The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1897-02-11
BUSINESS BODY

| A BUSINESS BODY
STATE LEGISLATURE GAINING A REP.
uTATioN FOR WORK.
| At Saturdays Adjournment the Desks OF
/ Both Senate and House Were Cleared.
| Reapportionment Believed to He As.
Standardization of Banking Laws-The
First Junket-Grondahps Bicycle Bill.
Struck Jury Law-Tax Legislation.
ST. PAUL, Feb. 9. Especial. lon the
xace of things this is business legisla-
rure. Saturday night found both
house with clear desks, all work re-
ported from committees having been
disposed of. And the committees kept
well up with their work, too. Secretary
of the Senate Langum was bit in
climbed to boast over the working rec
ord of that body until Chief Clerk
Bowling assured him that the house
was also even with it's work. There
are two reas ons for this state of affairs.
First, and most important, u the
knowledge gained by the leaders from
their former legislative experience that
crowding business is necessary at all
stages Of the session. Too many legis-
lators think a 90-day session is long
enough to allow easy going methods
for the first month or two. These are
the supporters Of frequent motions for
ad5ournments over from Friday until
Tuesday. They maintain that the
committees should thus be given
more time to consider bills referred
to them, but more experienced legisla-
tors have learned that when the house
or senate adjourns for three days the
members go home and no committees
can meet. Hence nearly every pro-
posed three day adjournment has been
antagonized and generally prevented,
and the result shows in the condition
of legislative business. The second
reason is that the most important
measures have not yet been reported
back from the committees and in gen.
eral the bills thus far are of compar.
itively minor interest and therefore
more easily disposed Of. However, the
most important measures usually are
longer in committee SO that this fact
has less to do with the present ad-
vanced stage of business.
Reapportionment is now an assured
thing. After three weeks deadlock on
the preliminary details of the subject
both houses yielded little and the
compromise seems to make reappor-
tionment possible. Past experience has
shown that when either house alone
attempts reapportionment, the result
has been failure, joint action being the
only kind to make success certain. This
fact made the leaders willing to accent
a compromise. The house wanted
joint committee of 15 representatives
and 8 senators, those figures giving
about the usual proportionate represen-
tation of the two houses on joint COM
mittees, but the senate insisted on an
equal number of committeeman, claim.
ing IA from each house was proper.
Friends of reapportionment feared the
contention of the senate was a scheme
of the enemies to defeat that end, but |
the compromise gives the house, where
they believe their strength is greatest,
a majority Of on the joint committee,
there being 10 representatives and Ia
senators. OF course this is but the
first step, but it is looked upon as so
favorable to a just reapportionment as
to assure the ultimate success of the
newer portions of the state in their
fight for enlarged representation in the
If anyone ever doubted that this leg
slature wanted to amend the banking
laws the action of the house on Satur-
day should convince them of their
error. Adverse reports on the three
banking bills, one by Mr.. Mcdonald
and two by Mr. Donnelly, were pre-
sented by the committee on banks and
banking, whose members favored some
of the banking laws along
the same lines as provided in these
bills, but believed certain provisions
too radical, and therefore not advisa-
BILE. Mr.. McDonald's bill was the first
to be so reported, and that member at
once moved to reverse the committee
action and place his bill on general
orders for consideration by the house |
in committee of the whole. His bill
prohibits loans by banks to officers or
of such banks, requires an
increase of the cash to so per cent of
deposits subject to check, limits the
size of loans according to the securi-
ties offered, requires more specific bank
statements, and provides penalties for
violation of the law. After a lively
debate the committees action was re-
versed, and few minutes later SINH.
lar action was taken in relation to Mr..
Donnelly's bills to require daily
publication of financial condition,
and to require the publication of
the names of all officers and
stockholders of banks together with the
IS l.