The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-10-20
FORGOT PART Of IT
HURRIED LEGISLATORS LEFT OUT
THE ENACTENG CLAUSE OF
A LOBBED BILL
IN THAT MIDNIGHT SESSION
THAT MARKED THE CLOSE OF
THE LEGISLATURE OF LAST
WINTER.
Are Surprised to Find a Bill Legal
izing the Swallowing Up of
Their Investments.

In the rush and hurry of the last
night of the last session of the legis-
lature, the house passed a bill which is
now known as chapter 250 of the Cen
eraI Laws of 1897, although there is a
serious question as to whether 1t has
any rightfuI legal effect than the lpse
dixit of a small school boy writing
"the COW can rum on a sheet of yellow
drawing paper
The bill passed by unanimous vote.
1t was nearly left outside the pale, and
those who were pushing it managed to
get it through, somewhat disfigured, it
is true, but still they got most of it.
through.
However, it was revealed in the dis
.trict court at Minneapolis yesterday
that the bill was lacking an enacting
clause, and the courts have held in
number of cases that the enacting
clause is a, somewhat essential feature
OF any real effective law.
The courts are somewhat handi-
capped in this case, however, for the
people who wanted this bill passed
have not been captious. They did not
or ten of them They went right ahead
and assumed that it was law.
The bill was aimed, ostensibly, to
permit the more economical closing up
of the business of embarrassed build
ing and loan associations, relieving
them from the operations of the gen
eral insolvency law.
The shareholders in the association
affected by the law were not generally
informed as to it's provisions. Indeed,
little was said about it in either branch
of the legislature.
The bill was introduced in the senate
March 20, by Senator E. T. Young, of
Swift county, endorsed "by request"
1t was referred to the committee on
corporations. The title threw no light
in the Interior, as it seems possible
now, purpose of the bill. The COM
mittee reported it favorably April 8,
and it was given its second reading
April g. The bill was on general Or
ders when April IA, Senator w. e.
johnson, of Hennepin, himself interest
ed in building and loan associations,
moved that it be advanced to the cal
endar This motion however, was lost,
but the following day the bill was
taken up on general orders and recon-
mended for passage. 1t passed the
senate Sc to 0 April II, and was at once
hurried into the house, where, after the
bill was read the first time, by title,
Henry Johns moved that the rules be
suspended and the bill placed on gen.
eral orders as No. Az. This was car
ried. That was Saturday. The follow
ing Monday the bill was considered on
general orders and recommended for
passage and as stated before, it was
passed the next day in the hurry Of
the closing midnight session. That
was April 90
In less than a month the building
and loan associations were taking ad-
vantage of the new law, faulty as it
was on it's face with the omitted enact
ing clause, and now not less than six
building and loan associations doing a
general business in the Twin Cities have
gone into voluntary liquidation. They
are:
Continental, 507 Manhattan building,
st. Paul, w. G. Edwards president, G.
H. Brownell, secretary and treasurer.
st. Paul Savings and Loan associa-
ton, 4S East Fourth street, c. E. Ham
lllOn, president, w. u. O1SI, vice press
ident; W. 7. Kirke, secretary; ]. NJ.
Hawthorne, attorney.
North American, st. Peter and Wash
ingten streets; w. j. DonahoWer, presi-
dent; H. H. Walpole, secretary.
And the Pioneer, Security and Home
companies, of Minneapolis.
Some of the shareholders in the Sc
curity are fighting the scheme of liqui-
dation in the courts, on the ground
that the law is faulty and that there
will be an injustice worked if the
scheme is permitted to go through to
a fnality.
A great many of the creditors of the
companies live in remote places, and
were totally unaware of the passage of
the bill, or of the liquidation of the
companies until the directors of the as,
ISOLATION had taken steps to comply
with the law which seemed to them
such a welcome measure.
A few days ago a number of stock
holders in the North American COM
pany of this city, who live at Good
Thunder Blue Earth county, met, and
after considering the matter, decided
to send a committee to this city to see
if they could save anything.
what recourse thew have iS hard