a bill, and the exasperation of a no small portion of the voters of the
State, at the mistake - or trick - by which in 1907 the only measure
resembling a Local Option law was rubbed off the statute books, it was
not good policy to fight the bill in the open. So the machine proceeded
to do covertly what would have been "poor politics" to do openly[81].

The same bill having been introduced both in Senate and Assembly, the
first step was to tie up either the Assembly or the Senate measure, so
that the whole crafty campaign against the bill's passage could be
confined to one House. The way in which this was done was simplicity
itself. The Wyllie bill, as introduced in the Assembly was, at the
request of Speaker Stanton, held up in the Assembly Committee on Public
Morals. Most plausible reason was given for this course. It was pointed
out that since the Assembly had gone on record before the Senate on the
anti-gambling bill, on women's suffrage[80a] and other "moral" issues,
it was unfair to compel the lower House to go on record before the
Senate on the Local Option bill. Speaker Stanton assured the proponents
of the measure that if it passed the Senate, it should pass the
Assembly.

Stanton accordingly recognized that the Assembly, given an opportunity,
would pass the bill. Had it passed the Assembly before the middle of
February, it would unquestionably have passed the Senate. But the
proponents of the measure consented to the plan to make the Senate act
first. The fight for the passage of the bill accordingly took place in
the Senate.

Before taking up the Senate measure introduced by Estudillo, the Wyllie
bill may as well be disposed of. It was introduced in the Assembly
January 8th, and was sent to the Committee on Public Morals. There it