Wilmington daily commercial. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1866-1877, 1873-02-17
INTERPRETATIONS In THE LEGIsEATURE,

q Amy ono Who will observe, for short time
the progress Of business in the Legisfathfe can
not fail to SEQ how the time of that body il
, closely. occupied with incorporation acts. Thesf
press in upon every member, from his constitu
onts, and claim his careful attention. Some
are long and elaborate, consuming great dea
Of time, on first and third readings, and the
mere routine of their proper consideration, even
where they give rise to no discussion, occupies
the greater part OF every days sitting.
The effect Of pouring in this great volume Of
incorporation acts is not only to occupy the ac-
tuai sessions of the two Houses, but also to ex-
clude other business Members find their atten-
tontotally absorbed inthese bills and have no OPP.
portunity to attend to other business of public
character. The revenue system of the State,
gathered piece-meal, from time t.. lime, argent
~ demands consideration and change. but mem
bers Of the Legislature cannot escape from the
pressure Of private bills long enough to give the
subject thorough and elaborate examination. So,
also, with the school system; while this ought
to be carefully and intelligeptly reconstructed.
it is found very difficult to find time or opportu-
nifty for the work. e lo
The Constitution, by provision which is GER
tElly absurd. forbids the granting of charters
for longer term than twenty years, although
they are also revocable by the Legislature, at
any time. The consequence of the former pro-
vision is easy to foresee. Interpretations granted
about 1858 are now under the necessity of COM
ing again to the Legislature, for an new Act.
Many Of these-probably all--are such corpora
tons as there is no objection to, whatever, and
they are re-chartered, without opposition-it is a
mere matter of routine, adding to the bulk OF
such business incumbent on the General Assem-
bly,, and absorbing, still further, the attention Of
members.
The objections to such system, from the
standpoint of economy, are readily seen. The
Legislature is detained, day after day, and week
after week, to dispatch business Of purely rou-
tine character, which, under general law could
be as we'll or better attended to in the Courts as
Is the case in other States. This detention is ex-
pensive to the people, and draws no small amount
from the lean purse Of the public treasury But
worse than this, as We have already suggested is
the ABSORPTION of the attention of the Assembly,
and the impossbility it creates of having the real
business of the Legislature carefully considered
and transacted.
Take for moment, the report of the Legisla-
tive proceedings. Here, for instance, among
the business dispatched on Friday morning in
the Senate, were five bills passed, and only five
Tho first related to Morning Star Lodge, I. o. o.
F., of, Smyrna; the second incorporated the
Brandywine Springs Improvement Co.; the third
incorporated Minqua Tribe, 1. o. II. M; the
fourth referred to the Gravey Eun Marsh Co.
of Kent county; and the fifth was bill to "con-
tinue" the charter of the New Castle Library Co.
All these were pure and simple matters OF rou-
tine, to which there was probably not word of
objection, but reading them. in full, paragraph
by paragraph, occupied large part of the ses-
sion. And this was a fair sample OF every days
work. .N.