The Topeka state journal., 1897-03-10
TIME SHORT NOW
In Which the Auditorium Bill
Can Pass.
1t Got Through the Senate Last
Night,
But With Another Amendment
Stuck Fast to 1t,
IN WHICH THE HOUSE
Must COncur-This MakesHaste
Most Necessary.
Will Be Widespread Anger In
Topeka
If By Any Hook the Bill Is
Lost.
But With Another Amendment
Stuck Fast to 1t,
IN WHICH THE HOUSE
Must COncur-ThiS MakeSHaSte
Most Necessary.
Will Be Widespread Anger In
Topeka
If By Any Hook the Bill Is
Lost.

If the Topeka auditorium bill fails it
will be through the most remarkable
combination of delays known in legis-
lative experience. And these delays
We're not due to the Populist majority
either.
1t does not seem possible that a bill
of this nature, which involves no issue
of bonds and which merely asks for the
expenditure of money by Topeka, al
ready in the city treasury, can have
any opposition.
1t does not appear on the surface to
have opposition, but why all this delay,
this bandying of the measure back and
forth between the upper and lower
houses until the people of Topeka are
becoming indignant and disgusted at
the sight?
The Topeka auditorium bill. as passed
in the house last week, was amended
and passed by the senate late yeSter-
day afternoon by vote of 81 to l. Sen
ator Cooke (Pop., Mitchell county, was
the only member to vote against it, and
this action on his part was through
misunderstanding of the measure then
before the house.
The original auditorium bills intro
duced in both houses of the Legislature,
were exactly similar, but when the
measure was taken up in the house it
was amended (no real reason existed
for it, so as to include Kansas City,
Kan, by giving the right to any city
of over 10000 population to make ap-
propria ton of money for public build
ing. After this amendment the bill
was passed by the lower house and
sent to the senate, while the original
measure, giving the right of apprOpri-
ating money to a city of over sc, 900 and
less than $4,000 inhabitants alone, was
passed by the senate and sent to the
house
On Monday afternoon the committee
to which the house bill had been re-
ferred after having been messaged to
the senate, reported it to that body
with the recommendation that it be
passed, as announced in the State
Journal that evening. The bill would
probably have been passed on that day
had not $50 it is reported) Senator
thinner and Representative Armstrong
of WyandOtte county got together at
the eleventh hour and decided to Op-
pose the measure as amended by the
house. Representative Armstrong Wis
tied Senator Sterne and informed him
of this decision, but stated that if the
house bill was allowed to die in the
senate, he would push the senate bill
through the house.
Senator Sterne, however, said he did
not like the idea of leaving the fate of
Topeka's auditorium on the possibility
of the senate bill going through the
bill so as to conform with the original
measure and have it acted upon by the
senate An opportunity of doing this
was afforded late yesterday afternoon.
the bill was called up, amended and
put through the final passage.
All that is now necessary before the
bill is sent to the governor, is for the
house to concur in the senate amend
nnents. The time is very late; the bill
if cOncurred in will go to Governor
Leedy, will he signed by next Saturday,
and on publication will become a lew.
But there must be haste.
LATEST FROM THE BILL.
The latest report from the bill is as fol-
lows:
The auditorium bill was mesSaged to
the house this morning, and appears on
the calendar, under local bills third
reading. 1t will be rushed and passed
some time this afternoon
The bill was amended in the senate
that it applies only to Topeka, and can
not in all reason and justice, be objected
to.
Its passage is assured, and the final roll
call. by which the house concurs to the
senate amendment is all that remains be-
fore the bill will be in the governors
hands for approval. This will be secured
this afternoon or tonight as the house is
considering only bills from the senate.