The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-01-01
THEY'LL TURN LOOSE MONDAY
All Hands at Helena Are on Deck and They Will Soon
Be Ready to Take Upon Themselves the Biennial
Job Of Making Laws for the Dear People.

and offer various recommendations for
increasing the states income There is
no denying that the present revenue is
inadequate. The governor may also
renew his request for the creation of
board of insane asylum commissioners
with power to select a site for the asy-
lum.
The Watt-Anderson contest for the
senatorship of Meagher county is a
pretty complicated affair Watt was
elected senator of Meagher county in
1896 for the constitutional term of four
years. When Broadwater county was
created out of Meagher and jefferson
counties, Watt found himself a resi-
dent of Broadwater county He has
lived in Broadwater county ever since
he is now a resident of Townsend,
Broadwater's county seat. Watt is
populist. When it came time to nomi-
nate county officers last fall, both the
republican and democratic conventions
Of Meagher county. acting on the the
ory that Watt had forfeited his seat in
the senate by non-residence, nominated
candidates for senator to fill Watts un-
expired term. J. T. Anderson was the
democratic candidate and won out.
Anderson and his friends say that Watt
gave the democrats positive and ex-
plicit assurances that IF Anderson was
elected he would willingly let him have
the seat; but that if the republican cam
didate should be elected, he (Watt),
would claim the seattle proposed to
fight the right of any goldbug to be
his successor. OF course Watt is the
prima facie senator-his name is on the
roll call and will be called at the or
ganization of the senate on Monday
Anderson therefore will be forced to
bring ascontest to get possession Of the
seat. AS to the legal merits of the case,
lawyers are divided.
There is also the Flathead county
contest of Geiger VS.. Whiteside. The
Flathead, county commissioners de-
clared Whiteside elected by a majority
of one, and issued him certificate of
election. Geiger, the republican candi-
date, alleges various Irregularities in
the counting. There are no contests
in the house, but there is a question
of redundancy whether jefferson
county is entitled to two or three mem
bers, and whether Meagher county shall
seat one or two. The trouble, as has
been explained in the Standard, grows
out of a defect in the 1897 bill provid-
in fha
in Broadwater, Jefferson and Meagher
counties. If it is decided to cut out the
two extra members, the question arises
as to how it shall be done, whether by
lot or by sending home the two Meag-
her and Jefferson men who respectively
received the smallest majorities. The
latter plan would retire Mr.. Moore Of
Meagher and Mr.. Hill of Jefferson, both
democrats, of course. 10
If Senator Watt retains his seat,
there will be total of two popullste;
in the legislative assembly-senator
Watt of Meagher and Senator Connol-
ly of Granite. Senator Connolly gave
the democrats of Granite county a
pledge in writing to the effect that if
no populist United States senator could
be elected, he would vote for the DEM
ocratic caucus nominee, whoever he
might be. Senator Watt has not am
nounced his position on the senatorial
question.
Somebody is sure to introduce a wo-
man suffrage bill--as usual The wo-
man suffragists are as active as ever,
they have been sending quantities of
their propaganda to the successful can
didates ever since election day. A wo-
mans suffrage bill stands about as
much show of passing this legislature
as it would of passing through a fiery
furnace in the unscathed condition of
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. The
members have also been receiving lit
erature from the Seventh Day Adven-
turists back East, who want bill pass
ed reducing Sunday to the ranks. On
the other hand, a gentleman in Helena
has been sending printed circulars to
the members, urging them to close up
every tlSHt dS d uIull On
esumably-although he did not say
so in his letter-this enthusiast is aim
ing at the saloons. The bounty law
will come in for its usual share of crit
icism and overhauling. There is
standing quarrel between the sheep
men and cattle men as to the relative
destructiveness of wolves and coyotes.
The cattle men want the bounty on
wolves increased 10 a good big sum
and the bounty on coyotes taken off al
together. They say coyotes are incapa-
BILE of doing any more damage than
flies or mosquitoes; proposition
which the sheep men say may be appl-
cable to heavyweight cattle, but GER
tainly is not to Mary's little lamb. No
bills are expected to bob up,
and there is no initiative and referen-