News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1902-12-10
LETTER FROM MONTPELIER.
MONTPELIER. Dec. 9

MONTPELIER, Dec. 9.
The Legislatures "busy dav" sign
has been hung out where the public
could get plain view of it every day
since the re-assembling on Tuesday
last, and bills have been disposed OF
at lively rate. Don't imagine, dear
reader, that there has been unseemly
haste or reckless speed, for such is
not the case. The business has been
handled decently and in order. The
joint committee appointed some time
ago to keep an eye on the proper
date for final adjournment have
watched things closely, and on Fri
day last introduced a resolution fix
ing the finish" at Friday morning
Of this week. Both Senate and
House fell in with the suggestion,
and the latter, with commendable
inclination to "get there" in good
shape and without an all-night ses-
sion, refused to adjourn for over Sun
day until the middle of Saturday
afternoon, when the Speakers desk
was cleared of all business that could
be safely done up to that hour.
SETTLED FOR TWO YEARS.
We refer to the States attitude on
the question of bovine tuberculosis.
The so-called Russell bill passed the
House by vote of 1877 to SO, after
some debate, during which several
amendments were made for the Sen
ate's concurrence. One of these pro-
vides for tuberculin test of cattle,
which it is proposed to import into
Vermont, and this improves the bill
somewhat. The vote against it
shows considerable doubt as to it's
efficacy in dealing with what is re-
garded as serious menace to dairy
herds. AS will be remembered, it
does not make the tuberculin test
compulsory, except as above noted,
and leaves the Cattle Commission
with little power beyond what the
discretion of herd owners may sug7
gest.
The existence of the hoof and
mouth disease at Chester and else
where, moved a Chittenden county
member to amend the bill by author
izing the commission to take such
quarantine measures as they deemed
best in the case of epidemic diseases
among cattle, but he took occasion
to declare that tuberculosis was not
to be regarded as epidemic" This
is how the Lamoille county repre-.
sentatives finally voted on this bill:
For it-Messrs. Blake of Eden, Har-
rington of Cambridge, Hollenbeck of
Elmore, Lilley of Hyde Park, Pearl
of Johnson, and Tillotson of Belvi-
dere; against it-Messrs. Stafford of
Morristown, and Randall of VOL
colt; not voting-Mr. Woodward of
Waterville. .. T.,
RELIEF GRANTED AND REFUSED. ~
Several more measures providing
relief for towns which had suffered
from floods, were considered the past
week. The case of Jamaica, in Wind
ham county, was an extreme one;
and as that town is in debt $3S, 900
worth, has a grand list of $4,000,
and tax of 800 cents, the House
granted the relief asked for and the
Senate will no doubt concur. The
claim of Jay, having been once re-
iected, was reconsidered and the
House decided toIhelp her. But the
relief asked for Elmore, Andover,
Westmore and Woodbury. was de-
MED. Mr.. Hollenbeck did his best to
have his towns request favorably
considered, but the House thought
Elmore had other remedies at hand
and so refused to appropriate. If all
the bills seeking relief of this sort,
had been passed, it would have taken
about $4,000 out of the state
treasury.
The way of the licepse local-option
bill has been made much smoother,
so far as the Legislatures concerned,
by several changes unanimously
agreed upon by the Joint Committee
on Temperance after two or three
conferences. Since the passage of
the House bill on that Friday night,
Nov. 81, "the folks at home" the
constituents of the legislators, have
discussed this bill and its referendum
so emphatically as to suggest the de-
STABILITY of changing the measure in
some particulars. This discussion
has borne fruit that will soon be
ready to pick.
The date on which the popular
vote on the bill is to be taken is fixed
as the first Tuesday of February, in