The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-11-20
mo QUORUM" DAY IN HOUSE.
NO SESSION OF SENATE AND THE
HOUSE SESSION WAS \ FIAsCO.

Placed In an Uncertain Position
by the Lack of QuOrum-Nir. Me
MiIIan's Bill Relating to Collins
willie Reported FaVorabIy by the
Committee and Is Likely to Pass.
school Appropriation Fight-Hail-
road COmmissionshiP Talk.
Atlanta. Ca. Nov l9.-To-day session Of
the House of Repre- sentauves was iiasco.
There was no session of the Senate and
there might just as wei have been no
session of the House. No quorum was
present, and the attempt to do business
on this skeleton membership brought on a
pretty mess of parliamentary trouble
On Saturdays, when no quorum IS a
frequent occurrence. il is customary to
dispense with the roll call, and then de
vote the session to reading bills second
time. or 10 some other unimportant mat
ters not recurring a resort to the cali OF
the House. This morning, however al
though the call Of the roll was dispensed
with, there was a stumbling block in the
way of the customary Saturday pro
gramme. This appeared in the form OF
motion 10 reconsider The Copeland bill,
passed yesterday, which seeks TO prevent
the transfer of accounts to parties in other
states. where the purpose of the transfer
Is 10 give the creditor the advantage OF
garnishment on the daily wages Of a la
borer. the Georgia law eXempting the wage
Garner from process of punishment. MI
Moore Of Carroll made the motion to re-
consider, the rule requiring that it be
made the day following the action of the
House. The bill had been passed only
after a close fight, IN which Speaker Little
cast the deciding vote. and the opposition
felt pretty confident of a re
consideration. After some debate
Mr. Hardwick of Washington
called the previous question, ana theh d
division was demanded. This disclosed the
fact that there was no quorum present
and as IL had been ruled that quorum lS
necessary to do any kind of business, Mr..
Slaton. who was in the chair, was put to
the point of closing the doors and sending
out in search of members enough IN or
der to furnish a quorum for adJournlhS
purposes.
Parliamentary law seemed to present no
way out of the dilemma except by waning
for a hopeless quorum, and rather than
go to this extremity. Mr.. Slaton took the
buIl bv the horns and declared the House
adjourned without regard to the pendehcy
of the call for the previous question: Inc
situation continues to be interesting from
a parliamentary point Of view, because
the House viii have to decide Monday
morning whether or not the motion to re-
consider the Copeland bill is still before
the House. Some of the leaders contend
that il goes over as unfinished business,
while others and these are the friends or
the bin who do not want it reconsidered,
contend thar as the motion was not speci-
fcally set for discussion as a special order
ii cannot be considered at that time, I'M
der the rule that requires motions 10 re-
consider to be made on the day following
that when the main question was voted
upon.
Mr.. McMillan's bill amending the act of
1854. incorporating the city of Savannah,
has received a favorable report from the
committee and will come up on it's pas
sage In the House during the first part OF
next week This is the bill which proposes
10 repeal that clause in the act referred
to which exempts that part of the city
known as Collinsville from municipal tax
alton until the residents thereof are in
the endowment of all the rights and con-
veuienees of the city. 1t Is held that Col
linsVille has long been enjoying the same
conveniences and privileges as other parts
of the city, and that, therefore, the time
has arrived to require of its residents the
same public burdens that are borne by the
balance Of the citizens of Savannah The
Chatham delegation is united in support Of
the bill. which assures its passage through
the House and also in the Senate, unless
il should encounter unexpected opposition,
supported by Senator Grovenstein, which
is not likely.
Next week will see the fight over the
common school appropriation on in earn
est. The House committee has gotten
pretty well through the list of appropri-
atoms, with the exception of the schools
and pensions They win finish up, all the
other items except these two and then
take them up together. There is no doubt
that there is a growing disposition in both
branches of the assembly to regard the
deficit reported in the treasury as fic-
titious one, and, therefore, not serving as
cause for cutting off the school appropli-
alton.
While other newspapers of the state have
been making a sensation out of the deficit
business, giving only that side of the fiscal
situation, the Morning News CORE
spondent from the outset has given the
other view of the matter, as well. Even
those who were most pronounced in the
deficit hypothesis when the agitation COM
menced, are now admitting that it is mere
y
and that it is entirely possible for the
state to meet its obligations regularly
without raising the tax rate above this
years figures. and stin make the same
appropriations TO schools, pensions and
other departments that are being carried
in the current budget
One member who has given the matter
considerable thought, in speaking of 1t
with the Morning News correspondent to-
day, said: Not only can the appropria-
tons and tax rate be maintained as they
now are without producing insurmountable
difficulties in our fiscal affairs, but in my
judgment it would be unwise TO change
this system so that the collection of taxes
would antedate the disbursement of the
appropriations. If this should be done
the result would be a pilng up of
large sum in the treasury and the de-
positories to remain idle there for months
at a time. 1t is best. think, for the state
to borrow temporarily in midsummer TO
meet the salaries Of the common school
teachers than IL would be to tie up a lot