Leland J. Kennedy Memoir - University of Illinois Springfield

More documents

Recommendations

Info

legislation. You've heard that term before. They used to agree on workman's cornpensation, they had agreed bills. That was worked out in conjunction with the Chicago leaders. And &ley was not - I believe that was thc year he got beat for sheriff. He was not on the scene so I guess - well whoever was the Cook County chairman and the downstate various leaders, and the Cook County congressional men - we had twenty-six districts then did we? I think that's right, thirteen-thirteen, sure that's right. See I had forgotten that. IIell, we're going down to twenty-two now aren't we? Or twenty-four, we'rt. going to - don't we lose two seats this time? Q: I think twenty-two, yes sir. A: I think we lose two seats, yes. Q: In 1951 we lost a seat also, it went from twenty-six to twenty-five, and it was reapportioned again at that time. A: Didn't we have an at-large Congressman at one time'! Q: Yes sir. A: Sure, wasn't it Rill Stratton? Q: Yes sir. A: Sure. And wasn't Senator Paul Douglas' wife an at-large congresswoman at one time? Emily Taft Douglas? Q: I believe she was. I'm not absolutely positive but I believe that's true, yes sir. A: But we did have - did we have two or one? Q: At one time there were two of them, yes. A: Sure. And you said we went from twenty-six to twenty-five in 1951:' Q: In 1951 there was a reapportionment again. A: Who - who got knocked off'! Q: I don't - I don't recall. I believe it was a downstate position though. A: Was that when they got rid of Runt Bishop? Q: I don't know. I'm not that familiar with it. A: I'll bet that's when that was, because . Q: YOU say, "got rid of him." A: Well I mean reapportioned him out. I mean getting rid of him is a - I don't nwan that terminology to be disrcspcctful. I think he got knocked out of the box in that time. Well reapportionment is always a difficult thing to do. Q: Well it must have been. From 1!101 until 1947 there was none. A: No, none at all. And I imagine you find that hard to digest or belirrr, and I find it hard too. As I sit here you wonder what the hall thq werr doing. They atJre just letting it go.
This is going back, and I don't have a copy of it anymore, and I think somebody found one for me, but I didn't get it. When we went in the General Assembly, and at these, meetings I think that the council had, we were given a hook by - it was an imaginery tale, by Itussell Hale. And he was supposed to have been a member of the General Assembly. And it was strictly fiction. Didn't they at one time nominate IJnited States senators at the mob convention in Illinois in its history? And I think you'll find that that's true. Q: I believe that's true, yes sir. A: And he got - and of course, it's like any other convention you go to, whether it's a political convention or a lodge convention, they generally have lobbying going on behind the scenes. In other words, the voters didn't have the say. They sent delegates to it, and 1 suppose it was a cut-and-dried affair. I'm sure they had some deliberation. But that book, I'm sure that Bill Day could tell you, 1 don't know about whether Bill Hey could or not, it was before his time, but Isakoff, he could if he was here. The llonorable Russell Halc, I think that's what it was, and it was a book about - it was a book maybe, a hardbind book, about that size. (Points to Blue Book) Maybe two-thirds . . . Q: Two-thirds the size of a Rlue Rook? A: Two-thirds the size of this particular Blue Book, they vary in size sometimes. That gave a tremendous history of ward politics and county politics and district politics anti things of that - a political book of Illinois. And about the mob convcntion. And he was instrumental in getting it changed to where you had the primary elections for United States senator. And I tried to get a copy of that, maybe even since I've left the assembly. And someone found a copy for me down in Florida in a library down there, or some museum of some type. The Council found - but I never did follow through on it. I don't know why I didn't. I don't think I was even in the assembly, or I might have been working for Redmond. I just didn't follow through, maybe sheer neglect. But it was very interesting. It had his picture in the front. Of course it was supposed to be his picture. Whether it really happened, whether he was a live character under an assumed name, I think that's what I wanted to find out. But those things were quite interesting. Q: no you have a sense or a feel as to why they finally reapportioned in 1947 after all those years of holding it off? A: Well I imagine that the public almost demanded it, and the press 1 imagine - I always say the press runs the country. Q: Oh? A: I think maybe that they had a guilty feeling maybe, not individually but as a group of lawmakers in the state. You were supposed to reapportion evcry ten years, and you hadn't done it for forty years, and maybe they had a guilty feeling, not onc of crime maybe, hut of lack of legislative decorum or duty, or things of that nature. 