The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1906-04-12
THE LEGISLATURE

The General Assembly of MARYLAND
completed its regular session of 1906,
by constitutional limitation, on Mon
day night and has left a record in
many things not creditable to such a
body. In the first place it was essen
TALLY and intensely partisan The plans
Of the majority, from first to last, were
laid to promote the interests of the
Democratic party and no remedial
legislation of any value, for the correc-
ton of the glaring abuses possible
under the existing election law, ever
had any chance of enactment The
Murphy bill, passed by the House of
Delegates, for that purpose, and which
had some merit, was amended out of
all semblance of fairness in the Senate
and when, on the last night of the ses-
sion, committee of conference on the
measure was appointed, every Repubh-
can member of the House was excluded
from it and Democrats only named.
, This was probably the most glaring act
of craftsmanship in the history of the
Maryland Legislature. Thus composed,
the committee agreed upon a measure
which the Republicans of the House
were constrained to oppose and it failed
altogether. The people, therefore,
may anticipate a repetition of such
wrongs as have occurred under exist
ing law.
A bill to submit the question of hold
ing constitutional convention to the
voters of the State was passed in the
closing hours of the session. This BILL
as it went through the Senate, con-
tanned a most extraordinary provision
requiring the voter to express his pref
erence for or against a convention by
writing it on his ballot. The House
amended the bill by substituting a re-
quirement that the words "For Con-
stitutional Convention and against
a Constitutional Convention" should
be printed on the ballot, and the SEN
ate finally agreed to this provision.
The original action of the Senate on
the measure, however, indicated the
extreme partisan character of the ma
jority in that branch of the General
Assembly
1t may be said here that it has been
stated as the purpose of the Democrat
ic managers, if the people can be in
duced to sanction a call for a conven-
ton, to adopt and promulgate con-
stitution without submitting it to ratif-
cation by the voters of the State. Just
now, further comment on that proposi-
ton is unnecessary.
We desire to be entirely fair to the
majority in the General Assembly anC
therefore must commend the action h,
which the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
was induced to make an adequate offer
for the States holdings in the Washing
ton Branch, and also the passage of the
Seth-Haman Oyster bill. The latter
measure received a constitutional ma
Jority in both Houses on the last dav
Of the session and, of course, was ap-
proved by the Governor.
But the minority is fully as much
entitled to commentator for the sue
cess OF these proceedings as the ma
Jority, as neither the case of the Balti-
more and Ohio Railroad nor the oyster
bill were party measures. The Re-
publicans had it in their power to de-
feat the oyster bill as a means of retail
alton for the failure of the majority to
agree to some remedial legislation for
the correction of the gross wrongs and
abuses perpetrated under the present
election law. They had too much re-
gard for the welfare and prosperity of
the State, however, to pursue this
course and they deserve the thanks of
the people for thus rising above the
virulent party spirit which marked the
action of the majority.