Omaha daily bee., 1889-03-05
THE STATE CONSTITUTION.
Several House Bills Make 1t An
Object of Attack.
TEN AMENoMENTsARE PROPOSED
One OF the Most Important Being
That Providing for the invest
ment OF the Permanent
School Fund.
Looking to Revision.

LINCOLN, Neb, March Especial TO TIE
BEE. The state constitution has been the
object of attack often of the 4SS bills intro
duced in the lower house. The "grasshop
per constitution" does not seem TO suit the
fastidious lawmakers of these opulent times,
and they propose to revise 1t in the following
particulars:
House roll No. l, by Dempster, is the well
known submission amendment, by which it
was proposed to 'forever prohibit the manu-
facture, sale and keeping for sale of intoxi-
eating liquor as beverage This bill was
suppanted by senate file 81 the Lindsay
pill, and will be allowed to die natural
death
identical with the Dompster bill mentioned
above and will share the same fate.
In house roll l3l. Morrissey endeavored to
checkmate the prohibtiouists at their own
game. BY the provisions of this bill the
question, "shall the liquor traffic be forever
regulated in this state according to the pro-
visions of the present law known as the Slo-
cumb law" is to be submitted to popular
vote. This measure has been consigned to
q state OF "mnocuous desuetude" by the pass
age of the dual submission bill
House roll l37 is the Corbin amendment,
proposing to so change the constitution that
the permanent school fund may be invested
in registered school district bonds. 1t is the
loaning of these funds to needy school dis
tricts at per cent interest to build school
houses and for other purposes. This amend
ment has been favorably considered in the
house, but a powerful lobby, representing the
bankers aud money loaners who now have
the free use of hundreds of thousands of
dollars of school money, is on hand and will
persistently endeavor to pigeon-hole the
measure. Its fate at present is decidedly un-
certalu.
Mr. Gushing of Douglas has come to the
conclusion that the judiciary of the state is
under-paid, and in house roll 281 proposes to
submit to the electors proposition to raise
the salaries Of the judges of the supreme
judges from 81, 800 to IS, 500 per annum.
This bill has been acted on favorably by the
committee on constitutional amendments.
HDuring the ses sion of the legislature Mr..
Rayner, of Cheyenne, has observed that the
work of the supreme court is getting sadly
behind, and has come to tho conclusion that
an increase of the working force of the court
is absolutely necessary to manage and dis
pose of the constantly increasing business.
He has therefore introduced house roll $50,
which provides for the submission Of an
amendment to the constitution raising the
number of judges from three to five. This
bill is now in the hands OF the Judiciary COM
mittee.
MIR. George M. O'Brian, of Douglas, pro-
poses an important change in the constitu-
tion in house roll AIS. The bill provides for
the submission of an amendment to article Z,
reading as follows: EVERY person of the
age of twenty-one or upwards, who is a citi-
zen of the United States, and who shall have
resided in the state one year and in the
county. precinct or ward, for the time pro-
vided by law. shall be an elector." This bill
has not been considered yet and the mem
bers of the committee on constitutional
amendments are non.committal as to the
merits or demcrts of this measure.
In house roll 44S, Mr.. Rayner comes to the
front with another bill, by which he pro-
poses to change the form OF submitting an
amendment to the constitution. The reading
of the section he proposes to change is now
very cumbersome and contradictory. Mr..
Rayuer suggests that instead Of containing
both affirmative and negative forms, the
ticket shall simply read, "For the proposed
amendment" leaving the eiector who does
not wish to vote "Yes'' to simply scratch
the sentence out or erase the word ''E'or'
and write Against"
Mr.. Cady thinks he has found a solution Of
the railroad problem. The present law en-
powers the commissions TO fix rates. and in
house roll 45S proposes to submit an amend
ment lo the electors providing that the rail
way commission shall consist OF three per-
sons, who shall each receive salary of 81, 600
per annum, and VINO shall be elected by the
people, one each year.
MIR. Coleman, of Antelope, has introduced
n similar bill, with the exception that it does
not fix the salary. This bill has not yet been
acted on by the committee, but some of the
committee are favorable to one or the other
of The last two amendments Both of these
bills are yet in the hands of the committee.