Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1897-04-02
Dss Moines Correspondence.

ny the legislature, estimated what
must yet be done to complete the
code and concluded the work half
done. But as some of the more i'm
portant measures are continually be-
ing brought up for reconsideration,
and as the final big responsibility of
annulling all the present laws and
adopting the new ones instead, all at
one fell swoop, may cause some of
the members to scratch their head
and ponder for several days, there is
really no telling how much longer
the session will last.
The committee of corporation
lawyers that planned out the revision
of the code, at a cost of $50, 1000 to the
state, and SO reframed the laws in the
interest of the railroads and other
corporate powers that the legislature
was afraid to adopt the report with
out careful reconsideration of every
clause, fixed the tramp law SO that
when the effects of a continued gold
standard and monopoly system, sue h
as is now in vogue and is to be kept
in vogue by the Mckinley administra-
ton, forces the idle, starving people
to again band together and seek re-
dress Cor their wrongs and relief for
their suffe rings, as did the Kelley and
Coxey armies in 1898, the state
officials can more easily deny them
their constitution given rights and
put them in Jail for six months. The
senate ignored the amendment and
left the law as it is, but the House
says Kelley must not he permitted
and banding together of ten or more
people without visible means of sup
port is a violation of law punishable
by six months Imprisonment. From
all indications it will not be long I'M
til the greater part of the populace
will be without visible means of sup
port and consequently amenable to
that law if it shall be passed.
The senate also sat down on any
change in She railroad law. The pres
ent restrictions on those greedy cor
porations have been reasonably eff
fective in Iowa and a legislature that
SHOULD make any useless change in
the the same and thereby enable the
railroads to gain an undue advantage
oyer the people would be so COM
pletely reprimanded as to end its flu
ture opportunities for betrayal
of trust. This the members know
and propose to be careful how they
emasculate the railroad law. That is
one law of which the people of Iowa
are Jealous. 1t took political revolu-
tion and the election of granger
assembly to get it, and while the
roads gain some advantage by own
ing the commissioners, who are paid
by the people and supposed to guard
their interests, and while our state
revenue laws do not force the roads
to put up their proportion of taxes,
and while passenger rates are too
high, and reforms are needed in
other respects, the people want to
know that the law is to be made
better, and not worse, when it is
changed.
The insinuations and. charges in
the Jackman building and loan let
ter were investigated by a committee
and everybody exonerated but Jack
man. He was the fellow who let the
cat out of the bag and of course he
deserved to shoulder the stigma. But
it caused the assembly to take steps
toward preventing such wide open
public and shameful lobbying as has
been customary, and an old rule was
looked up that permits lobbyists ad
mission to the halls only on invitation
of member. But that won't last
long, nor does it preclude the exer
else of the profession when the mem
bers are not in session.
| The executive board has not as yer
submitted it's new railroad assessment
but Governor Drake intimates thai
enough is now known to warrant hin
in saying that the railroads will have
to pay about 100000 per year NOR.
taxes than usual. This is importan t
and refreshing if true.
i Some of the Legislators evidentl.
are catching on to the fact that TIN
railroad commissioners, although
paid good round salary by the stat
work more in the interests of tn,
railroads than the people. In advocat
ing bill to make railroads place
wye at every crossing one membe
wanted it distinctly understood tina
the law should be mandatory and no
subject to the discretion of the com
missioners. And yet there are thos
who say a $4,000 salary is not enough
for the state to pay those fellows. /
they are railroad agents why not lie
the railroads pay all their salaries
And if they are not railroad agent
why did they spring that long drawn
out argument against a two-cent pass
enger fare just when the legislator
was getting ready to consider tina
question: The people demand low
er passenger rate and if their pal
servants are to turn on them an
throw their official influence on TIL
other side, then the other side ev
IDENTIFY has them under obligations
, it to a greater extent than have tn