Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 37, Number 13, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 17 February 1905 — ZEALOUS ATTENTION [ARTICLE]

ZEALOUS ATTENTION

LavvmaJteifs of Indiana Are Confining Themselves Strictly to the Matter In Hand. . < 7 —; . THREE WEEKS MORE OF LIFE : 1 ; ' " O ’ ri.' •. >.• . : Prelimijiaries Ary Noyv Out of the Way and Bills Will Be Coming Down Raßidly -r-The Adm.inistra- ■ tion’s Strong JHand In the Moore ) Bi 11. r ; . [stieclal CoTrespondefiee.] Indianapolis, Feb. 14j.—The sixtyfourth general assembly lj a ? three ( weeks more ,of life remaining to it, barring'the remote contingency of a special session. Thfere has not been Sa legislature’ in years oharabterizefl' by more zealous attention upon the part of its members to the work before it M gnd yet up to the first of this week but three bills had been signed by the governor. This whs hot alto'-’ gether dhe to a 'Shortage 1n the legislative output, but partly to ; the fact that Governor Hanly has been confined to his rooms at the Glaypool ’ boteThy iliness and has therefore been unable to affix his signature to the few pieces of proposed legislation that have reached the executive dflice. Probhfily no act of Governor Hanly’s administration will give him greater pleasure than did the affixing of his signature to the Moore temperance measure ye&terdayU This prbefi*' dure idid not make thje bill a law, b&cause It, contained, no emergency Clause, and' it will therefore not become of force and effect Until tfie gov- 1 yrnor has issued his proclamation relative :tr>.' the ? acts of'the gerieral 4ss£mbly early ftf Mis’. 1 ’' i The Moore bill makes a remonstrance of a majority of the voters of a ’ toWnshlp' or ward-effective against the, saloqp business dr. ap applicant for sgloon license for two years. The purpose of the measure was to Carry out an Orlgintll purpose of the Nicholson law 'by preventing the frequent harassing of a copamunity hy applies, tions for liquor license from a gived Ward or township, addressed to each session of thexiounty. board of- commig- 1 pioaers, The abuse of the present law has resulted in keeping many communities of the state in a continual state of turmoil dn the temperance i question, > while In others the temperance forces have finally surrendered , rather than wage continual warfare. It is difficult to see what interest the liquor traffic generally had in the maintenance of such conditions, in view of the fact that fights of this . character hkve done more to develop - sentiment against the saloon than any other one thing. Some Members Embarrassed. In fact no organized fight against the measure has been in evidence. There may have been a liquor lobby here or hereabouts, but it kept itself carefully concealed. There were members of the general assembly who had embarrassed themselves during the last, campaign by pledging both the liquor and temperance interests that they would do nothing to change the Nicholson law. Some of- these men were held to their promises, and sweat blood in, the process of carrying them out. The passage of the Moore bill in the house, to which body it had come after favorable action in the senate, was attended with considerable excitement. When the bill had been up on second reading earlier in the week, an effort had been made to amend it in some minor particulars, to the end that it might be sent back to the senate and have to travel again the long road toward final action. The opposition was not only alert, but backed by a decided majority composed of members of both parties. The attempt was successfully resisted and the bill came to third reading and a final vote late Friday afternoon. The vote was in the exact proportion of two to one, —sixty-four to thirtytwo. Of those who voted against the bill twelve were Democrats and twenty were Republicans. Most of the opposition came from the cities, —Allen, St. Joseph, Vigo, Vanderburg and Marion county furnished fourteen of the twenty Republican votee cast against the bill. A remarkable fact

In connection with the roll call was that only four members were absent, and that the absence ofonly one mem-: her was unexplained, one being ill Few people believed six months and two being paired, ago that the present general assembly would make material changes in the Nicholson bill. But the action of the general assembly unquestionably re-, fleeted publlo sentiment. It oomplied also with one of the most emphatic recommendations of Governor Hanly’s inaugural address. As before stated the strong hand of the administration was felt throughout the battle for the strengthening of the Nicholson law. Absence of Partlsanism. The disappearance of party lines in the struggle for the enactment of this measure Is illustrative of what Is one of the most remarkable features of the present general assembly, —the absence of partisanship in the deliberations of the legislature. It was Governor Durbin who suggested In a message to the present general assembly that there was no real reason for division of members of the general assembly into a majority and minority side—because none of the questions coming before the legisla--11 v t s ‘.con t ! t ■ '

