Butte record., 1854-04-08
The Legislature

1leTe l. DuG llttlt matter oI III crest now
before the legislature. One or two bills Of
general interest came up during the week
One of these relating to Cemeteries will un
doubtedly become a law. 1t contfius no pri
vate interests to serve. and it is thought that
its provisions will commend it to the unquali
fed appreciation of both houses. In the As
sembly on Monday, Mr. Whipple gave notice
of an act to provide for survey of the north
er boundary of the State.
The Senate did not sit on the Sd, there not
being quorum present. The removal Of the
Capitol to Sacramento, it seems, has not in
sured regular attendance of the members.
Even there they appear to become tired Of
their arduous duties and occasionally devote
a day to recreation-or indulg in pleasure
trip probably TO Benecia. We shall not com
plain that the legislature have been in ses-
sion over three months, and have accomplished
next to nothing They have done probably
the best they could under the circumstances
But the sessions of our legislature in cur es-
timation, are usually somewhat longer than
the necessities of the State require. or than
the sessions of most other States. The State
should not be compelled to pay for the log
rolling of ambitious politicians Members
of the legislature who have assisted in giving
over time to useless discussion of questions
not connected with the legitimate business of
the sessions, thus wasting the time of the ses-
sion, and impoverishing the State Treasury,
should be remembered by the peo pie, and
when they AGAIN present themselves for fur
ther honors should be rejected as unworthy
the confidence of the people. Such men do
not come up to the democratic standard of
faithfulness and honesty and are clogs upon
the healthy and rapid advancement of the
interest of our State
The legislature has now been in session
sufficient length Of time to accomplish all nee
essary business that would have accumulated
for two years, had the members went to work
with determination to attend to the wishes
of their constituents, and the requirements of
the State, without turning their body into
log-rolling caucus, and rendering the capitol
of California ''a den of thieves wide re-
marks of Hon G W. Colby, in another col
umn) But such state of things cannot al
ways continue. The people will soon demand
limited or biennial sessions of the legislature
in such a manner that politicians can no lon
ger disregard their wishes Biennial sessions
of the legislature, and limited to ninety days
each, would meet all the legitimate re-
quilements of the State, and effect saving
to the State Treasury that would soon do
away with the necessity of employing fnan-
cial agents to adjust her Indebtedness AMI i'm
pair her credit. The policy of biennial ses-
sions, as it has, will doubtless continue to re-
ceive the opposition of politicians, for they
must live by the labor of the miner and the
producing class, and to establish limited ben-
NAL sessions would destroy their occupation
But Politician as class, when they are una
BILE to command, will be found the most obse-
quous of vassals, and ready to accept what
they can get when they caunot get what they
want Let the people demand this amongst
other reforms, aud the State Indebtedness and
consequent taxation, would De removed, and
at least half the amount now annually expen-
ded by the state government saved to the
Treasury
The present legislature will probably con
tinue in session until about the 1st of June, if
an impoverished treasury or the sckly season
does not induce them sooner to adjourn The
session will then have reached the extreme
length of five months, and we venture the as
sertion that no man, however familiar with
the wants of the state and the acts of the
legislature, is prepared to say that the State
has been correspondingly benefited, or that
we require such an enormous annual expend-
ture When the people make up their mind
to elect Representatives to effect a reforma-
tion of existing abuses in this particular, it
will be easily accompished-until they do so,
politicians will not dispense with their occu-
patton.
AMelancholy Fact