The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1909-04-09

bOqMuu vi prison INDUSTRIES, TO CONSIST
OF representative from the board OF
CO htrol OF each OF the prisons. This
boz lard is to make thorough investi
gfation OF the methods Of employing
Geonvicts In vogue in the prisons of
the several states with a view to re.
porting for adoption by the next Mich
igan legislature a system Of prison
industries best calculated to promote
the interests of the state and the wei.
fare of the convicts and which will
tcompete as little as possible with
free labor and the industries of the
state. The scheme also contemplates
al participation by the convicts In the
proceeds Of their labor, so that they
MAY s6e ensfed to contribute to the
y pe ehaDrc>~~->.j,t> duriro +bo;r
support of their fannie, uiihs 'heir
incarceration. ~.v,---%.
The State Threshermen's association
Is an organization with large mem
bership which Is representative of al!
sections OF the state. 1t held its an
considered numerous matters of in
terest to the craft. The question of
good roads and bridges Is one of great
Importance to the threshermen mas
much as their heavy equipment cuts
quite a figure in the proposition.
Under the existing law the thresher-
men think they catch 1t coming and
going, and they propose to make a
test case of several brought against
members of the association and have
the supreme court pass upon the con-
stitutionality of the enactment which
holds the owner of an equipment
liable for damage done to bridges
without providing that the owner be
compensated for damage done their
equipment by the giving away of de.
fective bridges. II was decided 10
make an assessment upon each mem
Der of the association for the purpose
of creating fund from which to pay
the expense of this litigation.
One of the results of the failure of
the last legislature to assess a suffi-
GENTLY large tax to care for the ap-
preparations made and the general ex-
penses Of the state government is the
declaration of the finance committees
of the legislature that no provision
will be made for erecting new public
buildings of any kind during the en-
suing two years. The various state
institutions will be forced to worry
along with their present equipment in
this respect, Chairman Rice OF the
ways and means committee of the
house is still of the opinion that the
aggregate appropriations of the pres
ent legislature can be kept within &c.,
100000. Others think it will go high
er. All are agreed, however that only
absolute necessities will be provided
for.
1t is proposed to extend the teach
ing Of agriculture, domestic science
and manual training throughout the
state, bill having been introduced
at the instigation of the superintend-
ent Of public instruction providing
that special courses in these lines may
be given in school districts having
population of less than 5000. At
present this can be done only in dis
tricts having a population of 5000 or
more.
The Michigan Millers' association
won victory in the house when that
body passed the Straight bill requir-
ing that every package containing
cereal shall be labeled so as to show
the weight and contents. AS first
agreed to the bill allowed a variation
of per cent in the matter of weight
Before passage this provision was
eliminated, and the bill was amended
so as to make the penalty apply only
to such dealers as knowingly SELF
packages not up to the legal standard.
The supreme court having recently
declared invalid the law authorizing
judges of probate to order the sale Of
an estate as a means Of preserving
such state, Attorney General Bird has
prepared q new bill on this subject
which he is confident will stand the
test. Inasmuch as since the invalid
statute was enacted twelve years ago
many sales have been ordered and
made Hereunder, 1t Is proposed in
the new law to legalize these trans
fers.
Quite a bit of prison legislation is
likely to be enacted during the pres
ent session Of the legislature. In adj
dition to the Clarken anti-contract la
Dor bill above mentioned, 1t is prob.
able that Representative Ogg will sue
coed in having passed his bill abolish
ing certain forms of punishment which
have occasionally been resorted to in
the prisons Of the state.
The Smell bill providing that all
cold storage products, especially eggs,
be so labeled was killed by the SEN
ate committee on public health, which
decided not to report 1t out.
Two bills of more than ordinary in.
terest have been introduced by Sen
ator Foster of Gladwin. One of them
seeks to repeal the law creating the
state forestry reserve and commission
on the ground that the expense Is not
justified by the results attained, and
the other provides for stamp tax af-
fecting deeds and notes, the tax on
deeds to be at the rate of rs cents for