The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1905-03-17
WHIPPING POST
FOR MICHIGAN j?
Bill introduced by Represen-
tative Ming Nearly
Passes.
1T LACKED ONLY FIVE VOTES
Measure Has Been Extensively
Discussed in the Lower
House.
Senator Seely Completes and Intro
duces His Bill for the Taxation
OF Sleeping Cars-Legis-
lative Notes.

Lansing, Mich, March lit is no
ten to one shot that the legislators
of Michigan will not conclude that this
state needs a whipping post and shall
have 1t. During the past week this
subject has been extensively discuss d
In the lower house of the Legislature,
and while at the outset II was the gen
eral opinion that the bill stood no show
Of passing. ii came within five vot
of receiving the fifty-one necessary TO
insure its passage. Nothing daunted
by this defeat, Representative Ming,
the introducer OF the bill. changed his
vote to no, in order to be in a posi-
| ton to move recOnSderati ton. This
| bill is now on the table. and Repre-
sentative Ming is hopeful that he will
be able to muster the five votes needed
TO put the measure through the house.
If successful in this undertaking, he
will have the bill taken up and passed
No bill has caused more discussion this
winter than this whipping post prop
osition. 1t is purposed, of course, to
| give only wife beaters n taste Of the
lash. The father Of the bill has
served several years as sheriff of his
county. He says that his experience
warrants him in advocating the pas
sage of this bill as the only effectual
means of putting a stop to wife beat
ing in this state.
To Tax Sleeping Cars.
Senator Seely has completed and in
troduced his bill for the taxation Of
| sleeping cars. Heretofore all measures
having this object in view have pro
vided for specific tax on earnings.
but the results have been far from sat
| isfactory, the effect being the practical
escape Of the companies from taxation.
The Seely bill provides for an al
| valOrem tax at the same rate that is
paid by other railroad property I'm
Michigan. This is the average rate OF
taxation for the state as determined by
| the state tax commission. 1t is
| figured that total Of sixty-six sleep
ing cars are operated in Michigan and
on the valuation Of these cars, the new
bill would yield the state an annual
revenue of approximately 1000.
1t is not impossible that Michigan
may follow in the footsteps of Indiana
and enact an anti-cigarette law, the
house committee on state affairs hav-
ing favorably reported Representative
NIing's bill prohibiting the manufacture
or sale Of these health destroyers in
this state. Two years ago a similar
bill passed the house, but went against
the rocks in the senate.
Changed Their Positions
The legislative committees of the
various agricultural and farmers or
CARNATIONS of the state, including the
grange and farmers clubs, were h re
here again this week and took act or
regarding pending legislation. They
changed their position regarding de
sired primary legislation n trhe by
| favoring the elimination of the office
| of United States senator from the
Stone primary bill now before the
| house, but insisting that direct nomin
atoms apply TO all other Offices from
governor down. The joint committees
also went on record as favoring the
several appropriations for the agricul
tural college, TO which reference is
made in detail further on in this COM
munication, and as emphatically OPP
| posing the creation of more state
boards and commissions to examine
and license members Of various trades
and occupations. There are bills pend
ing which provide for the examination
and licensing of electricians, surveyors.
| decorators, butchers, engineers, etc..
nd hn
has already been done in this direc-
| ton.
Primary Election Bills.
Senators Brown and Glasgow, who
have for several weeks been at work
preparing separate primary election
bills, have about completed their la
bors and within the next week or two
it Is expected that definite action will
be taken on this subject which, under
all the circumstances, is the most i'm
portant one before the legislature. Now
that these two bills have been pre-
pared, ii is that they will be considered
in conjunction with Senator Bairds
bill on the same subject. and an ad
ministration measure evolved from the
| trio.
1t Is possible that the recent serious
hair cutting episode. with its accom-
panying stabbing ARRAY. at the Michi-
gan university will lead to the enact
ment Of law which will be effective
in the line Of doing away with these
truly side-splitting performances. And.
by the way. Representative Ming. who
Is engineering the whipping post and
anti-cigarette bills. is responsible for
this most cOmmendable measure also.
This bill. which has been favorably re-
ported by the house committee on state
affairs. seeks to do away with hazing.
II provides a fine of from so to 500
for ordinary hair cutting and similar