The Worthington advance., 1901-02-15
LEGISLATIVE GOSSIP

Our Special Correspondent Tells Of
the Solons' Doings.
The Senatorial, Question lse,ns Settled, the
Msmbers Are Rapidly Getting the
Wheels Of Government
In Motion.
st. Paul, MINI. Feb. 7-An impor-
tant insurance bill was introduced in
both houses yesterday. It. provides
Tor the enlargement of the duties Of
the insurance commissioner, increase
Of his salary and the appointment of
four additional ASSISTANTS. The COM
missioners salary is raised from 81, 500
to $500 and his deputy's salary is
raised from 81, 900 to 81, 500. He is also
given an actuary with a salary Of $2,-
900, a chief clerk with a salary Of ST.
200, an assistant clerk with salary of
$3.50, stenographer with salary of
5000 and an assistant stenographer
with a salary of 5000. The object of
the bill is to enable the Insurance
commissioner to scrutnize more care
fully the responsib bilities of insurance
companies doing business in the state,
and as the expenses will be paid from
the fees collected from the insurance
companies, it will not be burdensome
upon the tax papers. AS an offset for
increasing the expenses, the bill pro-
vides that the usual lengthy state
ment which must now be published by
law in either St. Paul or Minneapo-
lis paper, can be briefly summarized and
and printed in any county where the
company's chief local Office is located.
Senator Snyder offered civil SER
vice bill applicable to cities of more
than fifteen thousand population. 1t
provides for the appointment of a civil
service commission of five members
who are to hold examinations and de-
termine upon the qualifications of ap-
plicants for Office. 1t is modled con-
siderably after the United States
civil service law, exempting heads of
departments and principals of schools
from its operations.
A resolution was introduced to dis
but as the majority of the senate have
gone on record in favor of the pardon
of Mollie Morris, which he engineered,
there seems no reason to suppose that
they will vote to oust him because he
did it.
The event in the house was the re-
port of the committee on taxes and tax
laws. Thew decided to clear the skies
by reporting for indefinite postpone
ment every bill they had before them,
regardless of it's merits. The excuse
for this summary action was economy,
as the bills allowed special taxes to be
levied for certain purposes. Three of
the bills were resurrected from the
tomb to which the committee had con-
signed them.
One of the bills introduced is aimed
to make the manufacture of process
butter unpopular by requiring the
label to be in such large letters that
he who runs may read.
A bill .ppropriatiing SIS, 900 for a
dining room and kitchen at the Sol
diers' Home was introduced.
The old question of the age of con-
sent was brought up by bill increas-
ing it in females from 16 to 1s years.
Senator Daily of Otter Tail offered
the first antitrust bill of the session.
It gives district courts authority to
= restrain corporations of individuals
from combining to restrict competition
trade and makes it the duty of coun-
ty attorneys to prosecute such alleged
combinations.
St. Paul, MINI. Feb. S-For a good
many years the question of consti-
tutional convention for the purpose of
making a new constitution, out of the
present patchwork affair, has been
mooted and the senate judiciary COM
mittee declared itself practically un-
animous in its favor. The friends of
the measure were therefore greatly
surprised when the bill was defeated
by vote of 20 to 81 as it required q
two thirds vote to pass such bill.
The ground on which the negative
votes were cast was the expense which
the state would incur, and though
Senator Wilson, who had drawn the
bill, stated that the expense would be
spread over period of six years, he
could not secure the necessary votes.
A bill for meat inspection was intro
duced in the senate which provides for
the payment of losses incurred by
owners of live stock ordered killed by
by the state officials owing to the dis
eased condition of the animals. The
fund for this purpose is to be created
by fees charged for inspecting all live
stock.
It was decided to continue the pur-
chase of spring water for the senators
SO that they can return home without
communicating their constituents by
microbes taken into their system
through St. Paul water. 1t does not
follow from this that the Senators
will necessarily consume water in i'm
moderate quantities.
The event of the day in the house
was the passage of Representative
Hurd's bill placing the state oil inspec-
- tor on salary and cutting off the
= fees. Notwithstanding the proper
title of the bill should be IAN act for
the relief of the Standard Oil COM
pany" it passed by vote of 81 to IA.
Quite an acrimonious debate occurred
before the bill was passed, its oppo-
nents claiming that it was unconsti-
tutional and would result, as similar
bill did some years ago. in the failure
to have oil properly inspected and the
saying of fees to the Standard Oil
company while the people will pay
the same price for oil as before.
There is popular feeling that the
bill will be defeated in the senate, but
<hio rovv, a inc IN no coon