Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1905-05-31
GOVERNOR RAPS
SECRET LOBBY
TELLS LEGISLATURE HOW MEM
5ERs ARE INFLUENCED"
ASKS A PENAL STATUTE
Would Make Serious offense of At
tempt to Convince Legislators
Mind Other Than in Open Hearing
Refers to School Book, Tele-
phone and Railroad Lobbies.
Madison. Nav 26

Madison, May &c.
To make secret lobbying on the part
of paid lobbyists penal offense pun
'ishable by heavy fine and imprison-
ment was the recommendation of Gov
La Toilette in a message read before
both houses of the legislature y SER
DAY.
The governor said in his message
that he recognized that the members
CT the Legislature were the agents of
their constituents and that as such
they must ever be ready to be made
acquainted with the wishes ami inter-
ests of their constituents and the pub
lie. He would not recommend or ap-
prove law interfering with free ard
full public discussion of all proposed
legislation before committees and in
either house of the legislature. He
would rot object to such legitimate
presentation of argument as can be
made before committees, before the
legislature as a body, through the
press, from the public platform and
and through printed briefs and argu-
ments placed in the hands of all men,
hers and accessible to the public. But
he would prohibit and stamp out the
secret lobby. 1t was not fair, he
said, to all interests to permit secret
lobbying on any measure after the
public hearing had been closed. The
corporate interests could and did
maintain strong and expensive Hobbies
at the capital throughout the entire
session. After those who had APP
peared before the committee on the
opposite side of questions pending
had left the capitol, then the corpora
ton lobby continued the argument Sc
cretly, logging the footsteps of the
legislators in and out of the capitol,
following them to their rooms and
making free with forms OF entertain
nents supposed TIE argument was
closed and was entirely in the hands
of the Legislature to be decided with
cut further influence of any kind.
Refers to Book Lobby.
The governor referred especially to
the school book, telephone and rail-
road lobbies, and recited the legisla-
ton they had been able to defeat in
other years and had worked against
even at this session. OF the railroad
Lobby he said:
Hard on Railroad Lobby.
"They are a grade of men with
whom a railway would not trust the
trial of a petty damage suit in justice
court. They are incompetent to ar
que any proposition before a legisla-
tive committee. Their special talent
seems to fit them more particularly
fer private argument"
Private Lobbying Wrong.
The governor Concluded his mes
sage by saying that personal, private
lobbying is wrong in principle, and is
absolutely certain to be vicious in
practice mo legislation which has
been enacted will be secure, and that
which the public interests will require
in the future will never be reasonably
certain of attainment until the secret
lobby with its misrepresentation and
its wrong 7oing Is prohibited by law.
Il commend to your considerate
Judgment the enactment of statute
making it penal offense for paid
lobbyist to approach a legislator pri-
yately or personally upon any matter
which is subject of legislation
The governor says that this is rea-
sonable and that it is sanctioned by
the highest authority. To substanti-
ate this claim, he quotes from an en-
inent writer upon constitutional law
ard from the opinion of a chief justice
of an appellate court, whom he con-
siders as rating second to none in the
union.
N.rioue TruSE nhhiec