St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1895-03-08

auditor. county treasurer, register of
deeds and judge of proba te.. -
| Senator Spencer Introduced a bill
| which provides for giving laborers a
| lien upon wages prior to any other
| claim.
Senator Smith introduced a bill
| which is the result of the conference
between representatives of Minnesota
5and North Dakota on freight rates.
| The bill provides that not over 80 per
kStcent of the present rates on grain and
| lumber shall be charged after the
| passage of the bill.
L.. Senator Smith, as chairman of the
Rinterstate conference on railroad rates,
/ also made report of the proceedings
| of the conference commission, which
was ordered printed in the Journal
p An unusually large number of petit
kytions and protests were sent up and
lireferred to the judiciary committee.
They relate to the age of consent, re-
ig9igious freedom and Sunday laws. SEN
chtor Barr also sent up memorial, the
i9Religious Liberty association, of Man
! kato, protesting against exemptins
church property from taxation
| There were two bills on the calendar
ton. They are S. f. 1856, introduced
| by Senator Wyman, to revise the law
relating to banks of discount and de-
posit.r and S. f. 81, introduced by Sena
tor Stevens. and known as the arbitra-
ton and Cancellation bill.
Senator w. E. johnson presided over
the committee of the whole YESTERDAY,
When the bill to establish a state en-
tomologist experiment station at the
university for the destruction of
chinch bugs was under consideration
there was some opposition. Senator
Knatvold questioned the advisabiIity
OF creating new offices at the rate of
ONE A DAY.
and providing for mourning heavy ex-
penses. Senator Stebbins supported
the BILL Senator Greer pronosed
amendments, and on motion of Senator
Stebbins the bill was referred to Sena-
tor Greer for amendment.
senator Roverud moved the indef.
mite postponement of the cyclone re-
lief bill of Senator Hanson. Sbeeches
against the bill was made by Sena-
tors Sperry, Thompson and Morgan
They took the position that 1t was nm
wise to appropriate money for relief
OF sufferers by storm Senator Morgan
SAID that to go into the insurance busI-
ness would mean state bankr1ptcv- n nd
lead to profigacy. 1t would be had
policy to make such apnronria-
lions as a charity. Senators Han
son and Keller spoke of the need of re-
lief as asked. Senator Greer thought
the passage of the bill would enable
people to go back upon their farms and
would not set bad precedent. Sena-
tor Stevens said that while his envi.
ronments might lead others to mis-
constfue his motives, yet he felt that It
was proper to say that it is in his view
proper for the state to care for the in
sane, unfortunate or destitute and that
the Dill appeals to the humanity of the
legislative power. It would be as con-
slStent TO say that each county should
care Tor It's insane or mendicants a :
10 say that 1t should care for the
sufferers from cyclone. He hoped cy-
clones would be few and there would
pc out lew cases where the state would
De cailed upon to aid counties SO slf-
ierlng. Senator Yale. opposed the bill
on the theory of being iradvisable to
lzahord such relief by state appro-
prlatlon. Senator Miller offered an
amendment to make the appropriation
Apply to the whole state This was
ruled out Of order. The motion to in
eenn1tely postpone the bill was lost
and 1t was recommended to pass. When
the committee arose the bill was ex-
copied from the report, and a motion
TO indefinitely postpone it was again
lost. Senator Keller sought to have his
bill covering cyclone losses in Stearns
county acted upon in committee of the
whole, but the committee arose with
lsout action thereon. uAG uz.1a 54l
The bill to reimburse Prof. Otto
Eugger for expenditures In exterminat-
ing chinch bugs in 1894 was recon-
mended to pass.
LAND TAX SETBACK.
The senate judiciary committee took
up the Anderson bill, being the one to
impose tax upon unused railroad
lands. Senator Morgan addressed the
committee as to his views on the adj
| visibility of passing the bill. He had
| at first intended to support the meas
| ure, but he had been clearlys con-
WINGED that the Anderson bill cannot
| be passed and preserve the gross
earnings tax. He reviewed the his
| tory of legislation upon the matter,
calling attention of the old grants, of
charters to railroads that had ex-
empted railroad lands from tax Those
| grants had become contracts, and can
/ not be repealed without the consent of
! the old railroads that received the
grants. He spoke of the later legis-
.lation upon the matter of gross earn
I fngS tax, and quoted a decision of the
supreme court to the effect that old
contracts were valid. He contended
that acts passed since the adoption
of the constitution, which impose a
| gross earnings tax, may be repealed.
| His view was that the Anderson bill
would not be effective, as it provides
for taxing railroad lands, but does
| not contain the necessary provisions
/ to make taxes uniform. 1t was clear
| to him that the constitution author
ICES the legislature to impose gross
earnings tax. These acts having been
accepted by the roads as contracts
the roads may be sold to pay the tax
upon business that is done on roads
beginning and ending within the state
Let the roads that are bound go, and
the question is raised as to the posi-
ton in which it leaves the state.
Property not used exclusively for
railroad purposes and not included in
land grant acts may be taxed, which
were not exempted in the grants.
The state has absolutely no power
to impose a tax upon interstate COM
merce, by amending the constitution
or otherwise. That matter is gov
erned by congress, and only the earn
ings on business between two points
within the state may be taxed. He
quoted a decision of the United States
supreme court in support of the propo-
.sition, being the case of Fargo against
T Michigan, reported in the eighteen
t@1Wallace reports. Other authorities
were also quoted. one Of them being
1872 U. s., page 472.
r r. +oo1x 49, ao.;+;o,, +ho+ +bo sfo %