The Richmond palladium. (Richmond, Ind.) 1906-1907, 1907-02-06
Indiana House Passes MCCul-
Tough Bill and the Senate
May do Likewise.
WERE BUT 13 AGAINST 1T
z. G. HIBBERD AT INDIANAPOLIS
IN THE ROLE OF AN OPPONENT
FOR BILL WHICH WILL ROB
CITY OF NATURAL GAS.
(ey Oemas S. Coe.l


indianapolis, Ind, Feb, 5--The Nc
CulIough bill which dumps the pres
ent metropolitan police law in the
sewer" so to speak, went through
the house this forenoon with SO much
speed that it daZzled the members
and the spectators. Friends of the
present metropolitan police law NUM-
bered IS, and they were as unlucky in
their championing of the existing sta
tute as the number would signify.
There were 7G members of the house
who voted to wrest from the goyerr
nor the power by which he may
create police boards, thereby confer
ring the power on the mayors of the
sixteen Indiana cities where police
departments are conducted under the
metropolitan law. The bill came ov-
er to the senate this afternoon and
was referred to the committee on cit
les and towns. An effort will be made
TO have the committee report for in
definite postponement but this cannot
be done. The battle will be on the
floor of the senate and if the support
ers of the governor do not do bet
ter job of rallying than they did in
the house, it's all over but the shout
ing now. Representative Mccullough
says the bill will pass the senate.
But he is simply guessing like every
body else, for newspaper men and
other attaches of the upper house are
unable to poll the body. There are a
half dozen senators who are free to
say they do not know how they will
vote and in explanation declare the
reason to be that they are not inter
ested, having no constituency in cit
les where the metropolitan law is in
force Representative Ratliff vot
against the bill. Representative FL
lott was not in the chamber when
the roll call was taken, hence was
not recorded as voting either way.
x x *
Natural gas companies throughout
Indiana have within the past day or
so awakened to the fact that two
measures are before the general as
sembly which, it is asserted, provide
that the pumping of gas shall be pro-
hibited, repeating the act of 1908
which gave gas companies the right
to establish and operate pumping sta
tions. In the senate a bill has been
recommended for passage by the COM
mittee on natural resources, that was
introduced by Senator Strange of
Grant county. The bill provides that
any person, firm, company or corpor-
alton engaged in drilling for, piping,
transporting. or selling natural gas.
shall not transport the same through
pipes at a pressure to exceed 800
pounds to the square inch. The addi-
tional provision is made that there
shall not be any artificial means us
ed in connection with any well or
wells to increase the flow of natural
gas, or than for the removal of oil and
water from such wells for free and
unobstructed flow. There is penal
ty provided which fixes a fine of not
less than $1,000 nor more than $10,-
600 and in addition the officers of such
offending corporation may be impris-
oned in the county Jail for a period
not exceeding six months. In the
house Mr.. Condo has similar meas
ure. Elgar G. Hibberd. of the Rich
mond Gas company and Jonn +. Rob-
bins, attorney for the Richmond COM
pany were here today looking after
the matter. All gas companies in the
state that use artificial means for
creating pressure will oppose the mea-
sure. Richmond would be cut off from
its gas supply should such law be
enacted and unless the legislators are
made to understand what i'll effects
would follow in Richmond and some
The senate this afternoon took it's
first slap at a temperance measure of
the present session, when it killed the 1
bill offered by Senator Thomas Moore
which proposed that the burden of
proof in liquor remonstrance cases
should rest on the applicant for lie
enSe and not on the demonstrators.
In plain language the bill proposed
that where the signatures of remon-
strators was questioned. the remon.
traitors need not prove their validity
but they were to be taken as prima
facie evidence that they were valid
unless the applicant could prove 9TH +
erwise. II was claimed by various
lawyers that this would change the
legal rules of practice and that the
saloon men should not be forced to do 4
something that other classes of peo- 4
pie were not forced to do. The tenn
perance forces of the senate fought
hard and died the same way, but the
bill went to its grave by a vote of 1
% to 20.
y X
A poll taken in the house this af-
ternoon on the Mattingly high license
bill. indicated that there will have to
be some work done there If the meas
ure is not defeated. The temperance
forces all over the state have been