St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-03-03
4 SURPRISING. MOVE.
The House Of Representatives
Passes the Anti-SealperS
Measure.
In the Fever for Passing
Bills, Only a Few OPP
posed 1t.
A Very Fat Pickup in the
Bill for the Secretary
OF State.
Gov. Nelson's Licensed Ele-
Vator Bill Passes Grace
fully Through.

The Minnesota house of represent
aIyes did a strange thing yesterday art
ernoou. 1t may be said on the other
hand that, as chosen representatives OF
the people. they have done credltable
thing in the eyes of a well-kept and
We.l-fed group of railroad conductors,
WHO have been pushing with great dill
lgence the bill Ito regulate the sale and
redemption OF transportation tickets of
common carriers" 1t is cOnteSSedly
intended to abolish the occupation of
the scalpers, and has been fought and
opposed ON that line.
Despite the fact that Minnesota's leg
islature was adopting such law when,
as Mr.. Howard said, other legislatures
ale repeating it, the prediction of the
GLOBE thai the measurer cannot be
enacted into law will yet be verified.
As pointed ont yesterday by one of the
closest observers in the house, the SEN
ate is foreordained to be the decisive
battle-ground for every hard-fOught
measure of the session. In that arena
this bill. Tin which the railroads have
no interest whatever" will be amended
so that the house will not concur, or it
will be killed.
Bat whether il live or die, the people
of Minnesota will be fully posted on the
vast amount of time wasted during the
session i'm consideration Of such a use
less piece OF work. The opponents have
ANNOUNCED boldly their determination
to show this state of facts: That
such laws have never been upheld; that
it can moi be called even-handed justice
TO simply fine railroad official for vlo-
latlng the law, while the man VINO buys
and pays for ticket. then dares to sell
or give it to his neighOOr or brother TO
travel on, may be fined and sent to wear
convict garO in states prison; that 1t
will, according to the men who passed
it, do away with excursion tickets and
reduced rates; that no provision Is en-
bodied in the bill TO absolutely compel
lie companies to redeem unused trans
pOrtatlOn; That the method prescribed
for redemption Of tickets confines TO the
narrOweSt possible limit the right Of a
purchaser to dispose of his property;
that, being conductors bill" it is eX-
ceedingly strange that not even the
smallest labor organization has Endorsed
or asked for its passage: that all the al
legged petitions in its favor have come
from people who never have had Occa-
sion to deal with ticket brokl rs;
that it is dangerous legislation
and vicious policy TO put any citizen in
jeopardy Of being sent to prison If he
will not bow to an arbitrary rule OF
corporation and sell TO them alone, on
their own terms, commodity which he
has paid for with his own good money:
that the passage of the law would sur
render right Of free men that cannot
perhaps be regained; that the law can
not be sustained when brought to test,
AID Will only serve to involve in mlser-
able complications and costly litigation
men who stand between the people and
unrelenting eXactiOns.
All these points were made against
the bill in the discussion. But the con-
ductOrS had created a ueep feeling of
sympathy, and argument was useless.
As several legislators remarked, 1--WE
can travel on passes" Still, it must be
said the friends of the bill accepted the
pro rata" amendment in seeming good
faith, and pushed the bill through with
that provision intact.
Mr.. Greer and others wanted to amend
the bill so that the $1,000 or more year
MlICli VIII DC paul lOk liCClloSSs SIlOulu
it become law. would be turned into the
school fund or the internal revenue
fund, instead of going to fatteD the per-
QuiStes OF the secretary of state. But
MIR. Brown had too many friends. and
the suggestion was spurned. Even
many of the Democrats swallowed the
whole business and voted aye. That
they were conscientious no one can
gainsay who watched the fight, but no
reasons were stated. 1t was Demo
crat, Mr.. German, of st. Cloud, who
moved the previous question on the bill,
against the protests of Mr.. Ives and sew
eral Republicans.
1t is not expected that the senate will
be so generous with the secretary of
state and will amend to put the possible
income TO some good public purpose.
The lavish spirit evinced by the house
OH this defective measure will hardly
find an echo in the other chamber. And
the pro rata redemption section will
most asSuredly meet with opposition,
most probably from the people who
''haYe no interest whatever in The bill"
Then it will be interesting to see what
the house will do.