Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1901-02-28

LEGISLATIVE PROCEEDINGS,

The legislative COUNCIL tnlS MORNING
took up council bill No. 70, fixing the
salary Of probate judges in counties OF
the second, third and fourth classes al
$500, $3.50 and 5000 respectively, and the
negative. MT. Hughes, from the confer
ence committee on council bill No. %
the public school bill, reported an
amendment to the house amendment,
and which authorizes only school SUPER
intendents Of counties of the first clas.
-Bernalillo and San Miguel-to collect
IS a day for three days for visiting the
school districts of their respective coun-
ties, such superintendents to be paid,
however, for visiting not more than for
! ty-seven districts. The report was re-
ceived, and on motion of Mr.. Springer
the matter was laid over for the pres
ent. Council bill No. 2, exempting stock
| and bonds of building and loan asso-
Citations from taxation, came back from
the committee on finance with q substi-
tute attached, and the same was re-
ceived. Mr.. Fielder presented petition
Il m citizens of Pinos Altos, Grant
county. against the creation of the pro-
posed county of Luna. Mr.. Cruick-
shank offered a resolution restoring to
the militia fund $222.75 which had been
expended for the recovery from the
! government of some 5000 due the terri
tory for organizing forces for the war
with Spain. Adopted, 10 to 2, Messrs.
Burns and Easley in the negative. The
following new bills were introduced and
REFEREED Council bill No. So, by Mr..
Fielder, relating to elections, author
izing voters to place their vote in the
ballot box in person.
Council bill No. 81, by Mr. Harrison,
requiring administrator and executors
| to report moneys coming into their
hands from the United States govern
bill was at once taken up for consider
alton. Mr.. Harrison offered an amend
ment providing that administrators
may be required to report within thirty
days after the passage Of this act any
such moneys coming to their hands
during the past three years. This was
adopted. and the bill passed. Mr.. Field
er, in explaining his vote, said he voted
| aye because he was curious to see what
kind of a report an administrator or
executor would make who had had such
funds in his hands for three years.
Council bill No. S6, introduced by
Mr.. Navarro, a bill providing for the
distribution of the funds derived from
the sale of public lands donated by
congress to the penitentary. 1t au-
thorizes such funds to be expended in
necessary improvements, enlargement
of grounds, buildings, etc., under the
supervision of the superintendent. Ad-
| journed to 2 p. m.
| IN TIDE HOUSE.
| House substitute for council bill No.
Is opened up a warm debate from the
very opening of the session in the house
this morning. The subject came up as
special order on the motion made yes
| terday by Mr.. Sanchez of Mora. The
committee on education. through Mr..
Barnes, presented majority report,
accompanied by the house substitute,
which in effect authorizes the refund
ing of all county, municipal and school
district Indebtedness accruing since
January l, 1897, up to February /, 1901.
Mr.. Bateman, from the same commit
tee presented minority report adverse
to the substitute. He moved to substl-
tute the minority for the majority re-
port, but received no second. The ma
jorty report was adopted. Mr.. Bate
man said he was opposed to the meas
ure because under it's provisions cer-
tain indebtedness declared void by the
assembly of 1897 could be revived and
refunded. He said the bill would be less
Objectionable if 1t provided for the re-
funding of all outstanding void indebt-
edness. He thought 1T better to live up
to all the requirements of the so-called
Bateman law of 1897 or repeal 1t entire
ly Speaker Read called Mr.. Bowie to
the chair and responded at length to
Mr. Bateman's criticisms of the bill. He
declared the bill was designed simply
to remedy defects in the Bateman act
which years of experience had shown to
exist. The Bateman act, he said, was
very excellent law in many respects,
but under its operation many debts due
by counties had been invahdated and
nullifed, after the credit of the counties
had been pledged in the premises; they
had been barred from payment by the
limitations as to time of presentation
laid down in the Bateman act. The
speaker did not believe in the nullifica-
tion Of contracts or reputation in any
form, and 1t was to overcome such loop
holes in the Bateman act that this
measure had been brought forward. Mr..
Walton yielded his time to Mr.. Bate
man, who again spoke earnestly in IA
vor of his position, defending those pro-
visions of the Bateman act which Mr..
Read had taken exceptions to. Mr..
Barnes said the bill would affect some
$15O00O of Indebtedness, and he was
willing just this once to provide for re-
funding these accounts, but he wanted
some guide in the premises for the fu-
ture. and he therefore offered an
amendment to the bill providing that
any Indebtedness hereafter incurred In
violation Of the act of 1897 shall be void
and absolutely illegal. Mr.. Abbott
agreed with Mr.. Bateman in many Of
his criticisms, and offered an amend
ment providing that any officer violat-
ing the provisions of the Bateman law
shall be summarily removed hy the