The Norfolk weekly news-journal. (Norfolk, Neb.) 1900-19??, 1909-09-24

portance to the state generally.
The legislation cost the taxpayers
of the state a round one hundred
thousand dollars, that being the
amount of the appropriation for leg
| islative salaries and expenses for the
session, or an average of Sl,666 fol
every day the Legislation was in ses
sion and an average of $500 for each
law enacted good, bad or Indifferent,
This is the return apparently, that
the people of Nebraska received fol
the hundred thousand dollars spent
on the democratic legislature.
But what did they actually receive
That is another story"
Results have proven that the demo
cratic party as an organization was
so incompetent that a considerable
portion of the legislation enacted at
cost of nearly seventeen hundred
dollars day of the taxpayers money
has been found fatally defective in the
courts, Is shown to be contrary to con
stitutional provisions and Is in con
sequence null and void. Suit after
suit has followed to annul the careless
and unconstitutional acts of the demo
cratic legislature, the latest one being
brought to court by Judge j. j. Sui
! Ivan, himself democratic candidate
for supreme Judge, to defeat the oc
! cupation tax placed on corporations
by the legislature.
The first litigation growing out OF
the late session of the legislature was
| that resulting from an attempt of the
! Joint convention of the Legislature to
use and usurp the functions of the
state canvassing board and to recan'
vass the vote on the constitutional
amendments, certify the same to the
governor, have him make his procla
nation declaring the amendments car
ried, and then appoint four judges OF
the supreme court, all of which duties
had been performed according to law
| by the state canvassing board and
the governor long before the legisla
styled State ex rel. Oldham v. Dean
121 N. w. 719, resulting in a decision
in favor of the action of the state
canvassing board and Governor Shell
don in canvassing the vote and the
appointment by Governor Sheldon OF
the judges of the supreme court.
Another suit was State eX rel. Ra
gan V. Junkin, attacking the constitu
! tionality of the so-called Donohoe non
partisan educational and judicial cleo.
ton law. This suit resulted in a hold
ing by the court that the act Of the
| Legislature was unconstitutional. The
courts opinion was rendered August
1S, 1909.
The next law assailed was the act
entitled, can act to amend sections
one % and twenty-five (22) of sub
i division thirteen Q3), chapter sew.
enty-nine (79) of the compiled Stat
utes of Nebraska for 1907, and to re-
peal the said original sections as they
now exist and to provide for an emer.
gency." The real purpose of this act
was to remove from Office the present
member of the state board of educa
ton and to authorize the democratic
governor to appoint new board. The
constitutionality of this act is in ques.
J tion in suit entitled State ex rel
Thompson V. Majors ct al.
Another act passed by the legisla.
ture and which is assailed in the
courts as unconstitutional is the bank
guaranty" act. The suit was com.
menced in the federal court and tenn
porary injunction has been issued, re-
straining the enforcement of the law
until final order of the court.
Another act passed by the legisla.
ture, the constitutionality of which is
! challenger in the courts, is the act
I taxing corporations. This suit was
commenced in the district court and
will soon be submitted on demurrer
Perhaps one of the most insipid
acts of the late legislature is chapter
SO of the Session Laws of 1909. This
bill as originally drawn and intro
duced by Senator Randall, fixed proper
penalties against railroads and rail
road officials for failure to enforce
, the same. The committee to whom
the bill was referred removed all the
penalties provided for in the bill
/ Whenever tested with responsibility
against the railroads and their of
ficials affected thereby, and rendered
the act of apparently no vital effect
Another act of the late legislature
which has been rendered impossible
of enforcement, is House Roll 1858
relative to the charge of transporta
! ton for residium fuel oil or fuel pc
troleum, by reason of errors which
crept into the enrolled bill through
the incompetency of the engrossine
or enrolling clerks in failing to enroll
the amendments made thereto by the
senate.
Even some of the "pie-counter" bills
intended to make jobs for democrats
on the public payroll were so faulty
that the democratic politicians have
not attempted to exercise authority un
der them and "claim the jobs"-notab
, ly the new law giving the appointment
of the secretary of the printing board
to the democratic governor-a law
that was passed expressly for the ben
eft of a democratic member of the
late lamented legislature who was Ic
"haye the iOb"