Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 37, Number 21, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 17 March 1905 — WORK OF THE LEGISLATURE. [ARTICLE]

WORK OF THE LEGISLATURE.

Indianapolis correspondence: The last was one of the busiest and most interesting days of the entire legislative session. The Sixty-fourth General Assembly adjourned sine die at midnight. —Wit, anger and pathos were stirringly mingled during the closing hours. The last half day developed a fight between the Senate and the House, which for hours threatened to make a special session imperative. Cool heads counseled wisely, however, and the Assembly was adjourned jn good fellowship. During the closing minutes the lawmakers forgot their animosities and indulged in much sideplay. Through it all a spirit of good fellowship prevailed. Humorous speeches were made and there was a deal of merrymaking and jollity. But a strain of pathos dominated it all. The legislators were parting after two months close companionship. Some had served their full term and were leaving not to return. A note o» regret rang through even the humorous speeches and the spirit of levity was at times tinged with thoughts which seemed to depress. , . Thanks were voiced by the lawmakers for'the able and just way in which their presiding officers —Sneakers Cantwell and Lieutenant Governor Miller —had conducted the sessions. Partisanship had no place in the legislative chambers and the members of both parties clasped hands in mutual friendship and admiration. ' - „ Governor’s Closing Word. At 11:45 Governor Hnnly sent . his final message to the two houses. This was a word of thanks and encouragement. It was read amid a profound stillness, which remained unbroken for a second or two after the concluding word had been uttered by Union B. Hunt, the governor’s secretary, who read the message. The governor said: Gentlemen- The Sixty-fourth General Assembly of the State of Indiana is about to end bv constitutional limitation. In a few hours it will have gone Into history, there to bo judged for Its deeds, whether of omission or commission. There Is in the record It has made so much of the good and so little of the bad, that I cannot forbear n word of commendation before you depart to take up again the duties of private citizenship. Incessant labor, high ability and lofty purposes Have cha fact prized your services e to the niaio throughout the session, \on have earned the gratitude of the people whose servants vou have Indeed been. Ihe volume am! the character of the legislntlon you have enacted bespeak for you the continued confidence of your fellow-citizens, without regard to their party affiliations. The measures vou have passed are in the Interest of the peace and the repose of society, and of Its Improvement mid elevation ns well as for the material Interests of the Commonwealth. Your work may contain imperfection doubtless does- the work of no man or set of men can be expected to be perfect. Some of these imperfections may not yet be apparent and may not become so until tried In the crucible of actual experience. in the main. however, your work is such as to justify the partiality of the people whose commissions you have borne. All lias not been obtained that I desired, but It has been more nearly obtained than Is usual In public affairs. We hr.ve sometlmelr differed, but our differences have been nt all times the fearless differences of courageous, sincere and honest men, who were moved by n common impulse -a desire for the welfare of the State and the happiness of its people. Personally. I bog to thank you. one and all. Yon have been, without exception, considerate and tolerant. Of your kindness I am deeply sensible, and in these, the closing hours of wliat 1 believe will be looked upon ris-an historic session. 1 beg to make grateful and publie acknowledgment thereof On the whole, you have bullded better than I had hoped, and, In fact, better than anj" General Assembly convened In the State In many years has bullded. Commending you to the considerate Judgment of an appreciative people, and wishing you safe return to your homes and your families. I bld you good-by with sincerest concern and desire for your future happiness and for the prosperity and advancement of the people of Indiana. The press of business at the close made it necessary that the hands of the clocks be made fast in order that the hour of midnight, the time set by the statute tor adjournment, might not arrive and find the session still on. At 12:01 the Senators left the chamber singing "America.” In the rotunda of the State House they met the Representatives, the lattyr singing “Auld Lang Syne. - .’ The sixty-fourth General Assembly win a matter of Indiana history. Work of the Session. According to the journals ns prepared by the clerks of the legislature, there were passed in both branches of the General Assembly during the session 207 bills. Of this number 107 were Senate bills passed by the House, and 1(M) were House bills passed by the Senate. This would make 207 bills passed by both Houses, and would leave a discrepancy between the House and Senate records, and the governor's records, which show that lie received ID!) bills. The total number of bills introduced Ln the legislature on both sides was 7'93. of which 432 originated in the House ami 3(11 were introduced in the Senate. Of the bills passed by the House nud •ent t<> the Senate, the records show that forty-four were killed by the Senate mid lot) were passed. Of the bills passed in the Senate .and sent to the House, the books show eighty-eight killed or failed to he acted upon, and 107 passed. It was an assembly which , pissed many good laws and in the big majority of eases it took n stand for the best Interests of the State. Its work is done. It now remains for those into whose keeping is intrusted the enforcement of the law to determine whether the remedial measures that have been enact'd shall really operate for good or be allowed simply to adorn the statutes without life or 0110(4. After all. the chief thing is the enforcement of law. If n law is good It is almost axiomatic that it should Io enforced. If it is bad the euitoreeinent of it will the sooner bring about Its repeal. So. good or bad, the thing to do is to make the laws operative. The bills passed have been with perhaps wiuic few exceptions good, and many of them are of very grent importance. Five or six bills prepared by th* codification commission have become laws, and one was rejected. The cities and towns bill was carefully considered, •nd. ns n result, it was much improved •nd strengthened. The legislature pawed a railroad com-

