Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-02-28
Mystery of the Disappearance
of Measure Limiting Consent
Petitions Unsolved
THE BLAME is NOT FIXED
No Disposition to Suspect Any Partio-
uIar Person of Making Way With
the Bill for Purpose of Defeating 1t
Measure to Regulate the Billboard
Nuisance.
TBy Ora Williams.l

Special to Times Republican.
Des Moines, Feb. 2S.-The mystery
of the disappearance of the bill amend
ing the mulct law in regard to limiting
petitions of consent is still unsolved.
When the matter came up in the house
and it was found that the bill which
passed the senate was not to be found
attached to the report of the house
committee, there was nothing left to be
done but to refer the whole matter to a
committee for investigation and to
straighten it out. 1t went to the jul
dietary committee. Then the search
began for the bill. 1t was at first
practically conceded that the bill must
have gone from the senate to the
house, else the house committee Oil
suppression of intemperance could not
have considered it. But later it was
pointed out that usually committee
considers a bill by referring to the
bill as printed in the journals and tho
original bill which was passed by the
senate might never have been before
the committee. And so it is lief;
hanging in the air; the bill lost some
where, and nobody knows how or why
or when There is no disposition to
blame any particular person 1t is rec
ognzed that there are many ways the
bill might have been lost. The assump-
ton of DIR. McCash of the anti-saloon
league. that the bill was deliberately
stolen by somebody in order to prevent
legislation, is not accepted generally,
for everyone knows that legislation
cannot be killed off in this way. 1t is
probable that the bill was merely lost
by some careless member or official
and that it was entirely thoughtless.
But for time the sensation was the
talk of the entire legislature.
The house committee on schools has
returned to the house without recon-
mendation the Dashiell bill to forbid
playing foot ball in public schools.
The Warren bill for state examina-
ton of teachers, which was passed by
favorably today by Chairman Jepson,
of the schools committee. The bill will
probably have easy passage through
the house.
A bill regarded as of great import
ance in cities and towns has been
favorably reported to the house. l.
practically gives cities the right to re-
quire plating of large tracts of ground
within city limits. In iemany cases
these unplatted lands remain mat
ter of difficult record.
The sign board bill introduced in the
house by the senior member from Polk
county has been placed in the hands Of
a special committee of the committee
to which it was referred. 1t is planned
to make a bill that will give cities the
right to regulate the bill board ana
posting nuisance A bill to provide
councils be printed in official papers,
has also gone to special committee TO
be perfected.
The Bixby bill to give a tax eXemp-
ton to forest and orchard reserves in
Iowa has passed the house. The bill IS
an elaborate one under which persons
who maintain areas covered with ma
tive trees or with fruit trees may OBJ
tain some exemption in taxes. 1t is
similar to the law which was placed on
the statute books by the Twelfth gen
eral assembly, and which disappeared
with the code of 1873 The secretary
of the state horticultural society is
made ex-officio state forester.
1t was on request of Mr.. Wright that
all the petitions for woman suffrage
were withdrawn from the house. They
had reposed in the desk of the clerk of
the house where curious persons might
see them if so disposed and where the
committee might have access to them
if it was desired to count. The woman
suffrage lobbyists desire to keep the
petitions and make use Of them on the
next legislature which will be largely
composed Of new members.
The house has passed a bill increas-
ing the annual allowance for the state
at Iowa City under the state