Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1899-02-02
THE PASS IN NEW York;
Facts as to How Mr.. Halls Bill
Would Work.
DISCOURAGES FREE PASTEBOARDS.


aWay-supreme Court Judges and the
7O-Year Limit-Opposition for Joshua
Dodge This Spring-InterestingM adi-
son Topics.
Madison, Jan. 31.-Next to the matter
Of the senatorship, the livliest Madison
issue is the question of passes and
| franks.
People generally are agreed that the
legislature will put some sort of law
through this winter, while constitu-
tional amendment Is being adopted
| (this latter requires four years, APP
prevails by two legislatures and by the
people at the polls). All the political
parties are committed to it by platform
Governor Scofield is hot for it in his
message And the evil is not to be
borne much longer. 1t is too great.
| Pockets damned with Passes.
went in to Milwaukee with an Off
cial of the Capitol the other day, and
not very high official either. The con-
ductor came through the train, and my
word for it, when the statesman pulled
| out Ills DDChtlDOOh ~ W do 81
with passes, franks privileges, many
Of which he can never have any use for,
that the traveller could not find his
Northwestern pass" The conductor
waited until the embarrassment was
intolerable and then he passed on.
There have already been number Of
bills to do away with the evil. A. r..
Halls is exactly like the New York
constitutional prohibition.
| ] recently wrote to q former news
paper associate in Albany, N. Y. He
has been legislative reporter and city
editor there for twenty-eight years.
| told him ] wanted the facts as to the
working of this prohibition. / told him
he must not color his narrative in the
least. Here is what he wrote a week
| ago:
| How 1t Works in New York.
The free pass prohibition has been
in force in New York state now for
four years and while by no means Il
| failure in many respects, 1t is violated
in spirit constantly. It's enactment in
| the constitution which went into oper-
alton on Jan. l, 1895, has had the eff
feet of cutting down the aggregate
number of passes issued by railroad
and steamboat companies. Now a leg
islator, who is restricted by the prohi-
bition from asking for free transporta-
ton, can side track all but those of
| his friends and constituents whom he
desires to favor. by calling their atten-
ton to the constitutional provision.
"rhc legislature on many previous oc-
| casionS. to the adoption of the present
constitution endeaVored to have a law
enacted to prohibit or regulate the is
suance of free passes by corporations.
| One of the last laws which they sought
to enact provided that all state officers
| and members of the legislature be fur
| nished with passes issued by the seCre-
| tary of state, which should be honored
| on all railroad and steamboat lines. The
| adoption of the new constitution put a
stop to this, the only passes issued by
the secretary of state being to the state
railroad commissioners and the en-
ployes OF that department when travel
| ing on official business"
Anti Pass Law Thirty-Three Years Ago.
My Albany correspondent speaks OF
the act of 1866. thirty-three years ago,
1
passes to anyone except railroad en-
ployes and soldiers, but it was repealed
the following year Railroad compa-
MES, he said, objected that it was inn
possible for them to carry on their bust
ness in certain quarters and under GER
tain conditions without distributing
passes,
The courts held that persons riding on
IA q,
sonal injuries, the courts reasoning that
| the company were not carrying even
| dead heads" without recompence. 1t
was this finding. combined with the
legislative disposition to abolish passes
that resulted in placing on free trans
portation the words ION account Of"
But as to the present New York pro-
| vision:
How it is violated. how are its re-
quirements gotten around?"
Politicians Have Their Tricks.
My Albany correspondent answers as
follows:
In many ways. There was never Il
law passed which could not be violated
and in some eases it's provisions set at
naught,
There Is nothing In the constitu-
| ttonal prohibition Us to n public official
aCrt ptnE a scat in Il drawing room car
or berth in Il sleeper. Passes for
seats and bcrths are issued in Il certain
book form for use as desired. Tho
conductor or the train is given to UNI
derStand that such as present these
passes for seats are not to he bothered
| for car fare. So the conductor does not
demand n ticket or fare OF such, An
other manner in which the law is set at
ratght is Ivy an official securing a pass
under a fictitious ramC. stu another
way, If there are two in the party. is
To have the pass made out to MIR or
Miss, or Mrs and brother. the broth
er' in many instances being Il public
official lii some cases the person to
whom the pass is made out is the Wifi
Of Il state official, ana t. avoid paying
fare h. rides us her guest under false
prctenscs and in violation Of law. Thea,
latter eases, hc ii said to the credit %
the state, are few,
but a public officer who wants to
travel on free pass has but little diff
| Guilty in obtaining Il and using il "