Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1903-12-16
given such consideration and action

given such consideration and action
as its importance just demands"
With this recommendation the &C
tive work for the adoption Of the mea-
sure at the last session OF the legls-
lature ceased, but it is considered al
most sure that a similar bill Will pc
introduced shortly after the meeting
of the coming legislature. Messrs.
Temple and Clarke, both of whom
were champions of the bill in the last
house, are members of the new. Sew
eral of the present trustees of the in
situations are quoted as favoring the
plan and members of the faculties are
also said to intend lending their sup
port. Tie effective work of the state
board of control in caring for the state
penal and charitable institutions has
presented an example in economy and
efficiency which will go a long way
towards recommending the enactment
of this proposed measure.
Then the fire insurance men Of the
state will take up the work OF Great
ing a sentiment for the enactment OF
a state fire marshal law. No legisla-
ton may be asked this winter, but the
hope Is that a sentiment may be ere
ated which will result in the adop-
ton of law to meet their desires in
1906. They will ask that lew be
passed for the election by the legisla-
ture or appointment by the governor
of a state fire marshal, who shall be
on the same plane as the state game
warden and who will have authority to
appoint deputies to aid him in his
work. The real work of the fire mar
shall and his deputies will be the hunt
ing down of incendiaries. 1t is
claimed that this will keep the mar
shall and a good set of deputies reas-
onably busy, for the insurance men de-
clare that fully 80 per cent of the fires
in Iowa are of incendiary origin. They
also claim the bulk of these fires could
be prevented if a state marshal law
with proper penalties for the punish
ment of guilty parties was in effect.
Such a law, it is said, would be or
greater benefit to the people at large
than to the insurance companies. AS
it is now the companies meet these
extra losses by raising rates and the
honest premium holders suffer be-
cause of the acts of dishonest ones.
A department of insurance is an
other feature of new legislation which
is likely to come before the lawmak-
ers. State Auditor Carroll, in his an
nual report to the governor, suggests
such a law might prove good thing,
and says further if the department is
not created the legislature ought at
least to create the Office of superin-
tendent of insurance and take this
bulky work away from the auditor,
who is overcrowded with duties now.
The great growth of insurance in Iowa
in recent years is the cause for this
request.
Bill for Juvenile Court.
The Iowa Congress of Mothers will
also get after the legislators and will
ask the establishment of juvenile
court in this state. Mrs. Isaac Hills
of Des Moines, who is president of the
congress, is quoted as saying that
bill has been prepared and will be
presented to the legislature by Senator
Warren Garst. The proposed bill Is
the work of attorneys connected with
the State Bar association who have
prepared it at the request of Mrs. Hill
lis. 1t will embody all the good fea-
lures of the laws for Juvenile courts
in other state, and at the same time
will be made to fit local conditions.
The idea is for the establishment OF
court for the trial of youthful offend
ers, which shall be entirely free from
the faint of the police court The re-
calcitrant youths will be brought be-
fore the judge of the court, but there
are to be no witnesses. The parents
of the child on trial will be the only
ones called in and an effort made to
get at the facts concerning the child
from them. There is to be nothing
about the court to stain the mind OF
the child with the knowledge of the
fact that he has been under arrest. A
probation officer will be one of the
attaches of the court and it will be his
duty to keep an eye on youths who
have been before the court and to re-
port on their conduct at stated times.
important Insurance Ruling.
AS the result of an inquiry made by
Secretary of the Treasury Shaw, rul-
ing has just been handed down by
Attorney General Mullan which will
be of considerable Importance to the
state. Under the Iowa insurance laws
there has been doubt cast upon the
right of foreign insurance companies
to make investments in the state with
out first filing articles of their incor.
poration with the state auditor and
securing a permit. Secretary Shaw.
who had been approached regarding
the matter, wrote to the attorney gen.
eral suggesting 1t would be well for a
ruling to be made so that the compan.
les might know exactly their status In
Iowa. In his ruling, which has been
made public. Attorney General Mullan
holds. in short, that the Iowa insur-
ance laws not only permit but provide
for the transaction Of business In the
state by outside corporations in the