The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1898-12-12
HURRYING.
Legislature Is to Be Called To-
gether
In Extra Session Either To-
morrow or Next Day.
ADVANCED MEASURES
viii Not Be Passed by the Extra
Session
But Only Along the Lines Of
Legislation
ADVANCED MEASURES
Already Followed Out In Other
States of the Union.

The announcement in the Journal on
Saturday that Governor Leedy would
call a special session Of the Legislature
when he returned from Lawrence this
week. has been the principal subject OF
discussion among politicians ever since,
and all sorts of bills are being prepared
to be presented for passage.
The call will come tomorrow or the
day after. The repairs on the senate
chamber and representatives hall are
being pushed in order that the rooms
may be ready for occupancy by the last
of this week.
The pledges from the members of the
legislature to vote for a railroad bul
were secured so quietly by Secretary
Upton of the Populist central com
mittee. that even Taylor Riddle. the
state chairman, knew nothing about it,
and he would probably have remained
in ignorance of what was going on il
one of the members to whom Mr.. Upton
had sent letters, had not made a mis-
take by sending his reply back to Rid
die.
The principal subject of legislation
will, of course, be along railroad lines
The bill which will be presented to the
caucus for its approval viii provide for
the election of one member of the board
each year, beginning with 1893, by a d.
rect vote of the people, the term of Of
flee to be three years for each member.
1t will also give the board additional
powers to make rates and will provide
for a railroad court to enforce the
orders of the board The railroad court
is rendered necessary by the decision Of
the United States supreme court, which
declares that a board cannot have both
legislative and executive. powers.
Another measure which viii be pre-
sented for the approval of the caucus
will be a new corporation law. There
viii be no departure from established
lines of legislation, nor any attempt TO
of the advanced call
ed for By filg last Popuiist platform.
such as state stock yards and state in
surance,f because the execution of the
laws would be left to the incoming Re
publican administration and the Popu-
lists do not care to have their pet
theories practiced on by the Repubii-
cans, because they claim that the latter
would make a failure of the measures
on purpose to bring odiUm onto the
POpuliStS.
Another matter which will be strongly
urged before the special session will
be a change in the management of the
state charitable institutions, along
which line there is more room for re-
form than in any other direction.
The present members of the legisla-
ture feel aggrieved by the aspersiOns
which have been cast at them and they
have become anxious for an opportunity
to come back to Topeka and retrieve
themselves in the eyes of the people
but Notwithstanding this it is announc-
ed that committees will be appointed to
see that there is no bOOdling.
Later Particulars.
Two additional replies have been re-
ceived to Secretary Tipton's letters con-
cerning the special session since Satur-
day, and in both instances the mem bers
of the legislature have promised to sup
port a caucus bill on railroad legisla-
tiOn. This makes 81 pledges and one
more will make a constitutional major
ity of the house. It is expected that
another faVOrab BILE reply will be received
tonight or tomorrow, and when that is
received it is asserted by those who are
close to Governor Leedy, the call will
be forthcoming.
Governor Leedy himself refuses to
discuss the question.
When are you going to issue the
call, governor" asked a reporter this
morning.
1T won't be before dinner he re-
piled, but further than that he would
say nothing about it.
w. D. Street, speaker of the house.
who was one of the number who eX-
pressed a doubt as to whether the leg
islature would pass a railroad bill II
called together, in the conference held
in Governor Leedy's Office a few weeks
ago. said today:
Il replied to Secretary Tipton's let
ter and agreed to support a caucus bill,
but I also said 1 was opposed to an eX-
ira session.