The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1902-01-31
IN THE SWING Of WORK.
AL Preliminary Business in the
iowa General Assembly Has
Been Disposed OF.
MANY BILLS EXPECTED THIS SESSION.
Measure to Substitute deterioration
for Hanging-Several Approprin-
ton Bills Already Introduced
other Legislative Gossip of More
Than Usual Interest.

ton Bills Already Introduced
other Legislative Gossip of More
Than Usual Interest.
Especial Correspondence
Des Moines, Ia, Jan. 27.-The Twen-
4y-ninth general assembly of Iowa has
gotten into the swing of work. Nearly
"A hundred bills have already been in
PRODUCED, the committees have been,an-
npunced and are at work, two United
States senators have been elected and
all of the preliminary business of the
session has been disposed of. Its ex-
pected that 1000 bills will be introduced
I'm the two houses and that this will
occupy most of the time for the next
month.
EIectrocution for Criminals.
The bill which has caused the most
discussion of all those introduced so
far is that proposed by Representative
Blakemore, of Taylor county, to sub
stitute electrocution for hanging as the
legal method of execution in this state
Legislators do not believe that such a
change, with the necessary expense at
tached, is required, because there is
little chance of hanging in Iowa
again. For ten years the governors
life Imprisonment. Several men are
now serving time who were sentenced
30 hang originally.
To Fix boundary Line.
Senator Hazelton's bill to create a
commission to confer with like COM
mission from Nebraska to fix the west
ern boundary of Iowa and the eastern
boundary of Nebraska stands an ex--
cellent chance of passage. While the
bill proposes only the creation of such
commission, Senator Hazelton's plan
rs to have the Missouri river fixed as
the boundary. This would result in
changing the location of considerable
property in western Iowa, but on the
whole this state would gain the ad-
wantage. After the commission reports
the 1egisla lures must approve their
sFindings in each state.
Appropriation Bills.
The appropriate bills for the edu-
Ga tional institutions have been intro
duced, and, summarized, they are as
follows: For the state university,
$685. 900 and $4,000 annual support ad-
ditional; for the state normal school,
S176,0o0; for the state agricultural col
]ege, $4,000 and $4,000 additional an
DIfli support
The Libel Law.
yYStA
changes in the laws governing libel
from the legislature this winter. At
present bare libel is actionable with
out respect to intent Of the respon-
sible proprietor and publisher and
without reference to explanation and
retraction. The editors desire that
they be allowed to show the lack of
malice in unfortunate publications.
Excursions.
One of the excursions planned by the
Legislature has been taken-tha to the
state university at Iowa City. Nearly
the entire legislature went down last
Thursday. United States Senator Dol
liver, Gov. Cummins and many other
distinguished men attended the eXer-
cises there on The occasion Of the dedi-
cation of the new liberal arts hall. The
legislature also accepted he invitation
of the trustees of the normal school at
Cedar Falls to visit that institution or
January 30. Knoxville will be visited
February % to inspect the abandoned
home for the blind which it is pro
posed TO turn into a normal school
cto To ~ ~
insane hospital at Cherokee will be Wis
tied some time during the session
This. with the visit of commission te
the Vicksburg military park. will com
plete the junkets of the legislature fol
this session.
Corporations.
Representative Mahlon Head, O
Greene county, has been giving his al
tention to the laws governing corpora
tions and early in the session made VI
his mind that it would be an exccllen
thing for the Iowa legislature 10 me
morialize congress to pass law re
Guiring all corporations to issue full
paid-up stock exclusively This, he be
lieves, will effectually meet and solv,
the trust problems. He has it in mine
also to require all corporations doing
business in this state-even the sellin!
of capital stocll-to be Incorporated il
Iowa.
Child Labor,
The first bill relating to child labo
was introduced in the legislature b,
Senator George w. Lister. 1t provide
that MO child under 14years of age shat
be employed in any shop, mine or fac
tory unless it has secured from tn
president of the local school board
written statement to the effect tina
Che wages the child earns are require,
by INDECENT parents or relatives. ]
that case, further, it is provided tina
the child shall have been in school con
tinuously for 16 weeks prior to III
time of securing the statement iron
the principal. A fine of nominal size
fixed for violations of the law prohibit