The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1892-12-21


The railroad commissioner in his
annual report, gives it as his opinion
that one of the so-called Richardson
laws, which was intended to increase
the rate of specific taxation of railway
earnings, and particularly to bring
within its provisions such of our rail
roads IA have special charters and put
them upon the footing occupied by
those roads which have been organized
under the general laws, is invalid be-
cause of misreference in important
pealed.
Of course il this law is invalid, the
large, extravagent claims made 10y
Democrat orators during the late cam
paign cannot be realized and the two
hundred thousand dollars it was to add
to our revenues will not be turned into
the states treasury.
This has also been doubtful piece of
legislation, froma legal standpoint; but
to have it fail of its purpose because of
mere blunder in the framing of the
law. which does not affect its subject
matter, is aggravating and humiliating.
There are those who, in the light of
Mr.. Richardson's employment in rail
road interests after the adjournment of
the legislature, will claim that this
tiasco was intended and others more
charitably inclined and probably more
nearly in line with the truth of the
matter, will charge the mistake to loose
and careless performance of legislative
duty.
Republican politicians will make, as
is natural, all the party capital possible
out of the incident, and particularly so
because of the egotistical claims of the
author of the law with reference to its
introduction, passage, and prospective
operation.
1t certainly is not creditable to the
late legislature that this law, and many
others of Importance passed by it during
the first and only session controlled by
the Democracy since the war, should
have turned out to be imperative and
void, especially in the light of the often.
sively partisan criticism which the Re
publican party in this state and its
Republican legislatures have suffered
at the hands of Democrat shouters
and the extravagant claims made and
reiterated for political purposes, that, il
the people would only give their party
a chance and majority in the legisla-
ture, they would so conduct affairs that
whatever laws they passed should not
only be constitutional but correct in
every respect.
Under such circumstances, and be.
cause of such broken promises and
bungling work, it is only just argu-
ment that Republicans use in insisting
upon Democrat incompetency in such
matters.
1t must be admitted, however, that
legislation passed by Republican legis.
latures has failed of its purpose on ac'
count of similar mistakes. A large
number of such instances might be
compiled and possibly it would not be
labor lost to prepare and publish a
statement covering the more prominent
of them.
If the Democracy had been more
modest with reference to their prom
ised reforms and i'm their criticism OF
Republican faults in legislative mat
tiers, and had profted by mistakes they
condemned, they could have turned the
tables upon us by pointing to our own
shortcomings and failures in compare
son with their successes.
The invalidity of this important law
emphasizes the demand we made in
our last issue that some plan should be
formulated looking to the establishment
of bureau or an official to whom laws
proposed or determined upon by our
legislature may be referred and put into
legal, harmonious, and proper form
before final passage.
1t may be claimed that there are law
yers in the legislature competent to
preform this service, and undoubtedly
some able lawyers do serve the state in
most of our legislatures and could he
trusted with such work The ordinary
lawyer, however, who is content to
serve in the legislature for three dollar:
day is generally more incompetent
and unsafe to be trusted with such q
duty than those possessing no legal
learning, upon the principle that little
learning is dangerous thing. Able
lawyers in the legislature have their