Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1883-01-23
Routine ReDort.

LbONCSftC AbCPOSS'
Senate met at 10 o'clock and was called
to order by the president
Devotional exercises by the chaplain.
Roll called and journal read and ap-
proved.
BILLS INTRODUCED.
By Senator Griggs-To authorize
the city of st. Paul to issue
S5OO,OOO in bonds to improve and enlarge
the water works of said city. Passed un-
der suspended rules.
BY Senator G. D. Gilfillan-To amend
section 112, chapter IA, general statutes
of 1873, relating to the capital stock of
certain corporations.
By Senator G. D. Gilfillan-To punish
railroad employees for violation of duty
whore human life is endangered. The bill
makes negligence of employees resulting in
the loss of life, murder in the third degree,
and fixes the penalty of imprisonment in
the state prison not more than three nor
less than one year in the county jail.
IN COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE.
Senator.C .Gilfllan in the chair, the SEN
ate took up Senator Rice's bill repeating
the dog law, and it was debated at great
length by Senators Rice, Castle, Hickman,
STEVENSON, Hollister, ]. B. Gilillan, Ser
geant, Wheat, O'Brien, Waite, CLARK and
Ward, and it was the sense of the commit
tee that it be recommended to pass.
The committee then took up Senator
Wilson's joint resolution proposing an
amendment to the constitution prohibiting
the granting of aid to railroads and other
corporations by towns, counties, cities or
other municipalities, and S. F. No. 25, a
bill relating to the same subject, and pro-
posed to consider them together.
Senator Billson moved to amend the bill
by striking out of the first section the
words ''Or make any donation or loan of
it's credit to any such corporation"
Senator Wilson-In other words, Mr..
President, this amendment means to strike
out the whole bill. That's what it amounts
to.
Senator STEVENSON favored the adoption
of the bill, assigning for a reason for this
course on his part the fact that railroads
had never been constructed by local bonuses
and he did not think they ever would be,
while the power to grant such aid wrought
great injury to the towns through which.
railroads pass, by vastly increasing the
amount of municipal debt, and did not
hasten the time of building such railroads
or materially alter their course.
Senator Waite was surprised at any OPP
position to bonuses from a senator who rep
resented frontier constituency. 1t was a
fact that most of the railroads in opera
ton in the state had been constructed by
land grants and bonuses, and he thought
the older portions of the state ought not to
object to bonuses being given to aid in the
construction of roads in the new and unde-
veloped portions.
SeDator Wilson said he expected to en-
counter opposition when he introduced the
measures under consideration, but the ar
guments advanced were not good. By
reference to map of the state it would
be seen that the state was gridironed by
railroads.
At this point further consideration of
the measures was cut short by the an
nouncemnet that the time for meeting the
house of representatives in joint session
had arrived, and the committee rose.
When the committee rose Senator Cas-
tie moved to refer Senator Rice's bill re-
pealing the dog law to special committee
for amendment.
Senator Rice approved Castles PROPOSE
ton and called for the ayes and nays.
After some informal discussion the
president ruled that the senate must pro-
ceed to the house of representatives.
Upon the re-assembling of the senate
the discussion of the dog law was resumed,
and upon the proposition to refer it to q
special committee for revision, the roll
la1 rubar II onncoroA &hof &haro
were seventeen in favor of reference and
twenty-five opposed, SO the bill was recon-
mended to pass without amendment.
IN COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE.
Senator Morrison in the chair, consider
alton of the proposed amendment to
the constitution prohibiting the giving of
aid to railroads and its companion bill was
resumed, and Senator Wilson took the
floor. He said that the state was being
gridironed with railroads being construct
ed without the aid of local bonuses. Roads
were being constructed parallel to one an
other and only few miles apart in their
struggle for territory. He was aware
that the state had donated vast acres of
swamp lands to aid in the CON
struction of railroads, and in some in
stances the railroads which it proposed to
aid lad never got an acre of the lands.
He knew that munifcent donation of
swamp lands had been made to the railroad
built from st. Paul to Winona, and he
knew further that that railroad company
never got an acre of it. The land was held
by construction company of men resid-
ing in St. Paul and elsewhere, who had
made themselves millionaires by this sort
of thing. At the time the road was built
to which he referred men came down from
st. Paul to secure the issue of bonds as a
bonus. He said that work was actually
held back to force bonuses from the towns
along its line, and threats were made to go
by towns and make their stations else
where. He had no objection to any man
putting his hand into his own pocket and
giving as much of his own money as
bonus as he pleased, but he did have very
decided objections to the voting of bonds
and raising bonuses by taxation where the
people were in no condition to stand up
under its burdens. He called to mind the
case of the city of Duluth which had got
permission to Issue bonds for railroad aid
and then resorted to a tricky expedient to
get rid of the payment of the bonds which
was considered not quite honorable The
city of st. Cloud had also asked permission
IN fccra bonds for like r1urrOsa With lib