Omaha daily bee., 1905-02-16

proach. Both have the welfare Of the
fraternals at heart.
SHOULD this shreok bill become law
II would stihe every small lodge that is
to be organized in this state. Look at
what II would cost to have a convention
of 100 men meet to make some change in
the laws Every lodge would have to send
It's portion of that 50 per cent of delegates.
Could they afford to do it? The bill,
should It become law would make II Inn
perative that they did this" Mr.. Jackson
concluded with a statement OF the history
of fraternals from the time the first one
was organized and from his statistics an
nounced that at this time fraternals were
paying out in losses 81 a second.
Cady of Howard was in favor Of the
Shreck bill and In his remarks he, more
than any other senator, confined himself
to the bill under discussion.
"If there Is any objection to the bill,
he said, ut certainly should be to that
provision which provides the grand lodge
shall contain at least 95 per cent of the
elective body. That should read 100 per
cent. There is no danger in turning this
power over to the people. 1t sounds
strange to me to hear a man argue to
turn over to a people only a portion of
power. The fraternal congress bill is a
cunningly fixed instrument. 1t provides
that a majority of the governing body
shall be of the elective body. That would
practically leave the affairs of the lodge
in the hands of the self-elected officers.
But I want to say here this is not a
warfare against fraternities. 1t is a fight
to save the orders. 1 want to tell you, you
need not be afraid to turn your lodges
over to the people who have paid in the
money to keep them going. When the
people rule there is no perpetual office
holder. Do not be mislead by those who
are working against this bill. They are
working for selfish ends There is not a
particle of danger in trusting your orders
to the people,"
Wall of Sherman made an lmpassioned
speech against the bill. He told that old
line insurance agents were for the bill.
THAT should be enough to put every fra
ternal man on his guard he said. He
argued that to enact the bill into law
would stop the organization of any more
fraternal lodges. The officers, he said, who
organized these lodges are the ones who
borrow the money to give them their first
start. He cited an instance in his own
neighborhood where several men had bor-
rowed on their own responsibility $4,000 to
start a lodge. The membership, he said,
was not responsible for this money, but
the officers were.
Mockett of Lancaster closed the morning
debate with humorous speech in which
he advertised his old line insurance busi-
ness and partially made the senators for
get the heated struggle they had been
through
After the Mockett talk a recess was
taken until 2:30.
The debate was resumed at the after
noon session and practically the same
ground was gone over again. The bill
was indefinitely postponed by vote of
IS to II and a motion to not concur in the
report of the committee was lost by a vote
of 20 to II.
These bills were reported for the general
file by standing committees:
s. F. IS, fixing a penalty for jury bribers.
s. +. 10, fixing penalty for juror who
allows himself to be bribed.
g. +. 1S, defining child delinquency and
fixing the punishment for one who con-
S. F. 10, to allow the Red Men to incor-
porate, was indefinitely postponed.
to incorporate, was indefinitely
S. +. 169 and s. F. 1877 both providing for
the construction of drainage bitches, were
placed on general file.
S. r. y, was recommitteed to the COM
mittee.
S. F. T. by Sheldon. which provides that a
1-mill levy shall he made by the State
Board Of Equalization to provide fund
with which to pay OFF the state debt was
passed without the emergency clause.
These bills were introduced and read a
first time:
g. F. 1856, by Cady, for the election of a
board of railroad commissioners consisting
of three members, to be paid $1,000 a year
each. The one receiving the highest vote
shall serve three years, the next two and
the lowest one year.
s. F. 1877, by Meserve of Knox, defining
the boundary OF Dakota county to conform
to the report of the Nebraska-Dakota
Boundary commission.