mission bill and gave the city of Indianapolis the needed power to provide fur the elevation of railroad tracks. A new Insane hospital, which was greatly needed, was provided for. An adequate appropriation was made for the Girls’ Industrial School. The law authorizing the construction of a new deaf and dumb school also seems satisfactory. The legislature made an appropriation for the creation of an epileptic hospital, and ordered that attention be first given to the epileptics who could be helped or,cured by treatment. It also enacted a bill for the regulation and control of private banking, which, though deemed inadequate, is nevertheless to be commended as recognizing a principle, and as a first step in the direction toward efficient control. A bill providing for the punishment of the vote-buyer was also passed. The Nicholson law was strengthened, and the sinking fund, which we shall not need for several years, was temporarily turned into the general fund for the purpose of providing for extraordinary and much needed expenditures.

Of course, there is something to be said on the other side. The defeat of the anti-trust bill is to be regretted. The legislature also refused to pass Senator Hugg's primary election bill. That is probably the most important piece -of work left undone. The weakening of the private banking bill and the failure of the machine voting bill are to be deplored. But the general judgment of the session seems to be favorable. To accomplish all this work, to do it intelligently, and to get through in sixty days, is something of an achievement. For State Institutions. An unusually good record was made In the line of legislation for the penal, benevolent and educational Institutions. Among the laws of this kind was the one to establish a State village for epileptics, a class of dependents that has received State care only when the epileptics were Insane. Sane epileptics have been poorly and often miserably eared for In poor farms and sometimes In jails, although they have committed no crimes. Other new laws for State Institutions were: One to establish n southeastern hospital for the Insane to relieve overcrowded conditions In insane hospitals and to relieve jails and poor farms and homes; one to separate th Girls’ Industrial School from the Women's Prison; one to establish the teaching of trades at the Indiana Reformatory at Jeffersonville; one providing for the cultivation of State lands near the State prison at Michigan City, and one for the relocation of the School for the Deaf. Codification Commission's Bills. Five of the six bills drawn by the codification commission created by the General Assembly of 190.3 passed both branches. The private corporations bill drawn by the commission was killed in the Senate and was never considered in the House except in committee. The Semite feared that the theory of the bill Involved a serious depar : tore in the direction of the laws of New Jersey and other State that give corporations a wide latitude. Tlie codltleatlon bills were all greatly amended excepting the bill on criminal code, and it will take time to ascertain their effects. The cities and towns bill Is modeled after the Indianapolis charter. The important feature Is a centralization of power In the hands of the mayor, but a limitation was placed upon It somewhat by an amendment which preserved the metropolttnu police system in cities of between 10,000 and 35,<XM> population. The effect of this Is to put the police in these cities In the hands of boards appointed by the Governor. Another feature is that there will be elections in all cities and towns of the State in November this year and every four years thereafter. In order to meet the expenses tlint the construction of new State Institutions will entail, a law was passed transferring for 1905, 1906 and 1907 the 3-eent sinking fund levy to the general fund. This will bring Into the general fund In three years nearly $1,500,000. Act Relating; to Schools. There will be’ an Increase of three-fifths of a eent on the SIOO in the total State levy, ns the result of the Kean law, designed to help the schools in poor townships that can not now maintain the legal six months’ minimum term and pay legal wages to teachers, even with the maximum local levy and with their share of the proceeds of the 11 went, common school State levy. Another law of interest to schools and to parents that buy school-books is the Balmim-MU-burn law, under which the State Board of School Book Commissioners is required to make contracts for ten years, except In cnses of geographies, histories ami copy books, and unless two-thirds of the board votes for a change after five years. Advocates of this law said the people were protesting against the necessity of buying new books frequently. > Although the House defeated the Senate bill creating a new deputy for the State Superintendent of Public Instruction, whose bmlitess. among other tilings, was to be to look after the teaching of agriculture In Hie high schools and after the township high schools, the general appropriation bill carries an appropriation of $2,000 a year for this purpose, and there Will be such a deputy. There was another law authorizing the transfer of tile special school fund surplus to. the tuition fund, ami another Increasing the salary of comity superintendents to $4.50 a day and raising qualifications to at least a thirty-six months State license. The Farmer Fared Well. The farmer fared very well. A law was passed appropriating $25,(100 a year an nually for an agricultural experiment station at I’utdue University. Another law that may please the farmer provides punishment for the fruit tree agent who aclfs trees that do not produce the kind of fruit which the agent represented they would produce. For Instance, an agent will hesitate henceforth to sell a Ben Davis for a winesap. A law was passed authorizing the State Board of Agriculture to Issue non-taxable bonds t»> raise money with which to obtain title to ami Improve the State Fair grounds. From the rural districts and cities and towns ns well came an insistent demand for legislation regulating the apeejl of automobiles. The Crumpneker bill became n law. Autolsts do not have to stop their motors, but they must tiring their vehicle* to tv stop on signal, and must not go faster thaq twenty miles an hour in lonely built up, part* of cltle*. State regulation lakes the. piner of local ordinances. Recent bank failures. particularly In northern Indiana, resulted In a law to reg Ulate private banks. The law Is not all that advocates of regulation desired, but It Is a start, and future ia'glslntuies mny timend the law. Senator (laniard, whose name goes with the bill. Insisted on nnnunl examinations by the Auditor of State, but the private bankers In the lobby were able to ilefeat tills. Railroads, Business, Insurance. Shippers nail railroad* are directly Interested in the Newhouse railroad commission blit, which Is the r< suit of an agitation of several-years on the part of shipper* and business men agiilmt In J its t ice on the part of the railroads. Shippers, railroads and the people of Fi. Wayne and Imllauapoll* nre Interested lit the two laws for the elevation of railroad tracks In those cities. Indiana will soou begin the practical solution of the grade crossing danger. The Itoemler law abolishes the o’.d three days of grace mid makes Saturday oftcr noon a half holiday for banks. All birslne** men *re interested lu this’ln w. in the wny of Innuram’e legislation the Gulrl law, admitting foreign mutual* with *s<>.ooo cash asset* snd *IOO.OOO tn premium note*. I*, perhap*, the most Important.

