The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1886-02-18
THE WEEK.
In the United States and the
Old World.
ARIZONA LEGISLATURE.


Many Instances Of unau thorized Ex-
trayagancc.
The Arizona Legislature is in very bad
plight. According 10 official intelligence re-
ceivod at the interior department, at WASH
iugton, d, c., its recent session porpetrated
some most remarkable legislation, and in do
tlance of the plainest statutory limitations.
Sec. lSSS of the Revised Statutes says: mo
legislative assembly of territory shall in
any instance, on under any preteXt, OK,
iced the amount appropriated by Congress
for its annual expenses The Legislature Of
Arizona did not feel like being bound down
to such limits as those prescribed by
Congress, which gave $s5,69o "for per
diem of members and officers or the
Legislature, mileage of members, printing,
rent, extra clerk hire, light, fuel, stationery
aud other incidental expenses, hire of porter
Of messenger for the secretary's office, and
incidental expenses of secretary's Office, and
including safe for samen So it proceeded to
make large appropriations on its own account
Gov, Iulick became alarmed at the evident
illegality OF the proceedings, and wrote to
Secretary Lamar about it, Secretary Lamar
raferr d the case to Asst Atty. item Mont
gomery, who has sent his decision, severely
CONNER ting on the proceedings of the legis-
lature. His decision is very racy, and the
following are extracts: "The statute says
that in no case shall the expenditure for
public printing i'll any of the territories
exceed the sum of $500 for any one year"
and yet it appears from Gov Xulcks
communication that there was appropriated
for printing bills, letter heads and other
printing Sl2, 1873, and for printing daily jour
mails, bills and reports, etc, SiS3i, making an
aggregate expenditure for printing alone for
the 18th Assembly of $40 ,967 20, being an ex-
cess of S11, 461 40 above the bounds limited by
congress. Again. in the face of the said act
Of June 49, 1878, enumerating and defining
with great particularly the subordinate Off
GERS of territorial legislature, and fixing the
amount of compensation of each, it appears
that the Arizona legislature in its said 18th
session employed, in addition to those author
lied by said act OF congress, no less than 50
clerks, assistant clerks and committee clerks.
beside four pages, two ianitors and two door.
keepers, at an aggregate cost of S23 700, This
troop of subordinateS seems TO have been a
remarkable one, both on account of
its salaries. find that the pages (presmn-
ably small boys were paid $40 each, and
nasmuch as the Legislature could not under
the law, sit longer than 40 days, this would
be So per day, precisely the per diem allowed
by law to the honorable members of the
same legislature. Again, while the laws Of
Congress allow to the chief clerks of the re-
lay, | find an assistant chief clerk and an
assistant enrolling clerk in each of the said
branches-four in all-at salary of Si20 for
said 40 days service, making SIS per day,
being Just three times the per diem allowed
by law to the honorable members. This GER
tanly seems to have been an extraordinary
display of legislative liberaity, especially SO
in view of the fact that there is nothing what
ever in the documents before me TO show that
said clerks made any division of their salaries
with their muniicent ncfactors 1t further
appears that the higher branch of the Iegis-
lature, although consisting of only II mem
bers, employed no less than 10 committee
| clerks, at salaries ranging from $3.50 to $40
| each These salaries amounted to 50 per day,
and STA 80 per day II further appears that
the said Legislature appropriated S3,010.S0 to
pay for newspapers for the Use of its mem
| bers. There being thirty -SX members all told
this amounted to a little over SS5 per mem-
Der, being upward OF 81 per day each. The
| United States statutes is explicit that no APP
| preparation shall be made by which members
| or officers of the Legislature are paid any
| compensation other than that provided by
| Congress- and yet the Legislature, in the face
| of this law, proceeded TO appropriate $40 fol
each member of the lover house and 800 for
| each member of the higher"
The decision of Mr.; Montgomery is that al
/ the appropriations enumerated above are il
violation of law and void. 1t is not known
what action may be taken by Congress il
regard to the matter.