Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1886-11-26
THE LEGIsLA1 URE OF 1886.

From our Legislative Correspondent
MONTPELIER, Nov. %.

ItSISlHtuit.
From our Legislative Correspondent
MONTPELIER, Nov -.
No nat'ry, boy an honest man can't live by
II is little sncaking wit, which knavcS
Use TO ca Olr aud soften FOOLS wlthul.- OtrdU.
The session is nearing its end, and be-
fore two days have passed its record Will
have been completed and It's work stopped
by adjournment The Legislature Of 1856
has been II peculiar one in many partlcu-
lars There probably never was ii Legis
lature which contained so many men who
had never been members of a Legislature
before In the Senate nearly oue-quarter,
and in the House nearly five siNths, of the
members are inexperienced i'll legislative
work This is a fault at the outset, but it
is the fault of the people. | think that
every member of the present Legislature
will agree with me that the surest way
! for towns to have their Interests well
! looked after and the Only way to insure
wise and expeditions legislation for the
State is for them to send representatives
/ to Montpelier for more than one term.
! The system of rotation in choosing repre-
| SentatlVes now praCtlcedl Is the chlet cause
of whatever defects there are in her laws
/ and law makers, and these defects VIII
never be remedird until the choice of
! town representatives, is made on the
! ground of ability and experience rather
| than on personal grounds ana in answer
/ to the question, "N hose turn is it next ~
| The present Legislature, too, has not been
| a speech making body. There has not
| been, at least for 20 years, Legislature in
! Vermont in which there We're not more
| men who carried influence by force of ar
gument in debate and by their superior
ability in presenting a question in win
| ming and convincing way. There Is no
one in the present Legislature in whom Is
| combined the necessary voice, manner,
! acuteuess. power of reasoning and in
clnatiun TO talk which 90 to make up
what is known rs an able speech-maker.
But to speak entirely in negative terms
would be a mistake. The House Of lSS6
! is made up of as fine Il set of men AS
any that has preceded it ami as "A body,
! ii has in many respects never been sur
passed There are few years in which
the work in the committees, which is 10y
far the most important part of legisla
ton, has been more thoroughly done
than in the present one. 1t has in it,
to, prominent and able men who have
| had influence and who have commanded
respect and a worthy position in legisla-
tive work. TO learn a members ways
and to know his work as LEGISLATOR is
not to notice the times his name appears
in the official reports or to note the fire.
Quency or length of his remarks on var
ious questions. The pcrS HnCl of the
present House is varied and interesting.
Mr.. Marsh of Woodstock Is one of the
oldest, and without exception the most
! venerable, of the prominent members OF
the present House. lleis in his list year,
and both on account of his high personal
qualities and his conscientious work as a
| LEGISLATOR he has won the confidence and
esteem of every member of the House and
| has taken a position among them second
| a a "a :
chairman of the railroad committee in its
long and tedious struggle over the com
mission bills has shown him to be a man
of uncommon ability in legislative work.
The prominence of Judge Poland in
legislative work, whether it be in q State
or national Legislature, Is unque-tioned,
He Is a sort of renOVatOr of the statute
books and has done much to Gull out of
them the GrOsS and to insert new life
where his experience as advocate, judge
and legislator has detected faults and
shown him how to cure them. Judge
Poland has taken the leading part in the
proceedings of the present session. He is
nor a parllamentarian nor a speech maker,
but, In the House and out of it, he is I,
lawyer who studies his case and presents
his reasons with some evident basis for
them, He has often found the House an
obstinate jury, and in turn has sometimes
been not quite so dOcile AS his opponents
have desired, but generally he has been
with the majority when the majority were
not with him.
Col Mansur of Brighton made the first
f speech of the session in nominating the
speaker and he has occupied the position
of chairman OF the most prominent special
committee of the session. The subject OF
the division of the town of Rutland ha,
been III his care and his management OF
this perpleXing question and his part in
, other matters have shown marked ability
Mr.. Mansur is a rising lawyer, 43 years OF
age. lie carries an empty sleeve, the
mark of his three years honorable service
in the war Of the rebellion.
Mr.. Butterfied has shared with the
other three gentlemen the leadership in
the present House No one member has
had more influence on many ques
tons than the gentleman from
Grafton. His six terms in the Vermont
Legislature have given him experience
and readiness which with his natural
earnestness and evident sincerity, com
bine to make him an influential legislator
Mr.. Buttertield is a business man by occu-
patton, and he discusses things in bust
ness-like and intelligent manner, with nc
pretensiOns to OrAtOry but always in a sen
sible and forcible way. 1t might be add
ed, for the benefit of his fellowmen here
who know the secret of the joke, that he
is probably the only man who has sat in
the Legislature and worn the governors
; hat both in the same year. The hat fitted
, |
Mr.. Abel appears like a reverend Ro
, manist, but his looks belle him. He is 4
parllamentarian, economist, strict con
Pc structionist, lawyer and veteran legislator
} five III one lie came to Montpelier tC
work and not to vote himself vacations
He considers himself part of the State anC
his pocketbook and that of the State ar,
5 one. He is not one of your read-the-t bird
D by-itstitle-on men, but he can listen ~
- long as the clerk can read ; and he knows
0 that he is here to listen and the clerk il
e here to read. Mr.. Abell is now serving
his tenth term in the State Legislature
+ and will have only to say the word TIVE
years from now and he will be sentenced
by his West Havenites to another term o
two years. He is Il conscientious wOrke
1 and should by no means be placed sixth
+ in the list of prominent members.
| The gentleman from Manchester" is
, familiar sound, and Editor Slmonds pro
= ceeds to arrange and rearrange the paper
r on his desk While he drops an occasional
+ remark on the question upon which he ha
arisen to speak. He proceeds somethin!