The Teton peak. [volume] (St. Anthony, Idaho) 1899-1904, 1903-02-05
THE Idaho legislature has set

Already more mas been trans
acted than has been accom-
plished by the average fusion
Legislature with three -fourths OF
the session gone. The compari-
son is especially strong when
made with respect to any fusion
sessions when a United States
senator has been elected The
republican Legislature of 1903 or
ganized and elected senator in
the same time that the fusion
Legislature of the past has de
voted to Organization-the Sc
lection of clerks and janitors,
etc. With the fusionists it has
been a fight for a few measley
salaries. With the republicans
the idea has been to dispose of
those matters with the least pos
sible delay and expense that the
Legislature might settle down to
the serious business of the SEES
sion.
Already large number of
measures are ready for action.
Some of them are meritorious.
but for the most part they re-
present the views of individuals
who have failed to take into con
sideration the interests of
the state as a whole. These.
of course. will be sent to
the graveyard. The disposition
of the legislature seems to be to
enact few good laws rather
lot of poor, or even mediocre
measures. Furthermore, it has
been found necessary to cobble
up Il lot of legislation of fusion
legislatures. Some of these
measures had they been proper
ly drafted, would have been
beneficial to the state, but they
were thrown together so care
lessly that they have stood dead
letters on our statute books. An
example of this is furnished in
laws that provide no penalty for
their violation. 1t seemed to
have been the aim of the fusion
legislatures to hoOdwink the
people into believing that they
had given them some measures
that would benefit them. They
said this or that should not be
done but failed to fix a penalty
for the violation Of the enact
ments, which, of course, rendered
them nugatorp. There are sew
eral examples of that kind. In
other cases more serious Obiec-
lions are raised. Take the mat
ter OF the codes for example.
The fusion legislatures and ad-
ministrations foisted onto the
people Of this state set of codes
that cost this state the sum of
$32, 900, and today they are
not worth the paper they are
printed on in SO far as being the
laws OF the state. They were
never adopted by the legislature
and the present session hardly
dare adopt them because they do
not know what is in them that
should not be there or what of
the old laws that should be there
were left out by the commissions
that cobbled them.
Idaho's laws should be codified, there
is no question about that, but they
should be codified right. 1t is the
opinion OF some of the best posted men
in the legislature, of both political
parties, that the codes as printed should
be repudiated and new codification
ordered
The instances cited give some idea of
the bad work of the fusion legislatures
that 1t Is up to the present legislature to
remedy
Another matter that will engross the
attention OF the legislature is the legis-
latlve reapportionment. Two years ago
the legislature enacted reapportion-
ment law that damned that body in the
mind OF every fair minded man and wo-
man in the state. 1t was based on moth
ing excepting a determination on the
part OF the fusion leaders to steal the
l9o5 legislature. Small counties that
WV SOohtcd safely ueu1Ocfat1c. We're
given representation entirely out of pro-
portion to their population or voting
strength and large republican counties
were correspondingly curtailed. OF
course this chicken came home to roost
Such poultry always does. The repub
ilcan party, in the great victory won
last November, profited by the attempt
ed theft of democracy without having
been any party to the shameless act.
But the republicans do not propose to
enact any such reapportionment act
The unanimous sentiment is in favor of
law giving each county the represen-
tatlon 1t is entitled to under fixed
basis. Some favor the vote on COVER
nor cast last November. Others favor
the registration as basis, and still
Others urge it would be fairer to strike
an average between the registration,
the vote and the population according
TO the last census. However, whatever
Is done the people can rest assured that
each county will be given fair repre-
sentatiOn,
J. ID. Mcpherson, Dentist.