Jasper County Democrat, Volume 13, Number 80, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 January 1911 — THE PARAMOUNT QUESTION IS UP [ARTICLE]

THE PARAMOUNT QUESTION IS UP

Liquor Legislation Occupies the General Assembly. BOTH SIDES GIVEH HEARING All Persona Interested In the Liquor Bills Invited to Come Forward and Make Buoh Objections Against or Arguments In Favor of Amending Present Statute as May Properly Be Presented to the Legislature. Indianapolis special: The Indiana liquor situation promises to come to the front in the general assembly this week and to occupy more attention than any other one subject up for consideration. Two liquor bills before the lawmakers are scheduled for committee action and report, and the committees are preparing to give the fullest possible hearings to both sides of the controversy. One is the bill advanced by the Indiana Association of Brewers, designed to take the saloon out of politics and to provide stricter regulations, Introduced by Senator Stephen B. Fleming of Fort Wayne, president of the association, and the other is the platfoi m measure amending the county option law. Introduced in the senate by Senator Proctor of Elkhart, and in the house by Representative Keeney from Rising Sun. The Fleming bill was introduced In the house by Representative Adolph Set densticker of Indianapolis, chairman of the house committee on morals, to which both the amending measure and the Fleming bill were referred. Meetings of the committees will be announced for not later than the middle of the week, when all persons interested in the bills will be asked to come forward and make the objections or their arguments in favor of the bills.

While the platform measure is called an amending measure, its effect will be to amend the county option law out of existence, while conserving to communities where it has been employed the protection of the law for the two-year period following elections where carried by the anti-saloon element. Thus where a county has voted dry it will remain dry for the twoyear period, regardless of the passage of the Proctor bill.

The brewers’ bill, which has been given in good faith as an honest effort on the part of the better class of brewers to clean up the bad saloon conditions in the state, is expected to be amended in a great many instances, but none of the amendments as proposed will affect the general regulating conditions imposed in the bill sufficiently to defeat the ends aimed at by the association members. The bill will be made so as to conserve the Moore remonstrance law and the Nicholson law, except where provisions of the latter are taken up and made even stronger by the sections of the Fleming measure. In effect, the bill is designed to revise all the general saloon regulation acts, from that of 1884 up to and including the acts of 1909.

The Senatorial Election. For the first time in the history of Indiana general assemblies, the majority members will go into the joint session on Tuesday to vote for a United States senator without having previously held a caucus. The state convention last April, when it indorsed the candidacy of John W. Kern to succeed Senator Albert J. Beveridge, settled the Democratic senatorial situation, and nene of the Democratic majority have even thought seriously of going back on the convention indorsement, There has been some talk of a caucus, but the leaders held that it was unnecessary, and even objected to it, as in their opinion caucus would reflect to a degree on the honesty of the Democratic majority, ’ “who were elected under a pledge to support Kern. It is understood that Kern expressed a wish that a caucus be held and an open ballot taken to determine how the majority members stood on the senatorial question, but no report to that effect was made in either the house or the senate. Senator Bernard Shively of Marion and Representative Clore of Franklin will make the speeches nominating Mr. Kern. The branches will meet in joint session on Tuesday at 11 o'clock to hold the election.

With the election of Kern and his acquisition of the office on March 4, Indiana will have two Democratic United States senators, for the first time since 1897, when Daniel Voorhees and David Turpie were in the senate together. Voorhees was succeeded by Charles W. Fairbanks in 1897, and Turpie by Beveridge in 1899. Since then the representation of Indiana was Republican until March 4, 1909, when Benjamin F. Shively, Democrat, succeeded James A. Hemenway, and the representation was divided. The election of Kern will oust the Republican representation until at least 1915, when Senator Shively’s term expires.

