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Show REMARKABLE SITUATION IN POLITICAL HISTORY OF LOS ANGELES Mayor Resigns Under Threat of Exposure of Official and Political Records, Rec-ords, City Council Is Forced to Choose a Successor Unsatisfactory to the People Resignations of Other Officers Are Expected, Special Election Will Be Held. appeared at the private office of Edwin Ed-win T. Earl and requested an interview. inter-view. The Interview was granted. Mayor Harper proposed that he would withdraw his name from the ticket as a candidate for re-election, It being understood that certain Information In the possession of Mr. Earl, regarding regard-ing Mr. Harper's official acts, not his private character, would not be puo- i lished. I "No newspaper or Individual pos-1 scsses the Information now In the1 hands of Mr. Earl. This Information, ' let It be distinctly understood, has i reference to Mr. Harpers acimlnlstra- j tlon and not to Mr. Harper's private j I affaire. I I "Finally, tho Express -will simply ! say, as it has said before, that, having j in its possession the information It j has, it could not, in justice to the city j of Los Angeles, permit Mr. Harper j to continue to bo a candidate for reelection. re-election. Mr. Harper was tho only J issue before tho people Mr. Harper 1 has withdrawn his name from tho j ticket. The Express has accomplish- . ed its purpose in the cause of right ' and decency. The re call movement I has succeeded and Is today a more effective weapon in tho hands of the , people for law and order than ever bofore." Los Anqeles. March 12 The city council met this morning and accepted ac-cepted the resignation of Mayor A. C. Harper. Action on the selection of a successor was postponed to next Mon-' Mon-' dav In order that advice may be had on the question of whether an appointment appoint-ment should be made to hold office to March 26. the date of the re-call elec- j tlon, or to January 1, the end of tho present term. Attorneys before the council voiced j opposing opinions on this subject this rooming. As the matter now stands, ; the city Is without an official head. : President Nlles Pease or the city . council is acting mayor during tho j Interim without being able, however, to exercise the full powers of tho of-1 flee. Harper's resignation was ac-, ce-pted by unanimous vote. I A crowd of several hundred citizens 1 thronged the city hall this morning and completely filled the council cham- i ber. Their determined temper was 1 cldeut In the applause and hisses which they bestowed upon the speak-: ers 'who urged the council to take ; action. Los Angeles, March 12. Los Angeles Ange-les awoke today to the most remarkable remark-able situation In Its political history. With tho mayor's resignation In tho hands of the city council, forced to 1 that humiliating recourse by the punished pun-ished threats of exposure of his official of-ficial and porsonal records, with the ' city council committed to choosing today, as his successor, a man whol- , ly unsatisfactory to a great portion of the city's population; with a special election but a fortnight distant with two candidates for mayor on the ticket, tick-et, and legal questions arising upon every side casting doubt upon further rrocedure in almost kny direction, tho situation presented was one of tho greatest complexity and confusion. Everywhere there was a feeling of uncertainty and apprehension, it was confidently expected that today other olpcial resignations among the city officials would follow that of Mayor Harper. Announcement was mad last nlcht without any specific denial that Chief of Police Thomas H. Broad-head Broad-head would send hl6 resignation to the mayor's office early today. At least one member of the police commission and perhaps others, are expected to lender their resignations today or m I the very near future. These reslgna- lions together with that of Mayor Harper Har-per and Edward Kern, member or the board of public works, are still i hedged about with mystery as far as details are concerned, but published statements today speak broadly of me discovery or Intolerable conditions affecting the city administration and i the regulation of the red light district, and enforced resignation of the men implicated. The special election resulting from the Inauguration of the recall against Mayor Harper, under the special recall re-call provision of the city charter Is sot for March 26. George Aloxander is a candidate of the re-call element and stands prac-tlcallj prac-tlcallj unopposed on the ballot excepting ex-cepting a Socialist candidate, who ' represents only a small voting strength. The faction, which has been back of Mayor Harper, today contends that the resignation of the mayor vitiates the re-call election, there being now no mayor to re call. The supporters of Alexander and the re-call movement, move-ment, claim the resignation of tho mayor In no wi3e affects the re-call election, and that Alexander will he choBen mayor on. March 26 to serve out the remainder of the present term. The city attorney's office has issued an oninion asserting that the re-call election must proceed and that the 1 result will decide who is mayor. Mayor Harper has as yet Issued no public statement as to the reasons for his enforced retirement. He is credited In one quarter today as saying say-ing that he had been indiscreet and must take the blame. He Is said to have denied that he had been in anv manner dishonest, declaring that he went Into office In 1907 worth 520O.U0U and retired practically without any resources. The mayor's action in uuueniy resigning and withdrawing his name from the ballot for tho recall re-call election in the face of threats of exposure. , was taken without the ad- ' Tlce of friends .or professional couu- 8ci. , ; Major Harper did not come to h office In the city hall this morning. His private secretary, Herbert Kennedy, Ken-nedy, appeared and transacted the usual us-ual routine business As throwing Important light upon Mayor Harper's sudden rernatlon laet night, ami the reason for his precipitate, retirement, the Evening Ivqiress today publishes a statement vetting forth that yesterday after-rpon, after-rpon, the mayor called upon Mr. E. T.; Karl, owner of the Exprrb:,. a!irl offer-'ed offer-'ed to withdraw from the race for reelection re-election if the Press would not publish pub-lish an exposure of himself, the details de-tails of which, the Express says, were .then In Its possession. The Express enys in part: "At 5:25 p. m, yesterday Mr. Harper |