The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1891-04-16
LEGISLATIVE NOTES.
Wsht The 27th Lo9islatur Of AinneS0ts
II Doing.

wsht The 27th LsGisl.sure OF Minneseta
70 Doing.
ST. PAUL, April 13.-The legislature
has six and half more days in which
to work. In fact it has but six days.
Adjournment must take place at noon
on the Goth, but on the last half day no
work of any Importance is ever tran
sacted. There is much yet. Much that
must be done. None of the appropria-
ton bills hBve been considered except
in the different committees and these
are measures that always take time.
1t is a very wise committee that can
frame dividing up of the states money
in manner that is satisfactory to all
concerned.
Then again there is the congressional
reapportionment bill providing for sew
en- congressman. The bill has passed
the Senate, but in the House an effort
may be made to amend for the reason
protests have been filed from some of
the counties against the measure as it
came from the upper house.
The great question of lower interest
is yet no nearer settlement than a week
before. The Bull bill from the House
sleeps serenely in the arms of the Sen
ate committee. The Davis bill from
the Senate is away down at the foot of
general orders in the House with over
200 bills ahead of it. Its chances for
seeing daylight are very remote indeed.
The majority in the House is willing
to let the interest question alone if the
blame can be thrown upon the Senate.
The Senate looks the same way toward
the House.
The feature of the week is the bill
introduced by Senator McHale, called
the anti-tights bill. When the bill was
introduced some time ago it was
laughed at in quiet way and regarded
as a harmless little matter which would
not be seriously considered. But the
senator from Shakopee was conscien-
tious in the matter and earnest withall
and he steadily urged the matter for
ward by stages until on the 9th, it came
up for final passage in the Senate and
was carried by a vote of 81 yeas to IL
nays. The bill is as follows:
A bill for an act to define and punish
open and gross lewdness and lascivious
behavior of female persons in certain
cases.
Be it enacted by the legislature of the
State of Minnesota:
Section 1.-Any female person who
shall, upon the stage or platform in
any theatre, opera house, concert hall,
or any public place whatever, where
other persons are present, expose her
neither limb OF limbs dressed only in
tights so-called, or dressed in any man.
ner whatever so that the shape and
form of her neither limb or limbs are
plainly visible to such other persons
present, shall be deemed guilty of e.oen
and gross lewdness and lascivious be-
havior and guilty of misdemeanor,
and upon conviction thereof shall be
punished by a fine of not less than s.
nor more than 500, or by imprisonment
in the county Jail not less than five
days nor more than ninety days.
Sec. 2. This act shall take effect and
be in force from and after it's passage.
The bill came to the House and was
at once referred to the committee on
education. After remaining there for
an hour or so it was given to the judi
ciary committee. The passage in the
Senate was surprise to the State and
especially to the managers of the Opera
Houses of the cities. In view of the
facts and to prove that the ballet of the
present day was the correct thing, toll
Grated and endorsed everywhere,
general invitation was sent to the lower
house the day after the Senate's pas
sage, by some theatrical managers, ask
ing the attendance of the legislature to
witness an extravaganza in which the
ballet was the principal feature. The
invitation was received the day after
the gubernatorial banquet, when the
members felt much more like play than
work. The invitation was officially
accepted, not however without some
great protestations and as soon as it
was learned that official acceptation
had been made scores of the members
loudly proclaimed that they would not
attend. How well they stuck to their
word is evidenced by the fact that when
the hour arrived for distribution of
tickets over 100 out of the total num-
Der of Ia were taken.
When the House assembled on the
morning of the 18th it was generally
understood that the Hompe bill regu-
lating railroad traffic would be taken
up for consideration so there was an
unusually large attendance As soon
as the session had fairly opened, the
rules were suspended and the House
went into committee of the whole for
consideration of general orders. The
first bill for consideration was this eel
ebrated bill of Senator Hompe which
had been substituted for the Searle bill
after the Currier bill had been killed.
1t was thought that an effort would he
made by the Alliance members of the
House to amend The measure so it
would embrace some of the leading fea-
lures of the Currier bill but as soon as
the bill had been read Mr. Currier rose
in his seat and said while he could not
heartily agree with this bill and he
would have liked to make some amend
ments but the time had arrived when
something must be done or all the
efforts toward railroad legislation
would be lost SO he had made up his
mind to accept the Hompe bill and he
moved that the committee recommend
the bill for passage. This was agreed
to. All that remains is to put the bill
upon its final passage, when the com.
mittee Of the whole unanimously apee
to bill it is practical passage Of the
Rame