The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-02-28
TAX COMMISSIONERS SALARIES.


| Bf1I>Amended i'm House So They VIII
Remain at Present Figure.
The Senate bill increasing the salaries of
the members of the State Board of Tax
Commissioners from $1,000 TO 5000, and
providing that they shall give their entire
time to the work. was amended in the
House yesterday afternoon so that the SAL
aries will remain at the present figure of
| 5000, but the commissioners will still be
! required to work the year around.
| The amendment was. made at the close
of prolonged fight in which Speaker Mar
shall and Representative Sayre again meas
ured strength on parliamentary law with
| the result that the speaker came out with
his colors flying. Honors are now easy
between the member from Wabash and the
| speaker. each having won once or an APP
peal from the speakers ruling
| When the bill, which is Senate bill No. $780,
was handed down on second reading during
the middle of the forenoon session, Sayre
| promptly offered an amendment which was
| a substitute bill providing that the salary
| OF the tax commissioners should be $1,000
! but that in addition to their other duties
! they should prosecute the work of seeking
| out sequeStered taxes, and for this they
should receive an additional allowance for
| the actual expenses incurred in the work.
not to exceed $1,000 each annually. In adj
| dition tn this there were two riders tackled
to the amendment, one providing that the
| salaries OF the judges of the Appellate
| Court shall be 80 and the other that the
salary of the reporter of the Supreme Court
| shall be $1,000.
Representative Statesman Immediately
| raised the point of order that the amend
| ment was out of order because it was not
| germane to the subject OF the original BILL
| Then he withdrew his point of order and
| substituted a motion that the amendment
be laid on the table. The ayes and noes
| were demanded on this notion but instead
| of stating the question the speaker called
| Statesman to his desk and told him to
| Withdraw his motion and renew his point
| of order. This Statesman did, making the
| further point that the parts of the amend
| ment which referred to the salaries of the
judges and reporter of the Supreme Court
| subject had already been passed by the
| Legislature. 49,
The speaker then announced that he
! would adjourn the question pending con-
| sultation of authorities and would make
| his decision known later
''Will the chair indicate, asked Sayre,
| 'how long he will probably incubate on the
''The chair will probably elucidate to-
morrow" replied the speaker.
! However, the chair did not wait until
| Tomorrow but at o'clock yesterday
i afternoon he called the matter up ano an
! nounced that he would hold that the first
point raised by the member from Miami.
| that the amendment was not germane 10
the subject of the bull. was well taken, and
| amend out of order
SAYRE APPEALS.
| Sayre had anticipated this decision by
preparing an appeal. which he at once sent
up, and he backed 1t up with a lengthy
| speech in which he contended, first, that
the speaker had no right to rule an amend
ment out of order on the ground that it
| was not germane, and, second, that the
amendment was germane because it had to
do with the fixing of salaries of state Off
! Gals and the original bill was one increas-
ing the salaries of state officials. The gen.
tleman from Wabash quoted from Jeffer
sons manual in support of his point that
the speaker had no right to decide whether
| or not an amendment is germane, but that
such decision should be left to the members
of the House
Statesman followed with a still longer
| speech in support Of the decision of the
chair. and he availed himself of the oppor
tunity to take several sarcastic filings at
Sayre. IF were disposed to be technical
he began, (which / never am, / would sug-
gest that the gentleman from Wabash add
one more evening To the many he has al-
ready spent in porting over parliamentary
l authorities In preparation for this great
coup d'etat." Stutesman's offhand and
graceful airing of his French in itself
no mean coup d'etat, and that it took well
with his colleagues attested by the
spontaneous burst of applause with which
IT was greeted.
Statesman declared that the rules of the
House expressly covered the question and
that there was no need TO quote from other
manuals. He said that no one but the
speaker could rule on points of order that
were raised, and that the speakers ruling
was manifestly just in this instance, as the
amendment offered by Sayre was clearly
not germane TO the bill The gentleman
from Miami in his choicest and most caus-
tic sarcasm accused the member from Wa
bash of fllibustering for some Interior and
sinister purpose.
Slack. the minority floor leader and Kirk
man, the majority caucus chairman, both
they paid especial attention to Sayres ar
gument that the speaker had no right 10
rule the question to whether the
| amendment was germane Both quoted
| from authorities parliamentary law,
showing that ii was within the province of
| that might be raised.
4, These arguments and the vote on the
! appeal that followed showed where Sayre
| had made serious mistake. The men,
bers OF the House really voted that the
/ speaker had right to rule on the point OF
! amendment germane. If Sayre had adj
mitted from the start that the speaker had
a right TO rule on the question and had
merely appealed from his decision and sup
ported his appeal with an argument show
ing that the amendment was germane he
might have won out, for subsequent devel-
the members wanted the bin amended. As
IL was the speaker was sustained in his rul-
ing by the decisive vote OF a to Is.
Statesman at once moved that the bill be
advanced to engrossment. but on motion
by Stookey his motion was laid the
table by a vote of 90 to IS. Stookey then
| offered an amendment TO the bill which
/ left the salaries of the tax commissioners
at the present figure of $2.000. but did not
strike out the other provision of the bill
that the commissioners shall hereafter give
all their time to their work, instead of but
a comparatively few weeks of each year
as they do at present
Decker, of Nanderburg, offered
ton that the amendment be tabled and
the motion was seconded. This motion shut
of debate, which was not to the liking of
the friends OF the bill. and at the request
OF Statesman Decker withdrew his motion.
Stokey. in ma king his motion to amend,
had merely backed il with the statement
that he was consistently opposed TO all sal
| ary-increasing measures.
STUTESMAN'S SARCASM.
Statesman, who opened the debate. imme-
diately turned his sarcasm toward the
member from Kosciusko. 1.-THE gentleman
from Koscisuko>n he BEGAN .has not Of