Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1900-11-21
THE COMING LEGISLATURE.
Some Matters That Will Demand Considera.
tion-The Judicial Circuits.

Columbia, November 11.-The Gen-
erai Assembly when it meets here in
January will have no really serious
propositions to settle. While there is a
great deal of legislation loft over from
year to year, the consensus of opinion is
that there is abundant legislation on the
statute books and that tho least done tho
better it will be for the State at largo.
Tho new General Assembly will have a
larger proportion of new lawmakers than
has ever before been in such body.
Tho usual quota Of reelected members
is absent, and no doubt tho young and
new members will think that their great
nees depends upon tho number of bills
offered and new and novel schemes pro-
posed, starting with amendments to tho
concealed weapon law and ending with
amendments to the Constitution
Naturally the amendments recently
voted upon will como up and consume
considerable timo. Some will want to
go right ahead with tho necessary lcgis-
lation, taking for granted that the
Courts will pass over tho error made in
while others will want to let tho question
20 before tho people again. At all
events this will be one of tho foremost
questions to como up.
There will be the usual legislation pro-
posed as to now judicial and Congress
sional districts.
Year after year bills are offered pro-
posing the reorganization of
TIE JUDICIAL CIRCUITS,
and that there be ten instead of eight
circuits.
The scheme adopted by the last Gcn-
earal Assembly OF providing for special
terms of Courts, on petition of majority
of the members of tho bar of any county,
seems to have worked very we'll, and a
good deal of tho congestion in Spartan
burg, Cherokee and other counties has
been relieved, and if the lawyers would
take advantage of this statute and have
their work ready for tho Court when it
assemblies there would not be so much
complaint and such perennial demand
for additional Courts.
The census docs not indicate that
South Carolina will got an additional
Congressman. Some who have figured
on the relative increase say that there
seems to be no chance for an additional
Congressman from this State. Tho usual
PROPOSITIONS TO m;nIsTRICT
the State will be made, and tho usual
fight against any change in tho districts,
If the State is not to get another Con-
gressman. The fight against any change
has heretofore to a largo extent como
from tho Congressman in office or those
who have made the races in the districts
as they have been standing. Tho House,
as will be remembered, passed the Pat
ton redistricting bill, but tho Senate
killed it. 1t makes very little difference
to the average citizen how tho districts
are arranged, but it really docs seem
nonsensical to have shoe-string districts
in this day and time, and have part of
ono township in one district and tho re-.
mainder of "A county in another district,
and divide up counties so as to completely
nullify their influence. The demand has
been for some time for the districting of
the State upon county lines, and it makes
but little difference how the counties arc
divided as to districts, but there is no
longer any nso to cut up the counties
and put part OF a county i'm one district
and part of the same county in anot her
district.
One of the arguments that will be used
against redistricting is that there will be
no use to attend to tho redstricting at
this session, as there will bc no general
election or primary, and that tho same
work can hc done at tho session Of 1902.