New-York tribune., 1922-11-02


aourts wh5cA he appealed 60 fhe Al.
tefiate bivlsisas where ii was assarrnrd,
hat is the efaeiaI report by the Gem
HslssSoner' himself. ana that record was
50 satfHfsctory to the then Governor
fisas he referred to Couaraisssener
Nixon = werk in his message to the
Legs stature ia these words. sThe re.
suh has IN every way justified your
acsien.s :,
Governor Miller theYt declared thai
ne has been asking his adversary to
square bis present promise to turn the
transit lines ever to the eisv admins.
fratiofi with his record OF handling
ne matter By the appointment Of two
ssatas commissions. The explanation,
Nf smith has advanced, ne said. is
that he was warned By The Republican
Legislature OF how much he eouId ex-
peeS 1rom II, and that the public scrv-
1ce legislation OF 1919 was therefore
what the Legislature was willing to
give him, not what he wanted.
propose to examine that state
mtist, first, as to its truth, and. second,
40 20 lis implications. continued the
ssovernor. Az to its truth; he is con.
fronted b. the record Of his first mes
sage to the Legislature, submitted on
the first day that he was inducsed into
ostice, In which he made the recon-.
mendation which he admits he made
and in which he also said that he
made it-and an. quoting his exact
words after years of observation
Charges Evasion
That certainly was rot the Ian
CNage OF man who was asking for
what somebody else was willing to give
aim; but confronted with that record
and being forced to square it with his
present promise, he says that in some
way he learned, between the time of
big election and his Inauguration, that
Republican Legislature was not GO
ing 10 let him have any credit for ac-
eounpiisiin1esat, aud so, having learned
that, he asked the Legislature to give
him the power to appoint two state
agencies 20 regulate transit, and he
now asserts that that was rot what he
desired, but what they we're willing to
give, IN the face OF his statement that
ne made the request after years of OBJ
servatioR. So much for the truth of
what he says. Let us accept its truth
and examine for q moment Its impiica.
tion.
''Is he willing to say--does he re-
alize that he has thus said--that the
Governor of this state should only
make TO the Legislature such reconl-
Easndatiofls as he knows In advance
tkat that body lis willing to accede to?
That Is confession of irresponsibility
which l had not hoped to receive from
ny adversary. In truth, It is an ex-
E,ianatinr of tie kind of administration
ne gave this state two years ago. Ii
Is consistent with his present eager
ness, To get an office which he admits
ne cannot administer unless the peo-
PIE change their constitution, which
they cannot do during his term of
Office. 1t is consistent with the as
sertion that he made at the beginning
~ the campaign, and which he has
i'adustriously been trying to get away
from since - that the Governor was
nothing but q fgurehead at Albany.
Il is consistent with his excuse for
allowing under his administration the
cost Of government to mount at such
rapid rate as to excite the alarm
Of all of the thinking people of the
state. That is confession of the
Kind OF government he proposes to
give the people AGAIN. Do they want
II? | arn standing for responsible gov
ernment. For two years I have given
the people of the state responsible
government, <Sd / shall continue, IL
they wish it, to give then, responsible
government for two years more.
Defends Transit Commission
sThat kind Of evasion win not do.
Psopls do rot like able-bodieA men to
eyade responsibility. to ahirk responsi-
bility or to hide behind the skirts OF
others. do not disclaim responsibility
Tor the creation of the Transit Com
mission. That was the ONE thing
which the state could do to solve your
problem-to create suitable agency
and to elothe It with responsibility. I
accept the full responsibility for that
act. have not undertaken to interfere
with the decisions of that body. Their
decisions are their own, not mine, but
! am not eyading or shirking RESPONSE
bility for them.
''Let MIR. Smith point out, not what
Intended to do but what they have
lone or failed to do, and will defend
their acts, Let him not seek to shirk
responsibility for what he recommends
cd or what his commissioner did, but
let him defend it, In other words, let
him stand up like a man. ] am pre-
pared to exchange blow for blow with
him, to discuss this subject upon It's
merits, and / shall discuss the subject
upon it's merits, however much he may
seek TO evade or shirk responsibility
He did, however, last night make one
definite contribution, for he asserted
that he would destroy the Transit Com
mission. He made no doubt whatever
upon that point"
The Governor then condemned the
Hylan transit plan, pointing out that
it proposes to scrap the surface lines
despite the fact that over billion
fares are annually collected on them,
that it would postpone all action until
at least 1925, that it would disrupt the