The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1907-02-14

nues properly belong. Obviously
the purpose of these laws is to pro
tect the game and fish for the con
venience of wealthy residents oi
the cities who spend their vacations
in the forests hunting or along the
streams fishing. To serve this pur-
pose to make farmers and their
SONS take out licenses to hunt in
woods of their own and fish in
streams which run through their
own farms and farmers who can't
afford to take out such licenses will
be forbidden from shooting game
even OH their own farms. That is
about the limit Of absurdity and iu-
Justice.
The Department of Forestry is
also in the lobby with a couple of
"cokoos." One of these is an act
'to define and establish auxiliary
forest reserves" and the other TO
provide for the taxation of auxl-
iary forest reserves. The first
provides that any owner of "sur-
face land on which trees suitable
for merchantable timber or sas ed
lumber shall be growing and which
If cleared would not be suitable for
agricultural purposes" NAV be
constituted separate and distinct
class of lands to be known as auxll-
liary forest reserves" Under the
law the Commissioner OF Forestry
will have the right to appoint ex-
aminers who shall report to the
County Commissioners and after all
the rigmarole if the Commissioner
of Forestry wants to he may so de-
signate the lands. The ether meas
ure limits the taxation on such
land to valuation of dollar an
acre. This will be all admirable
arrangement for tannery and other
corporations which have or intend
to acquire vast areas of forest.
Their property will be practically
free OF taxation until they are ready
to cut the timber from it, when it
will be released.
PEANUT POLITICS APLENTY.
The feature of the session is the
peanut politics which has already
been revealed. The Republican
managers are determined that no
important legislation shall bear the
stamp Of Democracy and imagine
they can fool the public with such
triffing expedients. This was
shown strikingly, the other day, in
the action of the House committee
on Electric railroads when the bills
to authorize trolley roads to carry
freight were under consideration.
The first bill introduced on the
subject was Mr.. Creasy's measure
and it may be added the he was the
first to propose such legislation.
The committee determined, how
ever, that Greasy bill should not
be reported out. One member who
for some inscrutable reason was
elected in a Democratic district was
particularly active and offensive.
He protested vehemently against
reporting the Greasy bill and de-
clared that only Republican reform
measures should be enacted or con-
sidered. He imagined that the
bosses Of his own party were in
fluenced to the same purpose By
similar considerations. His narrow
vision could discern nc other reason
and he was encouraged in his de-
lusion, poor, ignorant fool.
AS matter of fact, however,
there was another and more potent
reason for preferring the Homsher
bill. 1t is an absolutely harmless
measure. 1t makes no provision
for the regulation of such trafc by
the local authorities in boroughs
which is the most important feature
Of the question. Under existing
laws the passenger traffic OF trolly
roads is subject to regulation by
councils and boroughs through
which they run and in which they
operate and considerable revenue
is derived from that source. But
the Homsher bill for trolly freight
relieves them of this burden and if
it is enacted the corporations can
say to the people so hang. The
Greasy bill gave them no such lib
erty or to speak more exactly such
license. Another difference is that
the Homsher bill includes elevated
and subway roads. This is OBJ,
viously a "tub to the whales"
There are no elevated roads except
in Philadelphia and they are oper-
ated by steam and no subways in
the State. Consequently that pro-
vision of the bill was put in to make