The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-03-31
PENNSYLVANIA LEGISLATURE.
Senate.

from committees was the following
Joint resolution protesting against the passage
by Congress of bill for an airline railroad
through Pennsylvania from Washington to New
York.
Mr. Billngfelt, from the Committee on FL
nance, reported communication from the Com
missioners of the Sinking Fund with bill. He
moved the Senate proceed to the consideration
of the bill, making few remarks in its favor.
Agreed to.
The bill provides Substantially
First. That hereafter whenever the receipts of
the State Treasury, exclusive of the sinking
fund, shall not be sufficient to pay tho current
and ordinary expenses of the government, it
shall be lawful for the State Treasurer to devote
such funds as may be in the sinking fund other
than those placed there by the Constitution to
the payment of such expenses.
Second. That the State Treasurer shall con-
form to the decisiono of the Supreme Court of the
United States requiring the payment of the in
terest on the State debt contracted prior to 1862
in gold, as the supreme law of the land, any
thing in the laws of Pennsylvania to the con-
trary notwithstanding.
Third. That the Commissioners of the Sink
ing Fund be required to purchase for redemp-
Gates of Indebtedness as the condition of the
sinking fund may justify, purchasing such
loans as first fall due as far as practicable.
Messrs; Billingfelt, White and Wallace sus-
Osterhout, and others, thought the hill was too
important to be considered in manuscript, and
Mr.. Olmstead moved it be postponed for the
present and printed Disagreed to.
Mr.. Davis opposed The first section, contend
ing that the whole fund was as sacred as any
part of it; that any part of it should be dvested
by an act of Assembly he thought was strange
If salaries of officers and others were endan-
gered let them go, but obey the Constitution by
holding the sinking fund sacred. If the State
Treasurer was in want of funds let him say so
and the Legislature and the people would pro-
vide for the deficiency. He was afraid, how
ever, that expediency would rule this question,
as it had ruled others.
Mr. Wallace differed with Mr.. Davis as to the
limitation of the sinking fund.
Mr.. Davis argued that the constitutional pro-
vision setting aside as well the funds enume-
rated there as such other revenues that may be
applied from time to time by the Legislature,
precluded Interference with any part of the
sinking fund.
Mr. Billingfet said that the tax on tonnage,
which was enumerated in the Constitution as n
part of the shaking fund, had been diverted to
the general fund. Could not the Legislature
repeal anything?
Mr.. Davis answered no. The Legislature
could not do that indirectly which it could not
do directly. 1t could not repeal q tax specially
devoted to the sinking fund by the Constitu-
ton.
Mr. Howard said that he had always been op-
posed to sinking funds. They were nuisances,
and really sinking funds in every sense. But
he believed the Constitution was explicit In one
point, which was that any disposition the Legis-
iature might make of any funds by which they
were placed in the sinking fund was permanent
and inviolable.
Mr. Purmau said that the constitutional limi-
tation of the Legislature amounted to just this,
that it should make such appropriations to the
sinking fund might be suficient to pay the
interest on the public debt at the rate of two
hundred and fifty thousand dollars per year
until the debt should be reduced to five millions,
after which other disposition might be made of
the moneys left.
He believed that we must either create new
objects of taxation, or divert some of the funds
of the sinking fund into the general fund, or
we could not meet the ordinary current expenses
of the Government. The bill passed second
reading.
Mr.. Billingfelt then moved reconsideration,
and incorporated an amendment requiring the
Commissioners of the Sinking Fund to abide by
subsequent decisions of the United States
Supreme Court, as we'll as the recent decision.
The bill then passed finally as amended
Reports from committees were continued as
follows:-
House bill creating Thomas Nicholson q
Commissioner of Pensions, ut a salary of S3000
with amendments reducing the salary to $4,000
and his term to one year.
Senate bill allowing two additional law judges
for the Tenth Judicial District, as committed.
Senate bill relative to the land liens of the
Commonwealth on unpatented lands, staying
proceedings on the act of 1864 and on the lien
dockets formed last year for three years. The
bill passed.
House bill for the promotion of the manufac-
turing interests of Philadelphia as committed.
This is the Morris and Mexican street railroad
bill, published yesterday
An act authorizing Union Passenger Railway
to extend its track southwark on Seventh and
Ninth streets and westward on Christian and
Ellsworth streets, as committed.
House.
Mr.. Elliot called attention to the fact that a
certain bill which authorized Commissioners of
Markets and City Property to clean market
houses after 1871, had gone to the Governor in
such shape as to make it take effect in 1870
Messrs. Davis and Bum added their testimony
to the fact that the original bill as passed had
been so framed as not to go into operation uatil
next year.
The House gave its unanimous consent to
amend the bill as it was originally designed
Speaker Strang gave notice that in order to
prevent errors OF this kind in future, he should
require all amendments to bills to be plainly
written, and read at full length by the clerks.
| He declared that in the manner in which it had
| been usual for the House to do business, it was
| absolutely impossible for the clerks to hear all
| the verbal amendments. He denounced the con-
| fusion and hurry which had attended the pas
| sage OF bills.
Senate resolution to recall from the Governor
| the bill declaring charitable institutions to be
| those in which corporators receive no profits,
was opposed by Mr.. Schnatterly, who assumed
| that large amount of escheated money on de-
posit in the Philadelphia Savings Fund, and now
| belonging to the State, was being used for the
personal benefit of the institution without
authority. The act now in the hands of the
| Governor, and which 1t was proposed to recall
| had been intended to remedy such cases.
Mr.. Elliot denied that the money belonged to
| the State, or that it had been escheated. He
said that efforts had been made to effect this
| escheat but the Supreme Court had refused to
make any such decision. The House agreed tC
the Senate resolution to recall the bill.
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