The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1897-05-25

thus leaving the solvent roads to carry
out the contracts with no chance to get
any pay for doing so. Manager Head,
of the Detroit, Grand Rapids and West
ern road. has promised to secure from
the solvent roads OF the state an agree
ment TO carry out the object sought TO
be obtained by this bill. and this may
end the matter.
Burdenng the senate.
The bill repeating the special charterof
the Michigan Central road, which passed
the house much to the surprise of every
one. is also i'm the hands Of the senate
committee and no one need be surprised
if IL stays there. There are some rea-
fcns for believing that some of these
ILLS were passed by members of the
house for the purpose of making point
with their constituents and throwing the
burden Of defeating them on the senate.
Just how much of this burden the senate
will stand is one of the problems which
enter into the question of just what rail-
road legislation will be eventually
passed. The uniform text book bill has
passed both houses and is in the hands
of the governor. 1t exempts all districts
shall adopt the system previous to Jan.
l, 1899 II is also local option measure
in that any district that does not want
to come under it's provisions may avoid
doing so by vote of It's qualified cleo
tcrs to this effect.
Governor Pingree apparently meant
just what he said when he remarked
few days ago that the chances were
aoainCt cnaria1 n pronria lion hills
becoming laws this year, and his lieu
tenant i'm the house. Colonel Atkinson.
was equally as well informed when he
declared that while all state institutions
would be maintained, no improvements
would be made at any of them. The
significance of these remarks became APP
parent to every one late last week when
the governor sent to the Legislature three
messages vetoing as many bills for pure
ly economical reasons. The bills select
ed for the slaughter on this occasion
were those appropriating $4,000 for the
construction and maintenance of road
ways and other improvements on
Mackinac Island state park, and $1,000
for each Of the ensuing two years for
publishing the historical collections of
! the Michigan Pioneer and Historical So
ciety; also increasing $500 per year the
salaries Of the two police justices of the
| city of Detroit.
Unjust to Taxpayers.
In each OF the messages vetoing the
appropriation bills the governor said:
I'm times of prosperity it would beprop-
err enough to indulge in expenditures of
| this kind, but in the present depressed
| state of the times, when the taxpayers
Of the state are groaning under their
burdens, / feel that it would be unjust
| to them to make appropriations which
| can be dispensed with" These two
vetoes are taken as sure indication
that other special appropriation bills,
such as those providing for electric light
plants at the university and other state
institutions, will experience blow from
| the veto AK The senate made an at
tempt to pass the pioneer bill over the
veto, but it failed, three less than the
necessary twenty-five votes being re-
| corded in favor of such action.
In disposing of the police justice bill
| Governor Pingree took occasion to cal
| attention to the great increase OF the
number of judges Of various kinds and
the vast increase in the expense of main
tanning the judiciary of the state since
| TIE DItStIt SYSTEM w d. uuOPtCbs III sh'
first place he mentioned the fact thai
! 25,0C0 laboring men are out of work II
the city Of Detroit, and said that the
| situation called for a reduction rather
than an increase Of salaries. The cost O.
maintaining the judiciary, he said, has
| Increased from $4,000 in 1855 to SAG, 49,
in 1896, while the number Of circuit
judges have increased from ten to forty
| ba her Of aircIlifc from
ten to thirty five. He suggested that the
legislature carefully consider the ques
ton Of reorganizng the circuits and ven
| tured the statement that they could b'
increased fully one-half without any
detriment to the service. In support OF
this statement he cited the fact thai
many of the judges are not occupied
more than half the time. some being able
to spend months in other circuits fol
I which service they receive extra pay.
Cash Prizes for Essays.
The governors reference to the de-
pressed condition Of the times suggests
the fact that he has offered cash prize:
foi essays on this subject. To the stu
dent Of any college i'm Michigan prepar
ing the best historical paper tracing thu
most accurate parallel in ancient OF
| nlOuGII HlSltIy Will tHt plSsOhb spNid
and political conditions in the United
States, and giving the causes of thi!
parallel he offers a prize of $25. Fol
the second best essay he will pay $l5
and for the third best So Papers mus
be prepared and mailed to the executive
office in this city not later than Sept. /
They will be examined and the aware
made by judges.
The senate committee on appropria
tions and finance has numerically
siashed every appropriation bill that ha
come before it. This does not mean tina
the slashing has been zone without judg
ment. On the contrary the COMMITTEES
has been very painstaking in its investi
cations and has sought to hold the in
stitutons down to actual needs. OWNS
to this fact. which has come to be rec
ognized at both ends of the capitol. muci
surprise has been expressed az the &C
ton Of the house In cutting s25.090 from
the appropriation mace by the senate