Omaha daily bee., 1889-01-27
The NEBRASKA LEGISLATURE
Last Weeks Record in the House
and Senate.
IMPORTANT MEASURES ACTED ON
Short and Embarrassing Sessions of
Both Branches Yesterday-The
Ijams Police RELIEF
Fund Bill.

hSlNNViRNt ANVpss uhs ~ lppNNA'si W h"'
BEE. The senate did not get under way
this week until late Mondoy afternoon, but
since then has been dong faithful service.
Several important measures have beer
passed, and the senate has laid itself oper
to the criticism of too rapid railroading.
Mondays session was short, but several
important bills. were passed, One of them
gives the national government juris
diction over the reservations of Forts Rob.
inson and Niobrara. Another amends the
existing law so that children over sixteen
cannot be sent to the reform school. Tn
present limit is eighteen years. A third
makes an important change in the manner
of calling Jurors. 1t takes the matter out of
the hands of the sheriff, who is now re
CURED to compe the attendance of jurors OIL
the first day of the term of court, and per
mits the judges to delay calling the
jurors until they are needed. Another
bill extends the time of paying
for school lands until 1900, IL the holder
shows that he has made improvements
thereon and pays interest and taxes promptly.
Tuesdays session did not accomplish much.
Most of the day was consumed in discussing
the Keckley bill, which proposes to allow the
juries to fix the damages for Il man killed by
the negligence of his employer when his
heirs bring suit. At present the law fixes
$4,000 as the limit for u dead man, but lets the
jury find any amount of damages for injuries.
OF course the bill concerns the railroads
llOSl lOllSlN, iill lilc lDl IOI ibIDl lhcl WtIt
up in arms. Several of their number were
absent, ana they STAYED off the vote until
next day when the bill was again taken up.
The railroad members secured a compromise
by raising the limit to $4,000.
The remainder of Wednesday was con
sumed in a fight to kill RaymOnd's bill for the
submission of an amendment for an elective
railroad commission of three members. 1t
Church Howe and MIR. Raymond,
the feature of which was Horns offer to vote
for an election commission if Raymond
would vote for the submission of prohibition.
The bluff created much mcrriment.
Wednesday night Senators Lindsay, Hurd,
Robinson, Burton, Shanner, Keckley, jew
EFT, Roche, Wetherald and Fuuck held a
quiet conference at Hurd's sleeping room TO
discuss submission and agree on a plan of
campaign. They canvassed the senators and
counted eighteen votes, besides three doubt
full. They agreed to abstain from debate and
decided to oppose unreasonable obstruction.
Lindsay's submission bill was reported TO
the senate on Thursday morning, and after a
sharp debate its consideration was post
poncd till Friday afternoon.
The Lindsay bill provides for the submis-
sion az the November election, 1890, of the
following amendment: "The manufacture,
sale, and keeping for sale, of intoxicating
liquors as a beverage are forever prohibited
in this state, and the legislature shall pro-
vide by law for the enforcement of this pro
vision"
"a SDttlil ltIplb vas ltttlN GU lIOlll IllS lINt
stock commissioners, showing its expenses,
and precipitatcd an onslaught on the com
mission by Senators Conner and Ransom.
The report was referred to u committee. The
indications are that a determined effort will
be made to abolish the commission, or at
least to reduce its appropriation to such a
sum as to make it unserviceable.
The feature of the afternoon was the de-
bate and pa isage of Senator Cornell's bill,
which permits the Investments of the state
permanent school fund in registered school
fund, as well as in United States, state and
county securities. 1t was afterwards re-
called from the house to correct IL defect.
Friday morning was spent on Senator
keckley's antitrust bill. An amendment to
prohibit laboring men from combining to
raise the price of their labor, brought on Il
lively debate. The senate adjourned before
reaching a vote, but 1t was evident that the
amendment will be defeated. In the after
noon the Lindsay submission bill
came up as a special order. The gallery
and the Hobbies We're filled with spectators,
who anticibated a bitter contest, but they
were disappointed. The submiSSionists had
decided not to debate the measure, and their
opponents thought no votes could be charged
by argument. An amendment by Senator
PaulsCn. providing for the reimbursement
of liqnor men if property be damaged or
made worthless in the event of prohibition,
was defeated BY a vote of II to 10.
Paulsen's speech and Nesbitt's announce
ment of his intention to vote for the bill
were the only discussions provoked by 1t.
A motion by Senator Ransom to indef-
nitely postpone was lost-lO to %.
Submission finally passed the senate BY
the following vote:
Yeas-Burton, Conner, Cornell, Funck,
Gallogly, Hoover, Howe, Hurd, Jewett,
Keckley, Lindsay, Linn, Manning, Nesbitt,
Pickett, Robinson, Roche, Shanner, Suther-
land, Taggart, Wetherald-2I.
Nays-Beardsley, Dern, Iiams, Maher,
Norval, Paulsen, Paxton, Pope, Ransom,
Raymond, Wolbach-ll.
Polk was absent.
The senate held a short, unimportant
session Saturday morning and adjourned till
4 o'clock Monday afternoon. The rest of the
day was used for work.
One-half of the legislative session IS now
over. and more than two hundred and
seventy bills have been introduced in the
house, bearing on all conceivable subjects |
Probably a hundred more will be introduced
before the session closes. The committee
work is far in advance of that OF any prcvi'
GUS legislature at the middle of the session. |
There has been a serious and unnecessary |
delay in printing bills, or the work would be
nearly finished with a large number of com
mitteeS. About seventy DlIls are yet 10 De
printed.
The committee on privileges and elections |
have been holding two or three session daily
for the consideration of the contest cases
from Douglas county. The whole mass of
testimony, comprising some 625 pages, has
been thoroughly sifted, the ballot boxes in
two of the three disputed precincts have
been examined, and arguments by counsel on
both sides have been heard. The committee
have only to examine the ballot box IN the
remaining precinct, look up the authorities
cited by counsel, and prepared their report.
This will be accomplished by Monday or
Tuesday. The indications are that the re-
turns from two if not all of the precincts in
dispute will be thrown out, which will unseat
three or four of the democratic members
During the first two days of this weeks
session resolutions were the Orderof the day, |
The solons in the house are rather fastidi-
Gus, and when anything goes wrong they at
tack it with a resolution. The pages, the
house postofice, the bill clerk and all the
employees of the house were objects of resO-
iutions this week. Tn report of the regents
of the state university, giving an itemized
statement of the expenditures for the past
two years, called for by the resolution of Mr.. |
Rayner, will be placed on the members,
desks early in the week. The state board OF
transportation has not yet submitted a com
p~arative statement of the freight rates
charged and collected on local traffic in the
states of Iowa, Missouri, Illinois, Minnesota
and Nebraska IN compliance with the resolu-
ton introduced by Mr.. Hall There IS a
well grounded suspicion in the minds OF
some members that they do not propose to do
so, at least not until too late for the figures
TO be used Ia the discussion on the bills regu-
lating railroad charges that are now pend
ing. The house seems determined TO BRING
the insurance companies TO time.
A half dozen measures regulating lnsur-
anpa rnnnanias have been introduced. |