Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1900-01-11
NOTES FROM THE CAPITAl
DIES MONIES. Jan. 8. 1900.

DIES MONIES, Jan. 8, 1900.
| Governor Shaw will submit to the
legislature the cases of but four con-
victs asking for pardon. They are3
! Thomas Kelly, sentenced in Lucas
| county in 1886; John Bellew, sentenc1
ed in Dubuque county in 1878 and JAS
| per Mason. sentenced in Dallas county
! in 1876. Twelve or fifteen life convicts
| petitioned for executive and legisla1
tive clemency. Among them were the
Rainsbarger brothers who were sent
| to prison from Marshall county, and
| concerning whose expected effort I'd
| secure pardon from the legislature
| much sensational matter has been
| printed. John Wesley Elkins was also
| another petitioner. He is the boy
who killed his mother and father when
he was IL years old. These and the
other petitioners, except the four
named, Governor Shaw determined not
to present to the legislature. A Curl
GUS looseness of expression obtains in
the law relating to the pardon of life
convicts in Iowa. 1t provides that
the governor shall not pardon such
convicts until their petitions are re-
| ferred to the legislature. Every gov
ernor has construed this to mean thar
the governor cannot pardon until the
| legislature recommends to him that
those whose petitions are submitted to u
it shall be pardoned. But the law
| plainly does not require the executfSeX
| either to await the recommendation Of
| the Legislature or to observe its recon-
mendations; nor does it prevent the
| governor from pardoning persons
whose pardon the legislature refuses
| to recommend. 1t is probable that an
| effort will be made to have the law
made clearer.
Frank +. Merriam, state auditor of
| Iowa, is dangerously ill at San Fran
| cisco, and serious fears are entertained
| for him. He left Iowa ten DAYS ago
| on a business trip to the coast, and
before arriving in San Francisco |
was i'll. He was soon after taken to |
Mount Zion hospital in that city,
where he now is. Constant telegraph
| ic communications have been kept up
and he is reported suffering from
typhoid fever. His relatives and
| friends are seriously alarmed, though
he has wired for his family to remain
in Des Moines. He has, however, sent
for his family physician to come at
once.
The Ministerial Association has
| given up hope of securing it's counter
saloon petition. A few canvassers are
| at work, but matters are not being
| pushed. AT the last association meet |
ing Attorney f. Ii. Evans was author |
lied to inspect the new petition of I
consent, which the Polk Directory
| Company has filed with the board Of !
supervisors, and to challenge any
names he found which he considered
should not be allowed. The ministers
claim there are large number Of |
names on the new consent petition
which will not stand test.
The proposed change of the Iowa
constitution, to inaugurate a system
of biennial elections in future, is be-
ginning to attract, good deal of at
tention. There are only nine states in
the union which now hold state cleo
tions every year, and Iowa is one Of /
them. Half of the state officers are
elected each year, for two-year's
term and similarly with county officers.
At the last session of the Legislature
Senator G. M. Titus, of Muscatine, in
troduced the Titus resolution, looking
to a change in the constitution by
which all elections should be made BIZ
ennial in the even numbered years.
Thus the necessity of elections in the
odd numbered years would be done
away with. The Titus amendment
passed the last legislature by over
whelming majorities in both houses.
If it now passes the coming session it
will be ready for a vote of the people |
at the general election next November.
If at that time it receives a majority
of the votes cast on it, it will become
part of the constitution. If the
amendment passes there will be no
election in 1901. Those officers. either
state or county, whose terms expire
under the present law with the year
1901, will have their terms extended
one year so that they may expire at
the close of 1902 and be succeeded by
officers elected in November, 1902.
Judge Kline, of the state board Of
control, has written descriptions of
two more county insane asylums, and
they are fully as interesting as his
previous productions along this line.
The report on Muscatine county's in
stitution indicates that it is among
the worst of it's kind in the state
Tama county comes off better but it is
pretty severely criticised. The men,
bers of the board have been criticized
for their reports of the county asylums,
it being charged by some that they
have been prejudced against them by
reason of their desire to secure the
passage of law giving the board COM
plete charge of the insane of the state
The members deny this absolutely and
say that they have taken special pains
/ to present everything in favor of the
county institutions.
The state board of railway commits
sioners met in the headquarters of the
commission at the state house and
perfected their organization for the
year of 1900. Colonel ID. j. Palmer
was made chairman, Dwight Lewis
secretary, and c. L. Boylan clerk.
Judge Charles T. Granger, of ALA
malee county. after IL years service
on the supreme bench, announces that
he will not again be a candidate.
Recognizing the many obligations inn
posed in the past, he expresses his
gratitude to the people and will give
way to somebody else.
British Reconnaissance.
FRERE CAMP, Natal, Jan. 6.-There
was reconnaissance in force from
Chievely yesterday afternoon with
1000 horse and two guns, the object
being to locate the enemy on a hill,
south of Hlangwana hill. SeveralN