The Wenatchee daily world. [volume] (Wenatchee, Wash.) 1905-1971, 1909-03-15
olympia CORRESPONDENT
TELLS OF FRAME-UPS MADE
TO SECURE VARIOUS AppRO.
PRIATIONS OF THE STATE.

Wenatchee people know that the
Wenatchee bridge bill passed. 1t is
known that the bill had no trouble
in passing the senate but it was held
in the house committee AMI fears
were entertained that the bill would
be buried there. 1t was finally res
directed, thanks to the untiring
work of the Chelan county represea-
tative, and passed. The governor
signed the bill, and it is now a law.
The following is little inside his
tory on the bridge bill legislation
and is from an Associated Press cor
respondent:
Olympia, March 15.-The eleventh
session of the Washington legislature
has gone down into history as the
most extravagant in the annals of
the state. The omnibus appropria-
tions made two years ago by $1,47S,-
900, and state officers and institu-
lions received nearly everything
which they asked. In addition de-
ficiency bills amounting to SAL
349.61 were passed. % Old state debts
which were refused by other legis1a-
lures were paid during the present
session Chief among these is $780,
600 for the payment of the Cheney
and Whatcom normal school war;
rants, which were issued fourteen
years ago.
To tell the story of the passing of
these appropriation bills is to recite
tale of series of combinations and
frame ups" that were begun when
the legislature convened Nearly
every member in the house traded
his vote to secure money for his dis
trict or for appropriations which
would affect his constituents. All of
the tie-ups centered around the pass
ing of five bills, consisting of the
Wenatchee bridge bill, 100000; the
Columbia river improvement bill,
$4,000; the Stuck river drift bar
rier bill, $4,000: the appropriation
of 100000. for the entertainment of
the National Irrigation Congress at
Spokane next summer ana the ap-
preparation of $25O,000 of Lake
Washington shore land funds for the
building up of ship canal Aetween
Lake Union and Puget Sound. 1t
became apparent early in the ses-
sion that the men behind these meas
ures held the balance of power and
to them flocked the little fellows"
who wanted small appropriations for
their districts.
The tie-up plan was aided by the
methods which were adopted soon
after the opening of the session in
the house appropriations committee,
where it was agreed that all appro-
priations bills should be held in
committee until the omnibus bill was
reported and passed. This was in
tended to prevent trading but had
the opposite effect. AS the end Of
the session approached and the ON
nibus bill was still matter of dis
cussion it became apparent that the
bills would have to be called from
committee by two-thirds of the
house.
no hn
bill should be first, the Wenatchee
bill second, the Stuck river bill
third, the Columbia river bill fourth
and the canal appropriation fifth on
tn list of appropriations to be called
out An opportunity for turning the
trick did not arrive until the last
week of the session, and then on
Monday evening, during the time OF
waiting, the combination made an
inner ring The Wenatchee bridge
bill and the Lake Washington canal
bill were selected for slaughter. The
Spokane, Columbia and Stuck river
men agreed that in the night session
Monday they would get their bills
out of committee, pass them and adj
) journ Then during the next day
session, after getting the Seattle and
Wenatchee bridge votes they would
protest against the latter named bills
and declare them to be a $500, 900
steal from the public treasury.
The line of argument was to be
that the Wenatchee bridge scheme
was an attempt on the part of a cor
poration to unload a white elephant
on the state. 1t was to have been
argued that no vouchers of expense
of building the bridge had been filed
with the legislature, that the bridge
for years would only benefit the peo-
pie of the Wenatchee valley. The