Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1892-03-17
FROM COLUMBUS.
The Legislative Mill Grinding
Very, Very Slow.
Altogether Too Many Local
Bills to Look After.

Fall, as n Few Slight Changes Would
Be Advantageous = More Railroad
Legislation-Investi Committees
That Do Not Investigate.
COLUMBUS, o., March Is.
Speaker Laylin is not noted as a
humorous man, but the other day he got
off as good joke as the season has seen.
Representative Wydman, of Cincin-
natl, had attended progressive euchre
party the night before and was SO sue
cessful that he won prize in the shape
of nosegay of beautiful flowers. This
he displayed Oh top of his desk in the
most conspicuous manner possible.
Representative Pudney, the wsg of
the house, arose to question of
privilege. In an impressive speech he
called attention to the fact that the
gentleman from Cincinnati was not only
guilty of breaking the laws of the state
in that he had played cards for stakes,
but that he had the effrontery to display
his winnings before the very eyes of the
law making power of the great state of
Ohio. OF course, this speech was
greeted with Laughter and applause,
as the official reporters put it.
The speaker treated the remarks of
the gentleman from Cuyahoga as if in
the best of faith, and calmly and as if
in dead earnest, he said: "The chair
would suggest that the gentleman from
Cuyahoga bring the matter to the atten-
ton of the grand jury of Franklin
county," and Immediately proceeded
with the routine business amid shouts of
laughter from every side. f .a
Too Much Local York.
The call of counties is ne statesman's
delight. Then it is this he unburdens
his pockets of the long boarded bills.
If this order of businesSis delayed for
three or four days as it often is, the
members fairly run riot in hustling in
the measures and rushing through un-
der suspension of the rules, in a manner
scarcely expected by the wise men who
framed our wonderful constitution way
back in 1851.
The other day over forty new bills
were introduced in the shortspace Of an
hour and a half and many of then
passed under suspension of the rule,
each upon the assurance of one man; II
other words every man passed his owl
lawi
There is altogether too much of this
sort of thing going on. About all the
legislature does is to pass slocal bills. p
All the other work could be crowded
into month or six weeks.
1t is too bad that the vote of the new
constitutional convention was defeated
last fall. There is grave need of some
radical changes in that aged and time
worn instrument that it is all
wrong as some people imagine, but thai
it has few lines in it that need oblitera
ton or change, is patent to the mos
superficial observer of things here al
Columbus during a legislative session.
Why should it be necessary for the
legislature to allow the people Of somt
village in Washington county to bond
itself to build town hall, when the peo-
pie of that village know better than We
do whether they can, and whether they
want to build that necessary structure o.
not? The legislature takes the word Of
one member and one senator, and presto
it is law. That's the way we MAKE
laws and that's the kind of laws we ar,
making every day-and it isn't our fanl
that such is the state of affairs.
According to my nothion of thing
the constitution out to allow the legisla
ture to provide in general way al
municipalities with laws sufficient to al
low them to decide among themselve
all local matters from the kind of loca
government they want, to how mucl
and how often they want to tax them
selves for local improvements of char
acter necessary for the welfare of tn,
people-all within reasonable bounds
When such powers are granted to all tn
people alike we will not have to sit her
and burden the statute books with me as
ures that ought to be decided by tn
people effected. and by them only.
But all this is. dry reading, and as tn
days of my term go by may becom
calloused to all this, as many seem t
have done before me!
Blooming" Bills.
The Legislature has again broken it
good resolution made early in tn
session and in that it is has shown tina
| it is but human. The lower branch ha
passed two more manufacturing bon
bills, one Of them senate bill whic
consequently is now law-though o
questionable constitutionality.. Bot
these measures received scarcely enoug
votes to pass them, and if it had nc
been for the personal solicitation of vote
on the grounds of friendship with th
authors and promoters of the bills the
would not have passed. Ever since th
defeat Of the Lima bill, it has bee
thought that it would be impossible t
get through any more such questionabl
measures. But the legislature has take
another turnover and is now standini
on its head. Such somersaults are no
uncommon here.
One Of the bills passed was couched il
very careful language. 1t provided fo
the issuing of bonds for the purpose o
improving the town. One membe
asked the author if it wasn't really th
intention to build mill, and h
answered that it was. In few moment
| the member who had asked the questic
moved to amend by striking out th
words ''to improve the town and inser
the words ito build MILL Th
| turned the laugh on the author of tb
hill Inf he snccaadad in killing tn