Smyrna times., 1889-04-24
Proceedings Of the Legislature.
oN TINE LAST WEEK OF THE sEssIo.

oN THE LAST WEEK OF THE SESSION.
The Legislature, by joint resolution
has fixed on Friday next, 2Gth inst. ne
the day Of adjournment. The uuestIou
IS will they be ready? Ii can only be
d0na by dropping the doubtful bills.
that may excite discussion, and hold
my night sessions. In the House there
are about $50 unfinished measures. and
IN the Senate 80 Here are 200 meas.
ares to be considered i'm four davs
Last weeks sessions were fairly in
teresting. The most important meas
u:e passed was the bill to incorporate
the Delaware and New England Com
pany, the object of which is to cousol-
idate under one management. the
Poughkeepsle, N. Y, bridge company
and two short connecting lines of rail
road, SO that the three corDorations
thus united may be merged into and
made available as a connecting line in
a thorough line Of railway which "will
Afford an outlet for perishable frnits OF
me Delaware Peninsula directly to the
New England markets, by an all-raiI
route, avoiding the DELAYS incident IN
transhipment and ferriage at Jersey
City and New York. The bin con.
talns some sweeping provisions. The
AddIcks gas consolidation, Standard
OIL monopoly scheme was urged IN to
the passing point in the House durino
the week, and its passage any dav this
week need not be surprising.
An interesting feature on "Wednesday
night was the public hearing on the
underground wire question. The
overhead wire advocates were present
IN force but they evidently felt sadly
handicapped by the news from New
York, detailing the vigorous measures
that had been adopted by Mayor
Grant to compel the placing of Ihe
wires underground in that CITY. But
the passage of the Underground Wire
Dill by this Legislature is not entirely
assured, as some of the members think
they have salted the telegraph and
telephone companies sufficiently this
session by passing a law COMPELLING
them to pay an annual tax to the
state. Still, the underground feelino
IS strong, and as the pending bill an
plies only to wires in the city of vii
mington it may pass.
The House, on Tuesday, passed the
Local Option bill, but though this
measure was forced to an issue bv a
republican majority in the House, its
defeat by a party vote in the Demo.
cratic Senate is not forgone con
clusion.
The House did three or four tbings
Friday well worth noting.
II passed the Wilmington biennial
election bill, and this measure awaits
now only the concurrence of the Sen
ate in an unimpOrtant amendment and
the signatures Of the speakers TO be-
come a law.
1t passed the Davis bill to amend
the act for the collection Of county
taxes, after there had been some torSe
play over an amendment, fathered bv
Maull and concurred in by Lodge.
which provided that the collector who
failed to comply with its iron clad re-
quirements should be guilty Of felony
and punishable by death.
1t passed the substitute for the
Downham school bill.
1t passed the Eckles bill requiring
the levy court of New Castle county to
do precisely what the City Council of
Wilmington has done from time i'm
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS for proposals for
doing work or furnishing materials in
all cases where the probable bill will
exceed $50 and award the contract to
the lowest bidder. This will knock
out an incaiculable amount of favorit-
ism and jobbery and save the tax-pay-
ers thousands of dollars annually, if
the Senate follows the good lead of the
House.
Itconcurred in the Senate amend
ment to the Wilmington Street and
Sewer Department bill, making the
annual appropriation $4,000.