The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1907-07-12
THE WEEKLY JOURNAL.
IHsued Thursday, One Dollar n Year.
ANorHER STATE COMMISSION.


aage. this time recommending the en-
actment Of legislation empowering him
10 appoint commission of nine repre-
sentative citizens whose duty 1t shall
be to inquire into the ways and means
Of preventing the spread Of tubercu-
losis This is a subject of great inter-
est to the people of the State and it
goes without saying that whatever the
State can do to allay the spread Of this
white mans peril should be done
Whether the State should undertake to
Do It in this particular manner is an
entirely different matter.
Elsewhere among the editorials Of
the morning we discuss the inadvls-
ability of adopting the referendum In
the case Of the proposed bond issue as
an Indication Of the gradual breakdown
In our system Of representative govern
snent, or its deliberate abandonment by
the senator's and representatives in the
legislature this year Exactly the same
point Of view pertains in the matter
Of appointing commissions year after
year to do the work of investigation
which should be done by the General
Assembly. This habit has grown upon
the State Of Connecticut until 1t con-
Etitutes a grave scandal involving neg
iect Of duty on the part Of the repre-
sentatives OF the people For several
years past commission after commits
sion has been appointed to undertake
work which should have been done by
the regularly constituted machinery Of
government, and in virtually every in
stance the money expended has been
thrown away, not because the work of
the commissions has been ineff1ciently
done, but because the General Assem-
bly,, to which they have reported, has
pocketed and suppressed the results of
their Investigations and the bills which
would have cured the evils complained
Of The legislature creating each com
mission has shirked its duty, confident
apparently that the legislature to which
o report would be made would do the
same thing.
A random recollection Of the special
commissions appointed in recent years
Is enough to show the complete folly
OF this method of non-government.
Take the commission appointed by for
mer Governor Cooke to investigate the
receipts and expenditures Of the State.
ut was an intelligent and hard work
Ing committee and its carefully pre-
pared report showed where the State
could save half million a year with
out irnpairing the efficiency Of the
government" That report has never
been acted upon. Our recollection Is
ahat 1t was never given a hearing. GER
tainly It was never discussed in either
house Of the General Assembly. The
history Of the proposed state armory
and arsenal will be found, when writ
ten, to consist Of prolonged conflict
between commissions and legislatures.
The same thing will be said of the
movement to build a State library
building which Is to include supreme
court room. The corrupt practices
undertaking was entrusted to a COM
mission and its report has been care
lessly considered by the present leg
isiature The trade school was in no
way benefited by the investigation
made by competent commission. The
reformatory commission worked for
two years and Travelled thousands OF
miles as directed by the legislation
which created it. It's admirable report
nles buried in the archives of the COM
anittee on humane institutions. The
commission having in charge the pro-
posed employers liability act has been
continued until another legislature.
The task Of erecting memorials to the
memory of Senators Plat and Hawley
rests with q special State commission
in spite of the fact that there is a reg
ular department of art in the State
government. A commission was rails
ed to consider uniform city charters,
another has in charge the question OF
voting machines, a third to investigate
the usefulness of the Connecticut Agri.
cultural College and now fourth and
a fifth, one to consider the spread o
consumption and another to .investi-
gate the need for a general utilities
commission, are proposed.
This by no means exhausts the
abortive record of the attempt to gov
ern the State of Connecticut by com
mission, but it is impressive as far al
it goes. We recall it, not for the pur
pose of opposing Governor Woodruff