The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1881-04-08
AT THE CAPITAL.

of supreme Court Decisions SUM
dries.
LANSING, April 2, 1881.
The Senate some days ago passed nil "to
establish Board OF Commissioners of Sur
yeys to prescribe their powers, andkto fix their
compensation and to further provide for the
| pubic surveys. The House has squelched the
Till, the committee OF that body reporting
against 1t on the ground "that it seeks to Gre
ate board of three additional State officers,
with no useful or important duties" The re-
| port ends by expressing the opinion that 1.-THE
measure would be needless expense to the
State and damage to the surveying service
and to the surveyors themselves"
THE MANUAL
The compilation of the Legislative Manual
! (Which has heretofore been done by an APP
pointed compiler) was this year made the duty
OF the Secretary of State (by law passed two
| years ago.. on the ground that the work could
IN that way be published and in the hands of
the members within ten days after the opening
OF the session, but, owing to unavoidable de-
| lays In securing biographical sketches of some
members who are careless or negligent in the
matter, the work IL not vet out. and. in response
| to House resolution asking when they NAV be
expected, the Secretary of State says they will
be ready to distribute on Tuesday, April r.
NO QUORUM
mot quorum present. Mr.. Speaker" was
the unexpected remark of the genial journal
clerk OF the House, after he had called the roll
| on Monday morning last. For the first time
this session the House found itself without
enough members present to do any business
but to adjourn, only thirty-eight of the 100
| being present AS consequence an informal
recess was taken until d. M.
The Senate did not attempt to meet until
evening, so had no trouble in securing
quorum.
ATTORNEY GENERALS SALARY AND RESIDENCE.
| no al, A.
whole from and laid OH the table a joint reso-
| luton proposing an amendment to the consti-
| tuition of the State creative to the salary and
residence of the Attorney General" 1t pro-
vldes that his salary shall be- SO. 900 per year,
with no fees or perqusites. and that he shall re-
side at Lansing, 80 az to he ''got-at-able" at all
times, as he 10 not now. The people vote down
all attempts to raise the salaries OF any State or
| judicial officers, and would be very likely to do
80 III this case, even though both houses
/ should vote for its passage
THE UNIVERSITIES APPROPRIATION.
| Both houses have this week passed the Uni
versity appropriation and the Governor signed
il on Thursday. 1t appropriates 516l, 800, to
| be used as follows: For the much-needed
library building, S100,0t0, to be drawn and ex-
| pended, $500 in 1881 and $4,000 in 1882 /;
| for Dental College, $4,000 for 1872; for
sewer for draining grounds, 81, 500 for 1881 !;
for equipment OF eye and ear ward, in hospital
! $3.50 for 1881 for hospital expeI SEES, $1,000,
! for 1872; for equipment of mechanical lab
oratory, @2,5OO, for 1881 for Homeopathic
Hospital, $4,000, for 1882; for books for
! library $4,000, for 1882; for HOMEOPATHIC
College, $4,000, for 1872 for reimbursing
! general fund of university for erection and
| equipments of addition TO chemical la boratory
$4,000, for 1881. The bill passed the House
by a good-szed majority, but in the Senate
only received Is votes on its final passage, was
reconsidered, and then passed by vote of 10
| tn Earr
Lowell, Stanton and WEIGH voting no.
! THE NORMAL SCHOOL APPROPRIATION
bill has passed the House. and WILL no doubt
become law. 1t appropriates 900 for the
| current expenses of the school, to be drawn
one-half III 1881 and One-half III 1882.
I THE SYLLABUS BILL
which has passed both houses provides that
the Justice OF the Supreme Court deciding
case shall prepare syllabus or compendium Of
| the points of law in the case and file it with
the opinion, when it shall be printed AZ the
| head notes of cases in the volumes Of Michigan
reports. Such syllabus, in any case, is to be
accessible to the public, and any publisher in
| the State is at liberty to publish without COM
| pensatlon.
sUSDRIEs.
The House bill "to authorize the formation
! OF electrlc-Lght companies" spoken of Ill our
| last, was considered by the Senate as a special
order, on Tuesday, and finally passed. 1t au-
| thorlzes companies TO have a capital stock of
not to exceed $2,500,00O. 1t is understood
that this is to fit the case of Detroit, where a
company has already been formed with capt.
tai of u, 100000, but which is found to be too
small
The bill for redistricting the city of Detroit
! into wards Is attracting much attention and
stirring up some hot blood, one faction desir-
ing to cut the city into narrow wards styled
"ribbon wards, starting at the river and run
ming back through the entire city, n distance of
three miles, while the other faction are in favor
OF "block wards, az they style them. The
! Senate has ordered the original bill and sub
siitute-covering both plans-printed, and will
| try to choose as TO the better of the two.
The Senate has passed bill to provide for
| buying enough copies OF treatise OH town.
ships, and the power and duties of township
officers, to put one copy in the hands of the
| several Supervisors. township clerks. commits
sioners of highways township drain commits
sioners of the State, and to each of the Justices
| OF the Peace III the several townships of the
State Getty Justices are left) IL is TO be fur
nlshed at S1.50 per copy, and not less than
1850 books will be needed. While it is
a good and valuable work, surmisers say
that the bill will not pass the House.
Regarding the recompilatlon of the general
| laws, about which 80 much has been said i'll
the Legislature and throughout the State, we
have still to report that the question is an open
one as to who shall do the compiling and who
the publishing, though there il no reasonable
! donbt but that somebody will be selected to do
both. The so-called Howell Till that passed the
Senate some days ago mentioned in former
letter. was referred to the House Committee on
Printing, and, on the 3lst, Representatives
Wing and Hartford made what they termed a
minority report, recommending the adoption of
the bill with some amendments. As the ma
jority had made no report for or against the
bill, the report was tabled pending its adoption.
The House has stricken out all after the en-
acting clause from their bill to provide that
those who drink intoxicating liquors shall pro-
cure license and be registered as licensed
| drinkers"
The man named Standish. who wanted the
township OF Lincoln changed to the township
of West Standish, feeling that he was bigger
man than the one whom the town was origl-
nally named after, will think lac isn't when he
| learns that the Senate struck out all after the
enacting clause of the bill.
Az indicated last week, both houses adjourned
on Thursday. thus making a very short work.
| ing week. and in less than twenty-four hours
both Legislative halls were az lonely az a grave
yard and az solemn az fun, raj. Trouble be-
gins again on Wednesday evening.
OBSERVER
MICHIGAN LEGISLATURE.