Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1897-08-05
HARRISBURG.

Excessive charges made by the ste
nopraphers of investigating committees
and items for ''car fare, sleeping berths'
telegraph and telephone service, etc
we're blotted out wherever they appear
ed.
Tn his veto he wades into the personal
accounts of theiegislators who lnvestl-
gated the destit ute condition OF the an
thracite miners: Chairman W. b. Mer-
edith, of Kittanning, for car fare tel
egrapb, telephone, berths, expense OF
preparing report, s542; Senator Halnes,
of York for the same items, except prep
aration of report, $217.30; Jacob RoD-
erts. Jr., of Luzerne, 1892. 32; Represent
ative Dunlap, of Philadelphia, S232 30
Representative J. c. Campbell, of West
morland, $177 30,
In his veto of the accounts OF the oleo
investigation committee he says
AS to the two members or the commit.
tee who make no reply, feel justified
in inferring, from the similarity OF the
amounts appropriated to them, and the
fact that they failed to make reply TO
nv request. that their items are OF the
same character. and made up IN the
same manner. At all events, no evl-
dence is furnished me by which | can
find that the appropriations would be
proper.
1t has been the practice for many
wears to allow mileage TO members OF
committees Of the General Assembly,
and in withholding my approval from
these items and similar items appearing
in other bills deem it proper to state
that no reflection upon the character
of the members can be fairly Implied
because of these appropriations. A
careful investigation of the whole SUD
iect however. leads me to the conclu-
sion that not only is there no act OF AS
sembly authorizing such payments, Dut
that it was clearly forbidden the
fund.- mental law, article IL, section .,
of the Constitution,
The only milege to which menu Der
of the General Assembly appears to be
entitled is that provided in the act of
Assembly of 90 cents in coming from
and going home. He is distinctly for
hidden to receive any other compenSa-
ion whatever whether for services upon
committees or otherwise. Should these
items receive Executive approval. com
pensatlon would be given for service
upon committee under the guise OF mile
age, in addition to the salary and mile
age provided by law.
Two members of the committee rem
dered bills smaller in amount, shown TO
me TO be actual cash disbursements Tor
necessary expenses in the conduct OF the
Investigating with which they were
charged by the General Assembly and
/ have, therefore, approved them, with
other unobjectionable items.
lin the consideration of this bill and
others of similar character l have IN all
cases Withheld my approval from all
items except such as | had reason TO
believe represented necessary and act
ual disbursements for expenses incur
ed
In each of the foregoing items disap-
proved and included in the sum appro-
priated is the work of preparing re
ports" The amounts considered by
member of a committee as a proper
charge for preparing reports
is not given, but it appears to form
part of each sum appropriated Under
the law, as already shown, member
of the committee is not entitled to any
sum whatever for the work of prepar-
ing the report of his committee, and to
allow compensation therefor would be
in plain violation of the provision OF the
constitution above quoted.
He also vetoed the bills to create the
office Of Game and Fish Warden and
what is known rs the Fish Commission
bill, codifying the fish laws and declar-
ing the species Of fish which are game
and commercially valuable for food.
The latter measure was amended 10
such an extent in the House that the
Fish Commission disowned it and asked
the Governor to use his scimetar. One
objection of the Governor was that the
bill failed to prohibit fishing on Sun
day. The commission thinks in many
cases the size of the fish to be caught is
too small. Through the onslaughts OF
Ben Focht and Peoples, of Lancaster,
the measure was radically changed.
Focht declared the bill was aimed at
the poor man and the barefooted urchin
in favor of the "aristocratic sports
man"
Also the bill to provide for the more
safe and efficient means of exit from
theatres and other places Of public
amusement The bill applies to all the
towns, and the Governor thinks it
would be onerous and oppressive on the
smaller places.
In reducing the appropriation for the
University of Pennsylvania from $3.50
600 to 100000 he says: THE State
should be wise and liberal enough to
well provide for such institutions as
the University of Pennsylvania, the
State College and the Western Uni
versity"
On Friday the Governor vetoed the
Mercantile Tax bill and in his veto
message says:
This being an important revenue
measure, and coming to me at q time
when additional revenues are needed,
would receive my approval were it not
for the fact that, after the most careful
consideration. have reached the con
clusion that the constitutionality of
the proposed enactment is more than
doubtful; that, if permitted to become
"a law. il would be unjust and unfair to
large class of our merchants, and that
ultimately it would prove detrimental
to the best interests of the Common
wealth
The Constitution provides, article
tx, section l., that all taxes shall be
uniform upon the same class or sub
jects within the territorial limits of the
authority levying the tax, and shall be
levied and collected under general
laws
by the terms of this bill the mer-
chant whose sales are more than 81 900
and less than $1,000 annually pays 81,
and the merchant whose sales amount TO
anything less than $40, 900 pays a tax of
$40 while the merchant whose sales
amount to $10,000,000 or more pays
x12, 900 per annum. The want of uni
formity is apparent from this state
ment
"The thing taxed is the volume of
sales. The small merchant who sells
81 900 worth of goods in year pays 81,
or 7-mill tax. and the merchant who
sells $40, 600 worth year pays $40, or a
1-mill tax, while the merchant whose
sails amount TO $40, 100000 per year, if
he were taxed at the same rate as the
merchant whose sales amount to 81, 900
per year, would be required to pay so,
900, instead Of sl2, 900, as fixed by the
bill.
This inequality is found through the
entire classification, and inasmuch as
the license tax has for its basis the
volume Of the sales and that being the
subject of the tax, believe it to be in
violation of the section Of the Constitu-
ton above quoted 1t is certainly not
uniform upon the same class of sub
jects. If it be SAID that each one of
the 81 classes has imposed upon it
uniform tax upon all merchants within
its provisions, | think it still open to
the objection that it is an arbitrary
classification Of a class. and that. as the
burdens imposed upon the several
classes lack uniformity and equality, it
is still within the constitutional in