving for the people of
the City of New York all of their
rights in reference to transportation,
and also with view 70 preserving the
CITY of New York itself, its rights and
investments in Che transit companies
and the public service corporations
engaged in furnishing transportation
within that city. -,
II know that this legislation will re-
ceive not only very careful consldera-
ton by the Legislature and ny the
people of the state, and especially by
the people of the City of New York,
but that it will also doubtless receive
some degree of criticism.
81 merely want to say at TINS time,
on the Introduction of the bill, that the
sole plan and design of the legislation
is for the benefit not only of the
people of the state but for the benefit
and for the interests of the people of
the. greater city"
ACKNOWLEDGMENT Charles D. Donohue in
reply said: =,
at was hardly necessary, upon the
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