The herald., 1897-02-07
An EDUCATIONAL FACTOR
A Novel but True View OF the
State Legislature
ITS PRESIDING OFFICERS
Their Characteristics and Personality
Succinctly Reviewed
rs PRESIDING OFFICERS
The Proposed Tax Exemption Of Stanford
University Property-More New
offices for the Hungry

Especial Correspondence to The Herald)
SACRAMENTO. Feb. 5.-The Cahfor-
MIA legislature Is unQuestionably great
and very interesting educational insti-
tuition.
It is not exactly college. nor a uni
versity, nor a kindergarten. nor Is 1t
theological seminary. Nevertheless 1t
is an educational factor of no insignifi-
cant proportions. If every taxpayer
and voter in the state could spend week
Or more at this educational institution,
get behind the scenes and think and
investigate as every searcher after
knowledge should do wherever he is.
he would learn many things that he
never knew before and can learn no
where else.
PRESIDING OFFICERS.
Neither branch of the legislature is
controlled by a model presiding officer.
Lieutenant Governor Jeter, the perma-
nent presiding officer of the senate, is
a dignified gentleman, six feet long. but
not wide. Straight as an arrow, with
black hair and moustache, he stands
behind his desk. gavel in hand. with a
ldC6 apparently SnduOWeQ Dy SdUuSSS
and gloom, and goes through the routine
work devolving upon him in q cold. per-
functory style, much like that of min
lister performing marriage ceremony
over a couple about whose connubial
happiness he has painful doubts, or Of
ficiating at funeral with some misgiv-
ings as to which way the departed soul
Of the deceased had gone. President
Jeter has a clear, strong voice, 1t is pre-
i115e fVN, La r1t >y1u
grudgingly given out. and unaccompa-
MED by any change of countenance or
movement of hand or body to indicate a
personal interest in what he or others
may be saying or trying to say. Mr..
Jeter is gentleman everywhere, and as
a presiding officer he is fair in his rul-
ings, courteous to all. and possesses a
thorough knowledge of parliamentary
rules. He is a man, too, of excellent pri-
vate character. and popular among re-
spectacle people of all parties.
Speaker Coombs of Napa county, who
handles the gavel in the assembly, is a
good fellow" socially and politically,
and he manages to get along fairly we'll
as presiding officer of the larger branch
of assembled statesmen. In personal
appearance he is strikingly different
from President Jeter. being rather short
very heavy set, inclined TO corpulency,
of light complexion. somewhat bald
headed, with sparkling eyes and an alb
solutely colorless face. Speaker Coombs
seems to understand the routine duties
of his responsible position very we'll, and
generally gets along smoothly, when the
sea Is calm. But whenever there is
something really excitlng before the
house, and ten or dozen among the
eighty members are simultaneously
clamoring for recognition in order that
they may electrify the wort1 by their
eloquence and logic, then the presiding
officer shows his lack of firmness and
executive power. In a few moments
after the excitement springs up there is
babel Of voices filing the room with
indisting guishable calls, motions and sug-
gestlons' and the speaker apparently
has lost control Of the big team he is
trying to guide. However, the assembly
is not an extremely turbulent body Of
men, and Speaker Coombs will doubtless
be able to hold his job to the end Of the
session.
Thus far the speaker has managed to
escape embarrassment by rulings on
delicate questions, as he has no diff
Guilty in finding a member at any mo-
ment willing to take the chair tempo
rarily while the permanent speaker
slides down to the floor and quietly
mingles with the lay brethren. The
Napa statesman is said to have strong
aspirations for the governorship, which
he is cultivating even at this early day.
But he is so badly mixed up with or in
the Duckworth pay roll business that
some of his political associates and sup
posed friends are trying to blight his
ambition in its incpiency
TAX EXEMPTION.
In a former letter 1 mentioned the in
PRODUCTION of a proposition to amend the
constitution n f,~oy tox
tion all the property belonging to the
Stanford university. Since then some in
teresting facts concerning this scheme
have come to my knowledge. I gather
them from members of the legislature
and also from reputable persons in San
Francisco who understand the true in
wardness of the movement to thus ex-
empt millions of dollars worth of now
taxable private property. The proposed
amendment would exempt not only the
university buildings and grounds but a
vast amount of personal property, and
also the 100000 acres Of fruit lands at
Vina in Tehama county, which includes
the great vineyard of which much has
been said and written. The products of
that vineyard go toward the support of
the university and constitute an i'm
portant item of revenue. / am Informed
by San Francisco parties that the total
value of all the property sought to be
exempted because of its relation to the
great educational institution is not less
than $40, O00,000 The exemption of all
this property would mean that the tax
payers of California would have to be
saddled with an additional burden equal
to the annual tax on $40, 900, 900 worth of
property now paid by the university.
OPENING THE DOOR.
But this is by no means all Of the in
it1ct Iat IT,, ~
versity exemption door thus thrown
open. Under such a constitutional
amendment as is contemplated, no line
could be drawn between the Stanford
institution and any other concern de-
voted to education in any branch or di-
rection. With the Stanford establish
ment freed from taxation every concern
in the state with an educational feature
attached to it would be claiming like ex-
emption. Churches and Sunday schools
are educational, on religious lines, and
they would of course take advantage of
the amended constitution. That is why
numerous pastors and church propa-
Gandists in this city, in San Francisco
and elsewhere. are actively and zeal
ously favoring the amendment. Further
more, every privately conducted school,
academy. seminary, business college,
and other enterprises under various
names which are devoted to some phase
OF education, would fall into line and
claim exemption from the payment of
taXes-and get it. Intelligent readers
know that all this would mean a tre-
mendous increase of the tax burden un-
der which the wealth producers of the
state are already staggering.
MORE NEW OEEICEC