Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1881-03-25

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at 9certaih prfe psr 6y.
Therefore an ordinary reader would un-
derstand the language "the members of
the General Assembly shall receive salary
for regular and special sessions" to mean
that they are to have fixed sum for their
services, whether the session be long or
Short and not daily wages for the time
actually spent. '...,r.s1
The intent of the trainers Of the consitu-
tion is to be gathered from the language
used. the circumstances attending its for
nation, the evil sought to be remedied.
No one cOnversant with the, history of
the state can doubt that the main purpose
Of the people in ordering a convention to
remodel their frame of government was to
reform and eradicate great abeses that
had been practiced in the General Assem-
bly,, and large share Of the time and
attention of the convention was devoted
to that object. The most radical and
sweeping changes effected in the constitu-
tion, and those which elected the most
distinctive expressions of popular
approval, are tho reforms in the mode and
character Of. legislation, the constitution
Of the GeneralAssembly, and the imita-
tioas on its power to deplete the public
treasury. Among the subjects exhaust
lively discussed ina convention was that of
the propriety of compensating tho men,
bers of the General Assembly by salary
instead Of daily pay. The constitution
of 1890, article one, section seventeen, pro-
vided that the senators and representa-.
tives shall receive compensation for their
services, to be ascertained by law, and
paid out Of tho treasury - and that Of
1776, Gbspter eleven. section seventeen,
- &s,,o
in General Assembly and other state
treasury" and that of 1888, article one.
section eighteen, that "the senators and
representatives shall receive a compensa-
ton, their services to be ascertain
ed by law, and paid out of the
treasury Of the commonwealth" and
from the beginning Il per diem compensa-
tion has been allowed and paid. The ar
gument in convention was that experience
had taught that time was FILTERED away,
| and the sessions Of the General Assembly
unduly and unnecessarily protracted for
the main purpose of receiving daily pay.
The distinguished committee on legislation
reported section fixing the salary of
members at 81 200 for two years, (COn.
Debates, Vol. l, p. 471). After a protract-
cd debate, in which the whole subject, in-
Guiding the. propriety of fixing any salary
| at all was fully discussed, Mr.. Harry
| White moved to strike out the section re-
ported and in place thereof substitute the
section which was finally adopted.-De-
bates, Vol. 1. p. 500.
The convention seemed to be substan-
TALLY agreed ON the proposition that a sal
ary should take the place Of daily pay or
compensation. The great controversy was
whether the amount should be fixed by
the convention or left to be regulated by
law. Finally. the very question now pre-
sented was raised by Mr.. Darlington and
passed upon by the committee of the
whole. debates, vol. 1, p. 5l3), as fol-
lows
| Mr.. Darlington--Mr. Chairman, allow
mo to ask the general consent of the COM
mittee to strike out the words "salary and
mileage" and insert the word " compensa-
tion," for the reason that the Legislature
may. if it see fit, not fix any salary. Ii
they do SO desire. l want them to be at
liberty to do so. hope there will be no
objection to the substitution.
MIR. Ewing-Mr. Chairman, will OBJ
ject. think that daily pay is just what
the Legislature ought not to be allowed to
have.
Mr. Harry Whitc-Mr. Chairman, =
I would state that in the committee on
legislation the question of salary and OF
compensation were considered, and it was
deemed expedient to provide for a salary
and not daily compensation. The gen.
tlemau from Chester (Mr. DarlingtOn)
asks that we determine on a per diem com
pensatiOu. That,it seems to me, should not
be our policy. Our policy should be to give
the General Assembly salary. Experience
has demonstrated that it is wiser to give
that body salary than it is to give it.a
per diem compensation, that may affect
the length of the session, SC. | have no
| objections to accept the modification OF
compensation and salary also it the
unanimous desire be tn do So" (which
there was general response Of ono. y
"nO, " ''no," mo"
we'll from the unambiguous language of
the constitution as from consideration Ol
the circumstances attending its formation
and the mischief to be remedied, that tho
convention intended to provide a salary
for the members of the General Assembly,
and that by a salary they mean q "stip-
ulated periodical recompense." as distin-
guished from per diem compensation:
| Docs the act of 1874 effectuate this con-
stitutional reform?
! 1t first provides 8 salary Of 81 900 for a
session not exceeding one hundred days.
! II the session continued but half hundred
1 days, the salary of 81, 900 would be earned,
and doubtless would not be declined. 1t
then allows a per diem compensation of
$40 fo- suci, additional time as may be
necessarily spent, not exceeding fifty days,
| thus comforting both a salary and daily
| pay. The time is limited to fifty days,
but the right to provide additional com
| pensation beyond the salary for fifty days
implies the right to confer it for three hun
| dred days, Or as long rs the General As
sembly may choose to sit and take it; and
it further implies the right to fix a per
diem compensation for as many days as
the general assembly may choose to hold
its sessions without reference to a salary
at ALL thus perpetuating tho very evil
sought to be remedied by the convention.
II this part of the act is not in irrecon-
cilable conflict with the provision that
members shall receive emo other compen-
sation whatever" besides a salary, then
for this case ali established rules of con-
struction fall, and all common understand
ing of plain words is at fault.
The constitution commands that the
members Of the General Assembly shall te
compensated for their services by salary,
aud salary only. All other kinds Of com
peEsation are expressly forbidden. No man
will say that, in face Of these provisions of
the organic law, the General Assembly
could provide for paying its members ex-
clusively by the day. To pay partly by a