Litchfield enquirer., 1879-02-06

on the new civil procedure bill today (Wed nesday.)
 1 4 number of gentlemen whose faces wer familiar to the legislature during the insuranc discussion in f675 have been locking over tn new capitol this week. It tissupposed they ar endesvoring to persuade this legislature to or der an investigation of its predecessor Cou, ant
 Hereafter expressed bills are to be printed not written, great improvement upon thu old plan.
 About 75 members of the legislature visited the Girls Industrial School at Middletown Friday
 A bill will be reported faverably by the jul dietary committee allowing the foreclosure oi tax liens, instead of compelling sale as al present.
 The Senate continues to emit jokes on the subject of woman suffrage. They have al last consented, however, to appoint Senate chairman of the committee on that subject
 The Litchfield county representatives met Wednesday, laid a tax of one quarter of one mill te pay old and present indebtedness, and elected as auditors Messrs. Gay of Winsted, Thompson of New Hartford and Hatch of New Milford.
 We see that bill has been referred raising the price of prisoners board in jails frem S2. 9 per week, to $2.50. We do not know what the experience of other counties has been, but here the number of prisoners is SC reduced that the expense of board and custody per head is increased notwithstanding the de- crease in the price of provisions.
 A bill introduced by MT. Brewster, last week, strikes us as one of great merit. It pro- poses to make the costs in civil suits depeid. ent upon the stage reached in the proceeding, not upon mere lapse of time, as is now the case. As most clients know, ts their sorrow, costs in our courts are now determined by the length of time and of court terms after en- try of the case. The plaintiff is allowed % cents day for hIs constructive attendance. If there is great delay, and long terms of court intervene, he gets large bill of costs. If he forces his case to early trial he is allowed but little. MT. Brewster proposes to make the costs dependent upon the stage of the proceed ings. It will csst the defendant little to sub- afterwards abandons it, he is indicted more heavily. If he is beaten on full trial still heavier costs are imposed. If he carries 6 case to the Supreme Court he must pay heavy important reform suggested by the Governor. All that IS needed to complete it, is another bill abolishing lawyers term fees, and allowing them pay in proportion to the services they ac- tually render, and not in proportion to the length of time they allow their cases to be de layed in court.
 Senator Hayward, by making it a. personal matter, has finally succeeded in bringing the Senate to adhere to it's action refusing a spec ial committee on railroad fares. The Courailt comments sharply on this personal" isSue:'
 MT. Hayward based his objections on the somewhat novel ground that to refer this spec ial matter to a special committee would be re- fiecting on the standing committee on railroads. AS Mir Hayward is president of one railroad, and director in two, it might have occurred to hlm that he is not exactly the man to be chair man of the committee to which this subject is to be referred, even if suitable man to be on the railroad committee at all.
 Judge Catlin brought another vagary of Con- necticut railroad legislation to the attention of the House. last week, in the following section of bill passed last session
 No railroad company shall increase it's cap- ital steck except by special authority of the general assembly, nor shall such authority be given except upon the recommendation of the railroad commissioners.
 The notion of making the board of railroad commissioners superior authority to the leg isature is one that must have been reported by very pecliarly organized railroad commit. tee
 The great Congressional event of the week has been the Senate action on the Custom House nominations. To the intense north cation of the politicians and the New York morning papers, they were confirmed. The papers attribute the result to the personal eff forts of Sec. Sherman with Senators. We have distinct recollection that in the former contest these same papers ridculed the Ad ministration for not attempting t0 influence Senators. Now they are indignant because such an effort was made. We are free to say that we prefer Hayes method, or want o method, to Sherman's; but the Conkling crowt cannet reasonably complain The result wa. due in large degree to the frmness of MT Bayard and the Southern Senators, most O the Northern Democrats, including both ou Senators, siding with Conkling. Thirteer Republicans supported the Administration Conkling vituperesed tho Frcsiuent with hi usual vigor and seemed to have made shar, point against him and some of the Cabinet b, reading letters from them to Collector Artho requesting him to give personal friends o theirs appointments in the Custom House. Investigation of the cipher dispatches has begun. It appears that when their examina tion was over in the electoral contest of TT they were left in possession of the clerk of tn, Senate Committee. It also appears that tn, Republican officials said to have been impli catsd by them, had access to the dispatches and abstracted whatever they chose. A larg. part of the rest were sent to the Tribune where they were deciphered and published ir that paper. A subcommittee will now exam inc Mir. Tilden and others in New York. The result of the examination, thus far seems to establish the genuineness of the tele grams. but it shows most reckless disregard of common fairness in their treatment bv tn, committee. Republicans first extracted al that might injure their slde, and then sent tn, rest to Republican paper to make the mos of what could be proved by them against thei | opponents. ,..... ...... ...- .... The allowance of Seuthern war claims is ou of the question. at least in the present tempero 1 Congress. The best Southern members oppos such claims and Northern Democrats peremp torily decline supporting any bills of the kind