Omaha daily bee., 1903-04-13
WORK OF THE LEGISLATURE
What the Twenty yhth Nebraska General
Assembly AcCOmpl,Ihsd.
LAWS THAT WERE MADE DURING SESSION
one Hundred and Eighty-Five BilIs
Passed, nearly All of which Have
Been Given Executive
Approval.

(From a staff Correspondent
LINCOLN, April 11.-(special.)-The
twenty eighth session Of the Nebraska leg
islature convened at noon Tuesday. January
g. and adjourned at noon Thursday, April
.. There we're eighty-one legal days, the
house employing slxty-sx, the senate
sixty eight, the statutory limit being sixty
days. One weeks adjournment was taken
20 enable the joint revenue committee to
complete its work Of drafting a general
revenue bill. A total Of 1893 bills we're in
troduced, 4S9 in the house and SO4 In the
senate. The number passed was 173 and
vetoed thus far. Two years ago 7S7 were
introduced, 17S passed and three vetoed.
The enactment Of a general revenue law.
listing property at its full cash value and
taxing IL at one-hfth. increasing the mem
bership OF the State Board OF Equalization
from three TO FIVE. giving It a secretary at
a salary Of $500 a year; the appropria-
tion of 81, $50, 900 for the current biennium
the repeal OF the wolf bounty law and the
payment OF claims amounting to $40 O00
which is included in the general appropria-
tions; the transfer Of the beet sugar bounty
claims Of f47,027.16 to the district court Of
Lancaster county for adjudication; the
formal exoneration of ex-State Treasurer
william stuefer from blame in the matter
OF the Burt county bond purchase by the
payment OF his bond premium of $4,000 as
the result OF a committee investigation; a
perfunctory investigation Of the so-called
BARLEY "cigar box" resulting In a re-
port indicating that the whole affair was
mythical the adoption OF a Joint resolu-
tion petitioning congress to defeat the
Dietrich land-leasing bill, and another
memorializing congress to enact a copsti-
fnffOnaI amand0aut the nOnnlaF plaC-
tlon Of United States senator's; the appro-
priation OF S35, 600 for a state exhibit at
the Louisiana Purchase exposition at St.
Louis in 1904 the passage of a large num-
Der OF insurance and irrigation laws, the
enactment OF a drastic primary election
law for Omaha and laws giving to Omaha
and South Omaha revised charters and i'm
posing upon South Omaha a governor-ap-
pointed FIRE and police board; the creation
OF the ONCE Of state architect; the passage
of a Joint resolution calling for a conBti-
tutional convention. which was not ap-
proved by the governor. leaving the status
Of the case in doubt; the passage Of an ex-
emption bill reducing the exemption from
$500 to $500; the passage Of a bill paying
TO ex-State Treasurer ]. E.. Hill $4,000 to
reimburse him for suits brought against
him by the state; these are some of the
AmpobNduN pOblNANo ESbuiNS VI bhS ASbiS-
lature.
Some Negative Results.
Some Of the negative results are these:
Refusal, even after the governor urged 1t,
to pass any bills providing for constitu-
tional amendments; refusal to pass bills
providing for municipal taxation of rail-
road terminals and the taxation of rail-
roads and other property on its full cash
value; the defeat OF bills providing for
competitive telephone systems in metro
politian cities; the defeat Of bill providing
safe Investment of the permanent school
fund: defeat Of measures to place the Of
nee Of supreme court clerk on salary
instead Of fee basis; the appropriation OF
$4,000 for the location of oil and gas wells
and $4,000 for iron and coal.
Mostly of Local Application. 81.
In a general sense the majority of the
laws are OF local application. The number
OF the bills introduced and passed is com.
paratively large, but in point Of state
wide Importance few measures were passed
More insurance laws were enacted thar
Of any other one character, unless Il
be educational and charitable, perhaps, and
then came a lot of irrigation laws. mos
of them tending to improve the conditions
for redeeming arid lands and watering
arabic territory; the criminal code revl
sion fever was not wholly absent
II was not to be expected that a legisla
ture with nfty-fve farmers in the lowei
bouse would entirely Ignore the interests
Of the man who tills the soil. Consequent!
number Of laws relating exclusively Il
agricultural affairs were enacted. Among
this class is bill to exterminate prairie
dogs. whose devastations IN western Ne.
braska are SO enormous Another bill In
dorsed by the farmers and passed is tn,
Ramsey elevator bill. the constitutionalit!
Of which has been challenged.
Some Things Not Done.
A few things which the people of tn,