Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1904-11-18
Montnelier. Nov. Is.

! large number of bills have been disposed
| Of. including several important measures.
| Tho list of bills finally passed by both
/ houses since our last was written is not
a long one as will be seen later on in
this letter; the list of rejected measures
is longer. The week has been marked by
considerable talking. especially in the
house and the debates have been listened
to by small armies of school children and
obbies full of adult visitors. Tuesday was
a red-letter day. Four prominent meas
ures-capital punishment. the Lowell-Al
banY controversy, the attorney general
creation, and state highway tax-kept the
house busy all day long. and every one of
them went down in spite of favorable re-
ports by committees.
Capital Punishment
The bill to abolish capital punishment
and to substitute life imprisonment
therefor came up in the house as a spec
ial order at half-past ten Tuesday morn
ing and debate on It lasted till noon and
through the first hour of the afternoon
session. The bill was refused a third
reading by vote of 153 to SO. Two years
ago a similar bill passed the house by
good majority and was defeated by a
close shave in the senate This time It
was different. 1t was evident early in
vote against it. Twice the previous
question was moved and the notice with
drawn only as an act of courtesy toward
supporters of the bill who wanted to talk.
Mr.. Bullard Of Burlington started off with
a long speech in favor OF abolition, in
dulging in a more or less direct attack on
clergymen in general for their supposed
attitude against abolition and character
iZing capital punishment as barbarous
and uncivilized. His insnuations as to
priest and preacher were admirably an
swered by Mr.. Hllard of Cabot and Mr..
OSullvan OF St Adams city. Twelve
other speeches were made, pro and con.
The most direct and telling opposition to
the bill was made by Mr.. Fits of Brat
tleboro and Mr.. Miles Of Barton. The
former gentleman was sorry not to agree
with other members Of the judiciary COM
mittee in reporting the measure. But he
maintained that this not a question
of pity-we are all moved by that i'm
pulse-it is a question rather of duty.
Everybody here thinks of and feels for
the shrinking soul in the state prison, but
all the while we can hear the still small
voice reminding us of our duty to the
state. He believed the punishment should
fit the crime, and that the practices and
experiences of historic days. upon which
so much stress was laid by the gentle
man from Burlington in his depletion of
the horrors Of executions, should not in
fluence our action today either one way
or the other He urged harmony of the
law, and cited instances showing MUIR
ders committed in states where capital
punishment did not prevail by criminals
who would not venture such deeds in
states where the death sentence could be
passed. He made also the point that
criminals under sentence of death con-
tinually sought and sometimes not in
vain-commutation or pardon.
Mr.. Miles made several excellent pOintS
against the bill, as did also Mr. Proctor
Mr. Nuttng of Westminster spoke in
opposition to abolition. The vote OF the
Windham county members in the roll call
was Yeas-Mr. Hastings of Athens.
Marsh of Brookline, Miner of Halifax.
Johnson of Somerset, Porter of Whiting
ham, Brown of Wilmington: Nays-Mr.
Fits of Brattleboro. Ryther of Dover,
Walker of Dummerston. Corser of Put
ney, Willard of Townshend, Fits of
Wardsboro, Campbell OF Rockingham.
Wright of Vernon, Sherwn of Jamaica
Tyler of Guiford, Melendy of London
derry. Shaw of Marlboro. Nutting of
Westminster, Wood of Windham.
The Lowell Albany Fight.
The town of Lowell has sought to have
a part of its territory set off to Albany
and the town lines committee after a
visit to that region, recommended that
Lowelrs desire be granted. But Albany
wasn't asking for anything that Lowell
didn't care to keep. and IL was main
tanned by the numerous opponents of the
bill that the territory in question was an
Improbable possession and that Lowells
motive in trying to rid herself of it was
mainly a selfish one. The house didn't
like the principle involved, and killed the
measure. LAG to So
Highway Tax Not Raised.
eight cents instead of five was rather
earnestly debated when II came up on
the question of passage. The cities and
larger towns, represented by Mr.. Bullard
of Burlington, Mr. Pape of Barre and Mr..
Kicker of st. Johnsbury lifted up their
voices against any increase as a decided
burden. Mr.. Newton of Reading, who in
troduced the bill, thought the larger
towns ought to help the smaller in the
matter of good roads, and Mr.. Sherwin
of Jamaica was inclined to regard the
bill as fair enough Several representa-
tives of the small towns, however, opposed
the bill as unfair so the little fellows"
rallied manfully to show their disposition
to he square with the big fellows" and
killed the bin by a substantial vote
Preventing Double Taxation.
Another bill intended to prevent double
taxation was turned down in the house
".
II was introduced by Mr.. Wait of Hyde
Park, who wasn't at all pleased by the
unfaVora ble report Of the judiciary COM
mittee. He warmly contended that his
Dill would prove a panacea for the double
taxation. that it was just what the work.
ingman needed and that general ben
eft would result from this putting the
money lender and the savings bank on
the same level The bill. by the way, pro-
Nlded FOR a tax of seVen-tenths per cent
on money loaned on security at Az per
cent. to an amount not over $4,000
Mr. Fits, for the committee, was afraid
such "A change in the law would unbal-
ance things and prove very unsatisfactory
to towns with small grand lists, and
would not prove an efficacious remedy for
double taxation. At the close of the dia-
logue the house said mo" to the bill
Have Passed Both Houses.
Vermont has decided to contribute
towards the erection of a monument on
the Monocacy (NId.) battle-ground at an
expense of some s100 900. A house bill an
propriating $500 for that purpose has
passed the senate.
Janitors in county court houses are to
be uniformly paid-a bill providing for
this was finally passed on Saturday
Authorizing the Deerfield River Lumber
Company of Wilmington to issue bonds
to the extent of 5000, 900 to refund its in
debtedness.
amending the law relative to care of
burial grounds so as to impose a pen-
atty for wilful neglect of any of its pro-
Visions ON the part OF selectmen trus-
tees or commissioners