St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-03-18

Democrats in small caps.
OF the battles this week between
public sentiment and public official,
none will be fought with such vigOr as
the third reading and passage in the
horS,- of the bill to make the oil in
Speciur'S Office salaried one, and to
turn ever to the state treasury the bulk
of the $4,000 year that he now peck
cts. The bill has passed the senate, and
on Friday was recommended to pass by
the house, after it had been opposed by
every kind of tactics known to the
friends of the oil inspector. For there
is no disguise thrown over the fact that
the contest is not between two factions
divided over a prlucipie, but between
the personal and political friends of
reform that has been demanded for the
last five years. From the first the con-
test has been rauseous one, revealing
as it has, official scandals which have
reached high enough to involve the gov
ernor's Office. The following uncon-
troverted statements have been made
by members of the house:
''One influence that retardS the pass
age of this bill emanateS from the GOV
ernor's Office"
'One oil inspector gave to "a governors
wife between three and four thousand
dollars as gift"
Another oil inspector gave a gov
ernor's wife two thousand dollars.''
"a noted Lobbyist was paid 81 500 in
1887 to defeat the passage of the reform
bills"
A gentleman we'll posted in politics
said to senator on Friday night:
'Plenty of stuff will be used to defeat
this bill on It's final passage. Members
of the house will be induced to absent
themselves"
While the bill was under debate on
Friday its chief opponent leaned over to
a brother member and whispered:
Load it down with amendments.
Tack 'em on"
Later, when his purpose had been de-
feated, he whispered again:
well kill it on third reading"
And the whole trouble with the bill
is told in these figures:
Salary of governor ...............S 5000
Salary of safe auditor. $500
Salary of secretary of state. -. 49,. $500
Salary of insurance commissioner. 1000
Salary of supreme court judges -. 5000
Salary of railroad commissioners. 5000
Annual income oil inspector now. $4,000
The bill proposes to give the oil in
spector s2,400 of this $4,000, and a paid
deputy for each county of the state, and
turn the balance into the state treasury.
No change is made in the law of inspec-
ton, which the opponents of the bill adj
NIT is good one. But there are seven
state officers, any one of whose duties
is more arduous and responsible than
the oil inspectors, receiving from s12,-
600 to $4,000 year less salary than he
does. The insurance commissioner
turns over fees and taxes to the state of
more than 100000, yet he receives s16,-
600 less for doing it than the oil in
spector does for not giving cent to the
treasury. 1t is no wonder that Mr.. Nor
gan rose and said:
This has been stencil in the nostrils
Of the people for five years"
Nor Mr.. Smith:
This is public scandal"
1t is noticeable that the men who
have fought for this reform rank high
in the conservative and working ele-
ment of the house-Smith, Benson,
Morgan. Haven, Hoyt, Heidemann.
Early in the session the opposition
made very loud boasts of how they
would defeat any reform bill. Their
own defeat Friday astounded them, but