Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1907-03-20

Way occasion LOTS OF Trouble Tor
Members of Present Iowa peIega.
ton in Congress.
Des Moines, March ia congress.
sional redistricting bill, which will &C.
casion lots of trouble for several men,
bers. of the Iowa delegation in con-
gress, should it become a a., was in.
troduced in the house by Mercer of
Pocahontas. The bill makes Con.
gresham Dawson of the Second dis
trict, whose home is in Jackson coun-
ty, change districts with Congressman
Cousins OF the Fifth, whose home is
in Cedar county. II takes Congress
man Birdsall of Wright county out of
the Third district, where he was safe
ly anchored apparently for years to
come, and puts him among political
strangers and amid an army of am
bilious statesmen in the Tenth dis
trict. From the Tenth Congressman
Conner of Crawford is forcibly elected
by the bill and landed in the Ninth,
to fight IT out for denomination with
Congressman Smith of Council Bluffs.
The homes of the other members are
undisturbed by the bill, but several
changes are made in each district in
the state, excepting the Fourth. The
changes made in the proposed meas
ure are:
First district-Gains Davis county.
Second district-Gains Cedar: loses
Jackson.
Third district-Gains Grundy; loses
Wright.
Fourth district = Remains un-
changed.
Fifth district-Loses Cedar and
Grundy; gains Jackson.
Sixth district-Gains Marion and
Appanoose; loses Davis.
Seventh district-Gains Boone;
loses Marion.
Eighth district-Gains Mills and
Montgomery; loses Appanoose.
Ninth district-Gains Monona and
Crawford; loses Mills and Montgom-
cry.
Tenth district-Gains Wright; loses
Boone and Crawford.
Eleventh district-Loses Monona.
There is little chance that this bill
or any other measure looking to a re-
districting of the state will get
through the present assembly. There
has been no demand for a change
and most of the members feel that the
present apportionment cannot be i'm
proved on.
Insurance Department.
Chairman Jamison of the legislative
insurance investigation commission
succeeded after several weeks of
hard work in getting the senate in
surance committee to recommend for
passage his bill creating an insurance
department for Iowa. Senator Jami-
son will make warm fight for the
bill on the floor and has some hope
that it will be adopted. The oppo-
sition to the measure is determined,
however, to postpone action until the
1909 session of the legislature The
insurance interests OF the state have
filed petition in favor of the BILL
The petition recites that the life and
fire insurance companies doing bust
ness in Iowa are paying into the state
treasury more than $1,000 a day in
taxes, and because of this they believe
they are entitled to consideration and
should be given department devoted
solely to their business.
Four New Agricultural Schools.
Bills have been presented in the
Legislature for the creation of four
new agricultural schools, to be known
as branches of the great college at
Ames and under the direction of that
college. The bill divides the state in
to four districts, taking the counties
Of the northeastern portion of the
state for one district, of the north
western portion for another, of the
southwest for a third and the south
east for fourth district. II the bill
becomes law the present assembly
is to meet in three days after its APP
prevail and select some place in each
of the districts for the location of the
district school. The provision is made
that no district shall have school
until it has decided 10 the state at
least leo arces of land free of cost.
Money for the erection and equip.
ment of the buildings at the various
schools is arranged for by the bill by
a tax of one-tenth of a mill on the
dollar on all taxable property of the
state for term of four successive
years. 1t is arranged that in 1908
$4,000 of the money raised by this
levy shall be used for erecting and
equipping buildings in one OF the dis
tricts in 1909 $4,000 is to be used in
another district, and in 1910 and 1911
the two remaining districts will have
money for buildings. Those who are
back of the bill predict the establish
ment of these additional schools wifi
tend to increase the influence and
power of the school now located at
Ames aid viii be great step forward
for the agricultural interests of the
entire state. II the bill becomes
law great contest will develop for
the location OF the schools and sew
eral cities in each of the districts
will no I'm the race