The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1897-04-15
THE LEGISLATURE.
This Session IL Rapidly Drawing
to q Close. -
All Bills Have Been Presented. The Menu
beers Can Now Devote Their limo
to Committee Work and the
~u. Calender + -r.-

Ah kslAs Have Been Presented. The Mem:
bers Can Now Devote Their Time
to Committee Work and tho
~'ua Calender.
st. Paul, April 6.-The senate was
far from being. in accord yesterday, but
when four hours afternoon session
was ended there was no forenoon SEES
stony it was difficult to discover, by &C.
complished" results, what it was all
about. Four bills successfully ran the
gauntlet Of passage, one of which
gives the wealthy an opportunity to
purchase fame. It provides that the
regents of the state university can
name chair after anyone who gives
the institution $50, 900 or more.
The bill requiring probate judges to
send insane persons to asylums by
sheriffs, where friends do not take
them. produced a long de bate, finally
resulting in leaving the whole matter
to the discretion of the probate judge.
1t was claimed that the bill was de-
viscd to increase the fees of sheriffs
An effort TO- rush the house bill licens-
ing peddlers ahead of its regular order
was only brought to a conclusion by
hunger causing an adjournment for
supper, with nothing done. The nub
of the measure is that the country de-
sires to put license on peddlers from
the city which will be practically pro-
hibitory.
good many politicians breathe
easier today, and probably good
many liquor dealers as we'll. The
county option bill was considered at
length in the he use. This bill is an ad-
denda to town option. It provides that
If town votes mo license" the vote
stands, even if the county votes""li-
cense," but if town votes TOR license
and the county votes against license"
the county vote stands. This has Gre
ated good deal of apprehension among
politicians as to the general effect if
the bill was passed. 1t was one of the
early bills of the session, but was only
reached in earnest yesterday. After a
long debate a test vote showed but 80
in favor of the bill, or II less than
enough to pass it. No bills were passed.
but three sessions, morning, afternoon
and evening, were devoted to consider
ing bills in committee of the whole. S
being indefinitely postponed and So
recommended to pass. Among the lat
ter was one authorizing iron miners to
furnish their own cars for transporting
ore, if the railroads would not. and
compelling the railroads to haul them.
The governor has signed the bill au-
thorizing the issue of half million
dollars, certificates of indie btedness for
the new capitol.
St. Paul, April 1.-Two reports to
the legislature were made public yes
terday which will produce something
of sensation, and possibly something
more. Both were from joint commit
tees. One was tho report of the COM
mittee which investigated the defunct
banks, their report being ordered filed
in the Office of secretary of state and
given to the public. The report makes
serious reflections on all of the broken
banks in the Twin Cities, except the
Scandal, of Minneapolis. The COM
mittee says that failure was honest.
The export testimony developed by the
committee shows that in some of the
banks records were falsifed, and in
most of them the officers and directors
were large borrowers. which caused
the failures. The evidence is now left
to the public and the prosecuting at
torneys.
The other report was from the COM
mittee appointed to investigate the
transfer of the Mountain Iron mine to
private parties. The conclusions of
the committee are that these iron lands
became part of the school lands of the
state in 1884: that the state auditor
had no right to relinquish them and
that his action was null and void.
The committee further state that they
believe combination was entered
into by private parties to secure these
lands and that it is the duty of the
state to recover them. They further
recommend that joint commission of
three senators and four representa-
tives, be appointed to sit after the leg
islature ajourns and bring such pro-
ceedings as may be necessary to recov-
or the lands containing the valuable
mine.
Aside from these reports, the inter-
est of the day conferred in the house,
where the Douglas distance tariff bill
was the special order. This bill fixes
railroad rates according to distance
and has been strenuously opposed by
the roads. Petitions haYc been sent in
by railroad employees requesting its de-
feat on the ground that it would Grip
pie the roads and cause reduction of
their pay. A large number came in
Yesterday. The debate began at II a.
IN. Representative Douglas, of Moor
head, who introduced the bill, being
the first speaker. He was followed by
Mr.. Schmidt, of Duluth, the leader in
opposition to the bill. Messrs. Jacob
son, Donnelly, Dahl, Gear and Foss
spoke for the bill, and Messrs. Little
ton, Reeves and Cray against. 1t was
p m. when the debate concluded and
vote was reached, resulting in the
defeat of the bill by AZ yeas to g. nays.
The senate put in full day yester-
day in committee of the whole, recon-
mcnding 50 bills for passage. There
were 1928 bills in ,the-committee, and