The Lake County times. [volume] (Hammond, Ind.) 1906-1933, 1907-02-02
F. Y. BINGHAM
RETAINS SEAT
Democrat Elected From ST.
Joseph County by Small
Plurality Wins.
SCHOOL BILLS KILLED
High License Measure Doomed to Un-
timely End When it
Reaches House.
Especial 10 Lake County Times).

Especial TO Lake County Times).
indianapolis Ind. Feb. 2.-E. volney
Bingham. the democrat who was de-
clared elected to the state senate from
St. Joseph county, by a plurality Of
twenty -four votes. Will be permitted to
keep his seat It can be announced
from authoritative information that
Thad NJ. Talcott and Republican Coun-
ty Chairman Zimmerman of St. Jo-
seph county have not made a sum
ciently strong case IN the contest
against Bingham.
Tho election committee which has
been hearing the evidences and the ar
guments in this case since the begin
ming of the session. has made no for
NAL report on the matter as yet. None
of the members of the committee re-
publicans nor democrats. will allow
themselves to be quoted But the
statement that Bingham will not be
unseated comes autnorg,atively, any
how. The committee will make its
formal report next week in all prob
ability. 1t Will recommend that Bing-
ham be retained; this will make the
personnel of the senate thirteen demo-
Gratis and thirty-seven republicans.
1T seems that the decision OF the
committee Is based on the general
proposition that the contestant in the
case did not make a strong enough
and a definite enough case. A good
deal of evidence was adduced to show
In a general way that there was some
police investigation at the polls of the
two disputed precincts; also that some
illegal votes were cast in the fifth
precinct of the third ward. But the
evidence was nc. If a character SUIT
ficiently to overturn the presumption in
favor of Binghams election as shown
by the official returns.
Burden of PROOF Too Much.
The evidence was of such a charac-
ter that he who had the burden Of
proof was bound to lose Had it been
the business of Bingham's attorneys to
prove, in a positive way that the cleo
tion was entirely legal. Bingham would
have lost.
Perhaps not quite SO safe, but still
conservative is the prediction that on
next Monday the senate will pass the
$1,000 license bill, and 1T will be sent
over to the house-there to be knitted,
probably
This high license bill passed to en-
grossment in the senate in whirl
this week. Sentiment all one way
When lit was up for the special order
yesterday. however there developed
serious opposition to the measure. and
when the senate adjourned about l
o'clock, 1t was hard to say what the
result would be- A careful canvass
made today. however. tends to prove
that the bill Will pass Tie senate
Those in closest touch with the house
insist that tho house Will kill the bill
and this may be one reason that the
senate IS willing to pass 1t. No real
test has been made of the matter in
the house as yet. however
AS surmised in these dispatches sew
eral days ago. the death Of the In
diana university BILL authorizing that
school to conduct a school of medicine
at indianapolis, carried with it the
death Of tho Purdue bill. asking for
the same privilege. This measure was
defeated in the house yesterday by
vote of SO to 42. bigger majority
against the Purdue bill than against
the Indiana measure.
Reorganization VIII Not Be.
Both measures are still pending in
the senate. What the course will be
here is not known. There IS some
talk Of a revival or the fight there, |
but It does not have the marks OF au-
thoritativeness as yet.
The first bill to fail for the want of
constitutional majority was the bill +
before the house yesterday afternoon. (
looking to the reorganization of the
state board of tax commissioners. /
This bill eliminated tho governor from
the board, added a third commissioners
gave the board some additional pow
ers and increased the salaries Of the
tax commissioners from $4,000 to
S2,50O This was one Of the admfnis-
tration measures. insofar as the fact
that it was recommended by the gov
ernor in his message might make 1t an
administration measure. 1t viii be
brought up again.
The senate finance committee meet
ing last night recommended for pas
sage the bill appropriating SIS 900 for
the erection of monuments to mark the
place of the Indiana companies at
Vicksburg. The committee will re-
port unfavorab1y Kirkman's bill ap-
prepriating $4,000 to reimburse the
I61st Indiana regiment
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