St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1895-04-06
DULUTH WATER CONTRACT
Again Resolves Considerable
Attention "A Spoke Put
in Spencer's Wheel.
THE EXPRESS BILL PASSES
But the Heat Inspection Meas
ure Dies a Very Hard
Death.

The hottest debate that has oc-
cured in the senate for some time
was INDUCED in yesterday afternoon
when H. F. No. 20, Representative
| McGrath's drainage bill came be-
| fore the committee of the whole, on
general orders. The discussion of
| the bill in committee lasted all the
| afternoon, and when the commit
| tee rose to report the bill to the SEN
| ate, the report was accepted, but a
motion for the second and third
readings of the bill and vote on its
| final passage under a suspension OF
| the rules failed to receive a two
| thirds vote, and instead of being
finally disposed of yesterday, as the
friends OF the measure fully hoped
it would, the bill will be up for fur
Their consideration on the calendar
| today.
The provisions of the bill, in the
| main, provide for the appropriation
| of money for the purpose Of opening
| closed water courses leading into the
Red river and tributaries in Wilkin,
counties. The opposition to the
measure was strong, and the rather
one-sided fight led by Senator Dun
ham, with the senator from Winona
for a second, was very bitter. The
representatives of the various sec
tons Of the country all took hand
in the debate, Senator KnatVold
90
ciary committee on their RESPONSE
bility in declaring the bill conStitu-
tionaI, and Senator Thompson, also
from the part of the state which
flows with milk and honey" pro-
testing against a measure that
would benefit the great barren
country of the north to such an eX-
tent as the proposed measure will.
Senator Stevens stated that there
were three propositions to be consid-
cred in connection with this question.
The first, the practical effect, and the
senator showed very clearly how, ac-
cording to a chart that had been sub
mitted by friends of the BILL the lands
that would be most affected by the
proposed drainage would not be the
railway lands, because the line of rail-
read ran in a much more southerly
direction than the proposed Red river
| drainage work: Then, on the point Of
the constitutionality of the bill, the
senator read the law, which requires
| that no debt can be contracted by the
state, and he showed that this is not a.
| debt, but simply a proposition to APP
propriate some of the surplus money
! now in the treasury. He made it very
| clear to the senators, who questioned
the point that the state did not violate
the constitution, as it does not itself
engage in this work, but appropriates
money to have other people engage in
| it. The test of this, he stated, was in
| the fact that if any person engaged in
| this work in any way received an in
| jury he could not hold the state liable.
| In regard to the question of the right
| and justice, the senator insisted that
| the expenditure of this small amount
| of money would be prolific of such
large results to the state that in few
| years the treasury would receive in
| taxes so much more than the amount
| expended.
| Senator Cronkhite made very earn
est argument in favor of the bill. He
sent up a reorganization of the eXpendi-
! lures of the state drainage commits
| sion to show what had been accom-
plished with the appropriation made
| two years ago. AS a representative OF
| the people in the northern part of the
state, the senator from Marshall made
| a very strong argument in favor of the
| passage of the bill.
Senator Wyman favored the bill
stating that he considered 1t a goot
public policy to open up these lands
because just in proportion as the
country is made fit for cultivation the
taxable value of the property is in
creased. He stated that as the
amount asked for had been reduced tt
$4,000, and as this was but a Fraction
of the amount deposited in thu
treasury for the sale of lands granted
to the state by the United State:
government, to be disposed of anC
the moneys applied to the interna
reserve fund, the state was entitled
to use it wherever needed.
A motion to report the bill for in
definite postponement was lost, ant
when a vote was taken on the adop
| ton of the report of the committee
thirty senators voted for, and fourteen
against it. A motion made by Sena
tor Crookhite to give the measure it
second and third reading and pass /
under suspension of the rules a
this time was lost and the bill will
be taken UP on the calendar today.
WEST DULUTH WATER.
The West Duluth water contract diff
| ficulty was before the senate agar
yesterday morning. Senator Spencer
asked Senator Stevens to consent tt
the recall from the house of S. F. 424
Senator Stevens replied that he wa:
not in favor of recalling the bill, ant
he reminded Senator Spencer that the
measure was introduced by Senator
Sevatson. Senator Spencer moved tt
recall the bill, explaining at great
length the experience of West Duluth
in getting her water system.
An ordinance had been put through
the village council and a contrac
made with a. company to put hydrant:
in at cost of $50 per hydrant They
had put hydrants in as thick as fence
poles, while the city of Duluth hat
only nine hydrants to the mile, ant
the thing was so worked that the
contract was perpetuated for thirty
years, and then, if West Duluth did
not want to buy the system the con
tract was to go on for thirty year:
more. The senator stated that he hat
expert testimony to show that the
plant of the company could not hav,
cost more than 100000 but bonds hat
been issued to the amount of $3.50,
GOO. The people were dissatisfied will
their burden, and the case was now
pending in the st. Louis courts. Now
the company came before the legis
lature and asked them to Iegalize the
contract.
The senator stated further, that the
company sought to take away the
rights Of his constituents as Duluth
mad never voted for the contract, an6
that the remark of another senator or
the previous day, in regard to Duluth
llT Tra& IT, L