The Stricter law on foreign Insurance companies Is expected to result in the admission of several new companies to do business in Indiana. It allows the companies to furnish as assets required in Indiana bonds of cities and towns of other States or foreign countries where business Is done. It also allows assets to be invested in the national bonds ot foreign conntries where business is done. The Hendee law allows companies incorporated in Indiana to invest in bonds of countries or provinces where business is done. It is understood that the State Life Insurance Company of Indiana desired to Invest in bonds of Canada. The McHenrv law widened the character of bonds which foreign casualty, health and accident companies could furnish as assets to file in Indiana, so as to include the bonds of cities and towns of dther States than Indiana. The bill of Moore, of Putnam, to create an insurance commission with power to fix fire insurance company rates and control the alleged insurance combine, was chloroformed in the Senate Insurance committee. Marriage and Divorce. Peculiarly enough the bill to lessen the divorce evil, to which so much attention has been paid publicly and which was supported by some of the churches, was defeated, while the marriage bill, for which there was less demand, became a law. According to the new marriage law applicants for a license will be required to file with their applications detailed information about their parentage and their health, and if a license Is refused an appeal may be had to the Circuit Court judge. What is regarded as the most important feature Is that which will make It difficult, or impossible for imbeciles, paupers or other dependents or epileptics to obtain marriage licenses. If a man has been an Inmate of a poorfarm he must be able to show his ability to support a wife. The appropriation of *35,000 was made for the erection of a monument of Oliver P. Morton In the State House yard. This law grew out of a demand on the part of soldiers of the Civil War and particularly the Grand Army of the Republic. All other monument bills were killed. A bill for a monument to Gen. I.ew Wallace In Statuary Hall at Washington, D. €'., passed the Senate, but was defeated in the ways and means committee of the House. In the Interest of pure food and public health a State laboratory hygiene was created. An osteopath will be added to the State Board of Medical Examination and Registration under another law. Still another law creates a State Board for the registration and examination of trained nurses. Bills Interesting; Politicians. Of particular Interest to politicians are the Kirkman legislative reapportionment law and the Htigg law which punishes the vote buyer and vote seller with fine up to SSO and disfranchisement for ten years but not imprisonment. The House amended an Imprisonment provision of the bill. Vigo County got a primary election law, but the Marlon County primary election bill, which, passed the Senate, stopped at second reading in the House, after it had been amended in such a way as to defeat the unity of the bill. v Cost of the Session. By the time all the bills have been paid the Sixty-fourth General Assembly will have cost the State approximately $119,000, which Is the appropriation made to cover the expenses. The original appropriation was $115,000. This was Increased s4.imm) by nn amendment to the general appropriation bill. A comparison of the expenses of the Inst 1a n n llonse during the~ first session wtththose of the session two years ago show that It was just $2,161.23 less costly than the preceding House. The total expenses of the House, as summed up by assistant principal clerk George L. Hellman, for the session just closed, was $60,688.27. Two years ago the expenses amounted to $62.849.50. This year the per diem paid to the members of the House aggregated $36,638, while two years ago it amounted to $36,900. The mileage given members this year was likewise less than that of the preceding session. being $3,779, as agtialnst $3,817. Tlie greatest economy of this year's session was in the employes of tlie House, there being n less number in every depart, ment. The amount paid out to employes in salaries this year was $17,494. Two years ago it. was $20,393. Election contests this year cost the State $743.60. and the postage amounted to $325. The total paid out this year on resolutions nets up sl,708.67, as against $l,BlO two years ago. While the work of the General Assembly of 1905 may be open to some criticism, the people of Indiana may perhaps be thankful if they never have a worse legislature than that which lias adjourned.