Hutchinson gazette. [volume] (Hutchinson, Kan.) 1895-1902, 1895-03-14
N ,.28

propriated by the legislature Tor lrriga-
ton purposes. The law making the
appropriation provides for commits
sion Of Eve Kansans. The governor
appoints three Of this commission and
the law appoints the president Of the
state agricultural college-Prof Fair
child-and Prot Haworth, the professor
Of geology at the Kansas state uni
versity. The law also provides that
the commissioners shall receive from
the state their actual expenses while
engaged in the work Of experimenting
the irrigation experiments. The money
appropriated is to be expended by the
commissioners in obtaining geo
logical surveys Of the western
part of the state, in making
mana 81 the same. and establishing ex-
perimental stations ana sinuug nos
less than twenty wells at different
points Ia the irrigation district, The
state senate at first appropriated slO,-
900 for irrigation. and the lower house
appropriated $50, 900. The two houses
were not able to sgree-through their
conference committeeman near the
close Of the session when the $4,000
compromise was agreed upon and
passed both branches without opposi-
ton. 1t is believed that the commits
sioncrs will sink the twenty wells, or
the majority Of them at least, in the
twenty extreme western counties The
friends of the irrigation theory are
anxious that more than twenty wells
shall be sunk, and if the appropriation
warrants it, the commissioners will
make the number fifty.
judicial Districts Abolished.
The judicial apportionment bill, in
troduced and championed by Hon. II.
j. Bone, of the lower house, became a
law after long discussion, passing the
senate by close vote in the closing
hours of the session. The bill does not
materially alter the judicial districts
in the eastern part of the state, as they
have existed under the old law In
the western part of the state, however,
the boundary line of nearly every dis
trict was changed, and six Judicial dis
tricts were abolished entirely. This
reduction is in line of Gov. Nor
rill's recommendation in his message.
These districts were created at a time
when Kansas was in the midst of her
never-to-be-forgotten BOOM" but
since that time the population in the
western part of the state has greatly
decreased, so that it was not necessary
to maintain so many courts as in
former times. The abolishing of these
six districts will save the state, it is
estimated, ut least Sl5, 900 annually.
An Interesting Bill Killed.
There was one bill which created
much discussion at the state capital
while It was erding before the legis-
lature. This was senate bill $40 intro
duced by Senator Sterne, and provided
that each county in Kansas should care
for It's inebriates. The bill designed
a fund for sending habitual drunkards
to some Kelley institute, at the ex-
pense of the county. The bill was
warmly supported and it was believed
at one time that it would become
q law, but it did not reach a vote in
the senate until an hour before the
close of business in that body and was
defeated by close vote There was q
strong lobby Of temperance people at
work for the bill.
Cannot Vote Yet.
A bill passed the senate granting the
right to ten women of the state to
cast their vote at the annual elections
for county or state officers. This
was done to place the law upon
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