The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1893-03-03
AFTER SIXTY LONG DAYS.
y
The Third Legislative Assembly or
Montana Adjourned Sine Die
Yesterday.
A Comparison Between Law Max
ing Experience and
= Inexperience.
Nominations for tho Board OF Ed ucatIon
and for Labor Com missIonsr-Dills
Tina Passed both Houses.

The Third legislative assembly of the
state OF Montana is numbered among the
things that were. II the fact that lavish
appropriations and the assagc OF many
bills constitute n successful session, then
the Third legislative assembly was a sue
cess. In q grent many instances the senate
acted as 4 break on bad legislation
proposed in the house. and to tho upper
body is due largely the credit for the expedi.
tion of business. The senate had In its
favor the fact that it was u smaller body.
that n majority of the members had
had pre- vious legislative experience. that
the presiding officer. Lieut.-Gov. Botkin.
was not only we'll equipped for tho position
but that he was always fair and courteous
to everyone. Tho secretary of the senate.
also. David Marks. has probably had more
experience in that position than any other
man in the state and was enabled to keep
his end up all the time, in addition to aid
ing the presiding officer and the members.
The other officers Of the upper house were
all competent and faithful and the result
was no jars, but everything went
along with the PRECISION of a
we'll regulated mnchinc. Partisan
ship did not p.ay much figure in tho senate
after the first few days. Except the public
institution ILLS. measu es. as a rule. were
decided on their merits and in that spirit
passed or killed. While the democrats were
in the majority they confirmed Rll the non-
inations of the governor. the most OF them
in open session and all unanimously. Eight
of tho members of the senate Of the third
legislative assembly will remain in the
fourth. They are Cullen, Eagleston, Hotf-
man and Steele. democrats. aud Brown,
Folsom. Hatch IND Swift, republicans.
With all the horse play incident to such
occasions; with a pathetic song by the chap
lain aud a comic ditty by the speaker; with
the hurting of harmless missiles and more
than the usual noise; with countless mo-
tions intended to nmuse and entertain the
people who went to see and hear; the house
of representatives of the Third legislative
assembly went out of session at midnight.
1t was a body that contained among its
members some bright and several brilliant
men, and many othe,s who, though not
answering any of these two descriptions,
were possessed of good, sound. hard sense.
1t was not o deliberGtive:s bodyssA the
word is defined in modern dictionaries;
few votes were ever changed by arguments.
1t was q body, taken AZ u body, that made
up its mind what it " nted hwithouk listen
ing to reason to any great extent. AT times,
it must be said. it was q noisy and an unruly
assemblage. which started out with u pretty
fair set of rules for it's guide, and then
made q special rule to fit any particular
case in any particular manner that was
needed. This was due in a great measure
to the inexperience of all but a very
few of the members, but to a greater
extent to the fact that it's presiding
officer was chosen for a supposed political
advantage, and not with any regard to his
qualifications. A plain. unvarnished, I'M
biased report of it's proceedings. with every
word said and every motion made, for the
sixty days that the house was in session,
would fill O volume that would Guido In
humor the best works Of Mark Twain, Max
Adeler or Artemus Ward. Less than ons.
fourth the bills introduced got through,
which may be either a subject for conprat-
ulation or a cause for regret, according to
the standpoint from which it is looked at.
1t got through without breaking much OF
the furniture, whereat the state ID to be
congratulated.