Rensselaer Republican, Volume 17, Number 21, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 29 January 1885 — INDIANA LEGISLATURE. [ARTICLE]

INDIANA LEGISLATURE.

Thk most important feature of the Senate proceedings on the 32d vas the regular order, Mr. Foulke’s bill for aconßtltntional convention. The bill was read a second time. A majorit of the Committee on Judiciary’ had previously sated adversely to it. The question was, '’Shall the majority report prevail'! 1 ” Senator Foulke mo vod that tae Senate adopt the minorit y report, and on this hfe made a long speech. He was followed by Messrs. Hilligass and McCullough in opposition. Petitions were presented sot the abolition of capital punishment and for an appropriation for Purdue University. The Judiciary Committee reported bill hi, with amendment, and a recommendation that it; ass; also that bill 47 be amended and pass; also that bill 52 be indefinitely postponed. In the House she Moody resolution providing for the appointment of a special committee to investigate the question of the' need ot addtional accommodations tor the insane wassailed up. Mr. Moody moved tuat the resolution De referred to the Committee on Public Expenditures, wltu instructions to consider the same, and report whether the appointment o such committee would be advisable. Tlie Committee on Judiciary, in its report, recommended the indehn.te postponement of the Patton ri ll to abolish the Grand Jury system. Mr. Patton made a vigorous speech iji opposition to this action. He declared that the Grand Jury system was a relic of barbarism, and he complained that the Judic ary Comm.ttee had not given his bill a fair consideration. In deference to his wishes the measure w. s recommitted by the House to the same com mitt ic. The indefinite postponement of Mr. Jameson's bill to amend Section 4 of an act entitled "An act concerning husband and wife," approved April 10, 1881, was also recommended bv the Judiciary Committee, which led to a prolonged discussion. The provisions of the bill were that "a married woman shall not enter into any contract of suretyship, whether as indorser, guarantor, or in any other manner, and snch contract as to her shall be void: provided, that nothing contained in this act shall 1 prevent a married woman from joining with her husband in mortgaging her real estate, or that held by the husband and wife by entirety to secure the debt of the hus-i band or any other person." The friends of the measure made a gallant tight, but the bill was .defeated, 54 ta 30. Patton's resolrttion, providing for an investigation of the State Treasury, was discussed. A motion to refer it to the Committee on Ways and Means was lost. Mr. McSUtllen offered, as a substitute, a resolution for an inquiry as to why Gov. Porter failed to do liis duty in the premises during the four years he was in office. , This was, after a long debate, adopted. Mr. Foui.ke’s Constitutional Convention proposition was defeated in the Senate, Jan. 21, after a prolonged discussion. Committees reported on bills in the Senate as follows: That Senate bill 76, exempting pro-seating attorneys trom liabilities when pro-editing ex-relatie, do pass; that bill 74, defining the Twenty-fifth and creating the Forty-sixth Judicial Crcuits, do pass; that bill 04, empowering certain courts to employ short-hand writers, be amended and pass; that bill 02, for a con- 1 tinuance of terms of court when a trial is in progress at the regular time of its closing, do pass; that bill 07, concerning collect on 6f taxes in cities, be amended and pass; that 78, a bill amending practice in civil cases, lie on the table: that bill 4'J. on highways, pass; that bill 118, fixing Compensation of County Superintendents, do pass; that bill siti. on common •schools, public libraries, > nd compensation of school boards, do pass; that hill 81), providing that Clerks of the Supreme Court keep a re ord of all fees received by them, aud pass the same to their successors in office, do pass; that bill 73, for the -better government of the Hospital for the Insane, do pass. In the House the regular order of business was l esnmed, and the report of the Committee on Rights and Trivileges, recomm ending the indefinite postponement of the civil rights hill, introduced by Mr. Townsend,colored, of Wayu \ was taken up. Mr. Gooding moved that the bill be recommitted to the Judiciary Committee, with instructions to report wh it d sorimlnation exists against the colored race. Mr. Townsend favored the recommitment, and it was so ordered. Tie bill ord ring elections of County School Superintendents in 18hi> was jiassed. Mr. Robinson's bill to repeal the act authorizing aliens to h-dd real estate was engrossed and ordered to a third xeadqng, as was also Mr. Staley's to require the teaching of “hygiene and physiology" in the public schools, with special reference to the effects of alcohol upon the human system. Mr. Williams, of Knox, moved to strike our, the enacting clause of this bill, intending to thus kill it, and the yeas and nays were called tor, result-* ingin the deteat of the motion by a close vote of 45 in the affirmative against 4m in the negative. Mr. McMullen's bill requiring pauper physicians of counties to 'conduct post-mortem examinations of bodies upon which inquests are held by Coroners, when post-mortems shall be deemed necessary, came up for second reading, and was discussed at some length. Mr. Smith, of Tippecanoe, opposed the bill because lie thought pan per physicians, as a rule, were not competent to make such examinations, and he projiosed an amendment to strike out this part ot the bill. The House alone held a session—and that was very slimlv attended—on Jan. 24. Mr. Murphy’s concurrent resolution, advising Congress to faithfully guard the interests of the Union soldiers in the way of pension legislation, was adopted. A favorable rgport was made by the special committee to whieh was referred the joint resolution urging the repeal of the limitation act, relating to the pensioning of soldieis, and the same was unanimously passed. The following bills were read the second time, and ordered engrossed: To exempt pio-ccutgi s and State officers from liability for costs in certain cases; to require a widow to take i niter the will of her deceased husband unte-s she elects to take under the law; to amend Section 5-.) of an act concerning proceedings in civil cases; to authorize appeals from the County Board of Equalization to the Circuit Cou-.t: to provide certain duties for the County Commissioners. -The bill fixing trie legal contract rate of interest at 7 per cent, came npforionsideration and led to prolonged speech-making, in which the members generally participated. Mr. Pleasants moved to amend the bill by striking out 7 per cent, aud inserting 6 per cent. Messrs. Browning, Smith of Tippecanoe, Killison, Williams, and others entered a vigorous opposition to the amendment. Mr. Browning thought its effect on the school fund would cause incalculable evil, and Mr. Smith thought it would result indriving capital out of the State. Mr. Williams spoke of the depression now existing, the number of people out of employment, etc., and said it would be inadvisable to make a reduction o? more than 1 percent. Mr. Pleasants and o hers stated that the same argument was used when the reduction from Id to 8 per cent, was made, but the country had not gone to rtun, as many predicted. On the contrary, irfonev was as plenty as when the interest was higher. The amendment prevailed by a vote of 3!J to 3:1, and the bill wks then engrossed.