Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1882-03-08
HOUSE OF DELEGATES.
Morning Session.

erson. ,.,,
On motion of Mr.. Grantham, House bill
No. 1893, relating to the appointment OF sur
veyors of roads, was taken up out OF its
order and read second time.
House bill 35l, for the protection OF per-
sons dealing in lumber, wastaken from the
table, and a substitute therefor adopted.
House bill SO, regulating sales OF land
for taxes, was read a second time and Or
dered to third reading.
House Bill No 379, TO amend the charter
of the city OF Wheeling, was read a second
time. This bill provides for an increase OF
one-half of one per cent. i'll the city tax on
foreign insurance companies doing business
in Wheeling. The Committee on Counties,
Districts and Municipal Corporations re-
perfed the bill back with an amendment,
leaving the tax as it now is, one-half Oh one
per cent. o..
Mr.. Mcneil hoped the Amendment would
YHt he agreed to, and read statement of
the amount ot ."v ..,. maid the city by foreign
companies
Mr.. Kepner said there was disposition
on the part of the home insurance compa.
nies to drive the foreign companies out oil
the State, and thus give the local compa-
nies a monopoly of the business. This was
evidenced a few years ago, when the city
council levied tax Of $50 on each agent
and solicitor. This whole question had
been thoroughly investigated by the Com
mittee on Counties, Districts ana Mu-
nicipal corporations, last session, and the
committee had fixed the tax at one-half OF
one per cent. The committee saw no good
reason for changing the law now, and had
sosii; reported in favor Of one-half per cent.
Tho Ies;s,o,r:o should be careful not to
allow the City Council u ia u" .s tbev
tax on foreign insurance companies, - ~
were the source OF considerable revenue 70
the State.
Mr.. Hubbard stated that the tax OF one
per cent. had been agreed upon by repre-
sentatives of the local and foreign compa-
nies, and would therefore be satisfactory.
The city of Wheeling pays S25, 900 per year
to keep up its fire department, and these
foreign companies should pay their just
proportion.
Mr.. Hall, of Barbour, said he also under
stood that an agreement had been made be-
tween the agents of the foreign and home
companies, fixing the tax at one per cent
This was not OnerOus and II should be
adopted.
After some further discussion the amend
ment was rejected by vote OF 10 TO %.
House Bill 33j, providing for the adop-
ton of children YVES reported back from
the judiciary committee. amended and or
dered to third reading
House Bill 40I, Ia provide for confne.
ment at hard labor pcr.ons found guilty Of
misdemeanors, was r,ad 4 second time.
Mr.. Mcneil moved To strike out section
five, which provides for attaching ball and
chain to the prisoner. but the moiiDn was
rejected. ,.
and certorari, was read q second time.
House Bill 3l2, rcIistricting the State for
representation in Congress, was made the
special order for Wednesday night at 80.
House bill 303, relating To habeas corpus,
and House bill 30T. providing for changing
a persons name, were each read second
time and tabled.
Mr.. Quarter introduced a resolution
which was adopted, inviting DR.. Curry
to address the Legislature on the subject
of education at 3 o'clock, this afternoon.
Afternoon Session.
The House assembled at the expiration
of the recess. The rules were suspended
and several bills read first time by their
titles. The hour of o'clock having arrived
the Senate assembled in the hall OF the
House of Delegate and the Speaker, Mr..
Fulkerson in the chair introduced DR..
Curry, a full synopsis of whose address ap-
pears elsewhere.
AT the conclusion OF the address the SEN
ate retired, and the House resumed busi-
ness.
House bill oSS. relating to dover, jointure
and curtesy, on its second reading, was re-
ported back from the Committee on the
Judiciary with several amendments, the
most important OF which was as follows:
III 0nN moi
to her use, be seized of an estate of inherit
ance in lands at any time during the cover
ture, her husband, after her death shall be
tenant for life of one-third thereof, unless
his right thereto has been lawfully barred
or reIfnquished, and he shall be deemed 10
have relinquished such right If he join With
his wife in any conveyance thereof Tell
ancy by the curtesy is abolished"
Mr.. Wilson said IL the amendment should
be adopted it would destroy the separate
estate of a married woman, and he did not
believe the House was prepared 10 do that.
In the proper place he would move TO in
sert the old provision Of the code as TO sep
arate estates OF married women, giving the
husband the right OF curtesy 10 such estate
as the wife dies seized OF, but preventing q
conveyance on the part Of the wife unless
Joined by the husband.
Mr. EcIgusOn dIBuca AZ oePPSAh SA s1S
amendment. -
The amendment was then rejected and
the bill ordered to third reading.
House bill No. 2S9, concerning the separ-
able property, rights. powers and privileges
of married women, was ordered read
second time.
Mr.. Quarter moved to amend section Is
30 as to make il read: "A married woman
may charge the fee of her separate estate
with the payment OF her debts"
Mr.. Wilson opposed the amendment on
the ground that the insertion OF the words,
''the fee Of" would allow married TO en-
cumber, by q mere oral contract, the cor.
pus of her estate. The Constitution says
we shall protect the separate estate OF
married woman. 1t was bad policy TO allow
parties 10 contract with q married woman
without the consent Of the husband.
Let il be fixed that when
a person proposes to subject the separate
estate of married woman TO the payment
of debt, the husband and wife shall both be
consulted in the contract The husband
cannot conyeyhis real estate 80 q TO de.
priye the wife of dover, and the wife should
not be allowed to convey her estate to tht
injury of the husband.