Bellows Falls times. [volume] (Bellows Falls, Vt.) 1856-1965, 1901-03-07
Bellows Falls Times
THURSDAY, MARCH I, 1901.
CORRESPONDENCE.
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OUR CONCORD LETTER.
Toll Bridge Bill Reported Favorably-
Numerous Bills KiIled-Adjournment
March 22 Probably.

| March ~ Probably.
| Concord, N. H., March 4.-The toll
bridge bills in which readers of the
| TIMES are interested came before the
house from the committee on judiciary
last week Friday. In the case of the
bill in amendment of an act passed in
1888 to enable Enoch Hale to build and
maintain bridge across the Connecticut
river, the committee reported that it was
inexpedient to legislate, as the object
desired could be secured under the gen
eral laws. The bill in relation to freeing
| toll bridges, providing for the payment
by the state of one-half the expense to
the townsWas reported by the committee
in a new draft with the recommendation
| that it ought to pass. 1t will come up
| for passage tomorrow.
The legislature did not do much talk
| ing last week. The house started in on
| Tuesday with an all-day debate over the
| Tilton-N orthfield annexation PROPOSE
| ton, but after that brief discussions only
| were in order. Fifteen speeches were
| llldue on Ulle ANNEXATION Dlll. LII us ldNOI
| were CasS of Tilton, WinSlow of Pitts
field, Whitcher of Haverhill, Fuller of
| Exeter, O'Neil of Walpole, Hoyt of Sand
| witch and Barton of Newport. In oppo-
sition were heard French of Mortified,
Burroughs of Bow, Mason of Dover, Chut-
ter of Littleton, Dudley of Concord Smith
of Peterborough, Melvin of Lyme and
Edgerly of Somersworth. So far as the
debate went honors were even, but when
| it came to vote the members stood by
home rule 275 to 80 and refused to wipe
OUT or even eisenhower Mortified.
The sequel of this fight is seen in the
bill introduced in the house last week
| ito authorize towns to employ counsel
in legislative matters
The only other debate of the week in
| the house, and that brief one, was over
| the bill to abolish the bounty on bears.
Mr.. Barney of Canaan favored it, because
a party of SportSmen came into his neigh
borhood last fall and killed enough bears
| to pay all their expenses, to say nothing
of the fun they had But Mr.. Hoyt of
Sandwich and Mr.. Allen of Stewartstown
drew such vivid word pictures of the
damage done by bears in sheepfolds and
elsewhere that the house voted almost
unanimously to indefinitely postpone the
bill.
This week there is sure to be talk
enough to make up for the lack of To-
quacity last week. The Portsmouth and
Nashua city delegations have internal
rows which they will air upon the floor
of the house. Some of the Manchester
representatives. insist on bringing the house
to vote on a bill making So hours the
maximum work week in the manufacture
ing establishments of the state. Anti
cigarette legislation will come up for
consideration and the committee on Ii
quor laws is likely to report upon the
license law bill which may need speech
or two for proper burial. The establish
ment of a state schoolfor the feeble mind
ed is arousing some discussion and as the
committee on appropriations has con-
Guided it's hearings upon the dual court
bill, that may come up. 1t is likely to
pass in a somewhat amended form.
Another job that the house has on it's
hands this week is the election of an as
sistant clerk. w. H. Topping, having
spent good deal of time since January
/ in transit between this city and Wash
| ington, finally decided last week to give
! up the attempt to be in two places at
| once and resigned his assistant clerkship
here. In Washington he is clerk of the
lcommittee on pensions in the national
house at salary of $4,000 year, so that
he was not really in pressing need of this
home job. James M. Cooper of Little
ton would have been elected to fill the
vacancy on Thursday if there had been a
quorum in the house, but on account of
the small attendance the matter went
over until tomorrow.
The senate is likely to do considerable
debating this week over Senator Leach's
proposition to re-organize the senatorial
districts of the state. According to it's
provisions all of Sullivan county goes in
| to district number seven, Keene and the
towns around it in Cheshire county
make up district number 10 and in num-
Der Ia are Chesterfield, Dublin, Green
vile, Harrisville, Fitzwilliam, Jaffrey,
New Ipswich, Rindge, Richmond, Sharon,
Swanzey, Troy, Walpole, Westmoreland
and Winchester.
The bill-killer is now beginning to get
| in his work in earnest. On Friday of
of last week, for instance, 20 bills were
dispatched in about as many minutes.
Among them was the lengthy and i'm
portant senate bill, providing for the
uniformity of our laws with those of
other states on the subject of negotiable
| instruments. Another senate measure
that went by the board was that disqual-
| flying members of the legislature and
| governors council from holding office as
bank, railroad, labor or insurance COM
missioner.
| House bills killed included acts requir-
ing railroads to keep grade crossings
properly showed, providing for the cleo
ton of railroad commissioners by the
people and establishing board of arbi-