Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1905-12-25
WISCONSIN LEGISLATURE.

WISCUNSlN LE0ISLAI UKE.
Madison, Wis. Dec. 12.-The as
sembly today ordered to engrossment
the bill to require railroad corpora
tons to pay their assessed taxes 10
full before bringing any action in
court to contest the assessment, and
allowing them to recover in the even
that the assessment be subsequently
declared void by the courts. The as
sembly passed the bill to provide that
should local rate Of general property
taxation be found higher than the
constitutional limit and therefore
void, that act should not invalidate the
ad valorem railroad assessment. This
bill is designed to- meet the last point
raised by the railroads in their second
set of law suits resisting the col
lection of the increased taxes under
the ad valorem railroad taxation law
enacted by the legislature OF 1903.
The roads declare that some local
rates are too high and therefore IN
constitutional, and therefore the rail
road rate, being computed upon the
local rates, cannot stand, being based
in part at least on unconstitutional
local rates. The assembly advanced 20
third reading tile Metzler bill to pro
vide that prim Try election inspectors
be appointed IN February, for the
spring and fall elections. The Thomas
bill limiting the number of signatures
of a primary nominating petition to
ten per cent Of the party vote was adj
vanced after Assemblyman Hanson OF
Beloit had vigorously opposed it az
abridging the lights of voters. AS
semblyman Warner Of Madison AMI
others favored the measure as de-
signed to carry out the purposes OF
the primary election law and reduce
the expenses of primary campaign.
Madison, Dec. 12.-In the senate
the bill to amend the railroad rate
commission law, as suggested by the
commission and by Governor La
Toilette, was introduced with favor
able report and was sent to the
calendar for Dec. Is. The assembly
bill to protect the ad valorem rail
road taxation law from any adverse
effect of possible invalid local tax
rate and the resolution to investigate
life insurance, railroads and political
organizations, were favorably reporter.
The senate concurred in the bill to
give county boards Of supervisors
more latitude in the voting OF county
aid for building and repairing bridges.
Madison, Dec. 13.-There will be no
sweeping investigation of the dea'-
ings of railroad, life insurance and
Iother corporations as demanded by
Governor La Toilette in his specia
session. The senate this morning by
a vote of Is to II refused to concur
in the assembly joint resolution pro-
viding for the investigation.
The assembly also was in an anti
administration mood, for it defeated
the two ballot reform hills that de-
veloped from the recommendations CT
the governor that the straight ticket"
circle on the ballot should be
abolished. The Warner bill,
duplicate of the Massachusetts law,
was killed, SO to 35, and the Roycraft
bill, like the Minnesota law, was
killed, 27 to So. The eight-houf
amendment to the capitol building
bill, requiring that the building con-
tract shall contain an eight-hour-a-day
clause, was adopted. This would ada
to the cost of the building something
over a quarter million dollars.
Madison, Dec. 15.-The senate re-
fused to concur in the joint resolution
passed by the assembly to institute an
investigation of life insurance and
railroad corporations, political com
mittees and organizations, with
reference to their manner OF opera
ton, expenses, investments and
salaries. Senator McGilliVeray made
long speech in opposition. One OF
the strongest arguments of the OPP
ponents to the general corporation and
insurance investigation was that the
senate already had committee OF
Senators Frear, Roehr and Rummel
| to investigate insurance, and that
new committee is unnecessary. Sen
ator Sanborn proposes to increase this
committee by the addition OF four
members of the assembly, increase
their powers and duties and charge
them to investigate the insurance
companies. He introduced resolu-
! ton to this effect.
Madison, Wis, Dec. 14.-The as