Every member of the board accepted the package of bills which Gallagher tendered him. Indeed, several of them displayed surprising alertness to secure all that was their due. Ruef, it became known among them, had given Gallagher $9000, which evenly divided, meant $500 for each of the eighteen Supervisors. But Gallagher gave them only $475 each. An explanation was demanded of him. He stated that he had taken out 5 per cent. as his commission. So strong was the dissatisfaction created by the holding out of this 5 per cent. that Ruef arranged to pay Gallagher a larger amount than the others received to compensate him, no doubt, for his extra services as bribe-carrier. The new arrangement for the compensation of Gallagher was followed when the Supervisors were paid after fixing gas rates at 85 cents per thousand cubic feet, instead of 75 cents,[170] the sum pledged in their party platform. One of the Supervisors, McGushin, refused to break his platform pledge, and held out for the 75-cent rate. In distributing the gas money, Gallagher paid nothing to McGushin.[171] But to each of the remaining sixteen Supervisors, Gallagher confessed to giving $750. Following the new rule that he was to have extra compensation, Gallagher kept for himself $1350. At the time of the gas-rate bribery, Supervisor Rea was making it unpleasant for his associates. Mr. Rea had accepted $475 prize-fight money from Gallagher, without, he testified before the Grand Jury, knowing what it was for. A few days later he told Schmitz of the matter. Schmitz contended that no such work was going on. Rea, when he received his $750 in the gas-rate case, went to Schmitz with a statement that money was used to have the gas rate fixed at 85 cents. Rea asked Schmitz what he was to do with the money. He testified before the Grand Jury that Schmitz replied: "You keep quiet. I will let you know." That was the last Rea heard from Schmitz on the subject. Rea testified before the Grand Jury that he still had the money Gallagher had paid him in the prize-fight and gas-rate cases. Rea's trip to Schmitz seems to have kept him out of the division of the Telephone and the United Railroads money. The Telephone bribery was somewhat complicated by the fact that rival companies were in the field bidding for Supervisorial favor. It developed that eleven of the Supervisors[172] had accepted from T. V. Halsey, representing the Pacific States Telephone and Telegraph Company, bribes to block the granting of a franchise to the Home Telephone Company. On the other hand, the Home Telephone Company had paid Ruef $125,000[173] to be used in getting favorable action on its application for a franchise. Ruef gave Gallagher $62,000 for the Supervisors. Ruef states that he divided the remainder with Schmitz. In this way, the administration was bribed to grant the Home Telephone franchise, while eleven[174] of the Supervisors, a majority of the board, were bribed not to grant it.