1 think that brings on reapportionment all of the time, and after they do it every ten years, why, they're going to do it, but I think that was the chief obstacle in Illinois. They were just too damned ornery to do it I guess. I mean not ornery in the sensc that they - they just didn't do it for lack of initiative, might be a better word to use. Q: Did you feel an urgency at that time, that it ought to be donc? A: Well I think that that particular session did, and I suppose it had to come from the socalled leaders of each party, and each side of the aisle and I don't recall any particular individual that instigated it. 1 don't recall much about it. I recall it happening now, and it
Page 1:
University of Illinois at Springfie
Page 4 and 5:
ILLINOIS GENERAL ASSEMBLY ORAL HIST
Page 6 and 7:
Preface This oral history of Leland
Page 8 and 9:
Volume I Leland J. Kennedy SESSION
Page 10 and 11:
next to us was a duplex house and a
Page 12 and 13:
Q: Were these family meals that she
Page 14 and 15:
I was awful fascinated by politics.
Page 16 and 17:
Q: Yes sir. (chuckles) What part of
Page 18 and 19:
that much about it, about the makeu
Page 20 and 21:
out and there was the number of my
Page 22 and 23:
A: Well. Yes, I always remember one
Page 24 and 25:
Q: Was it a paddle wheeler or what
Page 26 and 27:
een that far back, in that era, may
Page 28 and 29:
that wanted to take roomers or boar
Page 30 and 31:
A: As you go by, that's the Alton W
Page 32 and 33:
Q: Oh? Were you a pretty good corn
Page 34 and 35:
A: Maybe it makes good talking to m
Page 36 and 37:
A: The Fourth of July and Christmas
Page 38 and 39:
A: I mean his wife is I think, and
Page 40 and 41:
golden handshake. They'd give you m
Page 42 and 43:
A: . . . and the twenty-five. But y
Page 44 and 45:
day I would say that half of the fo
Page 46 and 47:
Young Democrat convention, elected
Page 48 and 49:
in Edwardsville, and you had to pay
Page 50 and 51:
- and we were for Smith, and fighti
Page 52 and 53:
work. I never was drafted for nothi
Page 54 and 55:
more German than I was I guess. (la
Page 56 and 57:
Of course there were war clouds han
Page 58 and 59:
A: Twice a month. Q: Twice a month?
Page 60 and 61:
There was neighbor against neighbor
Page 62 and 63:
A: And they did, so that's . . . Q:
Page 64 and 65:
SESSION 4, TAPE 7, SIDE 2 Q: That w
Page 66 and 67: ' I 59 you couldn't get across that
Page 68 and 69: A: Well they didn't have none of th
Page 70 and 71: A: Oh no, never saw any. I saw some
Page 72 and 73: VOTE FOR LELAND J. KENNEDY DEMOCRAT
Page 75 and 76: Q: Now when you first went in did y
Page 77 and 78: A: A port of embarkation or for sup
Page 79 and 80: A: Oh yes. I'm sorry about that now
Page 81 and 82: A: Alright. August. I'll tell you -
Page 83 and 84: And he got out before I did, but he
Page 85 and 86: A: No no, never said a word. Oh the
Page 87 and 88: though. He was a good talker, and o
Page 89 and 90: play cards or just talk. Women like
Page 91 and 92: Q: Yes sir. A: We had a strike in s
Page 93 and 94: Of course you'd have a lot of lawye
Page 95 and 96: A: Well that was - that was the bes
Page 97 and 98: polls in a particular city and he's
Page 99 and 100: Q: Yes. A: Bond never did like bein
Page 101 and 102: wife and family when you're out, or
Page 103 and 104: of Illinois) library and muse aroun
Page 105 and 106: A: Well legislative process, commit
Page 107 and 108: A: Yes I think so, had a column. We
Page 109 and 110: A: Well I recall - I guess they're
Page 111 and 112: state central committeeman. Now sta
Page 113 and 114: not an Italian name, but what those
Page 115: Q: Oh? WOKZ in Alton, Illinois? A:
Page 119 and 120: had twelve in the pool. I think it
Page 121 and 122: Q: Oh is that right? A: Oh my first
Page 123 and 124: a federal gasoline tax thirty years
Page 125 and 126: Q: No sir, no sir. Well let's see,
Page 127 and 128: they changed those desks after reap
Page 129 and 130: Q: He started that in the 1951 sess
Page 131 and 132: That wasn't a bone of contention a
Page 133 and 134: Q: Oh I see. A: I think they'd do t
Page 135 and 136: Talking about lodging, 1'11 always
Page 137 and 138: his wife's sister. Of course they w
Page 139 and 140: A: Oh did she? Q: Yes. A: Well some
Page 141 and 142: And a lot of those people are all g
Page 143 and 144: I believe there's a lot of that fam
show all

Leland J. Kennedy Memoir - University of Illinois Springfield

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?