St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1886-12-28
WANTED BY THE COMMITTEE.
Chm mber OF Commerce Members
Devote an Evenings Discussion TO
Tax Title, Park and Soldiers
Home Legislation.

xsobtac h>eS hStatipes
Messrs. Horn. Rogers. Berkey. Murray,
Bell. Talmadge, Jones, Barrett, McClung
and Andrews met at the room of the
chamber of commerce last evening to dis
cuss proposed city legislation. The first
part OF session was devoted TO an interest
ing and rather vivacious discussion of the
latest decision of the supreme court in the
tax title cases, and it is putting it mild to
say that the honorable, learned and
august" gentlemen who act as supreme court
judges were handled without gloves.
Z. q. Rogers said the law under which the
decision was rendered was all right, but the
technicality of Judge Giltillan was great
injustice and not at all necessary. City
Attorney Murray said it was an outrage to
nominate and elect such men to the supreme
bench. He expressed himself very fOrclbly
on the matter, and i'll closing, said: -
--, if | amt in favor of legslating such
such judges out of office" Charles n. Bell
said the legislature OF 1874 and 1876 put the
the law on the statute book and that j. b.
Sanborn, Gordon E. Cole Judge Wilson and
w. Z. Murray were among those who voted
for its passage, and also the am endments.
He thought it would be good scheme.
and would also make interesting reading.
to have the names of those who voted for
the law as it now stands published iii the
newspapers. Mr.. Murray said that if Mr.
Bell was correct III his statements, and
Cole was candidate for senator.
he would use his voting for the law
against him. Mr.. Barrett said, in his opin-
ion, leaving the equity aside, the judges
were justified in coming to the conclusion
they did under the law. Mr.. Rogers
thought if persons paid their taxes, they
should be protected. not only by the law,
but by the courts. Mir. Murray said all the
laws passed since 1872 relating TO tax
titles had been made to benefit lot of tax
title sharks and without doubt legislation
was needed to correct the evils.
THE QUESTION OF PARKS.
The question of parks and park commits
siOners was then taken up for discussion.
Messrs. McCIung, Murray and Berkey
favorIng the Minneapolis park law, The
sense of the meeting was that bonds to the
amount of $500, 600 be issued and that
wherever parks were established, the city
should pay one-half the cost and the other
one-half be assessed against the property
benefited. As to how many members there
should be on the commission. there
was some difference of opinion. Mr.. Muir
ray thought five would be about the right
number. and suggested that the mayor have
the appointing power. McClung was OF
the opinion that five was too small a num-
Der, and advocated 15 as much better, as a
large number would prevent jobs being
pushed through the commission. Mr.. Muir
ray thought five or seven, and no two from
the same ward, would be better
than large number like tif-
teen. Mr.. McClung suggested that
if the five commissioners were TO be APP
pointed by the act he would suggest n. w.
Kittson, w. A. Van Slyck, Bishop Ireland,
H. Ii. Sibley and II. NJ. Rice as the gentle
men to constitute the commission. The
matter was finally left to Mr.. Murray to
draw up bill and present it 10 the next
meeting.
THE SOLDIERS HOME.
Gen, G., G.. Andrews addressed the meet
ing on the subject of soldiers home. A
BILL he said, had been prepared for pre-
sentation to the legislature, providing fol
an appropriation of 500. 600 for the cree
ton of soldiers home. Several meetings
bad been held and bill Incorporating the
Illinois law been drafted. Some provision
ought to be made, he thought, to have the
home located somewhere in the vicinity
of St. Paul OF Minneapolis. The
bill to be presented provided fol
the appointment of commission to locate
the site. and it also provided that the
amount To be paid for location should not
exceed SO, 900. He suggested that bill
be prepared giving to the state tract OF
land somewhere near the twin cities for the
home. A bill, he said, had been
introduced in congress by j. B. Gil
tillan setting apart two hundred acres
of the Fort Smelling reservation for the
purpose of locating the home there. This
he did not think practical, as the taking or
more than 100 acres would interfere with
the requirements of the troops stationed
there. After deal of discussion the sense
of the meeting was that Como park. con-
tanning about three hundred acres, be given
to the United States providing branch
home, such as at Dayton, O., and
Milwaukee,, Wis, be erected there. This
plan, Mr.. Murray said would give the city
fine park and also add to the attractive
ness of the place by the erection of a SOL
diers' home. Mr.. Andrews thought the
plan very goo done, but doubted if there
was sufficient ground III the
tract. At Leavenworth, Kan, 600
dIccS ldu UcoIi slNOii W lhO government 1oI
a home. He thought. however, it would
be much better to erect home there than
to have cheap affair, costing possibly $25,-
600, erected by the state. The tract in
question, several of the gentlemen said, was
a beautiful one for the purpose and provid-
ing it was large enough and the govern
ment would erect branch home there, it
would be just the thing tor the city to do
nate it.
FOR THE FAIR ASSOCIATION.
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