The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-01-18

and the result of his convictions.
AN AMENDMENT DEFEATED.
Senator Inman then called up Senate bill
No. q for second reading, and Senator
Drummond offered an amendment, providing
that il shall not be necessary for the heirs
of a person killed by d railroad or other
corporation or firm to show lack of contrib
4, utory negligence on the part of the person
| killed in order to make a case against the
| defendant, but that in cases of personal
injury, not resulting in death, that the p ain
! tiff shall show that he or she was in no
| way responsible for the injury. Senator
! Drummond said that the reason for the
amendment was that when a person was
| killed in an accident of any kind it was
| beyond his power to prove that he was in
no way responsible for the accident while
in the case of a person injured ample OPP
portunity was afforded for such proofs the
failure to introduce such proof working a
hardship the defendant. Senator Hugg
the author of the original bill, said that the
new law ala not contemplate changing the
law governing evidence of contributory
negligence, but was intended to simply place
the burden OF proof on the defendant. The
justice of this view of the matter. accord
ing to Senator Hugg, has been amply ex-
pressed in decisions of the United States
supreme Court. AS an illustration of the
injustice that would be worked by Senator
DTummonds amendment, he said that if a
father, mother and child were crossing a
railroad track on public streets and were
struck by a train the father and mother
being killed and the child crippled for life
it would be impossible We're the amendment
adopted as law, for the child to recover
damages from the company, as it would be
held that the child would be an incompetent
witness, while the lips of the parents would
be sealed forever.
Several senators spoke for and against the
amendment, which finally defeated by
a vote of "a to s. Senator Newly refusing
to vote.
Senator Johnson. of Madison. asked for
second reading of bill No. 81 defining the
in pnr1Cf rtInf iF1kr
street improvements and enforcing the pay
ment for the same. Senator Hogate offered
several minor amendments, which were
ADOPTED by consent. The purpose Of the
law is to establish the legality of charging
10 per cent penalty for delinquencies in
street assessments. as under the Barrett
law which 1t is meant to uphold, there has
always been a question as to whether that
amount could be legally charged.
Other bills which were given second read
ing We're as follows:
No. 81. Senator New: Concerning allow
ances for attorneys fees.
NO. 81. Senator Newly: Regulating the
Incorporation of insurance companies.
a, no 90 senator Osborn: Accepting turis-
This bill was passed under suspension of
rules.
SENATOR CREGOR'S BILL.
Senator Cregor offered his first bill yes
terday. 1t is one providing for the pur-
chase of portion of the Carthage turnpike
and appropriating $1,000 for the purpose In
explanation Senator Cregor said that the
measure was one of economy to the State
inasmuch as at present the trustees of the
Soldiers Orphans Home at Knightstown
paid the turnpike company about $500 an
nually for toll, besides causing considerable
Inconvenience to other persons It was re-
ferred to the finance committee Other bills
were introduced as follows:
No. 137. Senator Gilbert To secure purity
If elections by the purchase of voting ma
chimes; elections
No. 1873 Senator Gilbert To prevent the
pollution of streams; judiciary
NO. 1S9 Senator Cregor: To purchase GER
tain roads; finance.
No. 14c- Senator Agnew: Concerning nor
! NAL schools; schools.
No. Ill. Senator Agnew: To foster the
cultivation of sugar beets; agriculture.
No. 142. Senator Inman: Allowing persons
to claim $500 worth of property as exempt
from taxation instead OF $75 as heretofore;
finance.
No. 49,. Senator Ball: Factory Inspector
McAbees bill compelling employers to pay
all wages once a week; prohibiting the as
signment of wages and the assessment of
fines against employees; labor.
No. 1S5. Senator Patten: Authorizing cit
les TO purchase water works owned by COM
panies, but prohibiting the assumption of
MORTGAGES against the properties and pro-
Vidlng that these obligations must be pro-
Vided for by the companies selling; cities
and towns.
No 1876 Senator Gilbert: Prohibiting the
State; benevolent institutions.
FREE PEDDLERS' LICENCE.
The chief discussion of the morning ses-
sion, aside from the eulogies pronounced on.
Albert j. Beverage and David Turpie came
up during the second reading of Senator
Huggs bill to grant free peddlers licenses
to Union soldiers of the civil war Imme-
diately after the reading Senator Nusbaum
offered an amendment eliminating all refer
ence to ex-union soldiers of the civil war
and making it read for all soldiers who had
served in the United States army This
brought a vigorous objection from Senator
Hugs, who understood it to be a measure
to include eX-Confederate soldiers. He said
that the bill had been drafted by as good a
Democrat as Senator Nusbaum or any
Its author, John w. Kern, to do his best to
secure its passage. He did not think it was
right to put ex-Confederate soldiers on the
same roofing with those of the Union army,
and would oppose such measure with all
his strength. What was fast becoming a
dlflcllt situation was smoothed over by a
few words by Senator Nusbaum who ended
all discussion by saying that ii was not his
purpose to include eX-Confederates in the
words, or any other soldier who had served
in the United States army" He did not
think that Confederates came within this
stipulation, and said that his sole purpose in
onering the amendment was TO allow the
soldiers of the Spanish-American war to
beneht by IT.. Senator Hugg thereupon
apologiZed, and. under suspension of the
rules. the bill passed.
"A second reading was given to Senator
Binkley's bin requiring notaries public in
taking acknowledgements to specify the
tate on which their commissions expire
The elections committee has taken action
on Senator OSborn's bill to enable the IN
mates or the Marion Soldiers Home to vote
without restriction and will recommend It
LOT passage. Senator Osborn explained the
necessity for the different sections, one of
Whlch provides that where il is necessary
70 swear in vote in a precinct in which
there Is not a freeholder or householder
Tor TWO years the voter can make affidavit
70 the fact and il will then be possible
Tor any legal voter in the precinct to swear
IN MS vote. The object of the bill is 10
protect the franchises of the inmates of the
soldiers Home. none of whom is either
treehoider or householder, and therefore, un-
der the present law. is incapable of swearing
III votes of other inmates of the institu-
tioh 80 necessary was such a bill during
the last election that a voting tent was
erected, il which the voting was done under
a redistrcting of the township into irregular
precincts, so that property owners and
householders might be available for such
purposes
anur