ture, excepting the election of United States senators, would be considered j>arty question#. So far a# their being in evidence in the. work of lature la .ebnceVheiL she barrieb might as wall be removed this yaftr,4— at least this-is true so far as developments up to the present time are concerned. Tfiere has not beep so far a caucus of either party on a- legislative measure during the present session up to this time, nor has there been a division on party lineV on any, subjectunder consideration] .vas in proportion a larger ' than Republican vote agaipat the Moore bill, but It was a fact well understood that some of the Democratic votes cast against the measure could have been had for it if the bill had been in jeopardy. There was an active effort by the Democratic bosses to bring about a getting together of the minority on this question with a view to securing party advantage, but quite a number of the members from the rural districts thought more about the folks at home than of the leadership of their party at Indianapolis. Hence they defied the effort to corral and deliver them. The Anti-Cigarette Bill; An effort has been made to laugh out of court the Parks bill prohibiting the manufacture or gale of cigarettes In Indiana, but the sentiment In its favor seems to be quite as pronounced as that which demanded the enactment of the Moore bill. There is a law in Indiana against the sale of cigarettes to boys, but so long as the

traffic in “coffin nails’’ ,1s permitted j at all, boys will continue to get them. It is probable true that the habit of cigarette smoking fails to injure a great many people who feel that the j effort to legislate them out of the luxj ury is a blow at personal liberty, but the statistics of the Indiana Reforma- ‘ tory show that a considerable proportion of the young men: confined in their Institution became criminals asthe result of mental deterioration resulting from indulgence in cigarettes. Petitions in favor of the enactment of the Parks bill continue to reach the members of the house. Encouraged by the attitude of the general 1 assembly toward moral questions as exemplified In its action upon the Moore bill, hundreds 6f people are asking drastic legislation directed against the cigarette evil. While the (Parks’ bill may not pass in its present form despite the heavy preponderance of sentiment in its favor on the other side of the capitol, it is likely that something will be done in the direction of abating the cigarette nuisance. T rade ; Schools at Jeffersonville. Thi 1 ways ! and-miaiis-Committee of the house of representatives is expected to report early in the present week the Goodwine bill providing for the establishment of trade schools at the Indiana Reformatory. The enactment of this measure will mark a distinct departure in Reformatory methods in Indiana, and one in line with progressive thought on the question of criminology. The purpose of making what was formerly known as the Southern prison a reformatory was that of separating the professional criminal, the life prisoner, the incorrigible convict, and the prisoner two old to be amenable to reformatory methods, from those still young enough, and sufficiently inexperienced in crime to warrant the hope that they might be reclaimed. Under the administration of Warden Whittaker rapid progress has been made in the realization of these purposes. The night schools have been revived, and are growing in attendance and popularity. It is a fact worth noting that sixty per cent of those confined in the Indiana Reformatory have had no education beyond the primary grades. So far as it is possible under the conditions attendant upon the contract system trade schools have been placed in operation. Hanging on the walls of the dining robin at the Reformatory are a score of large oil paintings most creditable in their conception and execution. They were produced by an eighteen year old prisoner who has acquired all he knows of painting in the trade schools during the past few months. He will go out of the institution fully prepared to earn his own way and able to keep out of trouble. This is oi.*y illustrative of many other cases. The contract at the reformatory expires by limitation ih the near future. It is proposed to substitute for this

method of employment trade school Instruction during the greater portion of each day. Along with this is to be given military drill, both for exercise and discipline. The hill permits the institution to engage on state account In manufacturing supplies. It is planned to work the prisoners on this account only two or three hours a day, and to distribute the labor over so varied a field that no particular line of production will be perceptibly affected. Bchool Legislation. While there has been no disposition on the part of the general assembly to give serious attention to legislation proposing Increases of taxation, or the raising of salaries,-the legislature has assumed a sympathetic attitude toward measures which provide for the strengthening of the common school system of the state. The house has passed a bill under suspension of the rules for an increase of three-fifths of one cent on the SIOO in the state tax levy, the proceeds to be expended for the benefit of the poor townships which cannot maintain six months’ school and pay lawful teachers' salaries under the present conditions, because of the low valuation of property.

