The Portland daily press., 1888-09-08
the Editor Of the Press

Annual Sessions.
To the Editor Of the Press:
AS am familiar with the reasons which
induced the members Of the Legislature to
submit to the people an amendment pro-
posing to return to annual sessions, desire
to trespass upon your space sufficiently to
state them.
voted for biennial sessions Of the Legis-
lature, and now propose to vote for annual
sessions with biennial elections, as con-
templated by the amendment submitted to
the people.
This amendment was not, as has been
suggested, started by Augusta people or
any persons acting in their interest. The
movement was begun by legislators Of long
experience in consequence Of tho evils
which their experience and observation had
shown to exist under the present state Of
things. | am not surprised that the news
papers have not favored this amendment, be-
cause they have had no opportunity Of OBJ
serving how the present system works. 1t
Is necessary to be at Augusta and observe
the proceedings for a good part Of the ses-
sion, In order to realize how strong these
reasons are. They were sufficient to cause
the passage of the resolve submitting this
amendment to the people. with scarcely any
opposition whatever. The legislators Of the
most experience were the strongest In favor
OF the change, and men Of all parties united
In declaring that Ii seemed to them a neees-
sity to return to annual sessions.
Reference has been made TO the large num-
Der OF Dills and resolves that were pass ed,
as establishing the theory, that biennial ses-
si0ns are success. It Is true very large
number OF bills and resolves were passed at
the last session and by the time at which
the Legislature ordinarily adjourns It is
necessity that they should be passed by that
time, because 1t is impossible to keep the
legislators there any longer. have seen
session when there was not a quorum pres
ent @ In the House for the last two days.
Efforts were made to increase the pay Of the
legislators, SO that they might be induced TO
stay longer, but those efforts failed, as it
was very evident that they would stay about
so long time and then adjourn. II Is true.
as have already stated, that large num-
Der OF bills and resolves were passed, but it
Is equally true, that IL IL had not
been. for the wonderful facility Of
Speaker Littlefeld Tor putting business
passed or acted upon. He literally put ''the
business through" He did 1t so rapidly,
that he might just as well have sat in his
room at his boarding house and done the
business there, so far as any understanding
OF what was being done, could be had by
the members generally. Bills involving i'm
Portant interests to the public, were put
through without reading, save by title, and
unaer suspension OF the rules, simply to fa-
ellitate the dispatch Of business. 1t was
possible for members to become ACQUAINTED
with only small proportion Of the measures
that came before them for their action. A
result OF this pressure to put the business
through necessarily arising from having a
session once in two years, Is, that nOto no blu
chtch comes from committee challenges
any attention Of the legislators, unless some
one has personal interest IN 10, or is in
duced 6y some one outside TO take a personal
interest IN u. 1t Is simply impossible that
there should be any other result. have
had occasion to observe the proceedings Of
the Legislature for a good many years, and
know that there has been a great falling off
In the consideration that is given TO matters
OF legislation however important to the pub
lie they may be.
1t is not only in the Legislature itself that
measures cannot receive consideration, but
also the committees are SO burdened with
business, especially the most important
ones, that two bad results follow. They are
Obliged to limit persons who desire to be
heard, so that the matter Is very rarely, clearly
and fully presented to the committee. Then
they are in such a whirl, that they have no
particular opportunity for giving it consid-
Grafton, much less for discussing it among
themselves. In nearly all cases, only the
party tavoring measure, Is heard by the
committee, and that party Is ordinarily but
briefly heard. but II he makes a plausible
case, the committee. being obliged to act
immediately, act upon II, generally desiring
TO gratify the party who appears and report
fayorably. No man then has any particular
opportunity 70 oppose 1t and the bill is
rushed through and becomes a law with no
more consideration than that given to IL by
the committee.
| Let it belborne in mind, that ii Is the peo-
pie who come there for legislation. Some
times one set of men and sometimes another,
but the people come there. desiring to be
heard by their. Representatives, and find them
selves obliged to be heard very briefly or to
ne heard under such circumstances as make
them feel that they are taking up too much
time which ought to be devoted to other
purposes.
In order to get matters closed up by the
time liked, committees also are hurried and
really not given time enough.
desire to say emphatically. that / have
never known committees TO work harder
than they did at the last session of the legis-
lature. They held sessions in the afternoon,
in the morning and during the night, In order
to transact the business, and vet, with ali
this, the more important commit
tees rarely held session when
parties who appeared before them. had the
time which they felt It was necessary to have
in order to explain their proposed measures
to the committee. In the latter part of the
session. when there are very numerous bills
pending, 3here Is a pressure on all hands to
get measures acted upon, and both branches,
especially the House, get SO impatient that
they vote measure up or vote 1t down, lust
as the whim seizes them. The merits Of a
measure. under these circumstances, have
nothing to do with its success or defeat. 1t
Is like turning q copper as to what its fate
Will be. The best rule which could draw
from my observation was that IL the sup
porter Of the measure was one who stood
comparatively high in the favor OF the Honse
they would vote it through. but II 1t was
some one who perhaps had indulged in
little too much talk, or In some other way
was little unpopular, the measure would be
defeated.
This condition OF things cannot be attribu-
ted to lack of industry or ability on the part
OF the members but may be attributed In
some measure to their lack of experience:
but do not thik that men Of great expert
ence, under the circumstances which exist
under this system, can possibly give the nee
essary attention to legislation. / fully be-
lieve that acquaintance with nearly all Of
the uncontested measures Of the last legisla- |
ture was limited TO the ten men or less, com
posing the committee which reported the |
particular measure.
This state Of things was so obvious and re-
garded by legislators Of experience, as so dis |
astrous, that the resolve to amend the con-
stitution. restoring annual sessions was
brought forward and supported by men who
mad voted for and supported the amendment
Tor biennial sessions almost without single
exception. j. II. ID.