Arizona republican. [volume] (Phoenix, Ariz.) 1890-1930, 1909-03-31
LEGISLATIVE FOX PASS
THE LATEST TO DATE
How Mr.. Roemer's Work Was APP
parently Undone by the Last Anti
Gambling Bill.

Almost every day discovers some
new inconsistency or contradiction in
the statutes of this territory as re-
suit of the operations of the late legis-
lature Many of these Inconsistencies
| can be reconciled by the courts and
many of the coptradictions can be eX-
| planned away but many of them are
| admittedly fatal and all of them are
| embarrassing. A job has plainly been
/ cut out for another code commission
Another ridiculous but perhaps
| harmless mistake has just come to
light in the bill designed to relax the
rigors of the first anti-gambling bill
| passed at the late session. In the re-
pealing clause of the last and modify
| ing bill special mention is. made Of
/ Act No. So" which is hereby re-
pealed." The legislature had no idea
what Act No. So was. but had in mind
House Bill No. So" the Duffy anti
gambling bill
The records of the bills are lost sight
of when they come to be entered
among the laws so that they are never
again known by their original num-
bers. Therefore it would be a strange
coincidence if the number of the act
should be the same as the number Of
the bill.
Now. in the words of the last anti
gambling act it does not repeal the
former anti-gambling act as was in
tended, but steve Roemers theatrical
license bill over which he spent a great
deal Of time and sweat a great deaf
Of blood.
If Mr.. Roemer had been a member Of
the Legislature he would probably have
detected this error in time for he has
had a great deal Of experience in such
matters. But Mr.. ROemer was only an
active member Of the third house"
and was interested in great many
measures. He was concerned only in
getting votes for or against them and
not in their form He supposed that
the Legislature would attend to those
little details.
Mr.. ROemer was here TO prevent the
removal Of the reform school from
Benson; to see that the express com
panies did not get the worst Of il in
the way Of legislation; to hold the
prohibitionists in check and in fact in
the course Of his stay his aid was en-
listed in support of or in opposition to
a great many bills for he is a most
accomplished lobbyist.
But Mr. Roemer had a patriotic in
terest In the bill which became Act
No So" one Of his ambitions was to
make Benson a dramatic center which
ii could never become under the then
10 .F
theatrical companies felt that they
could not afford to stop az Benson.
Thus Benson was deprived of the taste
Of Thespian cream and had to be con-
tent with such skinned milk as
Uncle Toms Cabin even whose
bloodhounds were not always genuine
Mr.. Roemer therefore set out to Sc
cure a system Of graded licenses which
would attract the best and the great
est To Benson. and when his bill was
finally passed he could see himself
sitting triumphantly in the front row
at a SalOmc performance with the
stage lights caroming off his cleaning
and noble forehead which extends from
his eyebrows to the back Of his neck.
Then along came this second anti
gambling bill and apparently undid all
that he had accomplished in the way
Of high art for Benson. But the courts
will probably come to the aid of Ben
son for the courts are given some lat
itude in the construction of laws II
is only necessary for them to know
what the legislature was trying to do
| In most instances in the case Of the
| Twenty-flfth the courts would be hard
! put to ii To guess what the Legislators
/ had in mind but in this instance it was
plainly not the object Of the legisla-
turc To repeal the theatrical license
bill by means of an anti gambling bill