The bill requires the townships to levy at least 40 cent*,qf the 50 cents maximum local, lax. I’his bill will result in the richer townships assistIng the poorer townships to brtog their schools up to the level of excellence maintained elsewhere in the state] The Democratic members led. in the movement for this Increase in the educational levy,, the popr. townships being sitifated ia-soutberiv Indiana within the bailiwick of DejncN cratic members of the general assemb*Uyn r-jjii/ ; The Corri^»islio|i,^ij|^ with the Moore Sill out of tlie way, the railroad commission bill takes the center of the stage, not only because of thp importance of the interests affected And the strong ground taken by the administration in its favor, but because it seems well on its way toward the statute books of the state. Considerable opposition arose to that provision of the bill which required appeals to be ‘ tried, where taken, In the Marion superior court. The senate has so amended the bill that the appellate court of the state will have superior jurisdiction in such matters, and the change is generally looked upon as a distinct improvement. The plan first proposed might give the railroads a bit too much at stake in the election of a superior Judge in Marion county. The Codification Bills. The bills submitted by the codification commission ate StiJl mostly the subjects: of wrestling snatches behind the doors of committee raoms. The bill o,n municipal corporations, in an amended form, seems to have a good chance for passage. This bill would make the terms of city officers in all parts of the state begin on Jan. Ist. It is not improbable that the bill will ba so amended as to extend the terms of many Incumbents and prevent city elections during the present year. The criminal code bill has reached engrossment In the house. The joint committee of tjfie house and senate on private corporations is considering the bill on private corporations and has been having some interesting sessions, with a good deal of high-priced legal talent engaged In debate before It The drainage code bill is being amended. The eminent domain bill has been favorably reported In each house with some amendments. The highway bill will likely pass both housfes, to which it has already been reported, with an amendment permitting farmers to work out tbeiT own taxes instead of paying the amount In cash, as proposed by the. codification commission. With less than one-third of the session remaining ana none of the codification tnlls} far out of committee, It is Reared that tfce 'df thfm jhfitf not fieach the books aj this sef3l()a of the general assembly. While the continuance of the commission for the completion of its work has been strongly urged, an element in the house, under the leadership of Warren Sayre, will oppose longer tenure. The action of the legislature in this regard will doubtless depend so some degree upon the fate of the bills of the commission now before the general assembly. There is a general feeling that the commission had performed its work with skill and judgment, and the opposition to its continuation seems to be based upon the difficulty of digesting the amount of food for reflection prepared by the commission. Action on Automobiles.

An automobile bill passed the house Thursday by a vote of 68- to 1. The origin of this bill is an accident that befell a family last summer in a runaway caused by one of these machines. In the buggy was a baby that was almost killed. Dr. Yencer, who attended the case, determined from this that he would Introduce a bill for the protection of the people In the rural districts against accidents liable to following the increasing use of the horseless vehicles. It requires a license fee of $1 from each owner of an automobile, and prescribes a limit of ten miles an hour In the business districts of cities, fifteen miles an hour In residence districts, and twenty miles an hour in the country. The senate committee on roads has prepared another bill limiting the speed to eight, fifteen and twenty miles an hour and requires the motor to be stopped on passing other vehicles. Supplying Institutional Needs. The ways and means committee has favorably reported in the house the bill which passed the senate providing for the construction of a new hospital for the insane in a new district to be called the Southeastern, comprising the counties east and south of Marlon county. The bill carries an appropriation of $660,000, not all of which Is likely to be expended, however, within the next two years. A number of cities are already contesting actively for the location of thehospit&l. After the selection of the site, whloh will not be an easy task In view of the competition, a great work remains to be done by the board which the governor will appoint for the purpose, in the way of determln-, lng upon plans and then in the construction of the institution. It Is expected that this new hospital, with ad*dltions to be made to the three smaller hospitals at Logansport, Richmond and Evansville, will solve the pressing problem of the Insane in Indiana for a decade to come. The growth of the problem is Indicated by the fact that up to 1889 there was only one insane hospital in Indiana, the Central at Indianapolis, and it was much smaller than it is today. Senator Purvlance’s bill providing for an institution for epileptics passed, the senate with little difficulty, but, is being amended considerably In the house committee on ways and means. It carries an appropriation of $150,000#, ... ... . i.. ,