The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-04-01
El(lES HIS FIRST BILL
GOVERNORS LACK OF ExPERIENcEs
Z RESPONSIBLE FOR PECU-
LIAR SITUATION
TOOK HIM TOO LONG TO DECIDE
chief Clerk SchmahI Decides That
the Measure Is a Law and Ac-
ceDts the Veto Under
Protest.
TOOK HIM TOO LONG TO DECIDE

Gov. Van SAINT vetoed his first bill
OWlng to a lack Of experience in this
line OF craftsmanship, however. the gov
ernors veto involves a flaw which NAV
lnVaIldate the act and allow the bill to
become a law
The measure in question was introduce
ed in the house by Representatives John
Z. Sweet, of Minneapolis, and its pur-
pose was to establish a uniform system
for accounting in state correctional and
charitable institutions The governor
gave as his reasons for vetoing the bill
that he considered it conflicting with GER
tain provisions of the board of control
Dill, and had decided that if It was sign
ed and became law the board of con-
troll could not legally operate until the
Sweet act was revoked Chief Clerk
julius Schmahl. of the house, is in doubt
as to the validity of the veto and re-
ceived the bill under protest
The governor sent the bill back to the
house Saturday forty-five minutes after
adjournment by his private secretary,
Judge Jamison. 1t was a surprise to Mr..
Schmahl, but not sufficient to take him
unaWares, and he promptly declined to
receive the bill. He gave several good
reasons for his refusal In the first place
the bill was transmitted to the governor
ten days before for his signature. hav-
ing passed both houses, and Mr. Schmahl
was of the opinion that as the house had
adjourned, and the bill would become a
law within itself without the signature Of
the governor today, under the rules of the
legislature. he had no right to receive it,
nor had the governor any right to place
his veto upon it at that late day 1t
would not have been at all surprising If
Mr.. Schmahl had been taken off his
guard. this being the first bill vetoed, and
coming in with a number of others, but
his promptness in detecting the flaw only
indicated that he keeps a thorough ac-
count of every bill from the time that
it is introduced until finally disposed Of.
JAMESON OFFERS EXPLANATIONS
In explaining why the governor had not
sent the bill back sooner, Judge Janisol
said he wanted to wait and see what
would be the fate of the board of con-
troll bill. If the latter mad been defeated,
it would not have been necessary for
him to veto the Sweet bill, as he had
no other objection to it then that it was,
in his judgment, conflicting with certain
provisions of the board of control bill.
But this did not wholly satisfy Mr..
Schmahl. He found other objections.
The engrossed bill had been returned
from the governors desk instead of the
enrolled bill, as the rules prescribe. Judge
Jamison excused this error on the part
of his chieftan by saying that the en-
rolled bill was locked up in the large
vault, and the man with the combination,
Executive Clerk James A. Martin, had
gone home.
Still Mr. Schmahl refused to receive the
bill. Being himself most thorough and
cautious official, he was not satisfied to
become a party to a haphazard official
act of that kind He sought the advice
of several Of the representatives and
they took the same position as himself.
believing that the governor had delayed
lowable, and that it was neither incum-
bent upon nor correct for the clerk of the
house to receive it. Judge Jamison in
sisted however, and Mr.. Schmahl finally
took the measure under protest, as he
stated afterward. He Is still of the opin-
ion that the bill has become a law by
virtue of having been in the hands OF
the executive the required period, and