The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1881-07-14
ONE OF THE PROPOSED AMEND
MENTS.

The Clarksville Standards oppos-
ed to adopting the constitutional
amendment, extending the limit on
legislative terms. 1t should bear in
mind that the area of Texas is equal
to that offive of any ofthe other great
states that this broad state extends
over territory representing a multi
plicIty of interests, and that as yet
legislation, affecting much of the de-
veloping industry of Texas, is in an
incipient state, requiring much new
law-making and statute-doctoring
before these varied interests may
feel that the state gives them prop
er consideration and protection.
In great developing Texas it is hard
to keep the law up with the
states advancement. With the
rapid advance of population
into the western country, and
with the increase of population in
the older portions of the state, it
would be a good thirty-day work
for legislature, every two years,
to carefully redisIrict the judicial
districts of the state. and thus place
our court system in a condition to
subserve the best public good. The
readjustment of counties, too, to suit
the convenience of people, yet in
an unsettled condition, consumes
much of the time of our legislatures,
and thus, upon multiplicity of
necessary points, the sixty days
now permitted legislature, during
which its members are allowed $5
per diem, Is unquestionably insuffi-
cient for maturing necessary laws.
Under the circumstances now
in force much hasty legislation
finds its way into our statute books
that had better not be there, not
that its nature is not such as is re-
quired for the best public good, but
because, in desperate rush after
the passage of bills, to meet varied
demands from all portions of Texas,
there is careless enacting of laws,
which are found to have no force, or
in some way, because of insufficient
consideration, falling to meet pub
lie exigencies, and often interfering
with statutes that have stood public
tests. Limiting the per diem to So
for SIXTY days is virtual notification
that the people do not desire the SER
vices oflegislators for more than this
length of time. Any reasonable per-
son who has watched the course of
our legislatures knows that the Six
teenth and Seventeenth Legislatures
both consumed ninety days in regu-
lar session, and that an extra session
of the Sixteenth was called, and
that one of the Seventeenth is a
necessity. No one will insist that
Legislators should remain at the capi-
tai at private expense, while making
necessary laws, and yet this is what
the present limitation on terms
means. 1t meant that the Seventeenth
Legislature, to finish all the work
demanded of it, should remain in
session sixty days on less per diem
than would pay the expenses of its
members. The result was that they
remained but thirty days at such
expense, leaving much necessary
work to be finished by an extra ses-
sion. Besides, the poor pay of leg
islators prevents many first-class
men from coming to the legis-
lature. The member who cannot
subserve his own interests, at home,
to the extent of more than So per
day, must have poor interest in
deed. There is hardly small far
mer in the state who is not worth
more than So per day on his own
farm, while the average lawyer or
doctor would starve on such fee.
as to the value of a newspaper man
the editor of the Standard may have
peculiar views. He may think one
might domicile away off in
a country town at starva-
ton prices, but he would hardly
quit his home to come to Austin
or to go to any other city 10 work
AZ 81 per dayssfor sixty days. We
have known editors whose drink
bills would go beyond this sum, and
they claimed this much was really
necessary for boiling up mental
pabulum to the pa!atable point. The |
STATESMAN is not of that class,
wanting the public services of man
for less than they are worth, and be-
cause this penurious clause of Ru-
tabaga code was adopted as neces-
sity, along with the whole mass, it is
by no means proof that the people
of Texas are not disposed to pay a
decent per diem to those whom they |
appoint to make and unmake their
Statutas