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Newspaper Page Text
iPM!fnn,PliR T r " THE GREATER CHICAGO FEDERATION WANTS REFERENDUM ON AUTOMATIC PHONE Call for a referendum and protest against aldermen jamming through the Automatic phone ordinance is contained in a resolution of the Greater Chicago Federation. It says about as plain as words can say that the phone deal is a grab the people don't want, and the alderman who chokes off a referendum is one bum alderman, so far as the voters are concerned. Resolution was pass ed Jan. 28 at federation meeting and is being mailed to aldermen this week. It reads: "Resolved, That we protest to the city council against the passage of the ordinance as recommended by the gas, oil and electric committee, and that we urge every alderman to vote against it when it comes up for final action, as the federation be lieves it has the right to make this demand from the aldermen, as it is generally conceded that the large vot ing public is against the consumma tion of this proposed sale, and the least aldermen could do would be to provide for a referendum before the people and let them decide." Sixteen business and civic organ izations are members of the federa tion. They were leading agitators against the "comprehensive" subway decisively beaten on referendum two years ago. Board of directors and their organizations are: Christian See, South Side Business Men's ass'n, president; Tomas P. Deuther, North-West Side Commer cial ass'n; C. W. Randolph, Lake View Property Owners' and Improve ment ass'n; G. H. Cuny, Retail Mer . chants' ass'n; Harold M. Bruun, West Side Commercial league; Al bert Kakuska, 10th ward Taxpayers' ass'n; Albert Schroeder, North Ave nue Merchants' ass'n. John C. Kennedy spoke at 15th ward Rodriguez headquarters last night and said: "From start to finish the Automatic 1 phone in Chicago has had trickery connected with it. The tunnels were dug before proper legal consent had been obtained from city council. A city clerk and printer were indicted for falsifying council proceedings so as to give the tunnel company more than was voted by city council. There were lies and lies for years about how many subscribers the phone company had. "Those of us who went to gas-oil committee meetings two years ago remember distinctly how Sam Ettel son, then attorney for the Automatic company, used weasel methods to evade direct answer to the question of how many subscribers the com pany had. "The stench of this deal is already permeating Chicago. Every alder man who votes for this will be re minded of it in every campaign where he is a candidate." o o BRANDEIS HEARING DEVELOPS CONTRADICTIONS Washington, Feb. 10. Senate in vestigators of Louis D. Brandeis' fit ness to sit on supreme bench, who yesterday heard him criticised as too friendly to capital, today heard him criticised as too unfriendly to capi tal Thomas C. Spelling of New York was first witness to latter effect and he made 1910 rate case, in which Brandeis appeared for government, ground for his belief. Preceding Spelling on the stand, J. W. Carmalt, interstate commerce commission examiner who took part in both the 1910 and 1913 rate cases, flatly contradicted Clifford Thorne' J statement of yesterday. Thorne had no reason to be surprised at Bran deis' stand that the railways ought to have more money, he said, and Bran? deis had not concealed his stand uhr til final argument He said he biTTf self had informed Thorne of Branr deis' intention. aMauHHgttiHi