The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-02-08
Important Measures Are Making Fair
Progress Toward Their Final En-
actment Into Law.
SOME QUESTIONS OF POLITICS
CAUCUS MEASURES TO BE ACTED
UPON TO-DAY AND TOMORROW.
Status of the More Important LegisIa-
tiOn-New Fee and Salary Bill
Prison Reform.

The session Of the Legislature is just half
over and it is further along in it's work
than any of its predecessors have been for
years at the end of the first month. 1t will
be known in the future as business rather
than a political session. There have been
no political arguments to speak of on the
floor OF either house during the session,
though there will doubtless be a feast of it
in the House this afternoon when the APP
portionment bill comes up for second read
ing a special order.
The political questions before the Assem-
bly, are comparatively few and the only
ones of real Importance are the legislative
apportionment and the amendments TO the
election law. The question of abolishing
the present Metropolitan police commits
sioners and replacing them with new ones,
of reorganizng the prison boards and of
having the Statehouse engineer selected by
the Governor instead of by the Legislature
are never likely to become campaign issues.
1t is with nonpolitical questions for the
most part that the Legislature has to deal,
and upon these it has spent nearly all its
time up to date. Among the topics of large
Importance that up for discussion and
action are trusts. building and loan associa-
tons. the educational system of the State,
pharmacy bill, fees and salaries, cigarettes
and the question of township and county
government systems.
POLITICAL LEGISLATION.
AS predicted some weeks ago, the Repub-
licans are having some trouble in getting
the apportionment bill through the House,
where they have but ffty-three members,
and fifty-one are required as a constitu-
tional majority for the passage of the BILL
To make legislative apportionment in In
diana and observe the principles laid down
by the Supreme Court in its decision during
the past three years is a job in COMPARE
son with which Chinese puzzle Is easy.
There are fifty senators and one hundred
representatives 10 be apportioned among
ninety-two counties Oh varying population,
and in making such apportionment il is
the most natural thing in the world that
some two or three counties should think
case with Lagrange, Steuben and Rush
counties in the bill adopted by the Repub-
lican caucus last Tuesday night. The rep
resentative unit is $40 and Lagrange and
Steuben counties, with combined popula-
ton of nearly 1900, are given but one
representative between them There are
other counties with but little over 1000 pop
ulation that are given separate representa-
tives. and in taking care of surplus popula-
ton one or two joint districts have been
run over four big counties. The Lagrange
and Steuben people are insisting that their
representatives snail vote against the Dill
for these reasons and neither of these rep
reSentatives participated in the caucus. The
Rush county grievance lies in the fact that
she is put in senatorial district with Mad
ison and Hancock counties and can be out
voted in convention. Mr. Thomas, of Rush,
did not participate In the caucus either,
and these three are enough to defeat the
pill IT was Introduced In the House on
"Wednesday and favorably reported
Thursday, these representatives voting for
the report But on Friday when an effort
was made to force the bill through second
reading under the operation of the previous
question these representatives baked and
took with them half a dozen other Repub-
licans who did not believe in crOwding
them. The bill was finally made a special
BabcOck, the leader OF the Republican OPP
ponents to the measure in it's present FORM
Sne of the b,s ont Sistrct tS cpeafe6 for
the purpose of taking care OF the surplus
vote and giving Lagrange and Steuben
each a separate representative.
The election bill and the apportionment
bill are both making fair progress in the
Senate and it will be no trouble at all to
body. where the Republicans have ma
jority large enough to suspend the rules
whenever it is found necessary.
To no subject of nonpolitical legislation
has more attention been devoted than to
that of the educational system of the State.
A general educational bill, drawn by a
special committee of the State Teachers
Association. is pending before both houses.
1t establishes a system of township high
SCIOOlS, tuuCdllOldi
of county superintendents and puts the
power of issuing teachers licenses in the
hands of the state superintendent. But
none OF these subjects have brought out
one-tenth the amount of discussion in
gard to the bill as the less important ques-
ton of whether or not the State Normal
School shall be permitted to continue to
joy the advantage it has held in having its
diploma good for a life license to teach
teachinS The .:nonstate'' institutions
have made a determined fight to have this
feature of the old law rescinded. The
subject is not covered in the pending bill.
but their desire is that a section to this
effect should be added. The hearings of the
educational committees, and they have been
many and interesting. have been devoted
10 this subject rather than 10 the merits
of the pending BILL The measure will be
made special order for second reading on
some day either the latter part of this week
or the first of next
b. AND l.. TRUSTS.
Under the question of a building and loan
bill the committees of the two houses have
come to a joint agreement upon the main
features of building and loan bill that will
be passed. 1t will abolish the expense fund,
prohibit the taxing of a fee for with
drawals, regulate membership fees by fix
ing maximum and provide for the crea-
ticn of contingent fund amounting to
per cent. of the stock. There will be no such
fight against the measure there was two
years ago when a somewhat similar bill
was defeated only after a desperate strug-
gle that involved the utmost eXertiOn of a
powerful and influential lobby. The build
ing and loan lobby has been CONSPICUOUS
by its absence this year. The business is
not what IL used To be. Public agitation has
been effective and the day of big expense
funds and high salaries TO officers are over
even if the Legislature should not pass
any restrictive measures. The bill
drafted yesterday by Mr. Peckinpaugh UPON
the lines agreed upon by the committee.
1t will be submitted to n joint meeting of
the committee to-day and reported favor
ably by the committees i'm both houses upon
the next call for committee reports a
substitute for one of the measures now be-
fore the committees.
On the subject of an antitrust bill the
conscientious members of the Legislature
are i'm not little doubt TO just what
kind of a measure they. should pass. They
want To reach the trusts and prevent them
from doing business i'm the State and for
this purpose measures duplicating the Ill-
nois and Georgia statutes have been in
troduced- They are very drastic, reaching
not only trusts as the term is general
ly understood. but all sorts of
combinations and price agreements. This
has aroused much opposition among the
business interests of the State and those
members OF the Assembly who are not i'm
| touch with the business world find TO their
great surprise that about 60 per cent. of
everything they buy is sold at an agreed
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