Good Roads Legislation. The organization known as the Indiana Good Roads association, headed by Clarence A. Kenyon of this city, has a prptty stumpy row ahead of it, it now appears. The organization has a bill in both the senate and the house providing tor a state highway commia-

sion and fbr the payment of all free gravel road taxes by individuals and corporations, in cash, whereas now the land owners and corporations are permitted to work out their tax under the direction of the township road supervisors. Farmers from all over the state are opposing the measure, on the theory that the organization is backed chiefly by automobile manufacturers and road material men, who are trying to put the bill across for personal reasons. Many of the farmers who oppose the bill explain that if it becomes a law and a highway commission is established,, the commission will give Its attention to main roads only, and that the farmer living on a byroad will be left out In the cold entirely, with his chances very slim of ever having anything done with the highway In which he is personally interested. The theory that highway taxes should be paid in cash is acceptable to many farmers, if surrounded with proper restrictions. Representative Guild of Medaryville has a bill which provides that all taxes amounting to more than >3O annually shall be paid in cash, while the taxes under that amount may be worked out, according to the present law. Many farmers have placed their O. K. on the Guild measure and will work for it, in preference to the bills introduced at the request of the good roads organization. Representative Guild has explained that his bill will prevent the outrgaes which have followed the farming-out processes which have obtained in road tax Matters by railway corporations. Two contractors, the Tripp Brothers, of this city, have made Independent fortunes out of railway tax contracts in the past few years. They take the railway taxes at 90 cents on the dollar and let them out to sub-contractors at 60 cents, and the sub-contractors work out the tax on that basis. A result has been that the township roads are benefited only to the extent of about 50 cents on the dollar of railway tax. One representative who is a farmer in the north part of the state, told of his letting his team and man out to one of the contractors at $8 a day for eight hours’ work on the roads, hauling four yards of gravel in that time- The work thus cost the township >2 a yard, In addition to the cost of the gravel. That >2 a yard for placing gravel on a highway is an outrage, few farmers will question. The representative himself said it was an outrage, but that he didn’t intend to let his team and man out for any less than the subcontractor was getting. The Guild measure would retain to the farmer and small landowner the right to work out his tax on the road in which he is personally interested, but would compel the railway corporations to pay their taxes in cash, to be disbursed through the board of county commissioners as highway commissioners, as under the present law. Workmen’s Compensation Law.

Some sort of workingmen’s compensation act is certain to come out of the present session of the general assembly, but just what the provisions of the act will be, no one is at this time able to see. Four bills covering the subject have been introduced thus far, and two more will be Introduced this week, it is understood. The governor is very much in favor of the enactment of some such a law, but none of the bills thus far introduced have met with his entire approval. The governor is understood to favor a measure containing a mutual Insurance provision, according to which the manufacturers and other employers of labor shall pay into the company an annual fee which shall build up a fund for the relief of persons Injured at labor, or for the relief of families of men killed while following their pursuits. The purpose of the proposed compensation act is to reduce the number of damage suits in the courts, and to provide for injured workmen speedy compensation for damages sustained. The workers and the employers of workers are agreed on the general conditions of the proposed act, but differ on a number of the details. A general meeting in which all sides to the question shall be discussed fully and freely is to be arranged.

Democrats For Economy. The Democratic economy plan for the general assembly has been introduced and is working in splendid form in both the senate and the house. The number of employes has been greatly reduced from the number of two years ago, and expenses for supplies, printing, eto., have been cut very largely. It is estimated that the session will pull through with an aggregate expense of some $25,000 less than that of two years ago.

y® Virtually all the Democratic platform bills have been introduced and are making headway in the committees. No opposition of serious nature has sprung up In either house, except as to details, which there is evident a spirit to shape about to suit the majority. At this time it looks as if the platform promises would be redeemed in every Instance early in the session. It has been a long time since the workingman had as much promise of recognition at the hands of the general assembly as at this time. The Democratic platform declared much in favor of the worker, and an honest attempt to redeem the pledges is being made. The compensation acts, the employers’ l liability acts, the school Inspection acts, better housing laws, greater care . in the preparation and distribution of ’ foodstuffs, regulations for the employment of children, and the regulation of cold storage plants in order to prevent the control of food prices, regulation of loan sharks, and the weekly wage law are some things in which the workingman is vitally interested, and these are all receiving attention.