The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1895-04-12
HARRISBURG LETTER.
Talk of Extending the Legislative
Session to June l3.
TO CUT SCHOOL APPROPRIATIONS.
The Governor and His Advisers Consider
ing n Proposition to Reduce the Appro-
priations to Four and a Half Million.
Annually.
Especial Correspondencc.)

Especial Correspondencc.)
HARRISBURG, April s.-The senate will
reconvene this evening after ten days
recess. There will be no more holidays
for the lawmakers until the final adjourn.
ment. The calendars are crowded with
bills, many of which will never see the
light of day The members are beginning
TO realize this, and are working to get
special orders for those in which they have
the greatest interest. Beginning this
evening the order In the house on Monday
evenings will be consideration Of senate
bills on second reading The appropria-
ton, apportionment and revenue bills are
still In committee. They will hardly be
reported before the close Of the month
The date Of the final adjournment has
not yet been fixed. The senate would like
TO get away on June u but tho house
wants to quit week or two sooner.
Another proposition Is to take recess from
May TO Jan. next. but this idea does
not meet with much encouragement.
Since the legislature began meeting on the
first Tuesday In January, under the con.
stitution of 1888, there have been seven
sessions that extended into June That of
1899 lasted to June 25 In 1910 the session
ended ION June 12, and In 1Si2 the law.
makers remained in session until July 90
In 1879, under the constitution of 1873.
the session closed on June g, in 1881 on
June g. in 1888 on June 6, In 1885 on June
12 and In 1898 on June l. Since the state
legislature began to hold sessions, Nov %,
1776 ton extra sessions have been held In
August, 1871, the extra session lasted one
week; In 1898, nine days; in 1891, twenty
two days; In 1897 one day in 1900, thirty
days; in 1922 twenty.eight days; in 1857,
seven days; in 1861, sixteen days; in 1888,
from June to Dec g. and in 1891, the SEN
ate only, from Oct. 10 to Nov II. A curl
GUS thing in connection with the legisla-
lures under the constitution Of 1916 was
that the first four each held two sessions
year, and the last three held three sessions
ayear. The present legislature, If it should
extend its session until June 49, rs is now
proposed, will beat the record under the
constitution of 1873 by one day, the session
of 1885 having ended on June l2.
kissing the Bible Abolished.
Governor Hastings has approved the
Fow bill abolishing the kissing OF the
Bible In administering Of oaths and sub
stituting therefor the laying Of the hands
on the open book. The approval of this
bill abolishes law older than the nation.
The act goes into effect at once. The only
three legal ways in which an oath can
hereafter be administered in this state are
by the hand resting on the open Bible,
with the uplifted hand and by affirming
The custom of kissing the book was abol.
ished by Judge Mcpherson two years ago
in the Lebanon county courts and subse-
quently 1t was done away with in the
courts Of Dauphin county. Mr.. Fows
hill nd hot ha tata -
health because of the great danger of
spreading infectious diseases by the indis-
criminate kissing of the Bible by witnesses
and Others in the criminal courts.
The decrease in the state revenues will
likely result in a cut Of 81, 900, 900 year in
the school appropriation for the next two
years. A proposition to reduce the appro-
priation to "a, 800, 900 annually Is now be-
ing considered by Governor Hastings and
his cabinet. Chairman Marshall, of the
house appropriation committee, thinks
this Is one way of making ends meet in
dealing out the state revenues. DIR. Schaef-
fer, superintendent of public instruction,
has been asked to give his opinion. He
does not believe the appropriation ought
to be reduced, and has prepared for the
information OF the governor u statistical
statement, showing the amount of the
annual appropriation to the schools for
the past fifty -one years.
If the legislature agrees TO the PROPOSE
ton to reduce the school appropriation
$4,000, 900 will be left for charities. This
Is a million less than the last legislature
distributed among the institutions of the
state. Members of the appropriations COM
mite have figured that II the reduction of
ii ,OO0O 900 Is made each taxpayer assessed
for school purposes will have to pay an
additional fourteen cents. In granting
appropriations to hospitals the committee
will try hard to benefit those institutions
which have been of the greatest benefit to
the people. In this just treatment many
prominent concerns will be cut out of the
support which they have heretofore re-
ceived from the state.
Against Increasing n Salary.
The bill to increase the salary of the SUI
perintendent of public printing and bind
ing from e., 900 to So 900 n year will prob
ably never become a law, although 1t has
gone through the senate When the meas
ure reached second reading in the house,
to the great surprise of its friends, it was
killed. Subsequently the house reconsid-
cred its action and sent the bill back to
committee, where 1t now fingers. Friends
OF the measure will endeavor to amend 1t
In committee by fixing the salary at 81 800.
1t is the general impression among the
lawmakers, though, that the salary of the
superintendent is sufficient, and the
chances are that the bill will never be
brought out of committee.
The house has passed for the second time
the Ritter bill to retire on full pay judges
who have served twenty consecutive years
or thirty years altogether and have
reached the age of 20, The bill now only
affects Judges Hare Finletter and Alli-
son, Of Philadelphia. 1t will not be many
years, however, before it will affect sew
eral other judges on the bench. The rural
members are almost unanimously OPP
posed to tho proposition, but out of cour-
tesy to Speaker Walton, its most earnest
advocate, they allowed 1t to go through on
second reading without calling the roll. A
bitter fight will be made against the meas
ure on third reading, with what result
suit 1t is difficult to predict. Apparently
both sides are confident of success. IL the
bill ever gets through the house IL will
pass the senate without much objection.
The rural members hold the balance or