The Tupelo journal., 1906-02-23
Mississippi Legislature
SENATE.

LA "a w ~ VI SbPNA
visors of counties in which public parks
are located to construct, maintain and
keep up roadways that might be neces-
sary in order to lead up thereto, was
taken up. The committee substituted in
bplace of the original bill was agreed to,
all the senator's voting yea.
Mr.. Farley .alled up the house bill
providing for the branch agricultural
experiment station at Mcneil. The bill
was passed, being the same in terms as
the former measure.
Mr.. Kendrick introduced a bill to ap-
propriate money to run the State board
of health for the years 1906-07.
Chapter 81, on guardian and ward,
was taken up and the sections called
off by the clerk, and were adopted with
out material change. In section 1886
the term cocaine, opium or morphine
eater" was altered to read "habitual
user" of these drugs, SO as to make it
more specific. This is the section which
gives authority to the Chancery Court
to appoint a guardian for one who is
addicted to the morphine, cocaine or
opium habit.
The anti-child labor legislation forces
won out in the senate, and as far as
that body is concerned it is not likely
that there will be any further attempt
to legislate IN the subject.
Mr.. Dunn offered, a concurrent resolu-
ton for the appointment OF a joint com
mittee of members of each house to in
vestigate along the lines of the house
bill which seeks to create several more
court districts and to increase the terms
of holding court to three times a year
in each district. This created opposi-
ton from the start, as several senators
stated that they could see nothing in 1T
except a plan to make a few more judges
and district attorneys; there were very
few counties with dockets so congested
that the business could not be cleared
off under the present system. The prop
osition was defeated by a decisive vote.
Senator Kendrick sent up senate bill
102, to donate money to take care OF
the old and infirm women of Mississippi.
The report of the judiciary committee
was favorable to the bill to provide for
other legal holidays, and unfavorable on
the bill to fix lines of liability for GER
tain hotel keepers, and the bill provid-
ing for the payment of costs in certain
criminal cases.
SeudlOI IllSltOWeI3 uiucl IN uhoii
nous consent rule, called up house bill
No. Z, which is to amend the acts rela-
tive to preserving the crops of Tate
county so as to extend the same laws
to the counties of Lafayette, Pamela and
DeSoto. The bill was passed without
objection.
Senator Smith then called up senate
bill No. 81, being a bill to authorize
the mayor and aldermen of Vicksburg
to donate to the State by deed, to be
duly executed, the property known as
the Vicksburg State Charity Hospital, to-
gether with the lands and Improvements
thereon, to be used as a general State
charity hospital. The bill passed by a
vote of 90 to 10.
Mr.. Mounger then called up his motion
to reconsider the vote by which the bill
to repeal the laws relative to the rights
of tramway operators under the law
to eminent domain. He thought that
they are operating as much in the In
terest of the public as any other com
mon carrier. This brought on consider
able argument.
After defeating the efforts of Mr..
Mounger to get a reconsideration of the
bill repeating the law allowing the own
ers of tramways and causeways the right
of eminent domain proceedings, by
adopting the motion to lay on the table,
the senate proceeded in committee of the
whole to consider the code chapter on
district attorneys. There was only one
change made, but that was a very i'm
portant one, consisting of the striking
out of a clause from section 1856, which
defines the relationship of the the dis
trict attorney to the grand jury. The
committee found the following addition
| to the old law inserted by the commits
| sion: But in no case shall he advise the
grand Jury to find or not to find a true
bill. For violation of this provision he
be guilty of a malfeasance in office and
on conviction may be fined not less than
500 and removed from office"
The committee considered this too
wide a departure from the present law
and the proposition to cut it out was
agreed to.
Quite a tilt was caused over the bill
of Senator Henry to make an appro-
| priation or donation of $500 for the
| Confederate Park at jackson for the
years 1906 and 1907. The measure might
| have gotten through without objection
| had not an amendment been tackled on
| to provide for the appropriation of a
| similar amount for the Confederate Gem
| etery and monument at the State Uni
| versity grounds at Oxford, which was
too much for the bill to carry against
| the constitutional objections raised. At
| n rate the adverse vote on the amend
ment, preceded by the general debate
| covering its introduction, had the effect
| of dividing the question SO that there was
| not enough votes in favor of it, or the
| required two-thirds for the passing OF
donations.
At section 1OO5A of the code, which
covers the cocaine question, Mr.. Nell
| benny offered an amendment making the
| penalty for sale of the stuff without a
| physicians prescription punishable on
| conviction, the punishment to be any
| where from three to ten years imprison-
ment in the ~penitentiary. MIR. Nell
| benny believed that half or probably a
| larger proportion of the crimes of a
| more aggravated or deadly nature arise
in the indiscriminate handling and tax
ing of cocaine, and any corrective meas.
ure would be wholesome. The amend
ment was defeated.
Senator Hebron offered a new subsec-
| ton, or 1O026A, which provides that
| any one being convicted under the fore
going section shall have his weapon for
| feited and that the sheriff shall take
| charge of and publicly destroy the same.
| After some discussion the amendment
was adopted.
On motion of Mr.. Farley the senate
-. L.