The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1897-03-10
MINNESOTA LEGISLATURE.
THE HOUSE.

wv L q AAS AVA I'LL A0 luOSU I'LL UOI.
tant matter considered by the Legis-
lature during the past week, if heated
debate and intense interest be the
criterion, was the question whe Their
Anoka or Tasting should have the
new insane asylum. The two towns
fought each other with all the vim
dictiveness of family feud, almost
as though an asylum for the dement,
ed and unfortunates was the most de-
sirable Of neighbors. In the House
Hastings won-and won complet ely;
in the Senate it was drawn battle,
with the advantage decidedly in IA
vOr of Tasting. 1t took the House
the whole day, from 10 a. N. to after
10 p. M, Friday, to decide it, and the
senate spent as much time, within a
few hours. Thursday.
Among the interesting and import
ant bills introduced was that of Judge
Hicks, providing for new primary
election law. The proposed measure
is the judges very own. It is not a
copy Of anybOdy's law, and it has cost
him a great deal more labor than he
would give in law case for a 500 re-
tainer.
There is no occasion to 20 into the
details of the bill, but in general
way it provides that preliminary
election shall be held under the con-
troll Of the state in which persons are
nominated for every office. It is a
sort Of double election system, and
does away with the caucus and the
conventions. The bill is food for an
afternoons reading. 1t has been or
dered printed and placed on general
orders in the House, but without
recommendation.
Another important measure which
Was introduced in the House early in
the week was the bill to provide for
the appointment of commission of
senators and mem bers of the House
to look up such matters as the Noun.
tain Iron mine and the Duluth and
Winnipeg land question. There is no
indication at present as to whether
this will meet with approval or not.
The passage of the Johns antitrust
law and the refusal by the House to
make any provision for the exception
in the case Of labor organiza lions, to-
gethcr with the introduction of a
special bill for the purpose Of legalz-
ing these organizations, was one Of
the features Of the week. The poll
ticians have forgotten the respectful
dread which they cnce had of tn or
gained laboring man. The bill to
legaliZe these associations of workers
was introduced by Mr.. Coe, but it is
not quite in form to suit the people
for whom it was drafted, and it viii
pre- badly be slightly amended on gen.
eral orders where it was sent without
reference to any committee.
SENATE.
st. Paul, March ALI day sessions
and an evening thrown in made a
good total of working time for the
senators the past week. The contest
over the location of the Fourth hos
pital for the insane stand out more
prominently in the public mind than
anything else.
The repeal Of the tonnage tax on
iron ore marked the second most ex-
| citing topic of the week. 1t had been
Wyman had the bill in his pocket for
some days before hand, and was
thinking Of introducing 1T, but it was a
genuine surprise to many when he Of
fercd it in the regular course Of bust
ness and asked that it be passed I'M
der pension Of the rules.
The antitrust bill has not been dis
cussed in the Senate. 1t has been on
general orders several weeks but has
been laid over from time to time 1t
will probably come up early this week,
and there is a growing disposition in
the Senate to kill of the whole meas.
ure.
Nothing has been heard from the
banking bills or the investigation of
the bank examiner in the last week.
The bills still remain in the commit
tee to which they were referred, and
IL the bank examiner is being investi-
gated by the Senate nobody hears
anything about 1t.