Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1882-02-02
Legislative Correspondence.
coIuMp1A, s. q, january 90, 1882

| Editors of Heo,eee Courier:
| The most cheering nows that I can an
nounco, at leaot to myself, is that the day OF
adjournment of the General Assembly hos
beon virtually agreed upon. Tho House
passed resolution to adjourn on the 10th Of
February. Tho Senate soturnod it to tho
House with az amendpsSc>s9ggestin the
9th. Upon ono or tbesather OF tlioso days
this session will cloae. In somo respects
this session has been tho most remarkable ono
held in the State since the war. There have
been great and worry perplexing questions up
for tho consideration Of tho members. At
the last session commissioners wero appointed
to roviso and oodiry tho Statute Law, to con-
slider the election laws, tho railroad law, tho
tax laws and also to suggest amendments to
the constitution. The reports Of those oom-
missioners wero tho result OF very much la.
Dor and thought'and suggested many changes
in the laws. These reports havo all been
thoroughly investigated and tho bills reported
by the various commissioners adopted. Tho
revision Of the Statuto, has beon great task,
Tho volume Of the law as now abridged and
| revised will contain over six hundred pages
and three thousand sections. This work will
be of very great valuo 10 our pcoplo. Tho
laws will. thus be in q yoaAe, which, when
thoroughly indexcd. will be convenient to all
GLASSES who may desire to know our lave
Heretofore they havo beon SO much confused
in the various acts Of legislation that many
of tho best lawyers were at a loss to know
tho law.
Tho election laws have. too. boon subs
IF ob fro IL, o,I
under tho old law made it imperative upon
tho Assembly to do something to check the
system of carrying elections, which had
grown up in the State under Radical rule.
Registration was thought tosbo :ho remedy
of these evils aud hence the commissioners
reported a bill embracing this feature. AL
though did not vote for the n,cnsurc, because
Of its too great stringcncy. 20, hope it will
work well in the rcmedyng Of oil the de-
iccts of our past election l%s.
The railroad bill as passed cmbodics the
commissioners power to regulate passenger
rates and freight with general supervising
powers over tho roads. This Act, ifproperly
administered, will prevent tho eStortons in
freight, &C., to which our people havo been
sometimes suljccted and ofMhich they have
madc much complaint
The bill on tho tax laws makes many
changes in tho law to enforce tho collection
of taxes. The main change is that which
proposes to rent the lands to tho bidder who
will pay the taxes on the land for the least
arc such that they cannot be rented, then
4 I
deem. If the lands are not redeemed then
tho title becomes absolute in the purchaser
and oil presumption of law is in favor OF the
validity Of tho 'i'1o and Nd gans' it as
heretofore. Ae8
Only two of tho amcndmsntS reported by
the Commission on the Constitution were
adopted.
Tho amendment to disfranchisc any person
convicted of burglary. perjury and other in
famous crimes was adopted in the House, and
also that amendment suggested by the cons
missioncrs, which proposes that State officers
and members Of the Legislature be elected for
four years, passed tho House. Tho other
amendments in reference to the courts and
the tcrmh of the Office of tho Judges and
the appointment of School Commissioners was
defeated.
If to these grave subjects be added tho
stock law, the liquor laws aud tho phosphate
question, always great source Of debate,
then your readers can have some idea Of what
are the duties and responsibilities or a lcg>
islator.
Many attempts have been maao, both in
tho House and Senate, to brcah in on the
General Stock Act. AL these have thus far
failed. The Senate considered on Saturday
bill to exempt Beaufort, Colleton, Charleston.
Williamsburg, Clarendon and Georgetown
with an appropriation of ten thousand dol.
lars out Of the State Treasury to build the
line fence. On tho absence of eomo Sena-
tors the vote OH this measure was tic and
Gen. Kennedy, President Of the Senate.
killed the bill by the casting vote. The ma
jority of Senators and members nre opposed
to any exemptions and hence repeated fail
uros to have any section exempted from tho
operations Of tho Act.
The subject Of education has had tho log.
isla,iyc touch. The University and Citadel
have been provided for with liberal appro-
priations. was opposed 10 tho appropria-
ton for tho ro-opcuing Of tho C.adoi Aoad,
emy, but favored the appropriation to the
University, Notwithstanding tho fanatical
howl with which many rcnd the air against it.
rho University has been an established
institution, with fno libraries and buildings,