Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1907-04-03
second Important bill, is the so-called

SocOsiA LnpOTlAnG Dill, 10 inc 6O-calleO#
Mueller bill, because it follows the
Mueller Law OF Illinois, to permit j
icipalities to absorb public SER :.
vice corporations, street cars gas =
and electric plants.
w. w. Dunn, who is author of the !
existing primary election law, intro
tluced an important election bill to-
day In the senate. It provides for
special elections for selection of dele
gates to county conventions which |
are to nominate state officials. Each |
political party is to have ballots for !
this election of a different color, but
there may be as many different bal
lots of one party as there are sets of
men wanting to be county conven-
ton delegates. When each man
votes, he must declare his party,
which shall be registered with his
name. The lists thus secured shall
be used at the regular primary cleo
ton later, and the men registered
shall be compelled to vote at the
primary election only the ticket of
the party with which they are regis
tered.
The II. w. Libbey bill to compel
the railroads to employ only the
most competent men as locomotive
engineers, was laid on the shelf for
ever, by q vote of "A to So in the
house. The country members killed
the bill, claiming it was going step
to far for labor interests to expect. -
By a vote of 70 to II the house
passed the G. B. Miller bill increas-
ing the gross earnings taxes on rail-
roads to five per cent:
St. Paul, March 27-After six hours
of strenuous arguments and voting,
the senate this evening by one vote
killed the famous Hackney semi-cen-
tennial exposition bill. During all
this time the fate of the bill was
never certain for an instant, in fact
not until the very last man had cast
his ballot on the final roll-call, max
ing the vote 80 for and 81 against the
bill, and as Victor johnson ended an
explanation of his vote by saying:
"Gentlemen, know that the vote I
am about to cast will decide this great
issue of the proposed expenditure of
81, 100000 for semi-centennial ex-
position in 1873 I must be true to
what believe are the desires in this
matter of the people I represent, and
vote mo- on this BILL
Then the air castles of the big show
planned for the state fair grounds in
1908 fell silently in ruins. The half
formed plans for making not only the
eyes of this country, but of the world
all turn to Minnesota in 1908 were OBJ
liberated. 1t was O'Clock in the
evening. The senate had been bat
thing on the proposition all morning
and all afternoon and had refused to
adjourn for supper till the pending
matter was disposed of. There was
a burst Of applause from the oppo-
nents of the bill. who earlier in the
day had admitted their own defeat.
Then came adjournment and enemies
and opponents of the bill, but one
and all friends of it's author, j. M.
Hackney, crowded around him to ex-
press their good will toward him, and
to congratulate him on the noble,
straightforward and ever gentleman
ly campaign and fiEal fight he had
put UP in the interests of the bill for
big exposition in the inter-city dis
trict which he is representing for his
first term.
With the exception os one hour to-.
day, the entire time was pat on the
exposition bill in the senate. Dnt in
that one hour, the w. A. Nolan re-
ciprocal demurrage bill of the house
was taken up and passed by vote of
81 to 9. There was not an attempt
made to even amend it, through it
was criticised, severely in addresses
by Senators George r. Laybourn of
Duluth and j. F. Calhoun of Mimi
eapolis.
The house today passed"the agricul-
tural school bill, the measure for
which the speaker has worked untir-
ingly and number of times left the
chair to take the floor and defend.
The bill establishes agricultural indus
trial school at Breckenridge, Austin,
Willmar, Madison, Marshall, Morris,
Slayton, and Wadena. There is
prospect that when the bill reaches
the senate the number of agricultural
schools will be decreased.
A number of bills were introduced
in the house. One interesting nea-
sure of rather uninteresting lot, is
NV T g. Gates of KENYON. IT pro-
vides for a mercantile tax on all
dealers in goods and merchandise, a
license as it were.. Retailers are to
pay s. a. year plus S mills on each
dollar of their gross volume of state
business. Wholesalers are to pay $40,
and 8 mills on the dollar of earnings.
The joint committee on iron prop
erty taxation, has prepared report
opposing the proposed iron ore ton
mage tax as unconstitutional, unwise,
and a measure which would likely
prevent the contemplated establish
,nent of large steel plants in this state
as is contemplated by the United
States Steel corporation.
Christmas in Scandinavia.
In Scandinavia Christmas is cele
brated in it's literal sense of peace on
earth, good will toward men; the
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