The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1893-05-31

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on them. and how are these to live? IL
strikes one as a rather bold proposition
that a million and a half Americans
should be deprived of their livelihood in
the first year after democratic change"
There need be no worrying on that
score. II our people are given the oppor-
tunity to reach the markets OF the world
with their products there will be no lack
of employment and no lack of exports. All
this country needs is the opportunity to
do what it is capable of doing.
\ Legislative Commission,
Some days since TIE SENTINEL pub
lished a communication from the Hon.
G. II. REEVE, proposing as a remedy for
legislative evils the creation of a legislative
commission which should formulate laws
on subjects called to its attention by mem
bers of the general assembly and approve
or disapprove of bills proposed by them,
and also submit bills of its own motion.
All acts OF the commission are proposed
to be of the nature of recommendations
only, and the assembly is to exercise it's
ordinary powers in disposing of them,
as it does In case of any other measures
submitted. All bills proposed are to be
filed with the secretary of state and to be
open to inspection. This would naturally
produce report and discussion in the
press, and thereby a consideration of
measures by the public before they came
before the assembly for action. The plan
outli=ed therefore embodies q system of
popular initiative, a special consideration
OF bills by experts and general consider
alton of proposed measures by the public.
In some respects the plan is closely allied
to the cabinet system OF Europe. toward
which this country is tending somewhat,
especially in national government
The advantages of such system-that
is OF such a system properly administered
are obvious. 1t would insure more
careful and deliberate consideration of
measures and lessen the dangers of hasty
and inconsiderate legislation. It would
give the opportunity of getting before the
assembly, and before the public, measures
which the haste and lack OF consideration
of the ordinary legislature might other
wise prevent. 1t does not, however, offer
any relief for the one great evil to which
THE SENTINEL has called attention i. g.,
the difficulty OF obtaining action on proper
measures after they are introduced. That
could be done only by making the con-
sideration OF such bills obligatory on the
legislature. and no law OF less binding
force than the constitution could effect
that. 1t may be urged that the weight
of the commissions recommendation
would be sufficient to secure considsra-
ton. 1t might, and it might not. If a
bill proposed were one to which a part
of the members, or any considerable por-
ton OF the people, had an aversion. an at
tack would at once be made on the COM
mission itself. There would be talk of
''iuntas." and 'star-chamber legislation"
and Capitalization of power" and all
that sort OF clap-trap which is commonly
used to prevent consideration of the
merits of the thing proposed. The polit-
ical party in opposition would of course
assail the system on these grounds. The
recent experience with legislation recon-
mended by the tax commission, which is
expressly required to make such recon-
mendations. is at least good evidence that
such q system would not insure action
without some further obligation.
Would this be constitutional? Under
our present constitution it certainly
would not. Indeed it may be questioned
if a commission of this kind, which
merely recommended legislation, would
be constitutional. To what department
of the government would it belong?
There may be some room for question,
but it would probably have to be classed
as legislative, and the legislative power of
the state is vested in the general assem-
bly," There have been commissions
appointed to revise the state statutes, but
the work of these Is not binding. except
the commission of 1852, which was ex-
pressly authorized by the constitution,
and. by the way, that commission is pro-
vided for under the head of the judicial
department.. But, as before said, a sys-
tenn of this kind would be of little value
unless the legislature was required to
take some action on the bills proposed,
ment for an actual vote on the adoption
of the bills would be sufficient to insure
the success of the system. And any re-
quirement of this kind would certainly
call for an amendment of the constitution.
In this case. as in the others, our present
constitution stands in the way of any
effective reform.
In order that system of this kind
should be effective it would also be neces-
sary that the commission should have
large powers OF investigation. The SENTI-
MEL has already called attention TO English
experience in this matter, and that ex-
perience has resulted in very excellent
system of legislation. Mr.. EDWIN CHAD
WICK was for many years engaged official
Iy in parliamentary investigations prelim-
mary to reform leaislation-wss at the
head OF more than dozen commissions
OF inquiry of this kind-and he declares